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Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Free and Bargain Book Roundup

As Valentine's Day approaches, HarperCollins is giving you the gift of 99 cent novels, many of which have love or Valentine's a theme, but enough of which don't to pique most anyone's interest. I'm also including a few at the end that are only on sale in Canada or the UK.

Sacrifice ($0.99), by Dakota Banks, joins Dark Time (also $0.99), in the Mortal Path series.
Dark Time
Three hundred years ago, she sold her soul to a demon. Now she wants it back.

For centuries, the woman calling herself Maliha Crayne has lived a second life—as an assassin for the malevolent creature who owns her soul. A haunted killer with the blood of countless victims on her hands, she has finally discovered a way to nullify the demonic pact that chains her: If she saves a life for every one she has taken, she will be free.

But if she fails, her punishments will be unspeakable, unendurable . . . and neverending.

Sacrifice
A demon's enslaved executioner—a ravager of lives and souls—Maliha Crayne has been reborn, willing to sacrifice her immortality for a chance at freedom . . . and salvation. Now she has an opportunity to prevent the death of thousands—perhaps tens of thousands—to make up for the countless lives she has obliterated over the centuries. To do so, she must locate and destroy an evil cabal of madmen in possession of a weapon of unspeakable power—and survive the immortal assassins who are now after her blood. But it means reverting to the old ways and surrendering once more to the darkness. And if Maliha dies before the mission is accomplished, the hell she once knew will seem like a picnic compared to the eternal torments awaiting her.

Very Valentine: A Novel ($0.99), by Adriana Trigiani
Book Description
The Angelini Shoe Company, one of the last family-owned businesses in Greenwich Village, has been making exquisite wedding shoes since 1903 but now teeters on the brink of financial collapse. To save their business from ruin, thirty-three-year-old Valentine Roncalli—apprentice to and granddaughter of master artisan Teodora Angelini—must bring the family's old-world craftsmanship into the twenty-first century. Juggling her budding romance with dashing chef Roman Falconi, her duty to her family, and a design challenge presented by a prestigious department store, Valentine returns to Italy with her grandmother in a quest to build a pair of glorious shoes to beat their rivals. And in the course of discovering her true artistic voice and so much more in la bella Italia, Valentine will be turning her life and the business upside down in ways she never expected.

Jordan Dane's entire No One trilogy is on sale for 99 cents each: No One Heard Her Scream, No One Left To Tell and No One Lives Forever
No One Heard Her Scream
Burdened by Grief, She Hunts a Killer
They never found her sister's body, but Detective Rebecca Montgomery knows her murderer is still out there. In the five months since Danielle went missing, there have been two more brutal abductions. A savage menace stalks the women of San Antonio, and the relentless detective will do anything to find him.

And a Seductive Stranger Shadows Her Every Move
But her latest case—the discovery of a young woman's remains inside the wall of a burned-down theater—plunges Rebecca from her grief into a brand-new nightmare. She soon meets handsome, mysterious Diego Galvan at the crime scene, and his shadowy connections will lead to her first break in both cases. But when Rebecca submits to his considerable powers of seduction, she will leave herself vulnerable to a merciless killer . . . and when he attacks, no one will hear her scream.

No One Left To Tell
A Dark Message
The body of a brutally slain man is found on the holy grounds of a chapel, and a cryptic message pinned to his chest unravels the lives of people touched by a dark secret. Detective Raven Mackenzie and her partner uncover the dead man's connection to a powerful female crime boss, leading them to her mysterious head of security, Christian Delacorte, who soon becomes the prime suspect.

Triggers His Nightmares
Yet when Raven sifts through Christian's past, she discovers the man is plagued by deeply rooted nightmares—and a shadowy childhood tragedy linking him to the case. Convinced his past holds the key to finding the real killer, she defies her partner, following her gut instincts and trusting her undeniable bond with Christian.

And Arouses a Killer
But Raven shares her own date with destiny when she crosses paths with a heartless killer. And when he unleashes his rage, there will be no one left to tell.

No One Lives Forever
Nothing Is What It Seems
Born to a childhood pitted by violence, Christian Delacorte is desperate for peace when he embarks on a new life with the woman he loves, Detective Raven Mackenzie. But soon his old life comes calling—in the tempting form of a mysterious woman assassin.

When a Deadly Seductress Comes Calling
Jasmine Lee is determined to collect an old marker from Christian. He owes her—big time—and she needs his help freeing her kidnapped lover, Nicholas Charboneau—a powerful mogul linked to Chicago's underworld. Christian doesn't trust her, but Jasmine entices him to leave Raven behind when she reveals his shocking connection to Charboneau.

And a Lethal Race Against Time Begins
Christian has seven days to attempt an impossible rescue of the father he never knew. And when a woman assassin with ulterior motives makes a lousy ally, Christian is alone to face the stark reality that no one lives forever . . . and he might be the next to die.

Fat, Broke & Lonely No More ($0.99), by Victoria Moran
Book Description
Do you ever obsess about whether to order dessert, buy those pricey sandals, or be totally honest on a third date?

If so, then you are already acquainted with the fear of being fat, broke & lonely. If only we could eat less, get paid better, and be more outgoing.

Only it's not that simple. Our endless quest to be fit, flush, and partnered (no matter where we fall on the scale) inevitably makes us feel fat, broke & lonely. The symptoms are anxiety, shame, and fear, and the diagnosis is feeling miserable about ourselves. We have two choices: give up, convinced that this is just a lifelong, losing battle, or go toe-to-toe with our negative self-image and take back our lives.

Real-life anecdotes, practical strategies, and a touch of sass make this revolutionary five-step plan a must-read. First, Moran helps us discover the root of the symptoms. Then we learn how to break up with fat, broke & lonely for good. And finally, we learn how to hook up with the life of our dreams—and who doesn't want that?

Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M.: Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and The Dawn of the Modern Woman (P.S.) ($0.99), by Sam Wasson
Book Description
Audrey Hepburn is an icon like no other, yet the image many of us have of Audrey—dainty, immaculate—is anything but true to life. Here, for the first time, Sam Wasson presents the woman behind the little black dress that rocked the nation in 1961. The first complete account of the making of Breakfast at Tiffany's, Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M. reveals little-known facts about the cinema classic: Truman Capote desperately wanted Marilyn Monroe for the leading role; director Blake Edwards filmed multiple endings; Hepburn herself felt very conflicted about balancing the roles of mother and movie star. With a colorful cast of characters including Truman Capote, Edith Head, Givenchy, "Moon River" composer Henry Mancini, and, of course, Hepburn herself, Wasson immerses us in the America of the late fifties before Woodstock and birth control, when a not-so-virginal girl by the name of Holly Golightly raised eyebrows across the country, changing fashion, film, and sex for good. Indeed, cultural touchstones like Sex and the City owe a debt of gratitude to Breakfast at Tiffany's.

In this meticulously researched gem of a book, Wasson delivers us from the penthouses of the Upper East Side to the pools of Beverly Hills, presenting Breakfast at Tiffany's as we have never seen it before—through the eyes of those who made it. Written with delicious prose and considerable wit, Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M. shines new light on a beloved film and its incomparable star.

Warriors #1: Into the Wild ($0.99), by Erin Hunter (for those who missed it free last month)
Book Description
Fire alone can save our Clan...

For generations, four Clans of wild cats have shared the forest according to the laws laid down by the powerful ancestors. But the warrior code is threatened, and the ThunderClan cats are in grave danger. The sinister ShadowClan grows stronger every day. Noble warriors are dying -- and some deaths are more mysterious than others.

In the midst of this turmoil appears an ordinary housecat named Rusty . . . Who may yet turn out to be the bravest warrior of them all.

And Then He Kissed Her ($0.99), by Laura Lee Guhrke (who's self-published Conor's Way is also 99 cents)
Book Description
An expert in etiquette, Emma takes her pristine reputation most seriously.

But the devilish Lord Marlowe is determined to prove that some rules of proper behavior are made to be broken . . .

Opposites Attract: How to Use the Secrets of Personality Type to Create a Love That Lasts ($0.99), by Renee Baron
Book Description
  • Does your partner want to go out on Friday nights when you prefer to curl up at home with a movie?
  • Does your neat-freak boyfriend always want to clean up your cluttered office?
  • Does your wife want to plan trips six months in advance while you're a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of person?
The truth is, opposites attract. People who are different from each other in fundamental ways often catch each other's attention. We are attracted to the very qualities we wish we had ourselves. A shy person looks for a mate who is outgoing and gregarious to provide a social circle, and the outgoing person may need to be with someone who won't compete with him for attention. It seems like the perfect match—that is, until those very differences that originally attracted us start to drive us crazy.

But these differences don't have to drive couples apart. Renee Baron, a marriage and family therapist with more than twenty-five years of experience, uses the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator™ to provide a practical program for learning to appreciate our differences, rather than fight over them. The MBTI™ is the most widely used personality indicator in the world. By discovering your innate personality preferences and those of your partner, you can stop having the same fights over and over again and start appreciating the gifts each of you offers to the relationship.

Great Philosophers Who Failed at Love ($0.99), by Andrew Shaffer
Book Description
Few people have failed at love as spectacularly as the great philosophers. Although we admire their wisdom, history is littered with the romantic failures of the most sensible men and women of every age, including:
  • Friedrich Nietzsche: "Ah, women. They make the highs higher and the lows more frequent." (Rejected by everyone he proposed to, even when he kept asking and asking.)
  • Jean-Paul Sartre: "There are of course ugly women, but I prefer those who are pretty." (Adopted his mistress as his daughter.)
  • Louis Althusser: "The trouble is there are bodies and, worse still, sexual organs." (Accidentally strangled his wife to death.)
And dozens of other great thinkers whose words we revere—but whose romantic decisions we should avoid at all costs.

Forgive for Love ($0.99), by Frederic Luskin
Book Description
Finding the love of your life and holding onto that relationship is more difficult than ever. The problem hasn't gone unnoticed. From relationship therapists to speed-dating, self-help books to online matchmaking, an entire industry has developed to help us navigate the bumpy road of relationships. Yet in spite of the availability of all these resources, many of us still struggle to discover and keep the love of our lives. That is, until now.

This groundbreaking book from the frontiers of psychology offers startling new research about the one missing factor that is vital to relationships—forgiveness. A national bestselling author and leading expert on forgiveness, Dr. Fred Luskin shows that no matter how much two people may love each other, their relationship will not succeed unless they practice forgiveness—an approach that most relationship experts continue to ignore.

Why is forgiveness an essential tool for relationships? Studies reveal that 70 percent for what we argue about at the beginning of our relationships will never be fully resolved. In other words, our basic needs and behaviors don't change over time. The issues are endless: the socks that always end up on the floor, how often to have sex, the ESPN obsession, working hours, and, of course, friends and family. Without forgiveness, these issues, however big or small, too easily turn into relationship-eroding grudges.

Forgive for Love is the solution for your relationship woes, providing the tools you need to find and hold onto the love of your life. Dr. Luskin delivers a proven seven-step program for creating and maintaining loving and lasting relationships, teaching easy-to-learn forgiveness skills that will not only resolve immediate conflicts but improve the overall happiness and longevity of your relationships. Simply put: people in healthy relationships figure out how to forgive their partners for being themselves. They do so because it is nearly impossible to change other people and because none of us are perfect. Forgiveness is the key, and Forgive for Love has the answers.

Six-Word Memoirs on Love and Heartbreak ($0.99), by Larry Smith and Rachel Fershleiser
Book Description
Love wounds the heart and soul . . .

From the editors of the New York Times bestseller Not Quite What I Was Planning comes another collection of terse true tales—this time simple sagas exploring the complexities of the human heart. Six-Word Memoirs on Love & Heartbreak contains hundreds of personal stories about the pinnacles and pitfalls of romance. Brilliant in their brevity, these insightful slivers of passion, pain, and connection capture every shade of love and loss—six words at a time.

The Kosher Sutra: Eight Sacred Secrets for Reigniting Desire and Restoring Passion for Life ($0.99) and Renewal: A Guide to the Values-Filled Life ($1.26; Basic Books), by Rabbi Shmuley Boteach
The Kosher Sutra
The New York Times bestselling author Rabbi Shmuley Boteach shares the secrets to restoring the fire and energy in the bedroom and to everyday life.

America has a contradictory relationship with sex. Sex is everywhere—advertisements, the Internet, magazines, and television—yet one third of all marriages in America are utterly sexless. Our over-exposure to sex has diluted the most powerful form of intimacy to such an extent that most couples have forgotten what passion feels like. In The Kosher Sutra, Shmuley Boteach, the New York Times bestselling author, delivers a much-needed guide to reigniting desire in our relationships while at the same time creating renewed energy in every aspect of our lives.

Boteach's Eight Secrets are the key to reawakening our dormant desires and releasing ourselves from the complacency that has taken hold of far too many of us. Honed from decades of counseling experience, the Secrets range from the role of innocence in physical attraction, to why we always want what we can't have, to urging couples to practice reckless abandon in the bedroom. With his trademark frank and conversational style, Boteach offers practical advice as well as sage guidance through stories of real-life struggles and triumphs of couples who he has counseled throughout his career.

Boredom has ruined too many relationships and The Kosher Sutra provides all the tools necessary to restore the fire, power, and energy back into the bedroom and everyday life.

Renewal
Our culture is showing the cracks of a growing fracture. Soaring divorce rates; a crippled economy that rewards the few and punishes the many; religious-fueled hatred; record rates of depression—the headlines paint a grim picture. We inhabit a society that desperately needs fixing. But as Rabbi Shmuley Boteach reveals in his new book, Renewal, our society can made whole again when we as individuals make the choice to live a life based on values.

For too long, conversations about values have been derailed by political movements trying to score points over hot-button issues like gay marriage or abortion. Boteach, one of our wisest and most respected counselors and spiritual experts, reaches deep into our history and into our shared religious legacy to revive the key universal values of Judaism for our struggling world. He presents these age-old ideas as guideposts for the challenges of modern times. These values, whose roots are in the Bible and thousands of years of Jewish spiritual living, can be applied to anyone in the modern world—from Christians and Muslims to atheists and agnostics—who want to renew their existence and recommit themselves to the most precious things in life.

Renewal shows everyone how to use the timeless values of the Hebrew Bible and Judaism to live a more fulfilling, modern life.

For Your Arms Only ($0.99), by Caroline Linden
Book Description
He'd never been shot by a woman . . .

He was once a distinguished army officer, a man of honor and heroism. But that was before Alexander Hayes was wrongly accused of treason. Forced to abandon everything he held dear, Alec became a spy for England in an attempt to clear his name. His latest commission sounds simple: locate a retired soldier gone missing. But it also sends him back home, to a family who'd thought him deadfor five years—and a woman who'd like to shoot him.

Everything Cressida Turner's ever heard about Alec tells her that he's a traitor of the worst kind, and yet this enigmatic, infuriating, and utterly captivating man may be the only person she can trust—and the only one who can find her missing father. With nowhere else to turn, she reluctantly joins forces with Alec, unprepared for both the dangerous secrets that threaten them and the relentless passion that drives them into each other's arms.

Cloaked with Bonus Materials ($0.99), by Alex Flinn, is now available for those who don't do pre-orders. For some reason, it isn't linked to the main edition, where you'll find lots of good reviews.
Book Description
Happily ever after gets turned upside down in Cloaked, a fantasy by #1 New York Times bestselling author Alex Flinn that combines several classic fairy tales and spins them with a modern twist! Bonus content includes a sneak peek at the upcoming Bewitching. Kendra Hilferty, the witch that curses Kyle Kingsbury in Beastly, tells about her immortal existence—how she discovered she was a witch and the various ways she has used her powers to help people (unfortunately her attempts have often backfired!).

Cloaked welcomes readers to sunny South Beach, Florida. Too bad Johnny is stuck in the Coral Reef Grand repairing shoes. At least he can spend some time designing his own. But nothing ever happens at the Coral Reef Grand! That is, until the beautiful Princess Victoriana comes to stay. Johnny gets more than just a little eye candy when Victoriana invites him to her suite—he gets dragged into a quest for frog prince! Set loose in the Florida Keys with a magical cloak and earpiece, Johnny enlists the help of a fox named Todd. But will spells—and giants—deter his search for the frog prince? And will Johnny even want Victoriana’s promised reward?

Still in My Heart (Ryland Brothers) ($0.99), by Kathryn Smith
Book Description
Brahm Ryland is a man used to getting everything he desires...

Another London season has just wound down and Brahm Ryland, Viscount Creed, is thankful for it. Since a horrible mistake ruined his betrothal to the beautiful Lady Eleanor Durbane, his life as a scandalous bachelor has grown tedious; every day without Eleanor seems longer than the last. But then a break in the monotony appears: an invitation to a shooting party at the home of Lord Burrough, Eleanor's father, and he knows his chance to make amends has come at last.

Yet Brahm soon finds that Eleanor will need more than a simple apology to atone for his betrayal -- and after so many years of hurt it will take time and care to make her learn to trust again. When all her sisters warn her against him, she knows she would be a fool to give their passion another chance. But what Eleanor doesn't know is that London's boldest viscount will do anything -- anything -- it takes for a second chance at his one true love ...

Shadowmagic ($0.99), by John Lenahan, is on sale once again; I reviewed this one last June.
Book Description
A Lord of the Rings for the 21st century. Only a lot shorter. And funnier. And completely different.

Conor thought he was an average teenager. OK, so his father only had one hand, spoke to him in ancient languages and was a bit on the eccentric side but, other than that, life was fairly normal. Until, that is, two Celtic warriors on horseback and wearing full armour appear at his front door and try to kill him. After that, things get pretty weird.

Shadowmagic is a fantasy adventure for young adults (although grown ups will like it too). Written by one of the most popular magicians in the country it brings a fresh approach to the genre and will have a broad appeal beyond the fantasy sections.

Love and Kisses ($0.79/£0.49 UK only), by Jean Ure
Book Description
A fun and feisty new novel from master storyteller Jean Ure – with a gorgeous new cover look to appeal to all girls who love real-life stories.Thirteen-year-old Tamsin has never had a boyfriend, and she's starting to feel left behind. Even her ten-year-old sister has a boyfriend, so surely it must be her turn soon! When Tamsin meets Alex, she just can't stop thinking about him, and she’s thrilled when he asks her out on a date. But he’s sixteen and has already left school. Before she knows it, Tamsin is lying about her age and going behind her parents back… but for how long can she keep up the pretence?

A charming story about the innocence of first love – and learning to do the right thing.

Third Pig Detective Agency - The Ho Ho Ho Mystery ($1.14 Canada; $2.18 Australia; $0.79/£0.49 UK), by Bob Burke; the earlier title in the series, The Third Pig Detective Agency, is also on sale, at $1.99 US, $1.14 Canada, $1.60 UK, $2.18 Australia.
Book Description
The festive follow-up to The Third Pig Detective Agency.

AT A SPECIAL LOW PRICE NOW THAT THE FESTIVE SEASON HAS BEEN AND GONE!

When Father Christmas goes missing on Christmas Eve eve, Mrs Christmas calls on our intrepid hero Harry Pigg to track him down.

What follows is another hardboiled caper featuring fairy tale villains, plenty of red herrings, a few close shaves, a couple of punch ups and a very clever twist.

Aided and abetted by his sidekicks Jack Horner and the genie from the lamp, Harry tries to save Christmas before time runs out.

If only he didn’t have to deal with those bloody annoying elves.

364 Days of Tedium: or What Santa Gets up to on his Days Off ($1.14 Canada; $0.79/£0.49 UK), by Dave Cornmell, is a collection of comics that should look good on the Kindle Fire (and definitely on an iPad or larger Android tablet).
Book Description
Ever wondered what Santa gets up to the rest of the year?You’ll wish you hadn’t!

AT A SPECIAL LOW PRICE NOW THAT THE FESTIVE SEASON HAS BEEN AND GONE!

For 364 days of the year Santa has bugger all to do.The elves do all the manual labour and these days he orders all the presents online. All he has to do is deliver them.

So, for the rest of the time he is bored out of his tiny mind.Dave Cornmell’s brilliant and inspired comic strip is an irreverent and incredibly rude look at Santa’s real life featuring an hilarious cast of characters including Mrs Claus, the elves, reindeer, a variety of arctic wildlife, Santa’s bath toys and some maggots.

Find our where Santa goes on holiday, what he does with his bin bags, what he watches on telly, how he copes when his wife goes away and whether or not the rumours are true about him and Vixen.

Whatever your idealised image of Santa may be, the truth is that he’s just a bored fat bloke who hates his job. Get used to it.

Air Battle Force (Patrick McLanahan #11) ($1.13 Canadians only), by Dale Brown
Book Description
In military circles it's known as Air Battle Force -- an air combat unit of the future, under the command of aerialwarfare expert Major General Patrick McLanahan,capable of launching stealthy, precision-guidedfirepower to anywhere on the globe within hours. And now McLanahan and his warriors have their first target.

Driven from Afghanistan, the parasitic forces of the deposed Taliban regime have decided to feed on a new host -- an isolated, oil-rich Central Asian neighbor that's ripe for the conquering. The battle for control of the world's largest oil deposits has begun, with unsteady alliances forming and opposing forces set to collide. And now a handful of American commandos half a world away, aided by McLanahan's unproven robotic warplanes, will have to triumph against overwhelming numbers in a war that nobody -- including "friendly" forces at home -- wants them to win.

Today's backlist/small press/indie free books on Kindle (not likely to be free for long; double check prices before one-clicking):
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