Free App/Book - Even Monsters Get Sick

Even Monsters Get Sick, by Busy Bee Studios, is free Amazon App Store and from Barnes & Noble.

Book Description
Kids read, listen, touch, play and interact with Harry as he struggles to find out what’s wrong with his new monster. Beautiful art, a custom soundtrack and full interactivity throughout keeps kids engaged and keeps parents raving about both the learning aspects and the endearing message built into “Even Monsters Get Sick.”

Readers and non-readers of all skill levels will enjoy the wide range of features in this interactive storybook.

Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!

That's right, it's cat in the floppy hat's birthday (or, his creator, technically) and Oceanhouse Media has three dozen Dr. Seuss apps on sale 30-75% OFF this week only (ends March 7)! In addition to getting The Cat in the Hat (Kindle,iTunes) for 99 cents (down from $4), if you are getting the apps on iTunes (and they have a few exclusives), be sure to also get the Dr. Seuss Bookshelf for free (iPad only).

I know it's early to be thinking about Christmas, but now's your chance to get How The Grinch Stole Christmas! or your childhood favorites (Green Eggs and Ham anyone?) at near half-price (or even less). Those on a nook Tablet will need to search the store from there, but you should be able to test drive the apps for free (according to emails I've received from B&N, anyway), which is something Amazon doesn't have and on iTunes is only available with "lite" version of apps (which then clog up your account and devices).

If you have an iPad or iPhone, do be sure to pick up the free download of Dr. Seuss Camera - The Cat in the Hat Edition from iTunes.

Take pictures with Cat in the Hat characters or choose to become the Cat in the Hat, the playful Things or even Sally or her brother. Personalize cards with comical and colorful stamps, borders and classic Seussian text. Cat in the Hat Cards can be e-mailed to friends & family or saved to the Photo Library.

$2 Credit on Apps and Games (KSO)

This offer is only for those with a Kindle Fire with Special Offers (KFSO):

$2 Credit on Apps and Games in the Amazon Appstore

From the home page of your KFSO, swipe the top menu to the left until you see Offers, then press/click in order to see the current offers. Click on the offer, then on the orange button to add the credit directly to your account. It's nearly instant and the next screen offers to take you to Amazon so you can spend that credit away! If you miss that screen, though, don't worry - a document about the offer will appear on your home page.

You can shop from your Kindle Fire or your PC, but you need to check for any individual product that is excluded from this (and all other) promotions, on the product detail page and I don't know if you can see that info on the mobile pages you get on the Fire itself. You must sign up by Midnight January 1, 2013 and use the credit by midnight, Jan 8.

You might as well apply this one to your account right away, since it will apply automatically to any eligible purchase.

This deal drops the cost of premium games such as Angry Birds Star Wars Premium HD or PAC-MAN HD down to 99 cents or is enough pick up a one or two of games such as Skylanders Cloud Patrol or Pudding Monsters HD, at no charge. Always check the compatibility before buying, to make sure it will run on the device you intend to use and don't assume anything from the name (that last one has HD in the name, but works on every device I have, including my phone; others I've seen with HD in the name won't work at all on the Kindle Fire HD devices). To make your credit go the furthest, check out some of the sale games on the New Releases or Bestseller pages, such as Monopoly MILLIONAIRE and Need for Speed Most Wanted for only 99 cents, marked down from $5 and $7! If you are searching for something more educational, for your little ones, Team Umizoomi Math: Zoom into Numbers and several other Nickelodeon games are also 99 cents or less right now.

Good Deals via Google (and Amazon)

There are several good Black Friday deals in the Google Play store, from music to apps/games to books. Music will work on any device (although it's a bit tricky to download them from Google; they would much rather have you upload your music to them than download and play your tunes somewhere else), but games are limited to devices with access to the Google store, which leaves out (unrooted) Kindle Fires and Nook tablets. Their books are in EPUB format, so can be read on the Fire using an app like Aldiko or side-loaded onto your nook devices. Kindle users, though, will find price matches on many of the items on sale -- I just troll thru the Google sale, then bounce back to Amazon's Appstore, MP3 Store or Kindle store and check for a price match on the ones that are interesting. Below, I've highlighted some of the deals I've found.

In the Google Music store, there are three playlists of free MP3's from Antenna, Stone Records and FILTER Magazine. There is no real equivalent at Amazon, which is a shame, since Google forces you to buy one song at a time (about 4-5 clicks and you must have a credit card on file, even for free songs).

On the Android side, you can go thru the complete list of the apps on sale on Google, but you'll definitely want to check out Quickoffice Pro ($0.99 Amazon, Google) and OfficeSuite Professional 6 ($4.99 Amazon, $6.99 Google), to see if they are compatible with your devices. The Full Version Key for DocumentsToGo is also on sale in both stores ($8.99), if you missed getting this free from Amazon last year (which I don't expect to ever repeat, now that so many more Fire devices have been sold). Be sure that the DocumentsToGo Main App is running on your device first, before buying the key. I definitely give the edge to Amazon on this one, as the app runs on all my devices, including my phone, while Google's is limited to my phone and one tablet.

One of the sale items that Amazon didn't price match is My Diet Coach - Pro ($2.99 Amazon, $0.99 Google), which you might want on your phone, anyway, rather than a Kindle device (although if you get in from Amazon, it will work on both). If free is more your style, be sure to check out Nun Attack (Google only), which looks like it might be fun. There are several Gameloft games discounted to 99 cents (usually $6.99), mostly matched at Amazon (who actually has some on sale that aren't on sale at Google), but be sure to check out which ones work on which devices (some at Google are restricted to my phone, while the Kindle version might only work on the 8.9" Fire HD), although at these prices, you can afford to grab both editions:

• BackStab HD
• The Amazing Spider-Man
• N.O.V.A. 3 - Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance
• Gangstar Rio: City of Saints
• Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Shadow Vanguard
• The Adventures of Tintin ($4.99 Kindle, 99 cents Google

I'm also grabbing the Roku Remote app ($0.99 on sale from Google; $2.99 Amazon), to run on a Galaxy Tab that I'm setting up as a universal remote (I hope, anyway -- my existing remote won't do bluetooth and my TV doesn't do IR). Since Amazon's isn't on sale, I'll hold off buying it (although it works with all my devices), unless it drops to 99 cents there, too.

You don't want to miss The Icerigger Trilogy: Icerigger, Mission to Moulokin, and The Deluge Drivers ($2.00 Kindle, Google), by Alan Dean Foster (Open Road) while it's marked down this low.

Book Description
Stranded on a frozen and remote planet, Ethan Frome Fortune searches for a way back to civilization

Icy, desolate, and sharply carved by hurricane-force winds, Tran-ky-ky is a terrible place to crash-land. But a botched kidnapping aboard the interstellar transport Antares sends Ethan Frome Fortune and a handful of his fellow travelers tumbling toward the stormy planet. Stranded and cut off from civilization, the castaways struggle to survive.

In this page-turning trilogy, Fortune confronts vicious predators (even the plants want to make a meal of him) and forges an alliance with a native Tran. As he searches for a way off Tran-ky-ky, he helps the Tran gain admission to the Humanx Commonwealth and learns about their troubled history. Just as Fortune accepts that he’ll never escape the harsh planet and acclimates to its relentless winter, he learns that scientists have detected rising temperatures in the atmosphere. This sinister change leads Fortune to a thrilling and unexpected final adventure.

All Creatures Great and Small, All Things Bright and Beautiful, and All Things Wise and Wonderful: Three James Herriot Classics ($6.00 Kindle, Google), by James Herriot, is only a penny more than the lowest price I've seen for it, when I grabbed it at the end of November, last year.

Book Description
Timeless stories from a country veterinarian about the animals and people that shape life in a sleepy English town

Perhaps better than any other writer, James Herriot reveals the ties that bind us to the natural world. Collected here are three of his masterpieces—All Creatures Great and Small, All Things Bright and Beautiful, and All Things Wise and Wonderful—which have been winning over animal lovers everywhere for almost fifty years. From his night visits to drafty barns during freezing northern England winters, to the beautiful vitality of rural life in the summertime, to the colorful menagerie of animals—and their owners—that pass through his office, Herriot vividly evokes the daily challenges and joys that come with being a veterinarian.

Witty and heartwarming, these classic books also feature an original introduction from the author’s son, Jim Wight, and bonus archival photos courtesy of the Herriot estate.

The Mysteries of Pittsburgh ($3.00 Kindle, Google), by Michael Chabon

Book Description
Chabon’s sensational debut novel: the coming-of-age story of Art Bechstein, a recent graduate whose life is forever changed by one sultry summer

Art Bechstein may be too young to know what he wants to do with his life, but he knows what he doesn’t want: the life of his father, a man who laundered money for the mob. Bechstein spends the summer after his graduation from a Pittsburgh university searching for his future and finding his own sort of trouble with brilliant and seductive new friends—erudite, unscrupulous Arthur Lecomte, mercurial Phlox, and Cleveland, a poetry-reciting biker.

Insightful and energetic, The Mysteries of Pittsburg beautifully renders the hard edges of a blue-collar city and the charm of its local characters.

This ebook features a biography of the author.

Wyoming Fierce ($1.60 Kindle, Google), by Diana Palmer

Book Description
Ranch owner Cane Kirk lost more than his arm in the war. He lost his way, battling his inner demons by challenging any cowboy unfortunate enough to get in his way. No one seems to be able to cool him down, except beautiful Bodie Mays. Bodie doesn't mind saving Cane from himself, even if he is a little too tempting for her own peace of mind.

But soon Bodie's the one who finds herself in need of rescuing—only, she's afraid to tell Cane what's really going on. How can she trust someone as unpredictable as this fierce cowboy? When her silence only ends up getting her into even deeper hot water, it's up to Cane to save the day. And if he does it right, he won't be riding off into the sunset alone.

How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You ($2.00 Kindle, Google), by The Oatmeal

Book Description
Jesus Rollerblading Christ--another helping of TheOatmeal! Mrow, MOAR kitty comics. Mr. Oats delivers a sidesplitting serving of cat comics in his new book, How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You.

If your cat is kneading you, that's not a sign of affection. Your cat is actually checking your internal organs for weakness. If your cat brings you a dead animal, this isn't a gift. It's a warning. How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You is a hilarious, brilliant offering of cat comics, facts, and instructional guides from the creative wonderland at TheOatmeal.com.

How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You presents fan favorites, such as "Cat vs. Internet," "How to Pet a Kitty," and "The Bobcats," plus 17 brand-new, never-before-seen cat jokes. This Oatmeal collection is a must-have from Mr. Oats!

See Google's full list of book deals up to 80% off.

No guarantee on how long the sale will last, but I don't expect it to survive past Monday (if then; Google might bring out a new sale for CyberMonday).

Free App - Hidden Differences: Haunted Mansions

Just in case you aren't spending all your gaming time on the new Angry Birds Star Wars, be sure to pick up the second free Android App for today, Hidden Differences: Haunted Mansions (the first one, Tiny Monsters Deluxe, on the menu sidebar to the right, is still free, too).

App Description
Hidden Differences: Haunted Mansions is a fun, traditional game of Spot the Difference or Photo Hunting where your object is to find all the differences in the various haunted, creepy, and scary mansions!

Explore various venues from around the world, with creepy houses, haunted stairwells, and mysterious clocktowers!

Play 2 different modes of play, either Free Play, or Timed Mode depending on your skill level! Timed Mode lets you rack up the highest score, whereas free play allows infinite time to find all the hidden differences in each photo!

Over 24 Gorgeous Photographs of various Haunting places, mansions, houses, clocktowers, stairwells, and more!

Some differences are easy to find, whereas others may be more difficult - very well balanced play for players of all ages!

Detailed and gorgeous photos along with addictive gameplay make this a must have game for kids and adults!

Curl up on the couch and play solo, or grab a friend and see if you can find all the differences!

Bargain Book Roundup

The 25 cent apps have changed at Google Play - this time there are some cute kid's drawing apps (at least one matched at Amazon), SketchBook Mobile for adults, a kid's storybook, World of Goo and several other interesting looking games (I love Cut the Rope, so grabbed it). Paper Camera looked interesting, but Amazon won't let you install it on a Kindle Fire (Haven't they heard? We have cameras now ... and always had photos to play with).

If you took advantage of Discover's $10 Credit Deal, the credits are now starting to hit accounts (exactly 10 business days after the purchase). You'll get an email from Amazon and the $10 will automatically add to your gift card balance (no need to find and apply a gift card code).

Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye ($0.99), by Horace McCoy, is a price-match to Google's 99 cent book sale.

Book Description
McCoy’s hardboiled noir classic, about an Ivy League graduate’s criminal rampage through the seedy underground and glitzy high society of an unnamed American city

To escape prison, Ralph Cotter uses the same genius for planning and penchant for cold-hearted violence that helped earn him a spot in the slammer in the first place. On the lam in a city where he knows nobody, Cotter has nothing to lose, no conscience to hold him back, and no limit to his twisted ambition. But in the midst of a criminal spree, a grift leads him to the boudoir of wealthy heiress Margaret Dobson, a woman with the power to peel back the rotten layers of his psyche and reveal the damaged soul beneath.

Vicious and thrilling, Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye is a look at one man’s relentless attack on American society, conjuring one of the most memorable antiheros of twentieth-century noir fiction.

This ebook features an extended biography of Horace McCoy.

Essays in Humanism ($0.99), by Albert Einstein, is another price match on an Open Road edition.

Book Description
An inspiring collection of the great thinker’s views on a rapidly changing world

Nuclear proliferation, Zionism, and the global economy are just a few of the insightful and surprisingly prescient topics scientist Albert Einstein discusses in this volume of collected essays from between 1931 and 1950. Written with a clear voice and a thoughtful perspective on the effects of science, economics, and politics in daily life, Einstein’s writings provide an intriguing view inside the mind of a genius addressing the philosophical challenges presented during the turbulence of the Great Depression, the Second World War, and the dawn of the Cold War.

This authorized Philosophical Library ebook features rare photos and never-before-seen documents from the Albert Einstein Archives at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

All three titles in Daniel Parker's Wessex Papers series, for readers grade level 8+, are $2.99 apiece:

Trust Falls

Hey man,

This place is crazy. They (I'm not exactly sure who "they" are, but that oaf of a dorm counselor I told you about is at the top of the list for sure) actually planted chewing tobacco in some kid's bag so that they could expel him. And I thought all I'd have to put up with this year was a bunch of spoiled brats with platinum cards.

James, an evil stench is wafting through the air here at Wessex Academy, and it smells just like a conspiracy.

Gotta go,

Fred

Alumni brat Sunday Winthrop and new student Fred Bushmill's pranks lead to their uncovering a sinister blackmail ring -- one that will stop at nothing to incriminate one of their friends.

Fallout

Dear Charles,

I regret to inform you that I have expelled your son, Noah. This was not a decision that I made lightly. Indeed, it is particularly vexing to me, as you and your family have faithfully supported the Wessex Academy for so many years. Sadly, I had no choice. I don't want to go into the sordid details on paper; suffice it to say that the incident involved one of our female faculty members, and that Noah's behavior was inappropriate in the extreme.

Perhaps some kind of arrangement can be made, although I'm doubtful.

Again, my most sincere regrets.

Yours,
Phillip Olsen,
Headmaster

Sunday and Fred discover more about the sinister conspiracy at Wessex. The blackmailers are getting desperate....and they're willing to turn to murder.

Outsmart

Date: October 23
From: Headmaster Olsen
To: Pearson Ellis
Re: Winslow Ellis

Dear Mr. Ellis:

As you know, I've always held your son in the highest esteem. It pains me to have to inform you of his involvement in various illegal and immoral money-making schemes on the Wessex campus. Details attached.

Winslow is at a critical juncture in his education and can not afford any blemishes on his record. Toward that end, I am offering to overlook his transgressions in exchange for a donation of $300,000 to the enclosed account number.

I trust you will take care of this matter in a timely fashion.

Phillip Olsen
Headmaster

In the satisfying conclusion Sunday and Fred pull off the scam of the century -- and beat the blackmailers at their own game.

Last Bite: A Novel of Culinary Romance ($1.99), by Nancy Verde Barr

Book Description
After ending a bad relationship, Casey Costello, an executive chef at a morning television show, swears off men. Who has the time anyway? She's busy overseeing a rambunctious food-prep crew in a kitchen the size of a closet; trying to please high-maintenance celebrity guest chefs; and dealing with her large extended Italian American family, who believe that the solutions to life's problems involve food. And in the midst of her high-energy, stress-inducing career—punctuated by a steady stream of parties and restaurant openings that must not be missed—she's trying to uncover why Sally Woods, a grand old dame of the culinary world and regular on the television show, is suddenly ready to jump ship and find a new station and a new executive chef.

When Danny O'Shea, a handsome chef from one of New York's hottest new restaurants, makes a guest appearance on the show, Casey smells trouble. But feelings ignite faster than a flambé dessert, especially when Danny whips up a few surprises during a television shoot in Italy.

Narrated in Casey's smart and refreshingly disarming voice, Last Bite is an irresistible culinary caper, with characters whose appetites are as big as their personalities.

Ginseng, the Divine Root: The Curious History of the Plant That Captivated the World ($1.99), by David A. Taylor; it's the time of year when we have to shoo off ginseng hunters on our property (along with deer hunters, one of which our pups flushed out of the wood yesterday), so I may get this one myself.

Book Description
The story behind ginseng is as remarkable as the root itself. Prized for its legendary curative powers, ginseng launched the rise to power of China's last great dynasty; inspired battles between France and England; and sparked a boom in Minnesota comparable to the California Gold Rush. It has made and broken the fortunes of many and has inspired a subculture in rural America unrivaled by any herb in the plant kingdom.

Today ginseng is at the very center of alternative medicine, believed to improve stamina, relieve stress, stimulate the immune system, enhance mental clarity, and restore well-being. It is now being studied by medical researchers for the treatment of cancer, diabetes, and Parkinson's disease.

In Ginseng, the Divine Root, David Taylor tracks the path of this fascinating plant—from the forests east of the Mississippi to the bustling streets of Hong Kong and the remote corners of China. He becomes immersed in a world full of wheelers, dealers, diggers, and stealers, all with a common goal: to hunt down the elusive "Root of Life." Weaving together his intriguing adventures with ginseng's rich history, Taylor uncovers a story of international crime, ancient tradition, botany, herbal medicine, and the vagaries of human nature.

Candyfreak: A Journey through the Chocolate Underbelly of America ($1.99), by Steve Almond (isn't that a great name for a writer of chocolate bars?)

Book Description
Perhaps you remember the whipped splendor of the Choco-Lite, or the luscious Caravelle bar, or maybe the sublime and perfectly balanced Hershey's Cookies 'n Mint. The Marathon, an inimitable rope of caramel covered in chocolate. Oompahs. Bit-O-Choc. The Kit Kat Dark.

Steve Almond certainly does. In fact, he was so obsessed by the inexplicable disappearance of these bars—where'd they go?—that he embarked on a nationwide journey to uncover the truth about the candy business. There, he found an industry ruled by huge conglomerates, where the little guys, the last remaining link to the glorious boom years of the candy bar in America, struggle to survive.

Visiting the candy factories that produce the Twin Bing, the Idaho Spud, the Goo Goo Cluster, the Valomilk, and a dozen other quirky bars, Almond finds that the world of candy is no longer a sweet haven. Today's precious few regional candy makers mount daily battles against corporate greed, paranoia, and that good old American compulsion: crushing the little guy.

Part candy porn, part candy polemic, part social history, part confession, Candyfreak explores the role candy plays in our lives as both source of pleasure and escape from pain. By turns ecstatic, comic, and bittersweet, Candyfreak is the story of how Steve Almond grew up on candy—and how, for better and worse, candy has grown up, too.

Man with a Pan ($1.99), by John Donohue

Book Description
Look who’s making dinner! Twenty-one of our favorite writers and chefs expound upon the joys—and perils—of feeding their families.

Mario Batali’s kids gobble up monkfish liver and foie gras. Peter Kaminsky’s youngest daughter won’t eat anything at all. Mark Bittman reveals the four stages of learning to cook. Stephen King offers tips about what to cook when you don’t feel like cooking. And Jim Harrison shows how good food and wine trump expensive cars and houses.

This book celebrates those who toil behind the stove, trying to nourish and please. Their tales are accompanied by more than sixty family-tested recipes, time-saving tips, and cookbook recommendations, as well as New Yorker cartoons. Plus there are interviews with homestyle heroes from all across America—a fireman in Brooklyn, a football coach in Atlanta, and a bond trader in Los Angeles, among others.

What emerges is a book not just about food but about our changing families. It offers a newfound community for any man who proudly dons an apron and inspiration for those who have yet to pick up the spatula.

Maman's Homesick Pie: A Persian Heart in an American Kitchen ($1.99), by Donia Bijan

Book Description
For Donia Bijan’s family, food has been the language they use to tell their stories and to communicate their love. In 1978, when the Islamic revolution in Iran threatened their safety, they fled to California’s Bay Area, where the familiar flavors of Bijan’s mother’s cooking formed a bridge to the life they left behind. Now, through the prism of food, award-winning chef Donia Bijan unwinds her own story, finding that at the heart of it all is her mother, whose love and support enabled Bijan to realize her dreams.

From the Persian world of her youth to the American life she embraced as a teenager to her years at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris (studying under the infamous Madame Brassart) to apprenticeships in France’s three-star kitchens and finally back to San Francisco, where she opened her own celebrated bistro, Bijan evokes a vibrant kaleidoscope of cultures and cuisines. And she shares thirty inspired recipes from her childhood (Saffron Yogurt Rice with Chicken and Eggplant and Orange Cardamom Cookies), her French training (Ratatouille with Black Olives and Fried Bread and Purple Plum Skillet Tart), and her cooking career (Roast Duck Legs with Dates and Warm Lentil Salad and Rose Petal Ice Cream).

An exhilarating, heartfelt memoir, Maman’s Homesick Pie is also a reminder of the women who encourage us to shine.

52 Loaves ($1.99), by William Alexande

Book Description
William Alexander is determined to bake the perfect loaf of bread. He tasted it long ago, in a restaurant, and has been trying to reproduce it ever since. Without success. Now, on the theory that practice makes perfect, he sets out to bake peasant bread every week until he gets it right. He bakes his loaf from scratch. And because Alexander is nothing if not thorough, he really means from scratch: growing, harvesting, winnowing, threshing, and milling his own wheat.

An original take on the six-thousand-year-old staple of life, 52 Loaves explores the nature of obsession, the meditative quality of ritual, the futility of trying to re-create something perfect, our deep connection to the earth, and the mysterious instinct that makes all of us respond to the aroma of baking bread.

Road Dogs ($2.99), by Elmore Leonard

Book Description
Legendary New York Times bestselling author Elmore Leonard returns with three of his favorite characters: Jack Foley from Out of Sight, Cundo Rey from LaBrava, and Dawn Navarro from Riding the Rap.

Jack Foley, the charming bank robber from Out of Sight, is serving a thirty-year sentence in a Miami penitentiary, but he's made an unlikely friend on the inside who just might be able to do something about that. Fellow inmate Cundo Rey, an extremely wealthy Cuban criminal, arranges for Foley's sentence to be reduced from thirty years to three months, and when Jack is released just two weeks ahead of Cundo, he agrees to wait for him in Venice Beach, California.

Also waiting for Cundo is his common-law wife, Dawn Navarro, a professional psychic with a slightly ulterior motive for staying with Cundo: namely, she wants his money. And with the arrival of Jack, she sees the perfect partner in a plan to relieve Cundo of his fortune. Cundo may be Jack's friend, but does that mean he can trust him? And can either of them trust Dawn?

Road Dogs is Elmore Leonard at his best—with his trademark tight plotting and pitch-perfect dialogue—and readers will love seeing Cundo, Jack, and Dawn back in action and working together . . . or are they?

Bone Worship ($2.99), by Elizabeth Eslami

Book Description
A rich and soul-searching novel about an Iranian-American girl whose enigmatic father has decided to arrange her marriage

Jasmine Fahroodhi’s Iranian father has always fascinated her. With his strange habits and shrouded past, she cannot fathom how he ended up marrying her prim American mother, although lately it seems that love in general is just as incomprehensible.

Failing out of school just shy of graduation after a disastrous romance sends her into a tailspin, a conflicted Jasmine returns home without any idea where her life is headed.

Her father has at least one idea: he has plans for a hastegar, an arranged marriage, between Jasmine and whatever man he sees fit. Confused, furious, yet intrigued, Jasmine meets suitor after suitor with increasingly disastrous, and humorous, results. Only when she begins to open herself up to the mysteries of familial and romantic love does Jasmine discover the truth about her evasive father—and the depths of her own strength—in Elizabeth Eslami’s highly original and striking debut novel.

Arctic Fire ($2.99), by Stephen Frey, is a pre-order from Thomas-Mercer; once it releases, Oct 9, the price will rise (the list shown is $9.99).

Book Description
Troy Jensen could do it all: he conquered the Seven Summits, sailed solo around the world twice, and even fought a bull in a Mexican slum on a dare. So when word comes that a rogue wave has swept Troy off a crab fishing boat in the Bering Sea and into a watery grave, his brother, Jack, doesn’t buy it.

Against his better judgment, Jack decides to quit his job as a Wall Street trader and head to Dutch Harbor, Alaska, to investigate. Minutes after revealing his plan in his father’s New York City office, Jack is nearly run down in the street. He doesn’t think much of it at the time, but as he digs deeper into Troy’s disappearance, Jack unearths information about RED-CELL-SEVEN (RCS), a super-secret American intelligence group that has operated for forty years in almost total secrecy and with complete impunity—and its leaders intend to keep it that way at any cost.

An adrenaline-pumping tale of one man’s descent into a hellish underworld populated by terrorists, assassins, and very bad “good guys,” Arctic Fire explores the disturbing difference between doing what is good and doing what is right when it comes to protecting America from her greatest enemies.

Every Breath She Takes ($3.99), by Norah Wilson, was previously published as Lauren’s Eyes. You can also get the companion audiobook for this one at $4.99.

Book Description
Veterinarian Lauren Townsend has good reason for hiding her psychic ability. Not only did her “freakishness” earn her pariah status in the small town where she grew up, it cost her a fiancé and her faith in love. When Lauren foresees a murder—through the killer’s eyes—she traces the victim to a sprawling ranch, never guessing what waits for her…

Cal Taggart’s rugged ranch life doesn’t need any more complications. His stubborn determination cost him his marriage, and now may cost him his livelihood. But then beautiful Lauren enters his corral…with danger close behind. And Cal wants nothing more than to protect her. They can’t deny their intense attraction. Nor do they want to. What begins as a fling with no strings becomes a fight for survival—and for true love.

Legacy of the Dragon: A Paul Chang Mystery ($1.99), by J. Gregory Smith

Book Description
For former NYPD and Delaware State Police detective Paul Chang, retiring to open his own agency with former partner Nelson Rogers should mean leaving behind politics and scapegoating. Instead, corrupt Colonel Byrd of the state police and his lackey Clyde Foley harass Chang at every turn, and their unwanted attention puts his fledgling business on the brink of bankruptcy.

With the police on his back and the agency taking sleazy cases he never thought he’d have to, Chang erupts under the job’s pressures and sees his personal demon, an alter ego he calls the dragon, emerge. Only the training from his martial arts teacher and old friend Shu can keep Chang sane. But when someone tries to frame him for the stalking of his ex-wife and a journalist, the harassment turns deadly and the lives of everyone close to him are in danger. Unable to wait for events to take their course, Chang must unleash the dragon.

The second installment of J. Gregory Smith's Paul Chang mystery series, Legacy of the Dragon is a riveting exploration of the profound impact the sins of the past have on our present.

The Second Ship ($2.99), the first title in the The Rho Agenda series by Richard Phillips, is available for pre-order. Previously self-published, this edition is from 47North. I see that the second in the series, Immune, is also available to pre-order at the same price and Wormhole (#3) will be coming out at the end of November.

Book Description
In 1948, an alien starship fell from the New Mexico sky—and immediately vanished behind the walls of the Los Alamos Laboratory. Since that day the US military has endeavored to reverse engineer the ship’s alien technology through top-secret research known only as the Rho Project. Now, sixty years after the crash, the government is prepared tell all.

Or so it claims…

For there is a second ship, hidden for decades just out of the military’s reach. And when a trio of students discovers it buried deep inside a remote canyon, they are changed forever. With a single touch, the technology the government has spent billions trying to unlock is uploaded into the minds of three teenagers—teenagers who now know the frightening truth about the Rho Project. Together they are thrust into a violent world of secrets and corruption, becoming reluctant soldiers in a war destined to alter what it means to be human.

Wizard's First Rule ($2.99), by Terry Goodkind, is a great deal on it's own, but add the companion audiobook for $1.99 and it's a deal that's hard to beat. Too bad the edition I bought several years ago isn't the one linked to the audiobook.

Book Description
Wizard's First Rule, the first novel by Terry Goodkind, was a phenomenon from the moment it was published by Tor Books in 1994, selling more than 100,000 copies in North America alone. It still sells more than 100,000 copies a year and has gone on to bestsellerdom in the United Kingdom and in more than twenty foreign translations as well as audiobook form.

It is now being developed as one of the most ambitious television miniseries of all time. Executive Producer Sam Raimi (director of the three Spider-Man movies), in collaboration with Disney/ABC, is creating a 22-episode adaptation of the book to be filmed in New Zealand.

Richard and Kahlan's story unfolds over ten more novels, collectively known as the Sword of Truth series, concluding with Confessor in 2007. Placing Goodkind in the elite club of #1 New York Times bestselling authors, the series has sold more than twenty million copies to date worldwide.

In Wizard's First Rule, Goodkind introduced the world to an ordinary forest guide, Richard Cypher, and the mysterious, powerful woman he comes to love, Kahlan Amnell. Learning his true identity, Richard accepts his destiny as the one man who can stop the bloodthirsty tyrant Darken Rahl. Hunted relentlessly, betrayed and alone, Kahlan calls upon Richard to reach beyond his sword and invoke something more noble within himself as the final confrontation with Darken Rahl looms.

The importance of Wizard's First Rule is sourced in Goodkind taking on the toughest of all literary challenges: to tell an electrifying story of action, violence, and adventure that also makes people think, and that would influence the choices and actions of its readers.

Years after reading Wizard's First Rule, Goodkind fans still ask themselves, "What would Richard do?" when confronted with life's obstacles and challenges. "Your life is yours alone," Richard says at a key moment. "Rise up and live it."

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Terry Goodkind is the New York Times bestselling author of twelve books. His first novel, Wizard's First Rule, immediately established him as one of the world's bestselling authors. Originally published in 1994, it is the first in the eleven book Sword of Truth series, which has sold over 25 million copies worldwide.

Audrey Braun's Fortune series is composed of two titles, A Small Fortune and Fortune's Deadly Descent, both on sale for $2.99 apiece.

A Small Fortune

When Celia Donnelly’s husband, Jonathon, surprises her with a family vacation to Mexico, the harried book editor couldn't be happier. She is overworked and exhausted, a situation that has taken a toll on her eighteen-year marriage, not to mention her relationship with her teenaged son. Escaping the perpetually rainy Pacific Northwest for the sugary sands of Mexico could be just what the doctor ordered. Yet shortly after their arrival south of the border, a chance encounter with a stranger sparks illicit memories of a former affair. The moment passes, but that brief encounter proves enough to change her life forever. Hours later, Celia is lured from the beach and abducted off the street. At first a seemingly random victim, Celia quickly realizes her captors know exactly who she is. Desperate for news of her family and devastated by the betrayal of someone she trusts, Celia, along with an unlikely ally, is soon running for her life. Pursued from the balmy shores of Mexico to the steamy thickets of the jungle, to the crisp, cold mountains of Zurich, Celia will stop at nothing to find her way home.

Fortune's Deadly Descent

Memories of her dire past fade as Celia Hagen enjoys life in Switzerland as a best-selling author, surrounded by an extended family, her beloved Benicio, and their imaginative young son Benny. But when Benny disappears from a train during an unexpected stop in the French Provencal countryside, Celia suspects her past may not be buried after all. With Benny gone, she quickly realizes her life wasn’t nearly as idyllic as she believed. Infuriated by the unorthodox search efforts of Interpol and the French police, Celia, along with her older son Oliver, undertakes her own search, only to find that the village where Benny vanished has its own chilling history, and her interference in the case will have grave and irreversible consequences.

In the follow up to Audrey Braun’s best-selling debut, A Small Fortune, Celia discovers just how quickly everyone she loves can spiral toward a life—or death—that none of them could have seen coming.

Today's Deals

Edited to add: There were some technical difficulties with Audible's "Paperback Sale" this morning, but they have the prices back in place. Today is the final day, though, as the sale ends at midnight ET.

The Audubon Android Apps are on sale this morning, with Audubon Birds marked down to $2.99 and the rest of the guides down to 99 cents. There isn't room to put them all on the Kindle Fire at once (at least, not with the complete downloads), but I went ahead and picked up the ones I was missing, at this price; I can rotate the ones I want to look thru on the Fire and they will fit on my Android tablet (it has an SD card for memory expansion).

• Audubon Birds: A Field Guide to North American Birds
• Audubon Trees - A Field Guide to North American Trees
• Audubon Wildflowers - A Field Guide to North American Wildflowers
• Audubon Butterflies - A Field Guide to North American Butterflies
• Audubon Mammals: A Field Guide to North American Mammals
• Audubon Mushrooms - A Field Guide to North American Mushrooms
• Audubon Insects & Spiders

App Description
Audubon Birds

• Incorporates eBird technology to locate birds in real time, with quick access to recent sightings, locations of notable and rare birds, and maps and directions to all the birding hotspots across North America.
• Associates Field Marks for over 650 images to help with field identification
• Includes Thousands of high definition images detail each species with extraordinary clarity. Includes multiple images of each species in their natural habitat by gender, age, and seasonal plumage variations
• Contains over eight hours of audio from the best audio field naturalists in North America
• Useful 'Journal' feature allows you to track and annotate your personal sightings by location, and share with friends by email or Facebook.

Today's Kindle Deal of the Day is After Life ($1.99), a debut novel by Rhian Ellis that is one of librarian Nancy Pearl's Nancy Pearl Presents Book Lust Rediscoveries (and one I apparently bought at full price just this past June...).

Book Description
Naomi Ash was born in New Orleans and raised by her mother, Patsy, a medium who schooled her young daughter in the parlor-trick chicanery of the trade. From Naomi recreating presences with table cloths to providing the voice of the dead by talking through a fan, their act is part theater, part magic, and a little too much playing with the letter of the law. Eventually they must beat a hasty—and forced—retreat from New Orleans, relocating to Train Line, New York.

A sleepy village founded and inhabited by others with a spiritualist bent, Train Line is populated with card readers, table levitators, and crystal-shop owners. Low-rent “Psychic Faires” are held at the local Holiday Inn, and Patsy’s newest creation, “The Mother Galina Psychic Hour,” is on the local radio station. The town is a curious mix between old school “table rappers” and the New Age, and it is here that Naomi comes of age, learns the trade, and falls in love. But love is not only a many splendored thing—it can be dangerous as well. And for a young woman caught between fraud and truth, between the world of the living and the world of the dead, and between the secrets and lies of her youth, the past and present will come together in a rush of truth and consequence.

Hailed as “a study of eccentricities, which rises above the merely quirky to address those issues of life, death, memory, and love that preoccupy us all,” After Life is a stunning first novel of extraordinary suspense and evocative imagery.

Bloodland ($1.55 /£0.99 UK), by Alan Glynn, is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $9.99; the UK edition is available in most other countries, pricing varies). Those in the UK also have a bargain price on Winterland (Main/UK) and Limitless (Main/UK), which was made into a major motion picture.

Book Description
A private security contractor loses it in the Congo, with deadly consequences, while in Ireland the ex-prime minister struggles to write his memoir. A tabloid star is killed in a helicopter crash and three years later a young journalist is warned off the story. As a news story breaks in Paris, a US senator prepares his campaign to run for office. What links these things and who controls what we know? With echoes of John Le Carré, 24 and James Ellroy, Alan Glynn has written another crime novel of and for our times - a ferocious thriller that moves from Dublin to New York via West Africa, and thrillingly explores the legacy of corruption in big business, the West's fear of China, the fate of ex-military, the role of back room political players, and the quick fix of online news.

The Dead of Summer ($1.99 Kindle, B&N), by Mari Jungstedt (one of Sweden’s most popular crime fiction authors), is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.

Book Description
In Mari Jungstedt’s spine-tingling novel, The Dead of Summer, the most isolated island in the Baltic Sea, Gotska Sandön, north of Gotland, serves as the setting for her perfect crime story. A husband and father of two is mysteriously murdered while on holiday, taking a morning jog. With no evidence of a motive or suspect, assistant commissioner Karin Jacobsson is assigned to her first major case to lead the investigation while her boss, Superintendent Anders Knutas is away on holiday. Meanwhile, TV reporter Johan Berg keeps pace with the police team, while at the same time distracted in trying to win back his former love and the mother of his child, Emma Winarve, who resides on the island.One of ten in her popular Anders Knutas series, Jungstedt weaves a crime story that raises the eerie question…are we ever truly alone? Or, is there always someone watching and waiting?

In Front of God and Everybody ($7.69 Kindle, $1.99 B&N), by KD McCrite, is the Nook Daily Find for Families.

Book Description
If God wanted April Grace to be kind to her neighbors, He should have made them nicer!

Growing up in the country is never easy, but it sure is funny-especially if you happen to have a sister obsessed with being glamorous, a grandma just discovering make-up, hippie friends who never shower, and brand new neighbors from the city who test everyone's patience. From disastrous dye jobs to forced apologies and elderly date tagalongs, you'll laugh 'til you cry as you read the Confessions of April Grace!

Here are just a couple of April's thoughts: On her sister, Myra Sue: "How anyone can be that dumb and still be able to eat with a fork is beyond me." On senior citizen lovebirds: "What if they started smooching right at the table in front of God and everybody?"

In spite of all the loony characters in her life, April Grace is able to learn from her parents as they share the love of God-to even the craziest of characters!

Google Play 25 Cent Specials

Reservoir Dogs ($2.99 Amazon, $0.25 Google) is todays's Google Movie Rental Deal (which Amazon never matches, it seems).

Moneyball ($8.29 Kindle, $0.25 Google), by Michael Lewis, is the Google Book Deal today. I picked this one up a while back on one of Amazon's KSO deals, but I've reported the lower price on both editions, in hopes it will drop for the rest of you.

If you are in the UK, grab Restless ($0.31 Main/£0.20 UK), by William Boyd (can't link to Google UK

Book Description
Billy Beane, the Oakland A’s general manager, is leading a revolution. Reinventing his team on a budget, he needs to outsmart the richer teams. He signs undervalued players whom the scouts consider flawed but who have a knack for getting on base, scoring runs, and winning games. Moneyball is a quest for the secret of success in baseball and a tale of the search for new baseball knowledge—insights that will give the little guy who is willing to discard old wisdom the edge over big money.

Guns N' Roses Greatest Hits ($0.25 Amazon, Google) is today's Google Music Deal. This one is a no-brainer must-buy for any GnR fans out there. Be sure to also visit the main Google Music page, where you can grab a free download of Concierto De Aranjuez: II. Adagio ($1.99 Amazon), by Joaquin Rodrigo.


TuneIn Radio Pro ($0.25 Amazon, Google) is the Google Android App of the Day.

App Description
TuneIn is a new way to listen to the world through live, local, and global radio from wherever you are. Whether you want music, sports, news, or current events, TuneIn offers over 50,000 stations and 1.2 million on-demand streams for you to choose from. The TuneIn Radio Pro app for Android puts this entire experience in the palm of your hand, with the added benefit of recording what you're listening to (this requires a memory card).

With TuneIn, it's easy to find your favorite hometown station, music from Berlin that reminds you of when you lived there, or reggae from Kingston to get you in the mood for your beach vacation. TuneIn makes you feel like you are right there with the people and places that are important to you. From finding what's local to discovering new stations from around the world, TuneIn brings you to where you want to be.

Upgrade to TuneIn Radio Pro to record what you're listening to. Just search "TuneIn Radio Pro" in Amazon's Appstore for Android.

Learn more, listen online, and get help at TuneIn's website. You can also like TuneIn on Facebook and follow its Twitter feed.

Google Play 25 Cent Specials

Newberry Medal winner The Giver ($0.25 Kindle, Google), by Lois Lowry, is today's Google Play Book deal for those in the US. If you are in Canada, it's apparently Wheat Belly: Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight, and Find Your Path Back To Health ($9.45 Kindle, ?? Google), by William Davis MD (which Amazon hasn't price matched at all), in the UK it's Rules of the Game ($0.31 Main/£0.20 UK), Neil Strauss (I can't get a link to the Google book on this one) and for those in Australia, it's Cocaine Blues: Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries ($1.05 Kindle, ?? Google), by Kerry Greenwood.

The Giver
Jonas's world is perfect. Everything is under control. There is no war or fear of pain. There are no choices. Every person is assigned a role in the community. Jonas lives in a seemingly ideal world.

When Jonas turns 12 he is singled out to receive special training from The Giver. The Giver alone holds the memories of the true pain and pleasure of life. Not until he is given his life assignment as the Receiver does Jonas begin to understand the dark secrets behind this fragile community. Now, it is time for Jonas to receive the truth. There is no turning back.

Today's 25 cent movie rental from Google is Sunshine Cleaning ($2.99 Amazon; $0.25 Google).

Movie Description
Former high school cheerleading captain Rose (Amy Adams) is a thirty-something single mother who cleans houses for a living. Wanting to send her trouble-making son Oscar to a private school, Rose decides to take her married lover's (Steve Zahn) advice and get into the "lucrative" business of crime scene cleanup with her sister Norah (Emily Blunt).

Take Care [Explicit] ($0.25 Amazon, Google), by Drake, is today's Google Play Music Deal. This one isn't as overtly explicit as the last one; again, if there is a single song you want on it, it's cheaper to just grab the album.

Book Description
On his second proper full-length, 2011’s most popular rapper sings, “I be yelling out, ‘money over everything/ money on my mind’/ then she want to ask when it got so empty.” Drake is the sad sack don, both excited and dizzy from his ascension to the top. He desperately clings to an idea of self, while acknowledging, “you lose some and win some/ as long as the outcome is income.” The lyrics’ interiority is complemented by the music’s understated elegance. Divorced from Drake’s pronouncements that he “never cheated when we were together,” the skeletal drums and ambient synth of “Take a Shot” are spacious and a bit cold. It’s a neat trick, and Take Care is fully realized in its emotional texture and nuance. Sam Chennault, Google Play

Camera ZOOM FX ($0.25 Amazon; Google), by Androidslide, is the Android App of the Day. Since it works with a camera, it isn't Kindle Fire compatible (of course), but if you have an Android tablet or phone, it's well worth getting (and it normally sells for more than its "sale" price of $4.99).

App Description
Camera Zoom FX brings a full set of photography features to your Android device by combining powerful camera functions with stunning post-processing.

Capturing the Moment
Your photo options are endless with Camera Zoom FX, but thanks to its incredibly intuitive and organized interface, your ability to capture the perfect moment quickly won't be hindered by buttons and choices. Shoot now, play later.

Seamless Shooting with Accessible Options
The shooting options are offered along the sidebars of your screen upon launch. Quickly and easily make a change if necessary without searching through endless settings. The left bar offers your zoom scale, focus, flash, and front-facing camera support. The right sidebar offers the shooting mode icon. Tap it to change it. Choose from Normal, Stable Shot, Timer, Burst Mode (capturing multiple shots consecutively), Time Lapse, Collage, and Voice Activation. Take the photo using the shutter button or just tap anywhere on the screen to take advantage of the full-screen shutter.

If you'd like to view your subject through an effect filter, tap the FX icon in the upper right-hand corner. Some effects are disabled in preview mode, but will be enabled once the shot is taken.

Post-processing Options
With more than 90 unique camera effects, and an array of frames, props, grid overlays, and more, your photos will look so good that you'll be tempted to quit your day job.

Bargain Book/Game/Music/Movie Roundup (25 cent Google Deals)

This weekend's coupon code at Fictionwise is 030912 for 45% off. Valid until Sunday (or a few days, thereafter, usually).

Three of the four 25 cent Google deals seem to be exclusives with Google, as I could not find them at Amazon or they were full price: rent Crash ($2.99 Amazon; $0.25 Google), get a strange Android App, Smart Tools, or grab The Rolling Stone's Brussels Affair album for a quarter. I was quite surprised I couldn't find this one at amazon, but I've grabbed the Google version and will just send it to my Amazon Cloud. I also grabbed the free copy of Summer Is The Champion ($0.99 Amazon), by Laura Veirs, on the main Google Music page.

The fourth of the 25 cent Google Play deals is Unfinished Business ($0.25 Kindle, Google), by Nora Roberts

Book Description
What was she doing here? Hyattown had changed very little in the years Vanessa Sexton had been away. In some ways her high school sweetheart, Brady Tucker, hadn't changed much either—he was still lean, athletic, rugged…But the once reckless boy had become a solid, dependable man. He'd stood her up on the most important night of her life; could she ever trust him again?

So Vanessa had finally come home, Brady thought. She could still turn him inside out with one of her sultry looks. He couldn't believe she hadn't forgiven him for that night twelve years ago—but he'd had his reasons for not showing up. He'd let her leave town then—but he wasn't going to let her get away this time…

American Psycho (Picador 40th Anniversary Edition) ($0.32 Kindle Main, £0.20 UK), by Bret Easton Ellis, is the Google Play deal for those in the UK (I can't link to the UK Google site, though).

Book Description
Even before its publication in 1991, American Psycho captured the attention and imagination of readers. Now an acknowledged modern classic and a multimillion-copy bestseller, it continues to be one of the most talked-about books of all time. A film based on the novel, starring Christian Bale, was released in 2000. Patrick Bateman is twenty-six and works on Wall Street; he is handsome, sophisticated, charming and intelligent. He is also a psychopath. Taking us to a head-on collision with America’s greatest dream – and its worst nightmare – American Psycho is a bleak, bitter, black comedy about a world we all recognize but do not wish to confront. In 2012 Picador celebrates its 40th anniversary. During that time we have published many prize-winning and bestselling authors including Bret Easton Ellis and Cormac McCarthy, Alice Sebold and Helen Fielding, Graham Swift and Alan Hollinghurst. Years later, Picador continue to bring readers the very best contemporary fiction, non-fiction and poetry from across the globe.

Switched (Trylle Trilogy 1) ($0.32 Main, £0.20 UK), by Amanda Hocking, is also on sale for those in the UK.

Book Description
Wendy Everly knew she was different the day her mother tried to kill her and accused her of having been switched at birth. Although certain she’s not the monster her mother claimed she is – she does feel that she doesn’t quite fit in . . . The new girl in High School, she’s bored and frustrated by her small town life – and then there’s the secret that she can’t tell anyone. Her mysterious ability – she can influence people’s decisions, without knowing how, or why . . . When the intense and darkly handsome newcomer Finn suddenly turns up at her bedroom window one night – her world is turned upside down. He holds the key to her past, the answers to her strange powers and is the doorway to a place she never imagined could exist. Förening, the home of the Trylle. Everything begins to make sense to Wendy. Among the Trylle, she is not just different, but special. But what marks her out as chosen for greatness in this world also places her in grave danger. With everything around her changing, Finn is the only person she can trust. But dark forces are conspiring – not only to separate them, but to see the downfall everything that Wendy cares about. The fate of Förening rests in Wendy’s hands, and the decisions she and Finn make could change all their lives forever . . .

The Apprentice: My Life in the Kitchen ($3.99), by Jacques Pepin. I'd rather have it been one of his cookbooks, but there is a recipe or two at the end of each chapter, according to a review.

Book Description
From the moment of its publication, The Apprentice established itself as an “instant classic” (Anthony Bourdain). With sparkling wit and occasional pathos, the man whom Julia Child has called “the best chef in America” tells the captivating story of his rise from a terrified thirteen-year-old toiling in an Old World French kitchen to an American superstar who ad-libbed and demonstrated culinary wizardry as the cameras rolled — and changed American tastes.

The Apprentice is an engrossing tale of the modern cooking scene and how it came to be, told from an engaging personal perspective. The story begins in prewar France, with young Jacques cutting his teeth in his mother’s small restaurants. Moving to Paris, it offers tantalizing glimpses of Sartre and Genet. In his role as Charles de Gaulle’s personal chef, Jacques witnesses history being made from behind the swinging door of the kitchen.

In America, he rejects an offer to be chef in the Kennedy White House, choosing instead to work at Howard Johnson’s. He then proceeds to make some history of his own, creating a revolution with a band of fellow food lovers: Julia Child, James Beard, and Craig Claiborne. Culinary high jinks and revealing portraits ensue. The Apprentice also includes well-loved recipes, from Maman’s Cheese Soufflé to Chicken Salad r la Danny Kaye.

Fast Food Nation ($3.99), by Eric Schlosser

Book Description
In 2001, Fast Food Nation was published to critical acclaim and became an international bestseller. Eric Schlosser’s exposé revealed how the fast food industry has altered the landscape of America, widened the gap between rich and poor, fueled an epidemic of obesity, and transformed food production throughout the world. The book changed the way millions of people think about what they eat and helped to launch today’s food movement.

In a new afterword for this edition, Schlosser discusses the growing interest in local and organic food, the continued exploitation of poor workers by the food industry, and the need to ensure that every American has access to good, healthy, affordable food. Fast Food Nation is as relevant today as it was a decade ago. The book inspires readers to look beneath the surface of our food system, consider its impact on society and, most of all, think for themselves.

Magic Steps ($3.99 Kindle, Google) is the first title in the Circle Opens YA series by Tamora Pierce.

Book Description
Lady Sandrilene fa Toren knows all about unusual magic--she herself spins and weaves it like thread. But when she witnesses a boy dancing a spell, even she is confounded. To her dismay she gets news of a mysterious murderer stalking a clan of local merchants. The killer employs the strangest magic of all: the ability to reduce essence to nothingness. As the murders mount and the killer grows bolder, Sandry's teaching takes on a grave purpose. It becomes clear to everyone that the killings can only be stopped by the combined magic of two people: the young teacher and her even younger student.

Flawless ($3.99), by Lara Chapman

Book Description
Sarah Burke is just about perfect. She’s got killer blue eyes, gorgeous blond hair, and impeccable grades. There’s just one tiny-all right, enormous-flaw: her nose. But even that’s not so bad. Sarah’s got the best best friend and big goals for print journalism fame.
On the first day of senior year, Rock Conway walks into her journalism class and, well, rocks her world. Problem is, her best friend, Kristen, falls for him too. And when Rock and Kristen stand together, it’s like Barbie and Ken come to life. So when Kristen begs Sarah to help her nab Rock, Sarah does the only thing a best friend can do-she agrees. For someone so smart, what was she thinking?

This hip retelling of Cyrano de Bergerac is filled with hilariously misguided matchmaking, sweet romance, and a gentle reminder that we should all embrace our flaws.

Sunrise Over Fallujah ($3.99 Kindle, Google), by Walter Dean Myers

Book Description
Operation Iraqi Freedom, that's the code name. But the young men and women in the military's Civil Affairs Battalion have a simpler name for it: WAR.

In this new novel, Walter Dean Myers looks at a contemporary war with the same power and searing insight he brought to the Vietnam war of his classic, FALLEN ANGELS. He creates memorable characters like the book's narrator, Birdy, a young recruit from Harlem who's questioning why he even enlisted; Marla, a blond, tough-talking, wisecracking gunner; Jonesy, a guitar-playing bluesman who just wants to make it back to Georgia and open a club; and a whole unit of other young men and women and drops them incountry in Iraq, where they are supposed to help secure and stabilize Iraq and successfully interact with the Iraqi people. The young civil affairs soldiers soon find their definition of "winning" ever more elusive and their good intentions being replaced by terms like "survival" and "despair."

Caught in the crossfire, Myers' richly rendered characters are just beginning to understand the meaning of war in this powerful, realistic novel of our times.

Lone Star ($0.99) is the first title in the Edna Ferber Mysteries by Edward Ifkovic and another of the Poisoned Pen Press discounts for the month.

Book Description
It’s 1955, and Edna Ferber is basking in the success of her blockbuster novel Giant. Headed to Los Angeles, where director George Stevens and Warner Brothers Studio are in the final days of filming her Texas oil epic, she is looking forward to meeting Rock Hudson, Liz Taylor, and especially the young James Dean.

But there is trouble brewing. Dean, the new box-office sensation and teen heartthrob, has been accused of fathering a child with an unstable (and recently fired) extra named Carisa Krausse. The studio fears the negative publicity will jeopardize the release of the movie. Then the actress is murdered, and James Dean is the prime suspect. He was seen at her apartment moments before Carisa’s death. The police are ready to arrest him.

With actress Mercedes McCambridge as her sympathetic sidekick, Edna investigates, determined to clear Dean’s name. Soon Edna finds herself exploring the troubled lives of Dean’s circle of disparate friends. As she delves into Hollywood’s dark side she discovers a powerful studio obsessed with a cover-up and a solution she doesn’t want to accept—a solution that she, in fact, dreads.

Still Missing ($2.99 Kindle, Google), by Chevy Stevens

Book Description
On the day she was abducted, Annie O’Sullivan, a thirty-two year old realtor, had three goals—sell a house, forget about a recent argument with her mother, and be on time for dinner with her ever- patient boyfriend. The open house is slow, but when her last visitor pulls up in a van as she's about to leave, Annie thinks it just might be her lucky day after all. Interwoven with the story of the year Annie spent as the captive of psychopath in a remote mountain cabin, which unfolds through sessions with her psychiatrist, is a second narrative recounting events following her escape—her struggle to piece her shattered life back together and the ongoing police investigation into the identity of her captor.

The truth doesn’t always set you free.

Still Missing is that rare debut find--a shocking, visceral, brutal and beautifully crafted debut novel.

The English Major ($7.99/$9.99 Kindle, $3.99 Google), by Jim Harrison, has two editions on Kindle, but neither one is marked down like the Google edition is (B&N has one edition, but at $8.80, it splits the difference in price for the two Kindle editions). I'm reporting the lower price at Google on both editions, in hopes that one of the will drop.

Book Description
"It used to be Cliff and Vivian and now it isn't." With these words, Jim Harrison sends his sixty-something protagonist, divorced and robbed of his farm by a late-blooming real estate shark of an ex-wife, on a road trip across America, armed with a childhood puzzle of the United States and a mission to rename all the states and state birds to overcome the banal names men have given them. Cliff's adventures take him through a whirlwind affair with a former student from his high school-teacher days twenty-some years before, to a "snake farm" in Arizona owned by an old classmate; and to the high-octane existence of his son, a big-time movie producer in San Francisco.

The English Major is the map of a man's journey into—and out of—himself, and it is vintage Harrison—reflective, big-picture American, and replete with wicked wit.

The Ragtime Kid ($0.99) is the first title in the Ragtime Mystery Trilogy by Larry Karp

Book Description
Brun Campbell, a 15-year-old piano-playing fool, hears Scott Joplin’s “Maple Leaf Rag” played one 1898 afternoon in Oklahoma City. It’s destiny calling. Asking for ragtime lessons, he’s told, “No, Ragtime is colored music.” So Brun runs away from the family farm to Sedalia, Missouri, to persuade Joplin to take him on as a pupil. What Brun doesn’t expect is to trip over the body of a young woman. He thoughtlessly picks up a couple of items before he rushes away from the murder scene.

When Edward Fitzgerald, a man who befriended Brun his first night in town, is arrested for the woman’s murder, Brun is certain he’s innocent. But if the boy shows anyone the things he pocketed at the scene—things he now knows belonged to Scott Joplin—he’ll point the finger at the composer...and himself.
Brun decides to get Fitzgerald, Joplin, and himself off the hook by finding the real killer, but for that he eventually needs some help from Dr. Overstreet, the alcoholic town mayor; and John Stark, a man pushing sixty, who’s been employing Brun at his music store.

Sedalia is rife with suspects, some of them opportunists bent on stealing Joplin’s music. And then there are the girls and women—mysteries to Brun—like a teenager seized with religious fever, a couple of mischievous prostitutes, and an attractive, ambitious young woman with a hint of scarlet in her past, who further complicate his pursuit of the killer.