Bargain Book, Music and Game Roundup

There are two free book from Marie Force on my Squidoo Lens, Today's Free Kindle Books. Pick up the second, which is indie-published, and you'll qualify for the two $1 books by Debra Holland.

For Gamers, there is a special deal on Rockstar Games Downloads through May 28 - Get both 50% off your purchase and a 5 Rockstar Games credit. Which means you could pick up Manhunt for $4.99, then use the credit later to get Manhunt 2 for $2.49 (don't try it the other way, around; the promo credit only works on items priced at $5 or more). There are other games in the sale, including at least one other at $4.99. Watch for this notice in the Special Offers section of the game before buying:

Purchase this product and receive a $5 credit towards other Rockstar Digital Downloads sold by Amazon Digital Video Games. Credit may be used on products priced greater than $5. Credit must be used by 5/28/2014

I also turned up a Jazz sale at Amazon, which includes a number of CDs that are priced in the $3.99-$4.99 range and include the AutoRip MP3 CD dropped into your account immediately. If you are into classical, here are a few bargains from the MP3 store:

• Classics for a Rainy Day ($0.99) from Cobra Entertainment
• Classics for a Rainy Day 2 ($1.09) from Cobra Entertainment
• 100 Must-Have Love Song Classics ($0.99) from Cobra Entertainment (nearly 7 hrs!)
• Piano ($0.99) from Cobra Entertainment
• Classical Music for the Reader 9: Great Masterpieces for the Dedicated Reader ($0.99) from Cobra Entertainment
• 50 Must-Have Travel Classics ($0.99) from Cobra Entertainment
• Big Haydn Box ($1.09) from Vanguard Classics
• 100 Must-Have Russian Masterpieces ($0.99) from Cobra Entertainment
• 100 Must-Have Angel Voices ($0.99) from Cobra Entertainment

The Thief ($2.09 Kindle), by Fuminori Nakamura [Soho Crime]; the companion audiobook is $3.99.

Book Description
A literary crime masterpiece that follows a Japanese pickpocket lost to the machinations of fate. Bleak and oozing existential dread, The Thief is simply unforgettable.

The Thief is a seasoned pickpocket. Anonymous in his tailored suit, he weaves in and out of Tokyo crowds, stealing wallets from strangers so smoothly sometimes he doesn’t even remember the snatch. Most people are just a blur to him, nameless faces from whom he chooses his victims. He has no family, no friends, no connections.... But he does have a past, which finally catches up with him when Ishikawa, his first partner, reappears in his life, and offers him a job he can’t refuse. It’s an easy job: tie up an old rich man, steal the contents of the safe. No one gets hurt. Only the day after the job does he learn that the old man was a prominent politician, and that he was brutally killed after the robbery. And now the Thief is caught in a tangle even he might not be able to escape.

The first four novels in Richard Kadrey's Sandman Slim series (Kindle; B&N) are on sale for $1.99 apiece [HarperCollins]; grab them now and you might get them finished by the time the fifth, Kill City Blues, is released in July.

Sandman Slim (companion audiobook $2.99)

Sandman Slim has arrived—a wild and weird, edge-of-your-seat supernatural roller-coaster rider that propels author Richard Kadrey to the forefront of the fantasy, thriller, and a host of other literary genres. This spellbinding, utterly remarkable tale of a vengeful magician/hitman’s return from hell is part H.P. Lovecraft, part Christopher Moore, part Jim Butcher, and totally, unabashedly dark, twisted, and hilarious.

Kill the Dead (companion audiobook $3.99)

Sandman Slim is back from Hell. After wreaking unholy havoc in author Richard Kadrey’s resoundingly acclaimed Sandman Slim, the demon-slaying anti-hero and half-angel fugitive from the underworld returns in a brutally funny, eye-poppingly inventive, and totally addicting follow-up, Kill the Dead. If you’re a fan of Buffy and Jim Butcher, Christopher Moore, Neil Gaiman, and Warren Ellis, or you dig the dark urban fantasy vibe of Charlaine Harris, Kim Harrison, and Simon Green, you’ll cheer Lucifer’s onetime personal assassin as he signs on as his ex-boss’ Hollywood bodyguard…and takes on the zombie apocalypse almost single-handedly.

Aloha from Hell (companion audiobook $2.99)

All hail Sandman Slim, author Richard Kadrey’s ultra-extreme anti-hero and recent escapee from Lucifer’s overheated Underworld playground. Legendary author William Gibson (Neuromancer) called Kadrey’s first deliciously twisted Slim adventure “an addictively satisfying, deeply amusing, dirty-ass masterpiece,” and in number three, Aloha from Hell, the ruthless avenger, a.k.a. Stark, finds himself trapped in the middle of a war between Heaven and Hell. With God on vacation, the Devil nosing around in Paradise, and an insane serial killer doing serious damage on Earth, Stark/Slim is ready to unleash some more adrenaline-surging, edgy and violent supernatural mayhem—and even pay another visit to Hell if necessary—which is great news for fans of Jim Butcher, Warren Ellis, Charlaine Harris, Kim Harrison, and Simon R. Green.

Devil Said Bang

Richard Kadrey’s Sandman Slim—aka James Stark—is, quite simply, one of the most outrageous uber-anti-heroes ever to kick serious butt on this or any other world or dimension.

In his previous three adventures—Sandman Slim, Kill the Dead, and Aloha from Hell—Stark has fled Hell for California, taken on angels, demons, outlaw bikers, zombies, covert government operatives, and all manner of monsters, while saving humankind from total annihilation on numerous occasions. But in Devil Said Bang, he finally assumes the role he was destined for: as the new Lucifer, ruler of the Underworld.

Combining outrageously edgy humor with a dark and truly twisted vision, Richard Kadrey has once again delivered a masterful amalgam of action novel, urban fantasy, and in-your-face horror that will delight a wide range of readers—from Christopher Moore and Warren Ellis fans to the devoted adherents of Jim Butcher, Charlaine Harris, Kim Harrison, and Simon Green.

Dead or Alive ($2.99 Kindle; $0.99 B&N), the second novel in the Outlaws and Heroes series by Mallory Rush [ePublishing Works!]; previously published as Pistol in my Pocket.

Book Description
Alaska was a rough and tumble place in the 1800s when outlaw Noble Zhivago was forced to run for his life—only to be buried alive in an avalanche!

Now, a century later, Noble is discovered, frozen in time, by a policeman's young widow.

Lori Morgan can't resist the irrational desire to release the rugged hunk from his icy tomb. Nor can she explain why Noble ignites fiery passions she thought dead.

Then Lori discovers Nobel is a murderer, wanted Dead or Alive.

Imperfect Rebel ($3.99 Kindle; $0.99 B&N), the second novel in The Carolina Magnolia series by Patricia Rice [ePublishing Works!]; previously published as Almost Perfect.

Book Description
Cleo Alyssum has a plan: stay sober, keep her job, and bite her tongue until Social Services relents and returns her little boy.

Then Jared McCloud, a celebrated cartoonist and bull-headed extrovert, shatters Cleo's carefully constructed serenity by demanding that they help their drug-dealing neighbor's neglected children.

Cleo knows Jared is right.

Risking everything they thought they wanted, the pair join forces to save the children and face a new realization: there's more to life and love than either of them ever planned or dreamed.

Zero Separation ($3.99 Kindle), by Philip Donlay [Oceanview Publishing]; the companion audiobook is $3.99.

Book Description
Donovan Nash has a secret he'll do anything to keep. But he's the prime suspect after someone steals a fifty million dollar executive jet, and FBI agent Veronica Montero put him squarely in the crosshairs. As she digs, she discovers Nash's secret -- a revelation that, if made public, would stun the world. Operating on her own agenda, Montero blackmails Nash into helping her hunt down a man she wants dead.Powerless against the information Montero holds, Nash is forced into a situation far deadlier than either of them could ever have imagined. The man they are after isn't the criminal they expect, he's a terrorist with a plan to use the stolen jet to carry out an unthinkable and devastating act that could plunge America into the most heinous conflict since World War II.When Nash and Montero are taken prisoner aboard the stolen jet, they will have only one opportunity to execute a daring midair attempt to stop the attack. Success could cost them their own lives, but failure could cost millions of innocent lives.

Devil in a Blue Dress: Featuring an Original Easy Rawlins Short Story ($3.99 Kindle), by Walter Mosley [Simon and Schuster]; the companion audiobook is $4.49.

Book Description
Los Angeles, 1948: Ezekiel "Easy Rawlins" is a black war veteran just fired from his job. Now he's drinking in a friend's bar, wondering how he'll meet his mortgage.

That's when De Witt Albright , a quietly vicious white man in a white linen suit, walks in and offers Easy good money if he'll just do a little job for him: find Miss Daphne Monet, a blonde beauty known to frequent black jazz clubs.

It seems simple enough, but Easy soon discovers that Albright isn't the only one looking for the lovely Miss Monet - isn't the only one who's ready to kill anyone, including Easy, who might get in the way.

The Smart One ($4.99 Kindle), by Jennifer Close [Random House]

Book Description
With her best-selling debut, Girls in White Dresses (An “irresistible, pitch-perfect first novel” —Marie Claire), Jennifer Close captured friendship in those what-on-earth-am-I-going-to-do-with-my-life years of early adulthood. Now, with her sparkling new novel of parenthood and sibling rivalry, Close turns her gimlet eye to the only thing messier than friendship: family.

Weezy Coffey’s parents had always told her she was the smart one, while her sister was the pretty one. “Maureen will marry well,” their mother said, but instead it was Weezy who married well, to a kind man and good father. Weezy often wonders if she did this on purpose—thwarting expectations just to prove her parents wrong.

But now that Weezy’s own children are adults, they haven’t exactly been meeting her expectations either. Her oldest child, Martha, is thirty and living in her childhood bedroom after a spectacular career flameout. Martha now works at J.Crew, folding pants with whales embroidered on them and complaining bitterly about it. Weezy’s middle child, Claire, has broken up with her fiancé, canceled her wedding, and locked herself in her New York apartment—leaving Weezy to deal with the caterer and florist. And her youngest, Max, is dating a college classmate named Cleo, a girl so beautiful and confident she wears her swimsuit to family dinner, leaving other members of the Coffey household blushing and stammering into their plates.

As the Coffey children’s various missteps drive them back to their childhood home, Weezy suddenly finds her empty nest crowded and her children in full-scale regression. Martha is moping like a teenager, Claire is stumbling home drunk in the wee hours, and Max and Cleo are skulking around the basement, guarding a secret of their own. With radiant style and a generous spirit, The Smart One is a story about the ways in which we never really grow up, and the place where we return when things go drastically awry: home.

The Tudors: The Complete Story of England's Most Notorious Dynasty ($2.99 Kindle), by G.J. Meyer [Random House]

Book Description
BONUS: This edition contains a The Tudors discussion guide.

Acclaimed historian G. J. Meyer provides a fresh look at the fabled Tudor dynasty—and some of the most enigmatic figures ever to rule a country. In 1485, Henry Tudor, whose claim to the English throne was so weak as to be almost laughable, nevertheless sailed from France with a ragtag army to take the crown from the family that had ruled England for almost four centuries. Fifty years later, his son, Henry VIII, aimed to seize even greater powers—ultimately leaving behind a brutal legacy that would blight the lives of his children and the destiny of his country. Edward VI, a fervent believer in reforming the English church, died before realizing his dream. Mary I, the disgraced daughter of Catherine of Aragon, tried and failed to reestablish the Catholic Church and produce an heir, while Elizabeth I sacrificed all chance of personal happiness in order to survive.

The Tudors presents the sinners and saints, the tragedies and triumphs, the high dreams and dark crimes, of this enthralling era.

An Expert in Murder ($1.99 Kindle), the first novel in the Josephine Tey series by Nicola Upson [HarperCollins]; the companion audiobook is $3.99.

Book Description
March 1934. Revered mystery writer Josephine Tey is traveling from Scotland to London for the final week of her play Richard of Bordeaux, the surprise hit of the season, with pacifist themes that resonate in a world still haunted by war. But joy turns to horror when her arrival coincides with the murder of a young woman she had befriended on the train ride—and Tey is plunged into a mystery as puzzling as any in her own works.

Detective Inspector Archie Penrose is convinced that the killing is connected to the play, and that Tey herself is in danger of becoming a victim of her own success. In the aftermath of a second murder, the writer and the policeman must join together to stop a ruthless killer who will apparently stop at nothing.

The Black Company ($2.99 Kindle), the first novel of The Chronicles of The Black Company by Glen Cook [Macmillan], will get you started on a good series, but your best bang for the buck is to get Chronicles of the Black Company omnibus instead, which contains the next two novels as well, with a total price equal to either of the bonus novels, alone. That leaves The Silver Spike as the remaining novel in that series, but there is an omnibus you'll want instead of that one, as well: The Books of the South: Tales of the Black Company, for only $1.30 extra.

At the publisher's request, these titles are being sold without Digital Rights Management software (DRM) applied.

The Black Company (companion audiobook $3.99)

Some feel the Lady, newly risen from centuries in thrall, stands between humankind and evil. Some feel she is evil itself. The hardbitten men of the Black Company take their pay and do what they must, burying their doubts with their dead.

Until the prophesy: The White Rose has been reborn, somewhere, to embody good once more.

There must be a way for the Black Company to find her...

Chronicles of the Black Company

Darkness wars with darkness as the hard-bitten men of the Black Company take their pay and do what they must. They bury their doubts with their dead.

Then comes the prophecy: The White Rose has been reborn, somewhere, to embody good once more…

This omnibus edition comprises The Black Company, Shadows Linger, and The White Rose—the first three novels in Glen Cook's bestselling fantasy series.

The Books of the South: Tales of the Black Company

Marching south after the ghastly battle at the Tower of Charm, the Black Company is hounded by shadowy figures every inch of the way.

The game is on: the Company versus the Shadowmasters, deadly creatures that deal in darkness and sorrow.

When hope dies, there's still survival. And there's still the Black Company.

The Book of the South is the second omnibus of novels from one of the greatest fantasy epics of our age, Glen Cook’s Black Company series—collecting Shadow Games, Dreams of Steel, and The Silver Spike.

The Abundant Community ($2.99 Kindle), by John McKnight and Peter Block [Berrett-Koehler Publishers]

Book Description
We need our neighbors and community to stay healthy, produce jobs, raise our children, and care for those on the margin. Institutions and professional services have reached their limit of their ability to help us.

The consumer society tells us that we are insufficient and that we must purchase what we need from specialists and systems outside the community. We have become consumers and clients, not citizens and neighbors. John McKnight and Peter Block show that we have the capacity to find real and sustainable satisfaction right in our neighborhood and community.

This book reports on voluntary, self-organizing structures that focus on gifts and value hospitality, the welcoming of strangers. It shows how to reweave our social fabric, especially in our neighborhoods. In this way we collectively have enough to create a future that works for all.

About the Authors
For nearly three decades, John McKnight has conducted research on social service delivery systems, health policy, community organizations, neighborhood policy, and institutional racism. He currently directs research projects focused on asset-based neighborhood development and methods of community building by incorporating marginalized people. John serves on the Board of Directors of numerous community organizations including the Gamaliel Foundation and The National Training and Information Center. McKnight is a professor of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University.

Peter Block is an author, consultant. His work is about empowerment, stewardship, chosen accountability, and the reconciliation of community. He’s the author of Flawless Consulting, Stewardship, The Answer to How is Yes, and Community

App Reviews - Solitaire and 3 Hidden Objects

Abhi over at 7 Dragons Inc., whom I have known for a while and run into on some of the forums, asked if I would review a few of the newly released games that his company has been optimizing for the Kindle Fire and Fire HD platforms. Since I also have the older Nook Tablets, he agreed to also send over the Nook versions for comparison (I didn't fire up the Kindle Fire to compare non-HD versions, but I have no doubt they games will look similar to the way they do on the Nook Tablet). The B&N editions of these games support all of their tablet devices, from the original Nook Color up to the HD+, while the Amazon editions support all Kindle Fire models, from the original Fire up to both HD editions (I don't have a 2nd Edition Fire to check, but since it it nearly identical to the original Fire, which I do have, I would assume that it is supported, as well). The apps in neither store are supported on generic generic Android tablets or phones

Right now, they are also having a sale on these games, which are marked down to an even $1.00 (down from $4), for a limited time. For those with a Nook, you should be able to play the games in test mode for 1/2 hour (although I haven't tried this feature for these particular games) and you can also send an app as a gift to another account. Neither feature is available for those shopping in the Amazon Appstore, so they've come out with a special free version of the first app that allows you 15 minutes of play per day. Copies of all games reviewed below were provided to me by 7 Dragons.

Solitaire, Mahjong Solitaire, Spider Solitaire, 4 Rivers, FreeCell Solitaire, Memory Solitaire HD ($1.00 Amazon, B&N; Free Test Version Amazon)

This was definitely my favorite of the two apps. I played thru at least one game of each of the six include "mini-apps", any one of which I've seen for sale for dollar or more as stand-alone apps. You can jump into the menu options in the middle of a game and immediately change the background, face format and deck backs (for card games) and the changes take effect when you return to the game. You can get hints on any screen, if you can't figure out what to do next (or just want to verify there are no playable positions) and undo worked flawless when I tested it to move back thru several plays. When you finally give in (the solitaire games won't tell you that you've lost, so you have to quit), you have a choice of replaying the same game or starting over with a new hand.

For card games, the Solitaire game is the one you've played forever, both with cards or on your computer. Spider Solitaire adds the same game that many of us became addicted to on later Windows version and FreeCell rounds out the games that many an office worker has wasted some downtime playing. In addition to that, Memory Solitaire is a basic flip-2-and-match game, with many grid sizes available, along with other play options. The difficulty of play ranges from easy, on a small grid, to mind-twistingly difficult on a 13x4 grid (not enough challenge - play the infinite mode on the Insane level).

There are two tile games included, Mahjongg and 4 Rivers, which I had not played before. It works lot like Mahjongg, but you can match two tiles in the interior of the board, but you also must be able to "connect" matching tiles with a straight line that has no more than two right angle turns. Sounds simple, but can take a little extra strategy to make sure that you don't end up with blocked tiles.

This app made it to my Favorites list, right beside Cubistry, which I try to play once a day. No doubt the Memory Solitaire is the "best" for you (and is a lot cheaper than joining Luminosity, although it only works on one type of memory), but the Solitaire standards are the ones that I ended up playing over and over. FreeCell and Spider require you to use a bit more strategy to win, but that also means you aren't entirely at the mercy of the shuffle/deal, as you are in regular Solitaire. Overall, I'd give this one a 5 out of 5 stars - it's definitely worth a buck and will be staying on my Fire to play over and over.

App Details
Solitaire gives you - Autosave, Draw 3, Draw 1, Hints, Undo, 6 Card Front Designs, 12 Card Back Designs, 10 backgrounds, Best Score, Trophies.

Mahjong Solitaire gives you - 19 Tile layouts from Easy to Very Challenging, Every Game is Unique, Autosave, Realistic Tiles with shadows, Hints, Undo, 3 Tileset Designs, 3 Tile Colors, 7 backgrounds, Best Score, Best Time, Trophies.

Spider Solitaire gives you - Three Difficulty Levels (1 Suit, 2 Suits, 4 Suits), Autosave, Hints, Undo, 2 Spider themed Card Designs, 5 additional Card Designs, 12 Card Back Designs, 6 Spider themed backgrounds, 4 more backgrounds, Best Score, Best Time, Trophies.

FreeCell Solitaire gives you - Autosave, Hints, Undo, 6 Card Designs, 10 backgrounds.

Shared Features - Background Music, Game Sounds (can be turned off), easy and intuitive Touch & Drag gameplay.

3 Hidden Objects Adventures HD ($1.00 Kindle, B&N)

I told Abhi that Hidden Object games are not my favorite, but he sent this one over anyway. I won't say this one made me a fan, but it was quite playable in story mode. I played thru several scenes in one adventure (of three) on both the Nook Tablet and my Kindle Fire HD 8.9". I could actually see the objects easier (for the most part) on the Nook, but it was easier to move the image around after zooming in on the Kindle Fire. By default, the game starts in 15 item mode, so if you want to drop back to 5 object mode (which will give you more re-playability and faster moving between story line segments), be sure to do that before you get to the first object scene. You can change it after you start, but the switch won't take effect until the next scene. In 5-object mode, you also get one hint per scene, so use it wisely. Each scene is played against both a timer and has a minimum of 4 of 5 objects found in order to progress to the next story segment.

You'll note below that the app also needs quite a bit of space to download (those HD graphics are worth it), so plan on waiting up to 1/2 hour (we have slow DSL) after first opening the game to download the necessary files. After that first download, though, the game started up quite quickly and remembered where I was when I returned to continue. I ended up using the Zoom feature quite a bit and moved the image around on the Kindle Fire in order to track down some of the more sneakily placed items. Overall, I'd give this one a 4 out of 5 stars, simply because I thought some of the items were just too difficult to see. I didn't run into any glitches, hangups or slowdowns while playing (other than the Nook kept thinking I was randomly clicking, when I was trying to move the zoomed image, which I blame on the hardware, not the game) and you should definitely get quite a bit of playtime for the money (I played quite a while and was still on the first adventure).

3 Hidden Objects Adventures gives you three beautiful Hidden Objects Adventures in one great app.

3 Adventures, 158 scenes, 2,392 hidden objects. You will have a fun, challenging, and satisfying Hidden Objects experience.

Please Note: App needs 600 MB of free space on your NOOK (TM) to download the graphics.

Please Note: These Adventures only have Hidden Objects scenes (no mini games). These are not 'Very Easy' Hidden Objects Adventures with all items out in plain view. You might need to use Hints and the Zoom feature. For young kids you should turn on 'Extra Hints' and turn off the Timer.

Late Night Free iTunes Games

Gesundheit!, by Revolutionary Concepts, is free tonight in the iTunes store.

Book Description
★ Runner-Up iPad Game of The Year - Apple Europe Best of 2011
★ GOTY Nominee & Winner Best Mobile Puzzle Game of the Year by IGN!
★ Time Magazine Top 25 iPad Games of All Time

You can also pick up 40 or so free games from EnsenaSoft, as part of a celebration of the release of their newest Mahjong game. Besides some kid's learning games, there is Mahjong, Backgammon, Sudoku for those wanting adult learning games and pure games such as Raging Pigs and Red Baron's Revenge. Click to see their entire catalog for the iPad or iPod, then click the "free" button next to the names of the games you want (skip the ones with 'free' in the title and grab the full versions instead - right this minute, they are also free, but that is likely to change after midnight).

Amazon Digital Weekend Deals

The Kindle Weekend Deal is Deja Vu ($1.99), the nineteenth (and next-to-most recent) title in the Sisterhood series by Fern Michaels.

Book Description
Celebrate With The Sisterhood

Thanks to a presidential pardon, the Sisterhood can put their fugitive days behind them and resume their lives in peace. Still, all the women admit that lately things are a little too calm and peaceful. Meeting up for the first time in months to celebrate Kathryn's birthday--in the City of Sin, no less--seems like the perfect antidote.

But before they can kick up their heels something too big to pass up is dropped into their laps. The time has come to deal with Enemy #1, a/k/a Hank Jellicoe. Wanted by the FBI, the CIA, and Homeland Security for starters, President Connor herself has run out of patience with their lack of results. Only the Sisterhood, with their special blend of guts, imagination, and friends in all places are capable of pulling off the impossible--of hunting down this monster and taking him out once and for all...

Other vote winners on sale this weekend are Ferris Bueller's Day Off (video), The Complete Billie Holiday (mp3) and Nancy Drew: Danger on Deception Island (game). It looks like this is the last weekend of the promotion, as there was nothing to vote upon for next week.

Amazon Digital Weekend Deals

The Kindle Weekend Deal is TimeRiders ($1.99), by Alex Scarrow. This is the first novel in his very popular YA TimeRiders series, only two of which have shown up on Kindle, so far.

Book Description
Maddy should have died in a plane crash. Liam should have died at sea when the Titanic sank. Sal should have died in a tragic fire. But a mysterious man whisked them away to safety.

Maddy, Liam, and Sal quickly learn that time travel is no longer just a hope for the future; it is a dangerous reality. And they weren't just rescued from their terrible fates. . . they were recruited for the agency of TimeRiders created to protect the world from those seeking to alter the course of history for personal gain. By reliving the highly documented events in New York City on 9/11, they can closely monitor history for any deviations-large or small. When just such a change is detected, they are alerted that a threat is at hand unleashing the evil of the Nazis to wreak havoc with Earth's present and future. Can Maddy, Liam, and Sal fulfill their destinies as keepers of time to save the world from utter destruction?

An exhilarating adventure that shifts readers back in time to Nazi Germany and then forward into an ever-changing present.

Look out for the other books in this series: Day of the Predator and The Doomsday Code!

Other vote winners on sale this weekend are The Dark Knight (video), Norah Jones' Come Away With Me (mp3) and A Game of Thrones - Genesis (game). Don't forget to vote on next week's deals.

If you are a gamer, be sure to also check out Amazon's Game Downloads Mayhem Event, with 12 days of deals on some of the more popular games of 2011, ranging from Sims to hardcore gaming. For the more casual gamer, there's also the $2.99 Casual Games Mayhem Event, which has downloadable puzzles, matching, strategy and action/arcade games to choose from (the kind I keep on the netbook to play when not at home). Most have free trials, so you can test to see if they'll work on your hardware, first, before buying to keep. I've seen and ending date of both May 28 and May 29 on these sales, so don't wait until the very last day on these.

Kindle Weekend Deals

The Kindle Weekend Deal (for at least the next few hours) is The Hidden Language of Baseball: How Signs and Sign-Stealing Have Influenced the Course of Our National Pastime ($1.99), by Paul Dickson. Other vote winners to be on sale this weekend are Erin Brockovich (video), Nirvana (mp3) and Rollercoaster Tycoon 3: Platinum (game). Be sure to vote on next week's deal (I'm hoping for the wine country mystery for the book).

Book Description
Baseball is set apart from other sports by many things, but few are more distinctive than the intricate systems of coded language that govern action on the field and give baseball its unique appeal. During a nine-inning game, more than 1,000 silent instructions are given-from catcher to pitcher, coach to batter, fielder to fielder, umpire to umpire-and without this speechless communication the game would simply not be the same. Baseball historian Paul Dickson examines for the first time the rich legacy of baseball's hidden
language, offering fans everywhere a smorgasbord of history and anecdote.

Whether detailing the origins of the hit-and-run, the true story behind the home run that gave "Home Run" Baker his nickname, Bob Feller's sign-stealing telescope, Casey Stengel's improbable method of signaling his bullpen, the impact of sign stealing on the Giants' miraculous comeback in 1951, or the pitches Andy Pettitte tipped off that altered the momentum of the 2001 World Series, Dickson's research is as thorough as his stories are entertaining. A roster of baseball's greatest names and games, past and present, echoes throughout, making The Hidden Language of Baseball a unique window on the history of our national pastime.

It may be a glitch, but right now all four of the MP3 albums that you can vote on for next weekend's $5 deal are selling for $5 apiece. I'd just grab ones you want now and forget voting in that category.

• Come Away With Me, by Norah Jones
• The Lumineers, by The Lumineers
*** NOTE: If you buy this one from your Android device or Kindle Fire, using the Amazon MP3 App, you get another $2 off, so it's only $3 total!
• Scars & Stories, by The Fray
• Tuskegee, by Lionel Richie

Bargain Book/Game/Music/Movie Roundup

Amazon has started running a Weekend Deal on digital content, including Kindle Books, Game Downloads, MP3 Downloads and Instant Videos. You can vote on the upcoming deal thru the week and then use the same link to check on the results each Friday. I've added a link on the sidebar, directly under the free MP3 of the day, so you can easily find your way back to the page each week.

I'm going to list the deals for the weekend in this post, then add a few "with Bonus Materials" editions of books that are currently marked down in the Kindle store. Bonuses are usually simply previews of upcoming titles, which can be ignored and these volumes are usually bargain priced to entice you to try a new author.

Anathem ($1.99 Kindle, Google), by Neal Stephenson. Should be price matched elsewhere, as it's an Agency title. The only reason I'm not buying? I already have it in my library.

Book Description
Anathem, the latest invention by the New York Times bestselling author of Cryptonomicon and The Baroque Cycle, is a magnificent creation: a work of great scope, intelligence, and imagination that ushers readers into a recognizable -- yet strangely inverted -- world.

Fraa Erasmas is a young avout living in the Concent of Saunt Edhar, a sanctuary for mathematicians, scientists, and philosophers, protected from the corrupting influences of the outside "saecular" world by ancient stone, honored traditions, and complex rituals. Over the centuries, cities and governments have risen and fallen beyond the concent's walls. Three times during history's darkest epochs violence born of superstition and ignorance has invaded and devastated the cloistered mathic community. Yet the avout have always managed to adapt in the wake of catastrophe, becoming out of necessity even more austere and less dependent on technology and material things. And Erasmas has no fear of the outside -- the Extramuros -- for the last of the terrible times was long, long ago.

Now, in celebration of the week-long, once-in-a-decade rite of Apert, the fraas and suurs prepare to venture beyond the concent's gates -- at the same time opening them wide to welcome the curious "extras" in. During his first Apert as a fraa, Erasmas eagerly anticipates reconnecting with the landmarks and family he hasn't seen since he was "collected." But before the week is out, both the existence he abandoned and the one he embraced will stand poised on the brink of cataclysmic change.

Powerful unforeseen forces jeopardize the peaceful stability of mathic life and the established ennui of the Extramuros -- a threat that only an unsteady alliance of saecular and avout can oppose -- as, one by one, Erasmas and his colleagues, teachers, and friends are summoned forth from the safety of the concent in hopes of warding off global disaster. Suddenly burdened with a staggering responsibility, Erasmas finds himself a major player in a drama that will determine the future of his world -- as he sets out on an extraordinary odyssey that will carry him to the most dangerous, inhospitable corners of the planet . . . and beyond.

Beethoven: The Complete Symphony Collection ($5.00), performed by The London Symphony Orchestra. 5:40:00 of music and overwhelming 5 star reviews.


Unforgiven ($1.99 Rent, $9.99 Buy)

Movie Description
Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman play retired outlaws who pick up their guns one last time to collect a bounty.

The Great Tree ($1.99 PC or MAC download), by Amazon

Game Description
Fly into a magical world of mystery and adventure told through beautiful drawings and mesmerizing gameplay with Reflexive's enchanting game: The Great Tree! When the Pollen Collectors are bewitched, the faeries' survival rests upon the shoulders of their children. This quest will lead them directly into the dangers of the forest, where there are whispers of something sinister lurking in the shadows. The tree's life runs short. Set forth now to save the faeries in this grown-up tale of good and evil!

The Witch Doctor's Wife with Bonus Material ($0.99), by Tamar Myers, is a pre-order (credit card on file required, but not charged until shipped). Get a sample from the full price edition ($9.99).

Book Description
For a limited time at a special price, enjoy beloved mystery writer Tamar Myers' novel The Witch Doctor's Wife—an enthralling tale of duty, greed, danger, and miracles in equatorial Africa. As a bonus, you get an excerpt from The Headhunter's Daughter and The Boy Who Stole the Leopard's Spots, on sale May 8, 2012.

The Congo beckons to young Amanda Brown in 1958, as she follows her missionary calling to the mysterious "dark continent" far from her South Carolina home. But her enthusiasm cannot cushion her from the shock of a very foreign culture—where competing missionaries are as plentiful as flies, and oppressive European overlords are busy stripping the land of its most valuable resource: diamonds.

Little by little, Amanda is drawn into the lives of the villagers in tiny Belle Vue—and she is touched by the plight of the local witch doctor, a man known as Their Death, who has been forced to take a second job as a yardman to support his two wives. But when First Wife stumbles upon an impossibly enormous uncut gem, events are set in motion that threaten to devastate the lives of these people Amanda has come to admire and love—events that could lead to nothing less than murder.

Spin with Bonus Material ($1.99), by Catherine McKenzie, is a also a pre-order. Get a sample from the full price edition ($9.99).

Book Description
For a limited time at a special price, enjoy Catherine McKenzie's charming and humorous novel Spin, along with excerpts to her upcoming new novels, Arranged, on sale May 15, 2012, and Forgotten, on sale September 4, 2012.

When Kate Sandford lands an interview at her favorite music magazine, The Line, it's the chance of a lifetime. So Kate goes out to celebrate—and shows up still drunk to the interview the next morning. It's no surprise that she doesn't get the job, but her performance has convinced the editors that she'd be perfect for an undercover assignment for their gossip rag. All Kate has to do is follow "It Girl" Amber Sheppard into rehab. If she can get the inside scoop—and complete the thirty-day program—they'll reconsider her for the position at The Line. Kate takes the assignment, but when real friendships start to develop, she has to decide if what she has to gain is worth the price she'll have to pay.

I've mentioned Reckless With a Bonus Excerpt ($0.99), by Andrew Gross, before. It's out now (and still worth getting).

Book Description
For a limited time and a special price, discover Reckless, the New York Times best-selling novel by Andrew Gross, plus the first three chapters from his next novel, 15 Seconds, a thrilling, fast-paced story of a man, on the run, desperate to prove his innocence and to save his family’s lives. 15 Seconds will be available wherever books are sold July 10th.
In Reckless, Ty Hauck hunts the murderer of a friend--and steps into the crosshairs of a sinister conspiracy.

Savannah Blues with Bonus Material ($3.99), by Mary Kay Andrews, is a another pre-order. Get a sample from the full price edition ($9.99). I think I'll order this one, just for the area in which it is set (where I used to roam, in a past life).

Book Description
This special e-book edition of Savannah Blues includes a free excerpt of Mary Kay Andrews's latest novel, Spring Fever!

Landing a catch like Talmadge Evans III got Eloise “Weezie” Foley a jewel of a town house in Savannah's historic district. Divorcing Tal got her exited to the backyard carriage house, where she has launched a spite-fest with Tal's new fiancÉe, the elegant Caroline DeSantos.

An antiques picker, Weezie combs Savannah's steamy back alleys and garage sales for treasures when she's not dealing with her loopy relatives or her hunky ex-boyfriend. But an unauthorized sneak preview at a sale lands Weezie smack in the middle of magnolia-scented murder, mayhem . . . and more. Dirty deals simmer all around her—just as her relationship with the hottest chef in town heats up and she finds out how delicious love can be the second time around.

My Weird School 4-Book Collection with Bonus Material ($9.99), by Dan Gutman, works out to just under $2.50/volume for a series that usually is about $3.99 apiece. If you have small kids and you want them to love reading, definitely get them some of the titles in this series (one reviewer mentioned that her child read this book 22 times!).

Book Description
Don’t miss out on an exciting new My Weird School ebook collection, complete with the first four books in Dan Gutman’s seriously hilarious and seriously zany series. The collection includes My Weird School #1: Miss Daisy Is Crazy!, My Weird School #2: Mr. Klutz Is Nuts!, My Weird School #3: Mrs. Roopy Is Loopy!, My Weird School #4: Ms. Hannah Is Bananas!, and a bunch of seriously strange activities. The activities include a checklist, a maze, and a word scramble.

Meet a teacher who eats bonbons, a principal who kisses pigs, a librarian who thinks she's George Washington, and an art teacher who dresses up in pot holders! They're all inside this collection! They must be getting pretty crowded in there!

Warriors 3-Book Collection with Bonus Material ($12.99), by Erin Hunter, works out to $4.33/title, plus you get some bonus maps.

Book Description
For generations, four Clans of wild cats have shared the forest according to the laws laid down by their warrior ancestors. But now the ThunderClan cats are in grave danger, and sinister ShadowClan grows stronger every day. Noble warriors are dying—and some deaths are more mysterious than others. Into the midst of this turmoil comes an ordinary house cat named Rusty . . . who may turn out to be the bravest warrior of them all.

Enter the world of Warriors with this great introduction to Erin Hunter’s best-selling series: Warriors #1: Into the Wild, Warriors #2: Fire and Ice, and Warriors #3: Forest of Secrets. In addition, this bundle includes bonus materials like trivia, territory maps, sneak peeks at other Warriors books, and a new short story from Erin Hunter.

A Series of Unfortunate Events Collection: Books 1-13 with Bonus Material ($79.99), by Lemony Snicket, is a bit steep for a "bargain" and only works out to about $6.15/title (which is a bit of a discount from the $6.99 individually). Nowhere near the bargain long-time readers got when almost the entire series was mistakenly listed as free for a few hours, but this is the only way (that I can see) that you get the included bonus materials. If you have kids and don't have any of the books, it's definitely one to consider.

Book Description
If you have not read anything about the Baudelaire orphans, then before you read even one more sentence, you should know this: Violet, Klaus, and Sunny are kindhearted and quick-witted, but their lives are filled with bad luck and misery. All of the stories about these three children are unhappy and wretched and will most likely fill you with deep despair.

From The Bad Beginning to The End, this comprehensive collection with unfortunate bonus material that may or may not include trivia questions, character profiles, and several very sad sentences is the only choice for people who simply cannot get enough of a bad thing!

Bargain Book/Game/Music/Movie Roundup

Today's Google Play video rental for 25 cents is Vicky Cristina Barcelona starring Rebecca Hall, Scarlett Johansson (it's $3.99 at Amazon). I watched Puncture yesterday on my tablet and it was OK - it's a pain to have to hold it the entire movie (and watching on the phone results in a hot phone and dead battery), but I may try plugging it into the TV to see how that works (the one other time I tried this, the resolution simply wasn't as good as even using the Roku box). Until Google fixes up a channel on either the TV or Roku box, though, I don't know that I'd recommend them for most movie watching, unless you always watch on your laptop, which is what I'll probably try for the next one, it's just a lot more of a pain to hook it up to the TV so more than one person can see it). At least this movie has a 30 day period to start watching it (I think, from reading the page), instead of the ridiculous 24 period the last one had.

Kitchen Confidential ($0.25 Kindle, Google), by Anthony Bourdain, is today's Google Play Deal of the Day, and Amazon is price matching it (just double check the price before clicking, as I had to refresh a couple of times to see the price). I already have this in mobi format, but for a quarter I'm buying it again at Amazon, so it'll be back up in my library.

Book Description
Kitchen Confidential reveals what Bourdain calls "twenty-five years of sex, drugs, bad behavior and haute cuisine."

Last summer, The New Yorker published Chef Bourdain’s shocking, "Don’t Eat Before Reading This." Bourdain spared no one’s appetite when he told all about what happens behind the kitchen door. Bourdain uses the same "take-no-prisoners" attitude in his deliciously funny and shockingly delectable book, sure to delight gourmands and philistines alike. From Bourdain’s first oyster in the Gironde, to his lowly position as dishwasher in a honky tonk fish restaurant in Provincetown (where he witnesses for the first time the real delights of being a chef); from the kitchen of the Rainbow Room atop Rockefeller Center, to drug dealers in the east village, from Tokyo to Paris and back to New York again, Bourdain’s tales of the kitchen are as passionate as they are unpredictable. Kitchen Confidential will make your mouth water while your belly aches with laughter. You’ll beg the chef for more, please.

Lady Antebellum's Own The Night ($0.25 Amazon; Google) album is today's MP3 Deal of the Day from Google. The Amazon version includes the digital booklet (although you can get it at the same price, without the booklet).

Book Description
After you've conquered the world, what do you do for a follow-up? In the wake of Lady Antebellum's 2010 blockbuster, Need You Now, the trio's third album finds the group untroubled by that question. Lady A sagely stays the course, mixing post-Sugarland radio-ready anthems with dashes of R&B, roots rock and '70s singer-songwriter influences. Those who started calling them "the country Fleetwood Mac" when they first appeared will have little reason to alter that appellation, as Charles Kelley, Dave Haywood and Hillary Scott continue to blend their voices and songwriting skills seamlessly on slow-burning tear-jerkers ("Dancin' Away with My Heart") and up-tempo jukebox fodder ("Friday Night") alike, with expertly baited hooks to spare. Jim Allen, Google Play

Quell Reflect ($0.25 Amazon; Google), by Fallen Tree Games, is today's App Deal from Google Play, price matched at Amazon. I'm not sure how it works, but it does have almost all 5-star reviews at Amazon (and hey, with all three of these, I've still spent less than a buck today, so why not). It is compatible with most devices at Amazon (my phone, tablet and Kindle Fire), so that's where I'll go this time for this one

Book Description
Play a charming zen puzzler that is sure to test your brain and capture your heart. Quell Reflect has more than 80 levels of ingenious gameplay, a gorgeous art style, and a haunting soundtrack.

The objective is simple: Slide a droplet around a layout of obstacles, traps and pathways, until you have collected all the pearls. Underneath this simple gameplay lies a world of intricacy.

Quell Reflect's appeal lies in its gentle, soothing mood, which makes it a great way to unwind.

While browsing the 49 cent apps page at Google, I also ran into Jamie's 20 Minute Meals ($0.49 Amazon, Google), by Zolmo, which normally sells for $7.99 according to Amazon. This is essentially a 60-recipe cookbook featuring Jamie Oliver, complete with videos to show you how to cook. If you missed this when it was free last summer, then definitely grab it now, if you are able to do so (you have to have Android device registered at Amazon or Google or they won't let you purchase). It's also a shame you can't gift the apps, as this is a perfect one to give college kids or new grads and works on phones, tablets or the Kindle fire. There's some other deals on that 49 cent page you might want to check out, such as Business Calendar (usually $5), TuneIn Radio Pro and a number of games and even a kids book. Most of them are also at Amazon and appear to be price matching (at least, for now).

Book Description
Who can help but be charmed by England's Jamie Oliver, The Naked Chef? Jamie is well known as chef, restaurateur, and an advocate for improving unhealthy diets, especially championing healthy school lunches for children.

Watch an introductory video from Jamie and get right to the recipes. Search for a recipe or peruse 10 categories such as Delicious soups, Tasty stir-fries, and Simple risottos. Each recipe includes a summary with a picture of the dish, an ingredient and equipment list, detailed instructions, and relevant videos on tasks like garlic preparation or onion chopping. Double-touch the screen in landscape mode to see pictures of each step.

Add ingredients to your list and then use the general shopping list to view by recipe or by aisle. Use the menu to quickly access any video or learn about what Jamie feels are kitchen essentials -- both ingredients and equipment. Jamie promises that this app will "arm you with the confidence" to have tasty meals in 20 minutes!

Liar, Liar ($0.99), the first title in the Cat DeLuca Mysteries series by K.J. Larsen, is one of Poison Pen Press' sale books this month (still full price at Google, though).

Book Description
Burned by her run-around ex-husband Johnnie Ricco, Caterina DeLuca took the skills she mastered during marriage and opened her own private eye agency. Now she’s a second-story woman, armed with a camera, ready to print 8x10 glossies for use in divorce court.

The men in her big, whacko family, all Chicago cops—one a crook—aren’t sure what to make of Cat’s career choice. But hey, it’s serve and protect!

Then one Rita Polansky retains Cat. Rita’s liar-liar husband is the mysterious, but seriously hot, Chance Savino. Cat is hot on his heels when an exploding building hurls her out of her stilettos and into the hospital. The FBI claims Chance was killed in the fireworks, but concussed Cat remembers a different scenario.

She escapes the hospital to meet with her client. But when Rita doesn’t show, Cat breaks into her home to find Rita with a knife in her chest and two clues at the murder scene: a clutch of candy wrappers and Chance Savino, rummaging through Rita’s drawers.

One surprise after another piles up. As no one else sights Savino, everyone around Cat thinks she’s crazy. Everyone except a determined killer who has put her on his “kill” list.

I've been watching for The Cake Mix Doctor Bakes Gluten-Free ($3.99 Kindle, Google), by Anne Byrn, to go on sale and was starting to think that it never would.

Book Description
Thirty million Americans are gluten-intolerant or have a gluten sensitivity, eliminating it from their diets because gluten—a protein found in wheat, rye, and barley—has been implicated in health issues ranging from respiratory problems and abdominal discomfort to anemia, anxiety, and infertility. The food industry has bullishly taken notice. Gluten-free baking products, including cake mixes from Betty Crocker, King Arthur, Whole Foods, and others, have increased sevenfold on grocery shelves in recent years, and the number of other gluten-free products has grown as well—832 were introduced in 2008 alone. And gluten-free options are on the menu of national restaurants like Boston Market, Chili’s, Ruby Tuesday, Outback Steakhouse, and others.

Now comes even sweeter news for people looking to cut gluten from their diets: Anne Byrn shows how to transform gluten-free cake mixes into 76 rich, decadent, easy-to-make, impossible-to-resist desserts. Performing the magic that’s made her a bestselling baking author with over 33 million copies of her books in print, she doctors mixes with additions like almond extract, fresh berries, cocoa powder, grated coconut, cinnamon, lime zest, and more—naturally, all gluten-free ingredients—and voilà: Tres Leches Cake with Whipped Cream and Summer Berries, Almond Cream Cheese Pound Cake, Chocolate Cupcakes with Milk Chocolate Ganache, Caramel Melted Ice Cream Cake, Warm Tarte Tatin Apple Cake, plus brownies, bars, muffins, and cookies. Dessert is back on the menu.

I picked up Thunder Dog: The True Story Of A Blind Man, His Guide Dog, And The Triumph Of Trust At Ground Zero ($3.99 Kindle, Google), by Michael Hingson, during one of the earlier sales at Amazon and have finished about a third of it and can recommend it from what I've read so far.

Book Description
Faith. Trust. Triumph.

"I trust Roselle with my life, every day. She trusts me to direct her. And today is no different, except the stakes are higher." - Michael Hingson

First came the boom- the loud, deep, unapologetic bellow that seemed to erupt from the very core of the earth. Eerily, the majestic high-rise slowly leaned to the south. On the seventy-eighth floor of the World Trade Center's north tower, no alarms sounded, and no one had information about what had happened at 8:46 a.m. on September 11, 2001- what should have been a normal workday for thousands of people. All that was known to the people inside was what they could see out the windows: smoke and fire and millions of pieces of burning paper and other debris falling through the air.

Blind since birth, Michael couldn't see a thing, but he could hear the sounds of shattering glass, falling debris, and terrified people flooding around him and his guide dog, Roselle. However, Roselle sat calmly beside him. In that moment, Michael chose to trust Roselle's judgment and not to panic. They are a team.

Thunder Dog allows you entry into the isolated, fume-filled chamber of stairwell B to experience survival through the eyes of a blind man and his beloved guide dog. Live each moment from the second a Boeing 767 hits the north tower, to the harrowing stairwell escape, to dodging death a second time as both towers fold into the earth.

It's the 9/11 story that will forever change your spirit and your perspective. Thunder Dog illumiates Hingson's lifelong determination to achieve parity in a sighted world, and how the rare trust between a man and his guide dog can inspire an unshakable faith in each one of us.

Murder in Mykonos ($0.99), the first novel in the Inspector Kaldis series by Jeffrey Siger, is another Poisoned Pen Press published title.

Book Description
A young woman on holiday on Mykonos, the most famous of Greece’s Aegean Cycladic islands, simply disappears off the face of the earth. And no one notices.

When politically incorrect, hot-shot detective Andreas Kaldis is promoted out of Athens to serve as police chief for Greece’s island paradise of Mykonos, he’s certain his homicide days are over. Murders don’t happen in tourist heaven; at least that’s what he’s thinking as he stares at the remains of a young woman found ritually bound and buried on a pile of human bones inside a remote mountain church.

Teamed with the canny, nearly-retired local homicide chief, Andreas tries to find the killer before the media can destroy the island’s fabled reputation with a barrage of world-wide attention on a mystery that’s haunted Mykonos undetected for decades.

Just when it seems things can’t get any worse, another young woman disappears and political niceties no longer matter. With the investigation now a rescue operation, Andreas finds himself plunging into ancient myths and forgotten island places, racing against a killer intent on claiming a new victim who is herself determined to outstep him.

Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic ($3.99 Kindle, Google), by Alison Bechdel

Book Description
A fresh and brilliantly told memoir from a cult favorite comic artist, marked by gothic twists, a family funeral home, sexual angst, and great books.

This breakout book by Alison Bechdel is a darkly funny family tale, pitch-perfectly illustrated with Bechdel's sweetly gothic drawings. Like Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis, it's a story exhilaratingly suited to graphic memoir form.

Meet Alison's father, a historic preservation expert and obsessive restorer of the family's Victorian home, a third-generation funeral home director, a high school English teacher, an icily distant parent, and a closeted homosexual who, as it turns out, is involved with his male students and a family babysitter. Through narrative that is alternately heartbreaking and fiercely funny, we are drawn into a daughter's complex yearning for her father. And yet, apart from assigned stints dusting caskets at the family-owned "fun home," as Alison and her brothers call it, the relationship achieves its most intimate expression through the shared code of books. When Alison comes out as homosexual herself in late adolescense, the denouement is swift, graphic -- and redemptive.

Skinny Bitch: A No-Nonsense, Tough-Love Guide for Savvy Girls Who Want to Stop Eating Crap and Start Looking Fabulous ($3.99 Kindle, Google), by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin, is not the diet book for those who want their hands held!

Book Description
Not your typical boring diet book, this is a tart-tongued, no-holds-barred wakeup call to all women who want to be thin. With such blunt advice as, "Soda is liquid Satan" and "You are a total moron if you think the Atkins Diet will make you thin," it's a rallying cry for all savvy women to start eating healthy and looking radiant. Unlike standard diet books, it actually makes the reader laugh out loud with its truthful, smart-mouthed revelations. Behind all the attitude, however, there's solid guidance. Skinny Bitch espouses a healthful lifestyle that promotes whole grains, fruits, and vegetables, and encourages women to get excited about feeling "clean and pure and energized."

Highland Protector ($3.49 Kindle, Google), by Hannah Howell

Book Description
The Murrays are back! From New York Times bestselling author Hannah Howell comes an all-new story of the beloved Scottish family, and two lovers entangled in a plot against the king. . .

Someone would see Ilsabeth Murray Armstrong hang for murder.

When her dagger is found buried in the body of one of the king's men, there is little room for doubt--the perpetrator must pay with her life. But Ilsabeth is no killer, and only one person can help clear her name: Sir Simon Innes, a man so steely and cool that no danger can rattle him. . .and no woman in distress can sway his heart.

Until now. Simon has spent his life searching for truth in a world fraught with deception. But the hauntingly beautiful fugitive seeking his aid affects him so deeply, he wonders if he can trust the flawless judgment he has always relied on. For all signs point to Ilsabeth's guilt, except one--the unparalleled desire he feels at her slightest touch. . .

The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale Of True Love And High Adventure ($3.99 Kindle, Google), by William Goldman

Book Description
William Goldman's modern fantasy classic is a simple, exceptional story about quests—for riches, revenge, power, and, of course, true love—that's thrilling and timeless.

Anyone who lived through the 1980s may find it impossible—inconceivable, even—to equate The Princess Bride with anything other than the sweet, celluloid romance of Westley and Buttercup, but the film is only a fraction of the ingenious storytelling you'll find in these pages. Rich in character and satire, the novel is set in 1941 and framed cleverly as an “abridged” retelling of a centuries-old tale set in the fabled country of Florin that's home to “Beasts of all natures and descriptions. Pain. Death. Brave men. Coward men. Strongest men. Chases. Escapes. Lies. Truths. Passions.”

Once upon a time came a story so full of high adventure and true love that it became an instant classic and won the hearts of millions. Now in hardcover in America for the first time since 1973, this special edition of The Princess Bride is a true keepsake for devoted fans as well as those lucky enough to discover it for the first time. What reader can forget or resist such colorful characters as

Westley . . . handsome farm boy who risks death and much, much worse for the woman he loves; Inigo . . . the Spanish swordsman who lives only to avenge his father's death; Fezzik . . . the Turk, the gentlest giant ever to have uprooted a tree with his bare hands; Vizzini . . . the evil Sicilian, with a mind so keen he's foiled by his own perfect logic; Prince Humperdinck . . . the eviler ruler of Guilder, who has an equally insatiable thirst for war and the beauteous Buttercup; Count Rugen . . . the evilest man of all, who thrives on the excruciating pain of others; Miracle Max. . . the King's ex-Miracle Man, who can raise the dead (kind of); The Dread Pirate Roberts . . . supreme looter and plunderer of the high seas; and, of course, Buttercup . . . the princess bride, the most perfect, beautiful woman in the history of the world.

S. Morgenstern's timeless tale--discovered and wonderfully abridged by William Goldman--pits country against country, good against evil, love against hate. From the Cliffs of Insanity through the Fire Swamp and down into the Zoo of Death, this incredible journey and brilliant tale is peppered with strange beasties monstrous and gentle, and memorable surprises both terrible and sublime.

The Book of Man: Readings on the Path to Manhood ($3.99 Kindle, Google), by William J. Bennett

Book Description
WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A MAN

Raising up men has never been easy, but today is seems particularly tough. The young and old need heroes to embody the eternal qualities of manhood: honor, duty, valor, and integrity. In The Book of Man, William J. Bennett points the way, offering a positive, encouraging, uplifting, realizable idea of manhood, redolent of history and human nature, and practical for contemporary life.

Using profiles, stories, letters, poems, essays, historical vignettes, and myths to bring his subject to life, The Book of Man defines what a man should be, how he should live, and to what he should aspire in several key areas of life: war, work, leisure, and more. "Whether we take up the sword, the plow, the ball, the gavel, our children, or our Bibles," says Bennett, "we must always do it like the men we are called to be." The Book of Man shows how.

Dry Bones ($0.99), the first title in The Enzo Files by Scottish author Peter May, was originally published under the title Extraordinary People.

Book Description
What has happened to Jacques Gaillard? The brilliant teacher who trained some of France’s best and brightest as future Prime Ministers and Presidents at the École Nationale d’Administration vanished ten years ago, presumably from Paris. Talk about your cold case.

The mystery inspires a bet, one that Enzo Macleod, a biologist teaching in Toulouse instead of pursuing a brilliant career in forensics back home in Scotland, can ill afford to lose. The wager is that Enzo can find out what happened to Jacques Gaillard by applying new science to an old case.

Enzo comes to Paris to meet journalist Roger Raffin, the author of a book on seven celebrated unsolved murders. The assumption is that Gaillard is dead. Armed with Raffin’s notes, Enzo begins his quest. It quickly has him touring landmarks like the Paris catacombs. Then Enzo finds Jacques Gaillard’s head.

The artifacts buried with the skull set him to interpreting the clues they provide and to following in someone’s footsteps after the rest of Gaillard. He must also review some ancient and recent history. As with any quest, it’s as much discovery as detection. Enzo proves to be an ace investigator, scientific and intuitive, and, for all his missteps, one who hits his goals, including a painful journey toward greater self-awareness.

Mew is for Murder ($0.99) is the first in the Theda Krakow Mysteries series by Clea Simon

Book Description
Theda Krakow is in a funk. Her sometime boyfriend’s gone for good. The death of her beloved cat opened a bigger void. And the career leap she’s made from copy editor to freelance writer has left her finances—and her spirit—flat. She desperately needs a headline to get her life back on track.

One day, out for a stroll in her Cambridge neighborhood, Theda spies an adorable stray kitten. This charmer leads Theda to an old woman holed up in a decrepit house full of cats. Is this one of those “crazy cat ladies,” a classic hoarder, or is the old woman a neighborhood do-gooder? More important: is this the story to catapult Theda out of the dumps? But when she returns to interview Lillian Helmhold, Theda finds her fascinating subject dead of an apparent accident. The neighbors are celebrating, the police aren’t interested, and the cats are removed to a shelter. End of story? Not for Theda—one or two things don’t compute. So Theda marshals her investigative journalism skills to turn gumshoe.

Why is the purple-haired punk Violet, a barista at Theda’s favorite coffee house, hanging around Lillian’s home? Then there’s Lillian’s neighbor who’s only too anxious to clean up an eyesore. What’s the story on Lillian’s disturbed son? Theda’s inquiries lead her from a halfway house in the hills of Western Massachusetts back to Boston’s happening rock scene. Enter a music-loving artist, the one who jumpstarts Theda’s pulse. He’s handsome, he’s interested—but is he a bit too mysterious? Theda’s quiet life, her heart, and her bank account are about to be shaken to the core.

Google Play - 25 Cent Intro Specials

Google is merging their Books, Music, Movies and Appstore into a single Google Play website (and renaming the Android Marketplace app). Your old content will transition to the new site, for those who already have apps and books, so nothing should be lost. To promote the new site, Google is running a 25 cent special in each section and it looks like Amazon is matching them (at least, it is right now). These are the current specials I see active:

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close: A Novel ($0.25 Kindle; Google), by Jonathan Safran Foer

Book Description
Jonathan Safran Foer follows his best-selling debut novel, Everything Is Illuminated, with an unexpectedly hilarious and affecting story about New York City in the period following September 11.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close recasts recent history through the eyes of Oskar Schell, an unusually intelligent nine-year-old on an urgent quest to find the lock that matches a mysterious key belonging to his father, who died in the World Trade Center. This unlikely adventure takes Oskar through every city borough and into contact with survivors of all sorts, and it's his irrepressible voice—one that few writers could conceive as imaginatively as Foer does—that transforms the tragedy of circumstance into an exhilarating tribute to love.

Where's My Water? ($0.25 Amazon; Google), by Disney

Book Description
Now test your skills with "Cranky's Story"!

Cranky is the toughest alligator around and he has worked up an appetite from sabotaging Swampy's water supply. He eats anything, especially all the rotting and disgusting junk found in the dumps and sewers. Cranky will not eat vegetables however, and now his food is covered with vegetable-like algae. Use the dirty purple water to clean off Cranky's plate so he can eat!

• Enjoy five of these new puzzles for free

• Purchase the Cranky's Story in-app item to unlock more than 50 super-challenging puzzles, including Cranky's Challenge, and enjoy a completely new way to play--Cranky's Challenge is a game within a game: four unique puzzle packs with 16 special levels for the most-skilled puzzle solvers

• Swampy's stories will continue to be updated for free

Please note: The ability to write to external storage is not enabled in this version. Swampy will get his ducks in a row and enable this permission in the next update. In the mean time please send any questions to Disney's Customer Care service accessible via the Where's My Water Facebook page.

Have you "Tri-Ducked" the game yet and completed all the bonus levels?

Puncture ($3.99 Amazon; $0.25 Google), Starring Chris Evans, Vinessa Shaw, Michael Biehn and Marshall Bell

Book Description
An attorney fighting a corrupt system is battling his own demons as he tries to do right by others in this drama based on a true story. Vicky (Vinessa Shaw) is a nurse at a hospital in Houston whose life takes an unexpected turn when she accidentally jabs herself with a used syringe. The needle had been used on a patient who was HIV-positive, and Vicky contracts AIDS. Jeffrey Danfort (Marshall Bell) is a close friend of Vicky's who designs medical equipment, and he's inspired to invent a syringe with a safety point that would prevent such mistakes. However, as Jeffrey tries to sell his new invention to pharmaceutical manufacturers, he discovers how much they're governed by corruption and insider dealings. Jeffrey decides to take on the dishonest firms with a lawsuit, and he secures the services of Weiss & Danziger, a small law office eager for any kind of business. But while Paul Danziger (Mark Kassen) needs the work to support his wife and children, Mike Weiss (Chris Evans) is more concerned with supporting his cocaine habit, which is spiraling out of control. Even though Mike sees the case as a chance to prove himself, his hunger for drugs is a constant obstacle. Puncture received its world premiere at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival.

Now That's What I Call Music! 41 ($0.25 Amazon; Google), by various (EMD).

Book Description
The 41st volume of Now That's What I Call Music! delivers a variety of pop radio hits and, after nearly 30 years of compilations, continues to showcase the music of the times. The hit-makers are all here, from LMFAO, Gym Class Heroes and Coldplay, to Adele, Katy Perry, Jessie J and Lady Gaga, while T-Pain, Pitbull, and rapper J. Cole add a hip-hop edge. Throughout the 20 songs featured, the formula and momentum never waver. This edition also includes "Now What's Next," four bonus tracks from up-and-comers Sammy Adams, Hunter Hayes, Susan Justice and The Wanted. – Laura Checkoway, Google Music