Kobo
has these coupon codes still active, for non-Agency titles.
- 30% off - MarchKobo30; expires 4/4
- $1 Off - KoboSpring1; expires 4/30
Consider Phlebas (
$0.99 Kindle,
B&N,
Sony) was the first Science Fiction title written by Iain M. Banks, but definitely not his first novel. This one is well worth picking up. Despite being an Agency published title, this one is still full price at
Kobo.
Book Description
The war raged across the galaxy. Billions had died, billions more were doomed. Moons, planets, the very stars themselves, faced destruction, cold-blooded, brutal, and worse, random. The Idirans fought for their Faith; the Culture for its moral right to exist. Principles were at stake. There could be no surrender.
Within the cosmic conflict, an individual crusade. Deep within a fabled labyrinth on a barren world, a Planet of the Dead proscribed to mortals, lay a fugitive Mind. Both the Culture and the Idirans sought it. It was the fate of Horza, the Changer, and his motley crew of unpredictable mercenaries, human and machine, actually to find it, and with it their own destruction.
The Wednesday Wars (
$2.99 Kindle,
B&N) is by Gary Schmidt, who has won the Newbery Honor and Printz Honor awards for his novels.
Book Description
Holling Hoodhood is really in for it.
He’s just started seventh grade with Mrs. Baker, a teacher he knows is out to get him. Why else would she make him read Shakespeare . . . outside of class?
The year is 1967, and everyone has bigger things than homework to worry about. There’s Vietnam for one thing, and then there’s the family business. As far as Holling’s father is concerned, nothing is more important than the family business. In fact, all of the Hoodhoods must be on their best behavior at all times. The success of Hoodhood and Associates depends on it. But how can Holling stay out of trouble when he has Mrs. Baker to contend with?
Prayers for Sale (
$2.99 Kindle,
B&N,
Kobo
), by Sandra Dallas
Book Description
Hennie Comfort is eighty-six and has lived in the mountains of Middle Swan, Colorado since before it was Colorado. Nit Spindle is just seventeen and newly married. She and her husband have just moved to the high country in search of work. It's 1936 and the depression has ravaged the country and Nit and her husband have suffered greatly. Hennie notices the young woman loitering near the old sign outside of her house that promises "Prayers For Sale". Hennie doesn't sell prayers, never has, but there's something about the young woman that she's drawn to. The harsh conditions of life that each have endured create an instant bond and an unlikely friendship is formed, one in which the deepest of hardships are shared and the darkest of secrets are confessed.
Sandra Dallas has created an unforgettable tale of a friendship between two women, one with surprising twists and turns, and one that is ultimately a revelation of the finest parts of the human spirit.
Footloose Bundle (
$9.32 Kindle; $13.89
Kobo
), by Leanne Banks, works out to just over $3 per book (use the 30% off coupon code at Kobo)
Book Description
Feet First:
Designing footwear is Jenny Prillaman's life, so getting the plum assignment to create a socialite's wedding shoes is a dream come true. Dealing with the heiress is another story. So is staying away from her dreamy new boss, a man too hot to deny for long, despite Jenny's best intentions of keeping her business away from his pleasure. Making Bellagio, Inc. an international success is executive Marc Waterson's career ambition. But his life's desire is to find the right woman and settle down. Too bad Jenny would rather follow in his corporate footsteps than try on the glass slippers of a company wife. At least Marc's got one thing going for him — the way to a woman's heart is through a really great pair of shoes!
Underfoot:
Bellagio, Inc. public relations genius Trina Roberts had been a bad, bad girl when she'd gone to bed with a recently jilted groom and wound up pregnant. She knew Walker Gordon wasn't looking for forever — at least not with her. So when he took a job overseas, she sort of neglected to tell him about the baby on the way. Well, now he's back...and he's just figured out the truth. Walker had been reeling from a very public breakup when Trina had offered solace he couldn't deny. He'd never expected the result would make him somebody's daddy! Trina claimed not to need anything from him, but he was determined that his child have a father; he just didn't know if it should be him. Because a father's shoes...well, those he wasn't sure he could fill.
Footloose:
Even on a tropical getaway, a girl's got to watch out for the sharks... Think working for a leading international shoe company sounds like a dream job? Not if you're Amelia Parker, an overworked, downtrodden temp working for Bellagio, Inc.'s grande dame, Lillian Bellagio. But things are looking up for Amelia. She's just been given the assignment of accompanying Ms. Bellagio to her estate in the Keys. Trading pumps for flip-flops and a cell phone for a conch shell—could be worse, right? Especially when life on the island includes her very own mystery man—one Jack "The Shark" O'Connell, dashing venture capitalist. He dares Amelia to use this time to do something wild: drink a hurricane, go skinny-dipping...have an affair with a dangerously attractive man. Now Amelia will have to decide whether to step into that glass slipper.
There are two
Bindi Wildlife Adventures books for younger readers on sale,
Trouble at the Zoo (
$0.99 Kindle,
B&N; $0.89
Kobo
) and
Rescue! (
$0.99 Kindle; $0.89
Kobo
), by Bindi Irwin. Get both of them free at Kobo, using the $1 off coupons above (although you do need a valid credit card on file, apparently, as I had to update the expiration date on mine).
Trouble at the Zoo
A fast-paced adventure series featuring The Jungle Girl herself! The stories are inspired and co-created by Bindi Irwin, daughter of the iconic wildlife expert, Steve Irwin. The series features the characters of Bindi, her brother Robert, mother Terri, and the Australia Zoo.
Bindi's birthday party at the zoo is going to be HUGE. Karaoke, animal rides, dancing competitions-it's all happening! But when a spoiled ten-year-old boy decides he wants to take home one of the zoo's precious water dragons, Bindi, her brother Robert, and a green-winged macaw come to the rescue. Can Bindi save the water dragon and her party?
Rescue!
Bindi and her friend Hannah uncover a threat to the endangered antelope of South Africa while on a horse trek. A fast-paced adventure series featuring The Jungle Girl herself! The stories are inspired and co-created by Bindi Irwin, daughter of the iconic wildlife expert, Steve Irwin. The series features the characters of Bindi, her brother Robert, mother Terri, and the Australia Zoo.
Betrayal on Orbis 2 (
$0.99 Kindle,
Kobo
), by Pj Haarsma, the second book in
The Softwire series for young teens, has dropped at Amazon to match Kobo's price, but at Kobo, you can use the $1 off coupon to get it free and you can use the 30% off coupon on the
next two in the series
. The first in the series,
Virus on Orbis 1, is still free on Kindle, as well as from
B&N and
Kobo
.
Book Description
Sci-fi fans will tear through this new adventure as Johnny Turnbull — first human softwire — finds more danger and intrigue on the next ring of Orbis.
On Orbis 2, Johnny Turnbull has a new home and a new job, one that pushes his softwire abilities to painful limits. JT is the only one who can communicate with the Samirans, large aquatic aliens who have cooled the crystals on Orbis for nearly two thousand rotations. But as the Samirans’ work rule ostensibly comes to a close, they have grown dangerously agitated, and JT must find out why. What he learns is that the prosperity of Orbis is built on a brutal system of enforced labor — and that everyone seems to have something to hide. Can JT appease the Samirans before their threat is realized? And if he doesn’t, will his friends survive? In this second episode of THE SOFTWIRE, PJ Haarsma takes readers on another lightning-paced, cyber-fueled ride through the amazing universe he introduced in THE SOFTWIRE: VIRUS ON ORBIS 1.
The last title in today's roundup isn't a single novel, but a series. The first four in the series are currently on sale for 99 cents, with the next three at $2.99 and the latest, still bargain priced, at $4.99. These may be self-published, but that just means we have better access to a series that has seen the first book thru eight printings and have won numerous awards. Of course, the author also has the dubious distinction of having been a runner up in a worst opening sentence competition for an imaginary novel (which you can read on "page 17" of book six, as the detective in this series has a flair for bad writing).
The series, in order:
- The Alto Wore Tweed ($0.99)
Hayden Konig is the police chief in the small Appalachian town of St. Germaine, North Carolina. His part-time job, however, is serving as the choir director and organist at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church, but he’s also determined to write the next great hard-boiled mystery novel a la Raymond Chandler — a liturgical mystery novel with no real plot, but enough bad prose to make the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest look like the Oxford University Press spring catalog.
Chief Konig is also lucky enough to be independently wealthy, which is why he decides that his lack of talent in the writing department can easily be remedied, or at least greatly enhanced, by the purchase of Raymond Chandler’s 1939 Underwood typewriter. He is sadly mistaken, but the results are uproarious!
Even as Hayden works on his opus, he must deal with other, more pressing, problems — a new priest at St. Barnabas, a Christmas feud between the Rotarians and the Kiwanians and, more importantly, a dead body in the choir loft. It’s a good thing that Hayden keeps a loaded Glock under the organ bench!
As Christmas approaches, the tension (and hilarity) rises to a fever pitch. St. Barnabas is introduced to “The Penguin of Bethlehem” and the town’s Nativity feud turns ugly when the Kiwanian’s bagpiper spooks the Rotarian’s camel. A 12 year old wine snob, hedgehogs, Benny (the world-champion thurifer), church antics, and an episode that is just too good to give away, fill out this mystery that will leave you laughing all the way.
- The Baritone Wore Chiffon ($0.99)
St. Germaine’s police chief, Hayden Konig, returns in this hilarious sequel to "THE ALTO WORE TWEED." He’s beginning to write his second Chandler-style who-dun-it (an effort that is not going as well as he might wish), when he’s called to England to help solve a murder at Yorkminster. As the season of Lent begins, there’s an interim priest at St. Barnabas – a priest with a wife, and she has an agenda. If the "Edible Last Supper" (featuring the Mary Magdalene Coffee Bar), wasn’t enough, Hayden also has to deal with a Clown Eucharist, snakes loose in the church, the Fung Shui Altar Guild, and a dwarf verger named Wenceslas. As Easter approaches, it becomes clear that the murder in York has repercussions far exceeding the borders of England. Two dead bodies and counting. Now Hayden has some real problems.
- The Tenor Wore Tapshoes ($0.99)
Hayden Konig leads a charmed life. He’s rich, he loves his full-time job as Police Chief in the little mountain town of St. Germaine, NC, as well as his part-time employment as the organist and choirmaster at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church. He’s also working on his third detective story and is convinced that purchasing Raymond Chandler’s typewriter and using it to compose his opus will impart some magic to his demented prose. He couldn’t be more mistaken.
Until a body is found inside the altar of St. Barnabas, the biggest crime that Hayden has had to deal with is the theft of “The Immaculate Confection”, a cinnamon bun that looks like the Virgin Mary. The body, however, turns out to be one of the “incorruptibles,” and has been in the altar for over sixty years.
Added to this, a tent evangelist has come to town — Brother Hogmany MacTavish — and he’s having revivals every night featuring Binny Hen the Scripture Chicken, a chicken that chooses the scriptures for Brother Hog’s sermons.
As All Saints Day approaches, Hayden and his friend Pete are coerced into attending the “Iron Mike Men’s Retreat," but when another murder takes place in St. Germaine, it’s time to get serious. Could the bounty hunter called in to find the “Immaculate Confection” have something to do with it?
- The Soprano Wore Falsettos ($0.99)
Detective Hayden Konig is a success in anyone’s book. He has a job that he loves as Chief of Police in the small Appalachian town of St. Germaine, North Carolina. He’s employed as the part-time organist and choir master at St. Barnabas Church. He’s just proposed to his sweetheart, Meg Farthing, and, to top it all off, he’s as rich as a televangelist with his own 900 number.
In spite of all his apparent success, Hayden Konig’s life-long dream is yet to be realized. He longs to write the next great hard-boiled mystery. Though his past attempts have been less than impressive, Hayden is convinced that using Raymond Chandler’s actual typewriter (purchased at an auction) is just the impetus his writing needs to push his detective story over the top. Unfortunately, he’s dead wrong.
St. Barnabas, meanwhile, has come into a great deal of money. Sixteen million dollars, to be exact, and the members of the congregation all have ideas on how to spend it.
Suddenly, a shot rang out! A woman screamed, and Detective Konig has another dead body in the choir loft. It’s business as usual in St. Germaine. With Easter right around the corner and suspects galore, Hayden must find the murderer. Can things get any worse?
- The Bass Wore Scales ($2.99)
For Detective Hayden Konig, things are going well. He enjoys his two jobs, he’s independently wealthy, his girlfriend has agreed not to marry him, and no one has been killed in St. Germaine since Palm Sunday.
In spite of all this success, Hayden has one more dream to realize—he longs to be a writer. As the organist and choir director of St. Barnabas Episcopal Church, he takes every opportunity to inflict his attempts at hard-boiled, musical detective stories on the choir, and, to boost his credibility, he’s even purchased Raymond Chandler’s actual typewriter. It doesn’t help.
Summers in North Carolina are usually peaceful, but when Kokomo, the world-famous signing gorilla, comes to town, suddenly there’s a dead body in the church and all the evidence points to the great ape. Can Hayden figure out the mystery in time to save Kokomo? (Well...of course he can...)
- The Mezzo Wore Mink ($2.99)
Detective Hayden Konig is living the dream. He’s rich, he loves his work, and his girlfriend is prettier than a Holiday Gift Basket full of smoked oysters. Still, Hayden’s not a man to rest on his laurels. His mission is clear—he will be a writer. Not just a writer, but a hard-boiled, noir detective wordsmith worthy of Raymond Chandler’s typewriter. He has to. He owns it.
Autumn in St. Germaine, North Carolina, is an enchanting time of year. But throw in two murders, an election, a Christian nudist camp, and St. Barnabas’ answer to the local Baptist church’s annual Singing Christmas Tree — the first-ever performance of The Living Gobbler — and things are bound to become complicated.
- The Diva Wore Diamonds ($2.99)
Detective Hayden Konig has a great job in the little village of St. Germaine, North Carolina. He also has a loving wife, a fulfilling avocation as a choir director, friends, the respect of his peers, a house in the woods, a dog, a few guns, a 1962 pick-up truck, and more money than he can stuff into a feather-tick mattress. In short, he is living the Appalachian Dream.
In spite of his prosperity and good fortune, he still has one ambition left to realize--that of becoming a hard-boiled, crime writer. To further that goal, he's spared no expense in buying Raymond Chandler's typewriter, his hat, and innumerable Cuban cigars. It doesn't help.
St. Barnabas Day is reason for celebration! The new, rebuilt church has risen like an angel food souffle and is playing host to parishioners and dignitaries alike, but when a time-capsule from 1900 is opened during the festivities, the discovery throws the whole town into a tither. Toss in a murder, a Prayer Vigil that goes horribly wrong, the return of Brother Hog, Bible School terrorists, and a Children's Choir performance of an unknown Henry Purcell masterpiece, and St. Barnabas Episcopal Church will never be the same.
- The Organist Wore Pumps ($4.99)
Police chief Hayden Konig is a lucky man. He’s wealthy, he enjoys his work, he has a loving wife, good friends, and lives in the quaintest, most picturesque town in the North Carolina mountains. With all this going for him, you’d think he’d be satisfied. He’s not. He longs to be a writer, a hard-boiled, noir detective word-slinger worthy of the 1939 Underwood No. 5 sitting on his desk—a typewriter once owned by Raymond Chandler. You’d think a machine like this would help. It doesn’t.
As a detective, Chief Konig is at the top of his game. As the organist at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church, he can play with the best of them. But as a writer, Hayden produces more bad prose than the St. Germaine Garden Club’s annual poetry review.
What do the bones of an ancient king, a scoodle of skunks, a farm auction, the best Christmas parade ever, and an obnoxious deacon have to do with the dead body floating in Lake Tannenbaum? Maybe nothing. Maybe everything. It’s up to Hayden to pull all the clues together like two cousins in a Kentucky hayloft. After all, Epiphany is right around the corner!
You'll also want to check out the
Fun page on the author's website, where you can, amongst other things, listen to or download the liturgical music scores that accompany the books (including, of course,
The Weasel Cantata, the only church anthem based on the dietary laws of Leviticus, which seems appropriate for the current season) and find out how to use the Pirate Bible Translator (which includes a long example using Romans 8: "... Tharfore, me hearties, we have an obligation—but it be not t'the sinful nature, t'live accordin' to it. Far if ye live accordin' t'the sinful nature, ye will die; but if by the Spirit ye put t'death the misdeeds o' the body, ye will live ...")
Petals From The Sky ($7.99 Kindle), by Mingmei Yip, is a repeat freebie (Mar '10) at Barnes and Noble.
