Amazon is having a
Spring Spectacular Sale for Kindle eBooks on the Kindle UK site. I've highlighted a few books, below, that I think are especially worth checking out. This one is for UK Kindle customers only, but they can buy the books in the US or UK Kindle stores, so I'll include links for both. Many of these books are at vastly different prices for non-UK customers (such as those in the US) or are not available at all (or have different ASIN's, due to different publishers). Those lucky readers who are in the UK, though, can stock up on some very good books at extremely good prices.
Ill Wind (
£1.17 UK;
$1.91 US), by Rachel Caine, is the start of her
Weather Warden series. I have this one in paperback and ebook form and definitely recommend the series.
Book Description
Some Weather Wardens control fire, others control earth, water, or wind – and the most powerful can control more than one element. Without Wardens, Mother Nature would wipe humanity off the face of the earth…
Joanne Baldwin is a Weather Warden. Usually, all it takes is a wave of her hand to tame the most violent weather. But now Joanne is trying to outrun another kind of storm: accusations of corruption and murder. So she’s resorting to the very human tactic of running for her life.
Her only hope is Lewis, the most powerful Warden. Unfortunately, he’s also on the run having stolen not one but three bottles of Djinn – making him the most wanted man on earth. Still, Joanne and her classic Mustang are racing hard to find him – because there’s some bad weather closing in fast…
My Soul to Take (
£0.95 UK;
$1.55 US), by Rachel Vincent, is the start of her
Soul Screamers series. This is another that I already have, but I absolutely love the new cover on this one.
Book Description
She doesn't see dead people, but…
She senses when someone near her is about to die. And when that happens, a force beyond her control compels her to scream bloody murder. Literally.
Kaylee just wants to enjoy having caught the attention of the hottest guy in school. But a normal date is hard to come by when Nash seems to know more about her need to scream than she does. And when classmates start dropping dead for no apparent reason, only Kaylee knows who'll be next…
The Iron King (
£0.89 UK;
$1.45 US), by Julie Kagawa, is also on my bookshelves. This is the first in her
Iron Fey Trilogy for teens/young adults.
Book Description
Meghan Chase has a secret destiny—one she could never have imagined... Something has always felt slightly off in Meghan's life, ever since her father disappeared before her eyes when she was six. She has never quite fit in at school...or at home. When a dark stranger begins watching her from afar, and her prankster best friend becomes strangely protective of her, Meghan senses that everything she's known is about to change. But she could never have guessed the truth— that she is the daughter of a mythical faery king and is a pawn in a deadly war. Now Meghan will learn just how far she'll go to save someone she cares about, to stop a mysterious evil no faery creature dare face...and to find love with a young prince who might rather see her dead than let her touch his icy heart.
Lest you think I am only picking books I already have,
City of Bones (
£1.09 UK;
$1.78 US), by Cassandra Clare, the first in the young adult series,
The Mortal Instruments, is only on my wish list, not my shelves. The description on this one is brief, but the reviews flesh out the synopsis a bit.
Book Description
Clary Fray is seeing things: vampires in Brooklyn and werewolves in Manhattan. Irresistibly drawn towards a group of sexy demon hunters, Clary encounters the dark side of New York City - and the dangers of forbidden love.
New Moan: The First Book in The Twishite Saga: A Parody (
£1.02 UK;
$1.67 US), by Stephfordy Mayo, is entirely new to me, but looks to be a hilarious read (unless, of course, you aren't a bit tired of sparkly vampires or a fan of satire).
Book Description
Heffa Lump is a self-centred seventeen-year-old who needs to grow up and get a life. Fortunately, the Spatula Academy of Fictional Excellence specializes in helping characters from kids books cross over into adult fiction. Unfortunately, she's distracted from her attempts to leave adolescence behind when she meets Teddy Kelledy an impossibly gorgeous boy who eats rare meat, is super-strong, and never goes out in daylight. Could he just maybe be a vampire? (Hint: totally.) Soon, Heffa finds herself harassed by supernatural forces on all sides: vampire goths peddling the deadly drug Emo all over town, Jacko-worshipping zombies trying to eat her brains, and werewolves lurking in basements reading copies of Wolf Whistle. A fight is coming, and apparently she's involved....
Will Heffa be able to narrate herself out of danger? Will Teddy learn that being with a girl doesn't always have to be about biting? And what will happen when the New Moan rises? New Moan is guaranteed to make any fan laugh out loud with its irreverent and clever take on this popular series, which is brilliantly on the nose.
I picked
Frozen Out (
£1.21 UK;
$1.98 US), by Quentin Bates, just based on the cover (admit it, don't you do that at the bookstore, too?). Especially since the cover could match another book that I just sampled (and can't remember the name of: it started with a child digging snow for a snowman, resulting in he uncovering of a frozen hand, the hand of a man missing for weeks ... but who didn't turn out to be dead; if only I could recall the name....)
Book Description
The discovery of a corpse washed up on a beach in an Icelandic backwater sparks a series of events that propels the village of Hvalvik's police sergeant Gunnhildur into deep waters.
Although under pressure to deal with the matter quickly, she is suspicious that the man's death was no accident and once she has identified the body, sets about investigating his final hours.The case takes Gunnhildur away from her village and into a cosmopolitan world of shady deals, government corruption and violence. She finds herself alone and less than welcome in this hostile environment as she tries to find out who it was that made sure the young man drowned on a dark night one hundred kilometres from where he should have been - and why.
I have several titles from CJ Box, but not
Savage Run (
£0.99 UK;
$1.62 US), the second in his
Joe Pickett series. It looks like
Winterkill (
£1.15 UK;
$1.88 US), the third in the series, is also on sale for those in the UK.
Book Description
Game warden Joe Pickett is called to a bizarre crime scene deep within the forests of Twelve Sleep County, Wyoming. Famous eco-activist Stewie Woods has been blown up in an explosion, along with his new bride and ten head of cattle. The case is wrapped up too quickly: an environmental publicity stunt gone wrong. But what is the millionaire rancher who owned the cattle hiding? And why is Joe’s wife receiving mysterious phone calls from someone claiming to be Stewie Woods? Joe’s search for the truth leads him ever deeper into the wilderness of the Bighorn Mountains. With two unlikely allies at his side, and two hired killers on his heels, Joe can’t avoid the legendary Savage Run – a treacherous, isolated canyon with no crossing…
At Bonus Time No One Can Hear You Scream (
£1.32 UK;
$2.16 US), by David Charters, would be a good title for a non-fiction book, but this one is fiction.
Book Description
Investment banker Dave Hart needs his annual bonus. Anything less than a million pounds would be an insult. After all, he has to buy a new car, a second home in the country and a new Rolex for his wife Wendy... When the countdown to bonus day begins, so does the backstabbing, desperation and paranoia. As the big day inches closer, amid rumours, sackings and nail-biting deals, Dave becomes increasingly unhinged - but just how low will he stoop to secure his prize? A tale of one man's quest for his annual bonus in a world where ambition, terror, insecurity and desperation are second nature to those who inhabit it, At Bonus Time, No One Can Hear You Scream will keep readers gripped until the very last page.
Non-fiction readers are not left out though and
My Word is My Bond: The Autobiography (
£1.15 UK;
$1.88 US), by Sir Roger Moore, looks like it would be a good read.
Book Description
The quintessential suave hero, Roger Moore has enjoyed a successful career that has spanned seven decades, from early television through the golden age of Hollywood and on to international superstardom. Dashing, handsome, and every inch the archetypal English gentleman, he is most widely known for making seven blockbuster films as arguably the most debonair 007 of all time. He has worked with some of the world’s most legendary stars, including such luminaries as Noel Coward, Sean Connery, Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Lana Turner, Gregory Peck, Cary Grant, Richard Harris, and Michael Caine. For the first time, Roger shares his recollections of playing some of the world’s most famous roles as well as myriad stories from his personal life, including events from his childhood in London and his experiences during World War II. Filled with anecdotes from his encounters with celebrities of every variety and his memories from the heydays of Hollywood, this is a frank, funny, and disarmingly charming story of a life lived among the stars.
Easter (
£1.10 UK;
$1.80 US), by Michael Arditti, has the right title and cover for the season; however, this is anything but Christian fiction (although these are themes in the novel). I'd definitely read the review on Amazon.co.uk and the sample before buying, just to make sure it's the type of novel you are expecting; that said, it has very good reviews.
Book Description
In a fictional climate dominated by materialism, Easter stands apart in its bold exploration of the nature of God, the problem of suffering and the existence of evil. With an unforgettable gallery of characters ranging from a Holocaust survivor and an African princess to AIDS patients and Queen Elizabeth II.
Non-fiction readers are not left out though and
The Cookbook Collector (
£1.49 UK;
$2.43 US), by Allegra Goodman, is also on my wish list, but I'll probably get it at the library (due to Agency pricing).
Book Description
Two sisters, opposite in every way: twenty-eight-year-old Emily is a CFO of an internet start-up, twenty-three-year-old Jess is a graduate student in philosophy. Pragmatic Emily is making a fortune in Silicon Valley, romantic Jess works in an antiquarian bookstore. Emily’s boyfriend is fantastically successful. Jess’s boyfriend is an environmental activist. But the dot-com bubble must burst, while Jess’s work on a cache of rare cookbooks uncovers strange erotic drawings and marginalia that bring her closer to their mysterious collector... Rich in ideas and characters, The Cookbook Collector is a novel of substitutions: reading cookbooks instead of cooking, speculating instead of creating, collecting instead of living. But above all it is about holding on to what is real in a virtual world: love that lasts.
Sacred Games (
£1.35 UK;
$2.20 US), by Vikram Chandra, isn't what I would consider a travel book, but after reading the top review of it at Amazon, it appears to be an excellent introduction to India (good enough the reviewer carried all 1,000 pages with him on his trip there, so he could finish the book).
Book Description
An enormously satisfying, exciting and enriching book, Vikram Chandra's novel draws the reader deep into the lives of detective Sartaj Singh and Ganesh Gaitonde, the most wanted gangster in India. Sartaj, the only Sikh inspector in the whole of Mumbai, is used to being identified by his turban, beard and the sharp cut of his trousers. But 'the silky Sikh' is now past forty, his marriage is over and his career prospects are on the slide. When Sartaj gets an anonymous tip off as to the secret hideout of the legendary boss of the G-company, he's determined that he'll be the one to collect the prize.This is a sprawling, epic novel of friendships and betrayals, of terrible violence, of an astonishing modern city and its underworld. Drawing on the best of Victorian fiction, mystery novels, Bollywood movies and Vikram Chandra's years of first hand research on the streets of Mumbai, this novel reads like a potboiling page-turner but resonates with the intelligence and emotional depth of the best of literature.
All in all, there are simply too many books included in the sale to list, so be sure to check out the
Spring Spectacular Sale page (only on the Amazon.co.uk site, though), to see if there are more that tickle your fancy.
Romeo, Romeo ($4.79), by Robin Kaye, is free in DRM'd EPUB or PDF format from Sourcebooks, if you join their CasaVIP program. Those of you with Kindles may already have this one, as it was free last December from Amazon.
