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Sunday, June 9, 2013

Kindle Daily Deals 6/9

Today's Software Deal Pick is up to 76% off on Norton software from Symatec: Norton Utilities 16.0, Norton Internet Security 2013 (what I use) and Norton 360 2013 (this adds backups and system performance tools, in addition to the Internet Security, for an extra $3).

Audible's $7.95 Customer Favorites Sale has been extended to June 11 (ends @ midnight Eastern, US).

Today's Kindle Romance Daily Deal is Lady Fortescue Steps Out ($1.99), by M. C. Beaton (as Marion Chesney) [RosettaBooks], with the companion audiobook for $3.49.
Book Description
The impecunious Lady Fortescue, widowed and alone save for two loyal, unpaid servants, has sold off almost all of the furnishings in her large Bond Street home and faces a grim future as a member of the aristocracy too proud to seek employment or charity, yet too poor to survive on the infrequent largess of wealthy relatives oblivious to her plight. Salvation arrives in the unlikely form of old Colonel Sandhurst, an equally impoverished retired military man who falls at her feet in a hunger-induced faint one afternoon in Hyde Park. The two decide to join forces: the Colonel will share Lady Fortescue's home, and they will invite others of their station and situation to live with them and pool their resources. Thus is born what eventually becomes one of London's most popular hotels, The Poor Relation, to which the nobility flocks to enjoy the novelty of being waited upon by members of their own class.

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is three novels by Southern Gothic pioneer Flannery O'Connor for $2.99 apiece [Farrar, Straus and Giroux/Macmillan].

The Complete Stories
Winner of the National Book Award

The publication of this extraordinary volume firmly established Flannery O'Connor's monumental contribution to American fiction. There are thirty-one stories here in all, including twelve that do not appear in the only two story collections O'Connor put together in her short lifetime--Everything That Rises Must Converge and A Good Man Is Hard to Find.

O'Connor published her first story, "The Geranium," in 1946, while she was working on her master's degree at the University of Iowa. Arranged chronologically, this collection shows that her last story, "Judgement Day"--sent to her publisher shortly before her death—is a brilliantly rewritten and transfigured version of "The Geranium." Taken together, these stories reveal a lively, penetrating talent that has given us some of the most powerful and disturbing fiction of the twentieth century. Also included is an introduction by O'Connor's longtime editor and friend, Robert Giroux.
Wise Blood
Wise Blood, Flannery O’Connor’s astonishing and haunting first novel, is a classic of twentieth-century literature. Focused on the story of Hazel Motes, a twenty-two-year-old caught in an unending struggle against his innate, desperate fate, this tale of redemption, retribution, false prophets, blindness, blindings, and wisdoms gives us one of the most riveting characters in twentieth-century American fiction.
The Violent Bear It Away ($3.99 companion audiobook)
First published in 1955, The Violent Bear It Away is now a landmark in American literature. It is a dark and absorbing example of the Gothic sensibility and bracing satirical voice that are united in Flannery O'Conner's work. In it, the orphaned Francis Marion Tarwater and his cousins, the schoolteacher Rayber, defy the prophecy of their dead uncle--that Tarwater will become a prophet and will baptize Rayber's young son, Bishop. A series of struggles ensues: Tarwater fights an internal battle against his innate faith and the voices calling him to be a prophet while Rayber tries to draw Tarwater into a more "reasonable" modern world. Both wrestle with the legacy of their dead relatives and lay claim to Bishop's soul.

O'Connor observes all this with an astonishing combination of irony and compassion, humor and pathos. The result is a novel whose range and depth reveal a brilliant and innovative writers acutely alert to where the sacred lives and to where it does not.

Today's Kindle SciFi/Fantasy Daily Deal is Invasion ($1.99), the first novel in the C.H.A.O.S series for teens by J. S. Lewis [Thomas Nelson], with the companion audiobook for $3.49.
Book Description
He didn't ask to be a hero, but now all that stands between us and chaos . . . is Colt.

Colt McAlister was having the summer of his life. He spent his days surfing and his nights playing guitar on the beach with friends. He even met a girl and got his first car. But everything changes when his parents are killed in a freak accident.

He's forced to leave his old life behind and move to Arizona with his grandfather. The only person he knows at the new high school is a childhood friend named Dani. And Oz, a guy he's sure he's never met but who is strangely familiar.

But what if his parents' death wasn't an accident? His mother, an investigative reporter, was going to expose a secret mind-control program run by one of the world's largest companies. Before she could release the story, what if agents from Trident Biotech made sure she couldn't go public?

Vowing to uncover truth, Colt is drawn into a secret world of aliens, shapeshifters, flying motorcycles, and invisible getaways.

The invasion has begun.

Age Level: 11 and up

Today's Kindle Kids Daily Deal is Splish, Splash, Splat! ($2.99), by Rob Scotton [HarperCollins]. NOTE: This book features Kindle Text Pop-Up for reading text over vivid, full-color images when using Kindle Fire/HD or select Kindle Reading Apps (Kindle Cloud Reader, Kindle for iPad or Kindle for Android); unlike some other Text Popup books, this one won't work on any of the eInk Kindles.
Book Description
Splat does not want to have a playdate with Spike. Spike will break his toys and eat all of his candy fish! And he does not want to learn how to swim—water is horrible, scary, and wet! He's sure that this is going to be the worst day ever. But when the rest of their classmates rush straight into the pool, Splat and Spike find that they may have more in common than they thought. Will Splat overcome his fear of water and get into the pool? And how can he help Spike to do the same?

Age Level: 4 and up

Nook Daily Find 6/9

The Witch of Blackbird Pond ($1.99 Kindle, B&N), by Elizabeth George Speare [Houghton Mifflin Books for Children], is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.
Book Description
Kit Tyler is marked by suspicion and disapproval from the moment she arrives on the unfamiliar shores of colonial Connecticut in 1867. Alone and desperate, she has been forced to leave her beloved home on the island of Barbados and join a family she has never met. Torn between her quest for belonging and her desire to be true to herself, Kit struggles to survive in a hostile place. Just when it seems she must give up, she finds a kindred spirit. But Kit’s friendship with Hannah Tupper, believed by the colonists to be a witch, proves more taboo than she could have imagined and ultimately forces Kit to choose between her heart and her duty.

Elizabeth George Speare’s Newbery Award–winning novel portrays a heroine whom readers will admire for her unwavering sense of truth as well as her infinite capacity to love.

UK Kindle Daily Deal 6/9

The Midnight Swimmer (£0.99 UK), by Edward Wilson [Arcadia Books], is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (no US edition).
Book Description
Spawned in the bleak poverty of an East Anglian fishing port, Catesby is a spy with a big anti-establishment chip on his shoulder. He loves his country, but despises the class who run it. Loathed by the Americans and trusted by the Russians, Catesby is sent to Havana and Washington to make clandestine contacts. London has authorised Catesby to offer Moscow a secret deal to break the Cuban Missile Crisis deadlock. But before that can happen, Catesby meets the Midnight Swimmer who has a chilling message for Washington.

Once again, the author poses the fundamental question that few spy novelists answer: What is the greater crime? Betraying your country or betraying the person you love? A triangle of love and death that began in Berlin ends in Cuba. On one corner is a war disabled KGB general, on another corner is his unfulfilled wife …

This sophisticated novel is full of twists and turns that merge historical fact with fiction. Sleaze and high politics literally share the same beds. A white-knuckle superpower standoff is played out against a backdrop of honey trap blackmail, Mafia contracts, assassination and Vatican scandal. The real blurs into the surreal as Che’s car surfs on the Havana seafront and Fidel takes the pitcher’s mound against a professional baseball team.

Saturday, June 8, 2013

30 Kindle Books for $1 Each (AL)

This offer is set up via AmazonLocal and anyone (in the US) can participate.

I took a quick look at the list of books and see Romance, Literary Fiction, Thrillers, Horror and even one Non-Fiction title in the mix.

Free Voucher to Purchase Select Kindle Books for $1 Each

Just click on Apply, then complete the purchase on the page after that. Yes, it now says "Apply" instead of "purchase" on these free offers, but nearly the same process: you must be in the US, log into your Amazon account, have a credit card on file, make a "purchase" at zero cost, then the promo code is automatically applied to your account (no waiting for an email and dealing with a promo code, but verify that it has progressed from Processing on the My Vouchers page before purchasing your books). Sign-up for this offer expires June 12, 2013 or when the number of vouchers set aside by Amazon have been exhausted.

Deal Details:
Take your mind to new and exotic places with today's special offer from Amazon for a free voucher to purchase select Kindle books for just $1 each. With 30 titles to choose from, covering everything from paranormal romance to dating tips, mystery, and beyond, there's certain to be something to catch your interest.
  • Follow an emotional family journey with In Search of Lucy
  • Race a literary detective to solve the crimes in Bloodman and The Salt Maiden
  • See what happens when a new-age hotel opens in a rural area in A Suite Deal
Once applied to your account, you can shop from your Kindle or desktop, picking any of the 30 qualifying titles. You should also be able to gift any of the books to someone else (I have in the past); the full price shows all the way thru, but on the invoice summary, you will see the $1 promotional price (note that you'll still see the full price until the invoice finalizes, usually several hours after purchase; the promo credit will show in the lower half of the invoice and the final price charged to your card or gift balance will be $1/book). The total number of books you can get at this price is 30. The voucher will expire if not used toward qualifying Kindle book purchases from Amazon.com by 11:59 p.m. PST June 18, 2013.

Kindle Daily Deals 6/8

This week's Software Download Deal at Amazon is up to 70% off select Cyberlink titles like PowerDirector 11 Ultimate and CyberLink Media Suite 10 Ultra; the former is used for both creating and editing video, while the latter has tools for the rest of your digital life, including file/photo organization, file conversion and Blu-ray playback.

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is A Little Death In Dixie ($1.99), by Lisa Turner [Bell Bridge Books], with the companion audiobook for $3.99.
Book Description
The Blues were born out of need, anger and pride. Murder comes from those same dark places. Memphis has both.

One of Memphis' most seductive and notorious socialites has vanished. Either she's off on another drunken escapade or the disappearance is something much more frightening. What begins as an ordinary day's work for Detective Billy Able quickly grows into a complex spider's web of tragedy, mystery, suspicion, and sordid secrets including a few of Billy's own.

With the help of Mercy Snow, the estranged sister of the missing socialite, Billy follows a twisted trail of human frailty and corruption to disturbing truths that undermine everything he thought he knew about himself and the people he loves.

Today's Kindle Romance Daily Deal is Honeymoon for One ($0.99), by Beth Orsoff [Amazon Publishing], with the companion audiobook for $1.99.
Book Description
Being ditched at the altar is the least of Lizzie Mancini’s problems. Sitting in a Caribbean jail cell accused of murdering her “pretend” husband, however, is at the top of the list.

After her real groom jilts her, Lizzie decides to go solo on their Belize honeymoon and meets handsome Michael Garcia, who is nursing his own heartache. To avoid the bleakness of dining and sightseeing alone, as well as questions from nosy, if well-meaning, fellow guests at the couples-only resort, the two agree to pose as newlyweds for the week—no strings (or sex) attached.

The plan runs smoothly until Lizzie enjoys the attentions of the local scuba instructor and Michael’s body washes ashore. Suddenly the “Mrs.” is mistakenly ID’d as suspect numero uno. With the Polizia Nationale ready to close the case and cook her goose, Lizzie will have to solve the crime herself.

Unexpected romance and international intrigue are center stage in Beth Orsoff’s mystery caper that takes “’til death do us part” to a whole new level.

Today's Kindle SciFi/Fantasy Daily Deal is The Far Time Incident ($1.99), by Neve Maslakovic [47North], with the companion audiobook for $1.99.
Book Description
When a professor’s time-travel lab is the scene of a deadly accident, the academic world and the future of St. Sunniva University get thrown into upheaval. As assistant to the dean of science, Julia Olsen is assigned to help Campus Security Chief Nate Kirkland examine this rare mishap…then make it quietly go away!

But when the investigation points toward murder, Julia and Chief Kirkland find themselves caught in a deadly cover-up, one that strands them in ancient Pompeii on the eve of the eruption of the world’s most infamous volcano. With the help of their companions—a Shakespearean scholar and two grad students—Julia and the chief must outwit history itself and expose the school’s saboteur before it's too late.

The Far Time Incident is a smart, richly inventive novel that skillfully weaves together mystery, history, and science to create a mesmerizing and addictive read.

Today's Kindle Kids Daily Deal is Don't Be Silly, Mrs. Millie! ($1.99), by Joe Mathieu [Two Lions]. NOTE: This book requires Kindle Fire/HD or select Kindle Reading Apps (Kindle Cloud Reader, Kindle for iPad or Kindle for Android).
Book Description
Mrs. Millie has lots of fun teasing her kindergartners. She tells them to hang up their goats, eat gorilla cheese sandwiches, and to remember to wear their bats and kittens when they go outside for recess. Coupled with hilarious artwork that literally interprets each of Mrs. Millie’s "mistakes," this lighthearted read-aloud sets a typical school day on its ear, even as it teaches a subtle lesson on wordplay.

Age Level: 3 and up