Indie Spotlight - Austin S. Camacho

Austin S. Camacho is an indie author who has a couple of series out, with his Hannibal Jones Mystery series probably the best known (and with the most reviews). Right now, he has two in that series marked down (although why the first and third, rather than the first two, is a mystery), as well as two short stories set in the same universe.

Blood and Bone ($2.99), is the first in the Hannibal Jones Mystery series (and one that I already had in my TBR stack).

Book Description
His only hope...

An eighteen-year-old boy lies dying of leukemia. As the members of Kyle's wealthy Virginia family are eliminated, they come to realize that one man could hold the key. The father who disappeared before he was born. But what chance does anyone have following a trail eighteen years cold?

His last chance…

Hannibal Jones, a troubleshooter and self-styled knight errant in dark glasses, takes the challenge. With only two weeks to find the missing man, Hannibal follows a twisting path of deception, conspiracy, and greed. A woman who could be Kyle's illegitimate sister, the woman who could be her mother, and a man who may be the only one to know the truth about Kyle's father.

From Washington to Mexico, Hannibal Jones pursues the truth. But as the danger grows, the chance for survival becomes less likely for everyone involved.

The Troubleshooter ($2.99), is the third in the Hannibal Jones Mystery series

Book Description
A high powered Washington attorney buys an apartment building in the heart of the city, hoping to create low income housing for good families. Instead he finds the building occupied by squatters: drug dealers, winos and hookers intent on staying in place. Hannibal Jones is hired to free the building from them, but the people holding crack pipes are backed up by people holding guns. Hannibal soon finds himself up against a local crime boss and his mob connected father. But Hannibal realizes that his success or failure will determine the fate of a neighborhood, and the future of one small boy.

A Little Wildness ($0.99) is a short story.

Book Description
When Nina Bonnaventura walked into Private Detective Hannibal Jones’s office, he could see that she was trouble. She wanted him to prove her lover innocent of his wife’s murder. Hannibal knew neither Nina nor her boyfriend would give him the whole truth. What he didn’t know was that she was connected to the mob, that the boyfriend had enlisted a questionable lawyer, or that another murder was just around the corner…

Mystery on Capitol Street ($0.99) is also a short story.

Book Description
When Nina Bonnaventura walked into Private Detective Hannibal Jones’s office, he could see that she was trouble. She wanted him to prove her lover innocent of his wife’s murder. Hannibal knew neither Nina nor her boyfriend would give him the whole truth. What he didn’t know was that she was connected to the mob, that the boyfriend had enlisted a questionable lawyer, or that another murder was just around the corner…

Free Book (nook) - The Pawn

The Pawn ($7.99 Kindle), by Steven James, the first in The Patrick Bowers Files trilogy, is free from Barnes and Noble today. This book was free in the Kindle store last November.

Book Description
As an environmental criminologist, Patrick Bowers uses 21st-century geospatial technology to analyze the time and space in which a crime takes place. Using an array of factors, Bowers can pinpoint clues to solve the toughest of cases. Bowers's skills have made him one of the FBI's top agents-until now.

Called to the mountains of North Carolina to consult on a gruesome murder, Bowers finds himself in a deadly duel with a serial killer who seems to transcend Patrick's analytical powers. Forced to track the killer's horrific murders one by one, Bowers finds his techniques and instincts are put to the ultimate test...

Click HERE for the free book.

Free Classics from B&N (nook)

Barnes and Noble is continuing their free Classics in the B&N Free Library this week, with a new set of free classics, eleven of which have not be offered for free previously. This weeks theme is Women Who Inspired Us:

1. Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray
2. Voyage Out by Virginia Woolf
3. Villette by Charlotte Bronte
4. Main Street by Sinclair Lewis
5. Night and Day by Virginia Woolf
6. O Pioneers! by Willa Cather
7. Portrait of a Lady by Henry James
8. Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
9. House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
10. Daisy Miller and Washington Square by Henry James
11. Nana by Emile Zola
12. Bleak House by Charles Dickens

These editions are not exactly the same as you would find at Gutenberg; Barnes and Noble Classic Series editions generally have been more carefully proofread and have introductions and scholarly notes inserted in the beginning to aid in understanding the text. If you are building a summer reading list for a student, stocking up for lit classes in college or just want to revisit the classics, these are a great (free) resource.These are DRM'd epubs, though, so will only be readable on a nook or one of the B&N reader apps.

Bargain Book Roundup, Part II

The Jungle Book ($3.19), by Diane Wright Landolf

Book Description
Mother and Fatherwolf aren’t looking for trouble, but when a small man-child toddles by their cave, they decide they can’t leave him alone in the jungle. They take the boy into their pack, name him Mowgli, and raise him as one of their own cubs. Mowgli learns the law of the jungle from the big old brown bear Baloo and Bagheera the black panther, but even they can’t keep an eye on him all the time!

The Clique #3: The Revenge of the Wannabes ($1.99), by Lisi Harrison

Book Description
Weeks before Christmas. Alicia and Olivia are on their way to Manhattan so the Teen People editors can do a story on them about winning the Octavian Country Day uniform design contest. When Massie finally processes that the girls who hijacked her victory are also modeling for Teen People, she is livid. It should have been her. 'Ehmagod, what will everyone think when they find out it wasn't me who was asked to model? I will be SO over.' Massie decides it's time to get revenge. This snake can not lay idle in the weeds for one more second. Kristen and Dylan throw out terrible 'revenge' suggestions and Massie vetoes them all. She will think of something! But first she has to go home and exfoliate. The social minefields of Westchester County's most privileged middle school girls drive the page-turning action of this addictive series, set in New York City's most elite suburban county. The Clique . . . the only thing harder than getting in is staying in.

The Clique #4: Invasion of the Boy Snatchers ($1.99), by Lisi Harrison

Book Description
The holidays are over and Massie's room is chock-full of new things from Santa: jeans, sweater, and a new . . . roommate? Once Claire unpacks, Massie's room feels more crowded than a Zac Posen sample sale. But what's worse, Claire isn't the only person moving into Massie's territory -- Alicia's hot cousin, Nina, shows up from Spain and starts edging in on all the Briarwood boys, including Massie's crush! Will Nina, with her super-tight mall clothes, make every boy in Westchester fall in love with her? Or will Massie toss her out faster than last season's Sevens jeans? The social minefields of Westchester County's most privileged middle school girls drive the page-turning action of this addictive series, set in New York City's most elite suburban county. The Clique . . . the only thing harder than getting in is staying in.

Battlefield of the Mind Devotional: 100 Insights That Will Change the Way You Think ($2.99), by Joyce Meyer

Book Description
This bestselling author and speaker offers a companion devotional to her award-winning message, "Battlefield of the Mind."

Toward the Goal: The Kaka Story ($0.99), by Jeremy V. Jones

Book Description
learnt that it is faith that decides whether something will happen or not.At the age of eight, Kaka already knew what it he wanted in life: to play soccer, and only soccer. He started playing in front of his friends and family, but when he suffered a crippling injury doctors told him he would never play again. Through faith and perseverance Kaka recovered, and today he plays in front of thousands of fans every year. As the 2007 FIFA World Player of the Year and winner of the Ballon d'Or, this midfielder for Real Madrid has become one of the most recognized faces on the soccer field.

Budget Celebrations: The Hostess Guide to Year-Round Entertaining on a Dime ($3.99), by Shelley Wolson

Book Description
Preparing to host any type of gathering can be filled with shopping hassles, time pressures and anxiety over the costs. No more! This all-in-one guide is the ultimate resource for stress-free, budget-friendly entertaining for every special occasion.

Jam-packed with simple and exciting ideas to make every holiday festive, this book offers creative ways to celebrate in style year-round, without spending a fortune. Best of all, you'll be able to throw a great party that you can relax and enjoy right along with your family and friends!

From traditional holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas to birthdays, anniversaries and family reunions, this collection of over 250 inspiring photos and easy-to-follow instructions gives you all the information you'll need to have a good time without breaking the bank. Inside you'll find delicious, efficient menus and recipes to amaze all your guests; festive and elegant decorating tips and tricks to set the mood for every occasion; low-cost, crafty ways to bring holiday spirit into your home and involve your family in the process.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder ($3.19), by Joanne Fluke, is one of 11 volumes in the Hannah Swensen series that are marked down under $5.

Book Description
Discover the delicious mystery that started it all!

No one cooks up a delectable, suspense-filled mystery quite like Hannah Swensen, Joanne Fluke’s dessert-baking, red-haired heroine whose gingersnaps are as tart as her comebacks, and whose penchant for solving crimes—one delicious clue at a time—has made her a bestselling favorite. And it all began on these pages, with a bakery, a murder, and some suddenly scandalous chocolate-chip crunchies. Featuring a bonus short story and brand new, mouthwatering recipes, this limited edition of the very first Hannah Swensen mystery is sure to have readers coming back for seconds…

Hannah Swenson already has her hands full trying to dodge her mother’s attempts to marry her off while running The Cookie Jar, Lake Eden, Minnesota’s most popular bakery. But once Ron LaSalle, the beloved delivery man from the Cozy Cow Dairy, is found murdered behind her bakery with Hannah’s famous Chocolate Chip Crunchies scattered around him, her life just can’t get any worse. Determined not to let her cookies get a bad reputation, she sets out to track down a killer.

Who would have the sheer audacity—and the motive—to kill the most punctual delivery man Hannah ever had? Topping the list is the high school football coach. What exactly was his wife doing, making the rounds with the milkman? Could Max Turner, owner of Cozy Cow Dairy, have had a secret he didn’t want to share with his top employee? The more Hannah snoops, the more suspects turn up. Why has Lake Eden’s most prominent prodigal son, Benton Woodley, just resurfaced? And what about the mysterious Mr. Harris who seemed interested in buying the property next to the dairy, but then disappeared? This is one murder that’s starting to leave a very bad taste in Hannah’s mouth. And if she doesn’t watch her back, Hannah’s sweet life may get burned to a crisp.

Filled with a healthy sprinkling of humor and a delightful assortment of nuts, CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE MURDER serves up a great new mystery series and introduces a delicious, down-home sleuth that mystery readers will surely savor for years to come.

Napoleon and the Hundred Days ($1.89), by Stephen Coote

Book Description
A masterly blend of history and novelistic narrative about Napoleon's triumphant return from captivity and the critical days before Waterloo.

In Vienna, 1815, as the political aristocrats of Europe assemble to determine the fate of the continent after defeating Napoleon, the news arrived that Napoleon had escaped captivity and was returning to France. Bonaparte-the revolutionary turned emperor and "disturber of the world's peace"-was fast approaching Paris, gathering troops and taking cities without firing a single shot. He had returned, and it would be just one hundred days before he met his enemies in a final, epic battle.

In Napoleon and the Hundred Days, Stephen Coote vividly re-creates the rise and fall of Bonaparte's empire, and brings to life the characters who shaped it: Wellington, Britain's Iron Duke; Josephine, Napoleon's great love; Talleyrand, his duplicitous minister; FouchŽ, the sinister head of the secret police; BlŸcher, the uncouth yet courageous Prussian commander; and, of course, Napoleon himself. Displaying his customary blend of a historian's eye and a novelist's dramatic style, Stephen Coote describes how the path to war became inevitable and how, at the battle at Waterloo, the fatigued but ever arrogant Napoleon met his match. This is a dazzling portrait of the legendary emperor, whose genius, courage, and tenacity won-and lost-him a vast empire.

Siesta Lane: One Cabin, No Running Water, and a Year Living Green ($1.03), by Amy Minato, is one that I picked up.

Book Description
A poet at heart, Amy Minato rejects her life of consumption in Chicago to go back to nature-specifically, to a commune in Oregon, where she rediscovers herself.

Victory for Us Is to See You Suffer: In the West Bank with the Palestinians and the Israelis ($1.19), by Philip C. Winslow

Book Description
A rare, firsthand account of life in the West Bank by a UN relief worker and journalist

During the second intifada, Philip C. Winslow worked in the West Bank with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), driving up to 600 miles a week between almost every Palestinian town, village, and refugee camp and every Israeli checkpoint in the occupied territory. He returned just before the onset of the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict.

In Victory for Us Is to See You Suffer, Winslow captures the human aspects of the conflict during the years of suicide bombings and Israeli reprisals in the West Bank—the daily struggles, fear, and anger of Palestinian farmers and teachers, and the hostility of Israeli soldiers and settlers. On this small territory, punctuated with hundreds of heavily guarded crossings and physical barriers, nervous young Israeli soldiers who believe they are fighting terrorists enforce stringent controls over the movement of Palestinians trying to live on their own land. Working with UNRWA, Winslow negotiated the delivery of humanitarian aid through army checkpoints, often finding himself the target of anger from both Palestinians and Israelis. He returned as a journalist, in the wake of the Hamas victory in Palestinian parliamentary elections, to interview people on both sides of the checkpoints and look at the decades-long destructive cycle through their eyes. From these unique multiple perspectives, Winslow offers an uncensored view of the realities on the ground that have made a just political solution and enduring peace so difficult.

The Great Bird Flu Hoax: The Truth They Don't Want You to Know About the "Next Big Pandemic" ($1.17), by Dr. Joseph Mercola, is a bit surprising a subject from Christian publisher Thomas Nelson.

Book Description
The U.S. government is now practically screaming that a new avian super-flu will likely kill millions of Americans. The mainstream media is entirely onboard, as are drug companies and other corporations poised to benefit immensely off the paranoia. But there is NO coming bird flu pandemic. It's an elaborate scheme contrived by the government and big business for reasons that boil down to power and money.

Presenting eye-opening evidence that casts serious doubt on the truthfulness of reports about the virus's ability to transmit, and its mortality rates around the world, renowned physician Dr. Joseph Mercola reveals the secrets about the great bird flu hoax. In compelling fashion he provides you the real facts you need to know to protect you from a far greater ill - corporate and governmental greed.

The New Terrorism: Fanaticism and the Arms of Mass Destruction ($1.17), by Walter Laqueur

Book Description
Recent attacks in Oklahoma City, at the World Trade Towers, and at American embassies in Africa demonstrate the horrifying consequences of a terrorist strike. But as technological advances make weapons of mass destruction frighteningly easy to acquire, a revolution is occurring in the very nature of terrorism--one that may make these attacks look like child's play.

In The New Terrorism Walter Laqueur, one of the foremost experts on terrorism and international strategic affairs, recounts the history of terrorism and, more importantly, examines the future of terrorist activity worldwide. Laqueur traces the chilling trend away from terrorism perpetrated by groups of oppressed nationalists and radicals seeking political change to small clusters of fanatics bent on vengence and simple destruction. Coinciding with this trend is the alarming availability of weapons of mass destruction. Chemical and biological weapons are cheap and relatively easy to make or buy. Even nuclear devices are increasingly feasible options for terrorists. And with the information age, cyber terrorism is just around the corner. Laqueur argues that as a new quasi-religious extreme right rises, with more personal and less ideological motivations than their left-wing counterparts, it is only a matter of time before the attainability of weapons of mass destruction creates a terrifying and unstable scenario.

From militant separatism in Kashmir to state-sponsored extremism in Libya and ecoterrorism in the West, The New Terrorism offers a thorough account of terrorism in all its past and current manifestations. Most importantly, it casts a sober eye to the future, when the inevitable marriage of technology and fanaticism will give us all something new to think about.

This Time, This Place: My Life in War, the White House, and Hollywood ($1.01), by Jack Valenti

Book Description
With the nation at war in the 1940s, twenty-two-year-old Jack Valenti flew fifty-one combat missions as the pilot of a B-25 attack bomber with the 12th Air Force based in Italy. In the 1960s, with the nation reeling from the assassination of a beloved president and becoming embroiled in a far different kind of war in Vietnam, he was in that fateful Dallas motorcade in 1963, flew back to Washington with the new president, and for three years worked in the inner circle of the White House as special assistant to President Lyndon Johnson. Then, for the next thirty-eight years, with American society and popular culture undergoing a revolutionary transformation, Valenti was the public face of Hollywood in his capacity as head of the Motion Picture Association of America.

Been there, done that, indeed. Texas-born and Harvard-educated, Valenti has led several lives, any one of which could have provided ample material for an unforgettable memoir. As it is, This Time, This Place is the gripping story of a man who saw the terrible face of war while fighting with skill and bravery for his country; who was in the room, listening, participating, and remembering, as political decisions were made that would benefit or devastate countless lives in this country and on the other side of the world; and who championed the interest of the vast and globally influential movie industry with tenacity and vision. The list of boldface names whom Valenti knew and with whom he worked is as varied as it is astonishing in number. Aside
from LBJ, there were Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Kirk Douglas, Frank Sinatra, Robert McNamara, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Julia Roberts, Cary Grant, Lew Wasserman, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Jack Nicholson, Michael Douglas, Warren Beatty, and Bill Clinton, to begin a very long list.

The life of a man who earned both the Distinguished Flying Cross and his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is inherently intriguing, but Valenti’s warm, sometimes rueful, always engaging account gives this memoir a depth of humanity and a taste of life’s unpredictability that will linger long after you turn the final page. From growing up poor but largely oblivious to that fact in a hardscrabble neighborhood of Greek and Italian immigrants in Houston to rising to the highest summits both of national government and Hollywood, This Time, This Place is a candid and clear-eyed reflection of the joys and sorrows, ambitions and disappointments, of a life fully recognizable in its extraordinary variety. It is also a sweeping and important historical record, written by a brilliantly successful man who helped to shape politics and entertainment in the second half of the twentieth century, and who always found himself in the center of the current storm.

Dictionary of Republicanisms: The Indispensable Guide to What They Really Mean When They Say What They Think You Want to Hear ($1.10), by Katrina vanden Heuvel

Book Description
George W. Bush, a self-proclaimed straight-talking Texan, has been roundly lampooned for his weak grasp of the English language: "subliminable," "resignate," and transformationed" being only a few of his malapropisms. As ridiculous as Bush sometimes sounds, we shouldn't underestimate him or the right-wingers who put him in power, because they never say what they mean or mean what they say.

Over the past few decades, the radical right has engaged in a well-funded, self-conscious program of Orwellian doublespeak, transforming American political discourse to suit their political ends. "Private accounts" became "personal accounts." "Massachusetts liberal" was used to slur John Kerry's record. And their "compassionate conservative" tax cuts were neither conservative nor compassionate, unless you happen to be a Republican fat cat.

Sick and tired of their sinister deceptions, celebrated Nation editor Katrina vanden Heuvel set out to explode their verbal gymnastics by asking her readers to suggest satirical definitions of Republican jargon. The result was a grassroots groundswell of hilarious submissions from Americans who are mad as hell and aren't going to take it any more. She has collected the best in this very funny and very necessary book.

Warbreaker ($2.99), by Brandon Sanderson

Book Description
After bursting onto the fantasy scene with his acclaimed debut novel, Elantris, and following up with his blockbuster Mistborn trilogy, Brandon Sanderson proves again that he is today’s leading master of what Tolkien called “secondary creation,” the invention of whole worlds, complete with magics and myths all their own.

Warbreaker is the story of two sisters, who happen to be princesses, the God King one of them has to marry, the lesser god who doesn’t like his job, and the immortal who’s still trying to undo the mistakes he made hundreds of years ago.

Their world is one in which those who die in glory return as gods to live confined to a pantheon in Hallandren’s capital city and where a power known as BioChromatic magic is based on an essence known as breath that can only be collected one unit at a time from individual people.

By using breath and drawing upon the color in everyday objects, all manner of miracles and mischief can be accomplished. It will take considerable quantities of each to resolve all the challenges facing Vivenna and Siri, princesses of Idris; Susebron the God King; Lightsong, reluctant god of bravery, and mysterious Vasher, the Warbreaker.

The Georgian Star: How William and Caroline Herschel Revolutionized Our Understanding of the Cosmos ($2.88), by Michael Lemonick

Book Description
Responsible for the greatest advances in astronomy since Copernicus, William and Caroline Herschel forever transformed our view of the heavens.Trained as a musician, amateur scientist William Herschel found international fame after discovering the planet Uranus in 1781. Though he is still best known for this finding, his partnership with his sister Caroline yielded groundbreaking work, including techniques that remain in use today. The duo pioneered comprehensive surveys of the night sky, carefully categorizing every visible object in the void. Caroline wrote an influential catalogue of nebulae, and William discovered infrared radiation. Celebrated science writer Michael Lemonick guides readers through the depths of the solar system and into his protagonists' private lives: William developed bizarre theories about inhabitants of the sun; he procured an unheard-of salary for Caroline even while haggling with King George III over the funding for an enormous, forty-foot telescope; the siblings feuded over William's marriage and eventually reconciled. Erudite and accessible, The Georgian Star is a lively portrait of the pair who invented modern astronomy.

Bargain Romance

Think of this as a "Between the Roundups" post, similar to those between-the-novel novellas that are so popular today.


Dangerous As Sin ($3.19), by Alix Rickloff

Book Description
In 1815 London, passion and duty, human and Other collide. . .

Morgan Bligh has honed her body and her magic into weapons, but she's always lived by her heart. Yet to defeat a traitor whose unspeakable dark power threatens both her worlds, she must forget her feelings- because her partner in the hunt is wicked war hero Cameron Sinclair. He's broken her heart once, and from the looks of him, he could do it again. . .

Cam Sinclair wants nothing more than to forget the horrors he's lived through. He's done his duty for king and country, turning himself into an assassin and an outcast in the process. Chasing after a sadistic murderer with a sultry Amazon who hates him seems unbearable. Yet though the beautiful Morgan chafes his every nerve and they're both in constant danger, he can't help but wonder if this second meeting is truly a second chance. . .

Risk Everything ($2.49), by Sophia Johnson

Book Description
When Darkness Falls

Upon a moonless midnight, his face in shadow, a silent man came riding. . .Could it be? Is it him, so far from his lands and his people? Meghan can make no mistake, not when her heart cries out his name: Rolf MacDaidh. She had loved him once, in secret--and now the man they called the Lord of Vengeance wanted her-

To Rolf, Meghan of Blackthorn is more precious than gold. But he must forget his bygone dreams of her as his bride and remember that she is no more than a captive now. Yet her beauty bewitches him still--and her spirit kindles a passionate desire that cannot be tamed. . .

Secret Baby, Public Affair ($1.07), by Yvonne Lindsay

Book Description
She'd run from a disastrous betrayal straight into the arms of a sexy Italian aristocrat. From the moment their eyes met, Blair Carson had been under Draco Sandrelli's spell. She'd fallen into their affair with total abandon, without thought.

Now the time had come to face reality. She was pregnant by a man she barely knew. Draco was demanding she return to Tuscany to have their baby. And never once had he uttered the word "love."

Not Without Her Family ($1.07), by Beth Andrews

Book Description
She claims she has to make things right... It's nothing but trouble for Jack Martin, chief of police, when Kelsey Reagan blows into town. Her ex-con brother just became the prime suspect in a murder, and this reformed bad girl vows to prove he's innocent. She even blames herself for her brother's jail record for her brother's convicted crime.

And now Jack's precocious young daughter is beginning to idolize Kelsey.

But an error in judgment nearly cost the widowed cop his career once; he's never going to let that happen again. Not even for a gorgeous troublemaker like Kelsey.

The Family He Wanted ($1.10), by Karen Sandler

Book Description

Raised without a father, Jana McPartland did not want the same for her unborn baby. So when the daddytobe took a hike, she turned to her closest friend, Sam Harrison. He'd always been her refuge from the storm...and this was one heck of a hurricane she'd found herself in.

The bestselling novelist offered her a roof over her head, a paycheck for her hard work and all the safety she craved. Yet Jana found herself needing more from the brooding bachelorto finally give in to the unspoken attraction that had always burned between them. But as a former foster kid, Sam wasn't the type of man who stepped out of his comfort zone.

Until he proposed!

Bargain Book Roundup, Part I

Too many bargains and not enough space. Part II will air tomorrow!

The Last Olympian, by Rick Riordan, the fifth volume of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, would not normally qualify for the bargain roundup, as it is just above the five dollar cutoff at $5.60, but it's one that I know a lot of us have been waiting for a drop in price(I grabbed it just now). I picked up the rest of the series when they were $4.40 earlier in the year and they've all gone back up since then and now this one is the cheapest of the bunch. For those in the UK, the price is slightly less; sadly, this one is not available for Canadians.

Book Description
All year the half-bloods have been preparing for battle against the Titans, knowing the odds of victory are grim. Kronos's army is stronger than ever, and with every god and half-blood he recruits, the evil Titan's power only grows. While the Olympians struggle to contain the rampaging monster Typhon, Kronos begins his advance on New York City, where Mount Olympus stands virtually unguarded. Now it's up to Percy Jackson and an army of young demigods to stop the Lord of Time. In this momentous final book in the New York Times best-selling Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, the long-awaited prophecy surrounding Percy's sixteenth birthday unfolds. And as the battle for Western civilization rages on the streets of Manhattan, Percy faces a terrifying suspicion that he may be fighting against his own fate.

Moominpappa at Sea ($0.42 Canada; $0.47 UK), by Tove Jansson, is one for non-US readers only, as it isn't available at all here (thanks, Penguin). This one has pretty much all rave reviews, so those that can will want to pick it up (it is a children's title, just over 200 pages in print).

Book Description
A Moomintroll is small and shy and fat, and has a Moominpappa and a Moominmamma. Moomins live in the forests of Finland. One day Moominpappa is feeling at a loss. He has no idea what to do with himself because it seems everything has already been done. So he takes his family off to start a new life in a lighthouse on a tiny, rocky island far out to sea. It's rather quiet and lonely at first, but as they begin to explore their unusual surroundings the Moomins discover some funny and surprising new things about themselves.

Auralia's Colors ($0.89), by Jeffrey Overstreet

Book Description
When thieves find an abandoned child lying in a monster’s footprint, they have no idea that their wilderness discovery will change the course of history.

Cloaked in mystery, Auralia grows up among criminals outside the walls of House Abascar, where vicious beastmen lurk in shadow. There, she discovers an unsettling–and forbidden–talent for crafting colors that enchant all who behold them, including Abascar’s hard-hearted king, an exiled wizard, and a prince who keeps dangerous secrets.

Auralia’s gift opens doors from the palace to the dungeons, setting the stage for violent and miraculous change in the great houses of the Expanse.

Auralia’s Colors weaves literary fantasy together with poetic prose, a suspenseful plot, adrenaline-rush action, and unpredictable characters sure to enthrall ambitious imaginations.

The Vanishing Sculptor ($0.99), by Donita K. Paul

Book Description
Donita K. Paul’s 250,000-plus-selling DragonKeeper Chronicles series has attracted a wide spectrum of dedicated fans–and they’re sure to fall in love with the new characters and adventures in her latest superbly-crafted novel for all ages. It’s a mind-boggling fantasy that inhabits the same world as the DragonKeeper Chronicles, but in a different country and an earlier time, where the people know little of Wulder and nothing of Paladin.

In The Vanishing Sculptor, readers will meet Tipper, a young emerlindian who’s responsible for the upkeep of her family’s estate during her sculptor father’s absence. Tipper soon discovers that her actions have unbalanced the whole foundation of her world, and she must act quickly to undo the calamitous threat. But how can she save her father and her world on her own? The task is too huge for one person, so she gathers the help of some unlikely companions–including the nearly five-foot tall parrot Beccaroon–and eventually witnesses the loving care and miraculous resources of Wulder. Through Tipper’s breathtaking story, readers will discover the beauty of knowing and serving God.

DragonSpell ($1.59), by Donita K. Paul, is the first in the Dragon Keepers Chronicles series.

Book Description
One Dragon Egg Holds the Key to the Future.

Once a slave, Kale is given the unexpected opportunity to become a servant to Paladin. Yet this young girl has much to learn about the difference between slavery and service.

A Desperate Search Begins…

A small band of Paladin’s servants rescue Kale from danger but turn her from her destination: The Hall, where she was to be trained. Feeling afraid and unprepared, Kale embarks on a perilous quest to find the meech dragon egg stolen by the foul Wizard Risto. First, she and her comrades must find Wizard Fenworth. But their journey is threatened when a key member of the party is captured, leaving the remaining companions to find Fenworth, attempt an impossible rescue, and recover the egg whose true value they have not begun to suspect…

Weaving together memorable characters, daring adventure, and a core of eternal truth, Dragonspell is a finely crafted and welcome addition to the corpus of fantasy fiction.

Walk Away the Pounds: The Breakthrough 6-Week Program That Helps You Burn Fat, Tone Muscle, and Feel Great Without Dieting ($2.99), by Leslie Sansone, is the perfect companion to Leslie Sansone's Eat Smart, Walk Strong: The Secrets to Effortless Weight Loss ($9.99), which was free in January.

Book Description
Losing weight has never been easier or more fun than with Leslie Sansone's WALK AWAY THE POUNDS. For over twenty-five years, Leslie has helped more women get off the couch and onto their feet than anyone else in the fitness industry. Her secret? If you can walk, you can achieve the weight-loss goals you dream about...with none of the intimidation or negative messages that have stopped you from succeeding before. Whether you are a beginner or have been walking with Leslie for years, whether you are a teen or a senior or somewhere in between, you will see results. You will lose real weight, and keep it off-twenty pounds, forty, sixty, or even more. All you need is fifteen minutes a day for starters, two feet, and a willing attitude. There is no fancy equipment to buy, no fad diet to follow, and no fitness club to join. The revolutionary program in WALK AWAY THE POUNDS is designed to keep everybody on the path to success, especially those who have never been able to complete a weight-loss plan before. It's a simpler approach to fitness, one that can change your life. Leslie's step-by-step workbook format sets up the program day by day. You just wake up, flip open the book, and follow the directions. You'll get a combination of in-home walking (that's right, you can do it right from the comfort of your own living room!), simple strength training, motivational breakthroughs, and commonsense advice to help you burn fat, tone muscle, reduce stress, avoid illness, shake off the blues, and boost your energy level sky high. It's never been easier. Women all across America have dropped between 20 and 150 pounds with Leslie Sansone. Now you can too!

Suspense and Sensibility or, First Impressions Revisited ($2.99) is a Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery by Carrie Bebris.

Book Description
Fresh from the curious and unsettling matter of Caroline Bingley (as related in Pride and Prescience), Mr. and Mrs. Darcy have every intention of enjoying their still newlywed status at Pemberly until they are confronted with another mysterious situation, ... one of

Suspense and Sensibility

Elizabeth Darcy and her beloved husband Fitzwilliam are taking on the responsibility of finding a suitable suitor for Elizabeth's younger sister Kitty, thereby assuring her a proper place in society.

The angels smile on the young and a perfect match is found, and wedding plans are soon under way. Suddenly a change in personality occurs in Kitty's soon to be model husband-a change so striking as to jeopardize not just the Darcys' social standing, but their lives as well.

A mysterious mirror, an insidious reprobate from the past, and matters far beyond the social circles around Pemberly all come into play in a dangerous puzzle, where the consequences may be the exchange of a soul for a soul.

Once again the Darcys take center stage as the Regency era's answer to The Thin Man's Nick and Nora, searching for truth between tea times, amid the social whirl of Jane Austen's England.

Wind Spirit ($2.99), by David Thurlo & Aimée Thurlo, is the tenth in their Ella Clah series.

Book Description
Before the new nuclear power plant can be built, the power company must help the Navajo reclaim a long-unused uranium mine. The plan is to collapse the old shafts and refill the area with new soil, but the first explosions trigger unplanned subsidiary collapses. Ella Clah, attending the dedication and purification ceremony, acts quickly when she sees a young child sliding into the exposed tunnels. She saves his life but is herself trapped underground.

A few days later, Ella, little the worse for her nightmarish near-death experience, is checking out reports of vandalism and arson. It seems that gun control advocates on the Rez have made some enemies-enemies who soon kill for the first time, when an arson fire claims the life of the wife of a Navajo Councilmember. The home of local radio host George Branch--who may have incited the fatal arson-burns to the ground, destroying all of Branch's personal possessions, including his extensive gun collection.

Ella's investigations are hampered by what happened to her at the uranium site. Both her brother Clifford, a Navajo medicine man, and her cousin and fellow Navajo Police officer, Justine Goodluck, are convinced that Ella wasn't just unconscious when she was rescued. To all appearances, they say, Ella was dead. Justine believes that Ella's survival was a miracle; Clifford says that his hataalii abilities showed her wandering wind spirit the way back to her body. Regardless, traditionalist Navajo are reluctant to be near or even speak to Ella, fearing that since she was dead, she has been contaminated with chindi and become evil. Even some of her fellow police officers are uncomfortable in Ella's presence.

If she cannot interview witnesses and can't work with other cops, what is Ella to do? She finds solace in the unquestioning and unchanging love of her young daughter and the unflagging support of her brother, who nonetheless recommends an older hataalii who may be able to perform a special blessing ceremony for Ella. Still, it's clear that Ella's life has been changed, perhaps permanently, and that she may no longer be an effective police officer.

Author Spotlight - Richard Herley

Richard Herley is one of those midlist authors that saw his books published worldwide, in several languages, only to have them eventually drop from the shelves as other authors gained the spotlight and finally his books fell out of print. He eventually pioneered the shareware ebook market, but found that few bought compared to those that downloaded (although, to be fair, no doubt few read either, as the net was them mostly dominated by those who collected free books and other content, rather than read them). After removing all of his ebooks from sale, he was persuaded to try once again, setting up his own website with free downloads (which seems to have since disappeared). Now, he has added his books to Smashwords and they are very reasonably priced, with two of them completely free. I know he won't get the sales or reviews he would if he were in the Kindle store, but his books are definitely worth trying out (and the DRM-Free Kindle format there works just fine). If you do, be sure to leave him a review when you get a chance.

The Penal Colony (free), a 103,000-word thriller, is the basis of the futuristic Ray Liotta movie No Escape.

Book Description
It is 1997. The British government now runs island prison colonies to take dangerous offenders from its overcrowded mainland jails.

Among all these colonies, Sert, 25 miles off the north Cornish coast, has the worst reputation. There are no warders. Satellite technology is used to keep the convicts under watch. New arrivals are dumped by helicopter and must learn to survive as best they can. To Sert, one afternoon in July, is brought Anthony John Routledge, sentenced for a sex-murder he did not commit. Routledge knows he is here for ever. And he knows he must quickly forget the rules of civilized life. But not all the islanders are savages. Under the charismatic leadership of one man a community has evolved. A community with harsh and unyielding rules, peopled by resourceful men for whom the hopeless dream of escape may not be so hopeless after all ...

The Stone Arrow (free) is one that I bought in paperback long ago and is still on my shelves.

Book Description
Stone Age England. The ancient, nomadic way of life is coming to an end; the agricultural revolution has begun. When the farmers of Burh attack the sleeping nomad tribe, Tagart is the only survivor. Twenty-five and heir to the chief, his sole inheritance now is his tribal honour – and it demands revenge. His ally is the forest itself: that, and his own ingenuity, courage and hunting skill.

The Flint Lord ($2.99)

Book Description
England, 5000 years ago. Brennis Gehan, Lord of Valdoe, is planning the genocide of the indigenous hunter-gatherers. Word has already reached them, but when their grand chieftain dies in a hunting accident it seems his successor will not heed the warning. Only Tagart understands the danger: but first he must win the battle for leadership, waged according to ancient and ruthless laws ...

The Earth Goddess ($2.99)

Book Description
3000 BC. The cult of the Earth Goddess is controlled by a sinister priesthood. The island country has been annexed and its lord murdered. His consort has fled, carrying his heir, Paoul. Ignorant of his parentage, Paoul is orphaned and sold into the Red Order. His teachers predict a great destiny for him. Only later, beyond the point of no return, do his doubts begin ...

The Tide Mill ($2.99)

Book Description
In 13th-century Sussex, an illicit love-affair and ruthless power-politics find focus in a masterwork of medieval engineering ... The newest novel from this award-winning writer.

Refuge ($2.99)

Book Description
It is 2029, twelve years on from a global plague. John Suter believes himself the sole survivor until he finds a mutilated body in the river near his house. He knows he has no choice but to investigate. What he discovers upstream stretches his endurance to its limits and forces him to reassess not only his own humanity, but also his place within the human family he had once believed extinct.

Free Book - Dark Water's Embrace

Dark Water's Embrace ($8.99 Kindle), by Stephen Leigh, is available for free, direct from the publisher, through the end of the month.

Book Description
Often compared to Ursula K. Le Guin’s ground-breaking The Left Hand of Darkness, Dark Water’s Embrace is a fascinating look at issues of human (and alien) sexuality. Stephen Leigh creates a rich world with elaborate care and uses this alien backdrop to delve into issues of survival, sexuality and the meaning of life itself.

Descendents of a long marooned group of humans struggle with mutations and infertility and if a cure cannot be found they are doomed to extinction.

The colony’s doctor, Anaïs, herself suffers from a sexual deformity. However, her world is turned upside down when she discovers that the preserved corpse of a long-extinct native race carries exactly the same deformities as herself.

What is the connection? And can she find the answer to this mystery that has reached back from time to haunt both her and the colony struggling to survive against impossible odds?

Click HERE for the free book. You'll have to scroll down to find the book's listing, then click on the "Free EBook" link underneath the cover picture. On the next page, enter an email address and coupon code 9991300, then check your email for the download link (which will also have some coupons for other books at Smashwords). There isn't a Kindle format, but the epub and PDF are DRM-free, so can be easily converted.

One Buck Book (Kindle) - Damage Control

Damage Control, by Amy J. Fetzer, is currently 99 cents as a limited time promotion from Amazon.

Book Description
Two Against The World

Explosives expert Sebastian Fontenot has patience in spades-whether he's deactivating bombs or gritting out three days beneath a pile of rubble. But when the hard-bodied operative learns his oldest friend is in trouble, he flies into action ... and ends up on the Artic Circle, where a sexy scientist holds clues that threaten his mission ... and her life....

Olivia Corrigan can handle men. But Sebastian Fontenot is like no other she's encountered: hot as hell and in danger of thinking he can order her around with that delicious drawl of his. Lucky for her, the mesmerizing mercenary is on her side. And it's a good thing, too. Once they stumble onto a horrifying international cover up, it's up to Olivia and Sebastian to keep their hands off each other just long enough to keep a dangerous power from falling into the wrong hands-.

Free Book (nook) - Billy Boyle

Billy Boyle ($7.51 Kindle), by James R. Benn, the first in the Billy Boyle World War II Mystery series, is free from Barnes and Noble tonight.

Book Description
What’s a twenty-two-year-old Irish American cop who’s never been out of Massachusetts before doing at Beardsley Hall, an English country house, having lunch with King Haakon of Norway? Billy Boyle himself wonders. Back home in Southie, he’d barely made detective when war was declared. Unwilling to fight—and perhaps die—for England, he was relieved when his mother wangled a job for him on the staff of a general married to her distant cousin. But the general turns out to be Dwight D. Eisenhower, whose headquarters are in London, which is undergoing the Blitz. And Uncle Ike wants Billy to be his personal investigator.

Billy is dispatched to the seat of the Norwegian government in exile. Operation Jupiter, the impending invasion of Norway, is being planned, but it is feared that there is a German spy amongst the Norwegians.

Billy doubts his own abilities, with good reason. A theft and two murders test his investigative powers, but Billy proves to be a better detective than he or anyone else expected.

Click HERE to get the free book.

And now, a word from a sponsor - Diapers and Parents Magazine

,

OK, not really a sponsor. But this deal has nothing whatsoever to do with books, games, videos or music, so is pretty much just an ad (but a great deal for some of you out there). If you don't have or take care of any kids, just click to read the next post. If you do and have to buy diapers, you will want to take advantage of this deal at Amazon. You can get more than 90% off of select diapers and baby wipes, by combining a subscription and multiple coupon codes onto one order.

First, click HERE or on the picture above. Order any of the items on the deals page using the Subscribe and Save option and you'll get 30% off the already discounted price shown. Don't worry, you can cancel your subscription at any time after you receive confirmation that your order has shipped, so you are not really locking yourself in to getting them from Amazon all the time. You'll also automatically get free 2-day shipping on these orders, so you don't need to pay any extra for that, either.

Don't submit the order yet, though. First, search the August and September issue of Parents Magazine (print, not Kindle). In it you will find a little Orange Card for Amazon with an offer for 20% off. You can combine this with the deal above for a total savings of 50% OFF!! (30% with the subscribe and save discount and 20% with the Amazon coupon from Parents Magazine). You enter the coupon code off of the orange card after clicking on Subscribe and Save, but before confirming the order - there is a place for entering coupon codes there, just as with regular orders.

Each card is a one-use code, like gift certificates, but they can be combined on one order, so long as the starting letter is different. There are cards that start with an A, W or X, so you could potentially add all three on one order to get an additional 60% off. That's a total of 90% off so far, but there's more....

If you use Pampers Diapers, Pants, Easy Ups Trainers or UnderJams, you can get an additional $1.50 off by first going to your Amazon Coupons Page and clicking on an applicable coupon. You do, however, need to make sure that the item you pick on the Coupons page is one of the ones on the 30% off deals page, though. I don't know about you, but I forget to check the coupons that Amazon has set up for me. These seem to change about every time I refresh the page, but I was presented with the $1.50 Pampers coupon the first time, after clicking on the links above.

So, for maximum savings of 90% plus $1.50 off the Amazon (not list) price, follow these steps

1. Locate the coupons in the August and September issues of Parents Magazine. There are Facebook and other groups that trade codes, if you need to do so.
2. If you are a Pampers customer, click on the Amazon Coupons Page and refresh until you see a coupon for the type of Pampers product that you use (I see an expiration date of 8/28/10 on these, so this isn't a one-day only deal).
3. Finally, click on the Diapers Promotion page to make sure you are getting one of the items included on the promotion.
4. Click on Subscribe and Save (on the right side of the screen, below the usual Add to Cart and 1-Click options).
5. On the order confirmation page, enter your codes, up to three per order, so long as they start with different letters (you enter a code, click on Apply, then repeat for each code).
6. Then, check your order total and submit!

You should see a shipping notice within a day or two, for most products. Once the item has shipped, you can go to the Manage Subscribe & Save Items page under Your Account and cancel any future shipments. And, here's a secret - generally you can cancel a subscription and then start a new one, even on the same day, in order take advantage of deals like this that are usually for new subscriptions only.

The coupons in Parents magazine are rumored to be coming in future issues as well. If you want to subscribe, there are two decent deals: for today only, Barnes and Noble has a one-year subscription for $5. If you miss that one, want more than one year or just prefer to keep all your subscriptions at Amazon, where they are pretty easy to manage, then Amazon has a two-year subscription for $12.

Bargain Book Roundup - Mini Edition

With all the free books today, I'm only including a few titles. The first two are by the same author as one of today's free books, Henry Perez (Mourn The Living).

Killing Red ($4.47), by Henry Perez, is the first book in the same series as Mourn The Living. Yes, those diabolical pricers at Amazon may have figured out how to get us to buy another book in the series with every freebie: give us the second one free and price the first one low enough to be an impulse buy!

Book Description
He's Been Waiting...
On death row, serial killer Kenneth Lee Grubb has six days to live. His last request? An interview with reporter Alex Chapa. What begins as a dream story soon turns into a nightmare for Alex. For amidst Grubb's taunts and boasts lies the horrific claim that someone is carefully repeating his past crimes...

For The Moment...
When nine people suddenly turn up dead, Alex realizes Grubb is telling the truth. Now the copycat killer is ready to pay his ultimate tribute to his idol. He's set his sights on Annie Sykes (or "Red" as Grubb calls her) the only survivor of his bloodlust fifteen years ago...

To Commit The Perfect Murder...
In a desperate race against time, Alex must find Annie and rescue her from the same fate she escaped a decade earlier. But what Alex doesn't know is that "Red" isn't the only one whose life is in danger...

Floaters ($1.99) is a novella collaboration and Kindle exclusive by J.A. Konrath and Henry Perez

Book Description
When the latest in a series of dead bodies turns up in the Chicago River, newspaper reporter Alex Chapa and Police Lieutenant Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels reluctantly join forces.

Thriller writers J.A. Konrath (Whiskey Sour, Fuzzy Navel, Cherry Bomb) and Henry Perez (Killing Red) and their series characters have teamed up to create FLOATERS, a mystery tale that combines humor with thrills.

Included in this 30,000 word collection are J.A. Konrath's LAST REQUEST, a Phineas Trout story, and FAMILIAR PLACES, a story by Henry Perez about hit man who has seen better days.

This collection also includes a conversation between the authors and excerpts from each of their new novels, CHERRY BOMB, by J.A. Konrath, and KILLING RED by Henry Perez.

Heartsick ($2.99), by Chelsea Cain

Book Description
Damaged Portland detective Archie Sheridan spent ten years tracking Gretchen Lowell, a beautiful serial killer, but in the end she was the one who caught him. Two years ago, Gretchen kidnapped Archie and tortured him for ten days, but instead of killing him, she mysteriously decided to let him go. She turned herself in, and now Gretchen has been locked away for the rest of her life, while Archie is in a prison of another kind---addicted to pain pills, unable to return to his old life, powerless to get those ten horrific days off his mind. Archie's a different person, his estranged wife says, and he knows she's right. He continues to visit Gretchen in prison once a week, saying that only he can get her to confess as to the whereabouts of more of her victims, but even he knows the truth---he can't stay away.

When another killer begins snatching teenage girls off the streets of Portland, Archie has to pull himself together enough to lead the new task force investigating the murders. A hungry young newspaper reporter, Susan Ward, begins profiling Archie and the investigation, which sparks a deadly game between Archie, Susan, the new killer, and even Gretchen. They need to catch a killer, and maybe somehow then Archie can free himself from Gretchen, once and for all. Either way, Heartsick makes for one of the most extraordinary suspense debuts in recent memory.

Under the Jolly Roger:Being an Account of the Further Nautical Adventures of Jacky Faber ($2.85), by Louis A. Meyer, is the third in his Bloody Jack Adventures series for teens/young adults. This has been a popular series for bargains and freebies this summer: so far, I've got Bloody Jack: Being an Account of the Curious Adventures of Mary "Jacky" Faber, Ship's Boy ($6.36), the first in the series, as a free audiobook from Sync, and Rapture of the Deep: Being an Account of the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, Soldier, Sailor, Mermaid, Spy ($9.99), the seventh in the series, free from Sony last month. The second in the series is Curse of the Blue Tattoo ($7.95), which I may have to consider (I'll wait for more bargains after the first three, as my TBR stack is already high enough). When searching for the series, some have L.A. Meyer as the author and I've also noticed that many of the titles have two editions: an earlier one in topaz format and a newer one in mobi.

Book Description
After leaving the Lawson Peabody School for Young Girls in Boston--under dire circumstances, of course--Jacky Faber boards a whaling ship bound for London, where she hopes to find her beloved Jaimy. But things don't go as planned, and soon Jacky is off on a wild misadventure at sea. She thwarts the lecherous advances of a crazy captain, rallies sailors to her side, and ultimately gains command of a ship in His Majesty's Royal Navy. But Jacky's adventures don't end there. . . .

Includes a teaser to Jacky's next adventure, In the Belly of the Bloodhound.