Bargain Book Roundup

It's the end of the month, so the free books seem to be slowing down for a bit. I'm going to try to get caught up on some more of the bargains I've found in the last few days.

Cirque Du Freak: A Living Nightmare ($1.99 Kindle, B&N and Kobo), by Darren Shan, the first in the Saga of Darren Shan, has good reviews and I've seen good things about the movie, Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (which is now out on DVD and Blu-ray), as well.

Book Description
In the tradition of Stephen King's 'Salem's Lot, Cirque Du Freak is the frightening saga of a young boy whose visit to a mysterious freak show leads him on a journey into a dark world of vampires. Filled with grotesque creatures, murderous vampires, and a petrifying ending, Cirque Du Freak will chill, thrill, and leave readers begging for more.

Blue Moon ($2.99 Kindle, B&N and Kobo), by Lori Handeland. Thanks to a reader for a tip on this one; I've already added it to my Kindle bookshelf.

Book Description
Miniwa, Wisconsin is under siege, but not by the usual summer tourists. The area's normally shy wolf population has begun stalking human prey, and their victims have been disappearing...or worse. Something is happening in the woods. Something brutal and primitive...

Officer Jessie McQuade has seen plenty in her years on the force-but nothing as intriguing as the gorgeous, naked man she encounters while tracking a rogue wolf. Professor Will Cadotte is a Native American activist. He's also the only man capable of distracting Jessie from her work. And for a cop, distraction-no matter how pleasurable-can be deadly. It's against Jessie's better judgment to accept Will's help in her investigation, yet she soon finds herself doing exactly that-and more. Will's dark, penetrating eyes see into a part of Jessie's soul she never knew existed. It's exhilarating...and terrifying.

Now, as a town's deepest secrets come to light, no one is safe: not friends, lovers, or strangers. And as Jessie follows a bloody trail to the shocking truth, she'll have to decide who she can trust when the moon is full...

Ain't Too Proud to Beg ($2.99 Kindle, B&N and Kobo), by Susan Donovan

Book Description
Josie Sheehan collects failed relationships the way some women collect designer handbags. Now, at thirty-five, she has exactly one male in her life: her Labradoodle, Genghis. In fact Josie, along with the three very single women in her dog-walking group, has recently sworn off men, resigning herself to long walks in the park with her devoted, four-legged friend.

All bets are off, however, when she meets Rick Rousseau, a pet-company CEO who is smart, sexy, and, best of all, head-over-heels for Josie. Even Genghis, an excellent judge of character, seems to know that Rick is the real deal. But just when Josie starts to think that she has found something more enduring than puppy love, she discovers that Rick has a complicated past—and a secret that could put the woman he loves in serious danger...

The Quiche of Death ($2.99), by M. C. Beaton, is the first in the Agatha Raisin series, several of which have been offered as bargain reads in recent months.

Book Description
Putting all her eggs in one basket, Agatha Raisin gives up her successful PR firm, sells her London flat, and samples a taste of early retirement in the quiet village of Carsely. Bored, lonely and used to getting her way, she enters a local baking contest: Surely a blue ribbon for the best quiche will make her the toast of the town. But her recipe for social advancement sours when Judge Cummings-Browne not only snubs her entry—but falls over dead! After her quiche's secret ingredient turns out to be poison, she must reveal the unsavory truth…

Agatha has never baked a thing in her life! In fact, she bought her entry ready-made from an upper crust London quicherie. Grating on the nerves of several Carsely residents, she is soon receiving sinister notes. Has her cheating and meddling landed her in hot water, or are the threats related to the suspicious death? It may mean the difference between egg on her face and a coroner's tag on her toe…

Amazing Women: Inspirational Stories ($2.99), by Charles Margerison

Book Description
Who was the first woman to qualify as a doctor? Who is the only woman to have won two Nobel Prizes? Explore these and other amazing stories in Amazing Women. In this unique story collection from The Amazing People Club, the real lives of iconic women including Coco Chanel, Sojourner Truth, Maria Montessori, Eva Peron and Helen Keller come to life. Understand their real lives and challenges and be inspired by what they did and how they achieved it. This is a must-read for every woman seeking inspiration. Meetsome of the world's most amazing women through BioViews®.

A BioView® is a short biographical story, similar to an interview. These unique stories provide an easy way of learning about amazing people who made major contributions to our world and can help you achieve your ambitions in your journey through life.

Remember the Alamo ($2.99), by William W. Johnstone

Book Description
The Battle of the Alamo is about to be fought all over again!
William J. Johnstone, the author of Vengeance is Mine, Invasion USA, and Invasion USA: Border War, sounds another wake-up call with his latest action-packed novel set on America's most dangerous battleground: its own border.

Remember The Alamo
Only career politicians could dream up a politically correct stunt like this. Courting the growing Hispanic community that keeps them in office, the geniuses in charge in San Antonio decide to grant temporary dominion over the Alamo to the Mexican government. That doesn't sit too well with Gulf War vet Phil Cody, who remembers his history and holds his heritage dear.

With veterans from wars as far back as WWII--Cody organizes an outraged but nonviolent protest on the day of the handover. But word comes from Mexico that the reconquistadors--anti-American extremists determined to reassert Mexican control over the southwestern U.S. by the bloodiest means necessary--are planning to take over the Alamo permanently, and Cody's plan turns decidedly un-peaceful.

Despite ample warning, the American authorities twiddling their thumbs when the reconquistadors make their move, leaving it up to Cody and his band of patriots to protect the Alamo--who are seriously outnumbered and outgunned by the enemy just as Jim Bowie, Davy Crockett, and their men were on March 6, 1836. Left out to dry by their own government, history repeats itself as Americans are once again besieged within those hallowed walls and forced to take a stand against the might of the ruthless reconquistadors.

When this battle is over, America will have a new reason to Remember The Alamo.

Ordinary World ($2.99), by Elisa Lorello, is a pre-order from the author of Faking It, published by AmazonEncore. I know a lot of these end up being $7.99 by the time they are published, so if you enjoyed her earlier work, be sure to order this one now. You could grab the edition that is already out, but this one will have gone thru the editing process with AmazonEncore, so I suspect it'll be a better read. Then again, you could get both and read it now and again next March!

Book Description
Readers who fell in love with Andi Cutrone in Elisa Lorello’s first novel, Faking It, can now join Andi on a new journey in which she faces a challenge unlike any she has ever known. Ordinary World begins six years after Lorello’s first installment left off: Andi is blissfully married, works as a recently tenured professor at Northampton University, and is a published author. Life is ideal—until her husband’s death in a senseless accident shatters Andi’s world, plunging her into a gulf of depression and grief. Her family and friends do what that they can to ease her anguish, but no one seems to have the right words to heal Andi’s pain. On the advice of a friend, she travels to Italy to escape and unexpectedly runs into the man who once helped her discover her authentic self. As their friendship is renewed, Andi finally begins to heal, daring to hope that someday she will be happy again. Both wrenching and uplifting, Ordinary World is a moving tale of love and loss, joy and sorrow, heartbreak and hope.

Stormjammers: The Extraordinary Story of Electronic Warfare Operations in the Gulf War ($2.99), by Robert Stanek

Book Description
When the U.S. went to war in Iraq during the first Gulf War, Robert Stanek was there. He lived and breathed combat from the opening days of the war to its end and beyond. In this book, this bestselling author chronicles the military life, his experiences in the war with vivid accounts of combat training before the war, reflections on life, family, duty, honor, and love, and remembrances of combat missions into the heart of Baghdad.

Candid and fast-paced like the best combat memoirs, Stanek focuses on the men and women he flew with, telling their stories as well as his own and creating what is ultimately an inspiring and uplifting story of the human spirit challenged by the agony and terror of war. Based on the inspiring true story, this is the only book about electronic warfare operations in Iraq written by a military flyer who was there.

Robert Stanek's experiences in the Gulf War changed his life and helped drive his successful career as a writer and entrepreneur. To date, he has written and had published over 100 books. His books are sold all over the world and have been translated into many languages. His distinguished accomplishments during the Gulf War earned him nine medals, including our nation-s highest flying honor, the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Shaken (with Bonus Content) ($2.99), by J.A. Konrath, the seventh in his Jack Daniels series, has been released by AmazonEncore this week and, so far, it's still at a bargain price, as is Shot of Tequila and the short story collection Jack Daniels Stories. In fact, it isn't until the third page of his book listings at Amazon that you'll find one over $2.99, which is part of the success story of this traditionally published author turned indie.

Book Description
This Bonus Content Edition includes the full text of Shaken plus an alternate, chronologically linear version of the book which allows readers to choose their own reading experience.

Since her debut in Whiskey Sour, Lieutenant Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels has dealt with her fair share of criminals. But she may have finally met her match in “Mr. K,” the brutal serial killer who has eluded Jack not once, but twice, over the years. Mr. K is the essence of evil, credited with more than two hundred horrific homicides. Now, on a hot August night, Jack finally gets the chance to face the maniac—unfortunately, she must do so while bound and gagged in a storage locker, primed to be his next victim. As she awaits her fate, Jack looks back on her career, from her first homicide case to her recent retirement. The twenty-five years in between saw Jack’s attitude toward justice, the law, her job, and her personal life shift drastically. She is a different woman now…but is she good enough to stop a madman? Novelist J. A. Konrath’s trademark blend of suspense and wry humor are on full display in this tense thriller, a gripping tale that will keep readers on the edge of their seats.

Gateways ($2.99 Kindle and Kobo), by F. Paul Wilson, is the sixth in his Repairman Jack series.

Book Description
Following last year's successful The Haunted Air, F. Paul Wilson returns with another riveting episode in the saga of Repairman Jack, the secretive, ingenious, and heroic champion of those whose problems no one else can solve. As Dean Koontz says, "Repairman Jack is one of the most original and intriguing characters to arise out of contemporary fiction in ages. His adventures are hugely entertaining."

In Gateways, Jack learns that his father is in a coma after a car accident in Florida. They've been on the outs, but this is his dad, so he heads south. In the hospital he meets Anya, one of his father's neighbors. She's a weird old duck who seems to know an awful lot about his father, and even a lot about Jack.

Jack's arrival does not go unnoticed. A young woman named Semelee, who has strange talents and lives in an isolated area of the Everglades with a group of misshapen men, feels his presence. She senses that he's "special," like her.

Anya takes Jack back to Dad's senior community, Gateways South, which borders on the Everglades. Florida is going through an unusual drought. There's a ban on watering; everything is brown and wilting, but Anya's lawn is a deep green.

Who is Anya? Who is Semelee, and what is her connection to the recent strange deaths of Gateways residents-killed by birds, spiders, and snakes-during the past year? And what are the "lights" Jack keeps hearing about-? Lights that emanate twice a year from a sinkhole deep in the Everglades . . . lights from another place, another reality.

If he is to protect his father from becoming the next fatality at Gateways, there are questions Jack must answer, secrets he must uncover. Secrets . . . Jack has plenty of his own, and along the way he learns that even his father has secrets.

Free Audiobook - Horus Rising

Update: This one is only a "sample", disc 1 of the set, which I didn't see when I first posted it.

It isn't yet Friday and it isn't an ebook, but The Black Library has an audiobook now posted on their free download site, Horus Rising ($19.77 CD pre-order), by Dan Abnet, the first in the The Horus Heresy series. This is an abridged version and runs 1:13 in length. Like the other offerings from The Black Library (which has just dipped their toes into ebook publishing), this one isn't available on Kindle; this audiobook, though, will work on it just fine.

Book Description
After thousands of years of expansion and conquest, the human Imperium is at its height. His dream for humanity accomplished, the Emperor hands over the reins of power to his Warmaster, Horus, and heads back to Terra. But is Horus strong enough to control his fellow commanders and continue the Emperor's grand design, or will such incredible power corrupt him?

Click HERE to get the free download.

Free Book (EPUB) - Last-Minute Halloween Costumes and Projects

LifeHacker has a free download of Last-Minute Halloween Costumes and Projects, from DIY haven Instructables, today (and today, only). It's in EPUB format and about 24 MB in size, but no DRM, so you can convert to the format of your choice. I glanced thru the book and I may just have to try out the Melon Brains instructions next week. When you read thru the book, there are also more links to other food projects on the web.

Book Description
There are great, cheap, creative costumes to be had in DIY Halloween, including a "Kidnapped Mermaid," a 3-armed mutant baby get-up for your little one, cardboard armor and its logical Boba Fett extreme, Lady Gaga costumes, and a DIY Iron Man Arc Reactor for all your Tony-Stark-on-his-off-day needs. There's also a whole bunch of projects that will make for great decorations, and a good batch of Halloween-themed snacks and (literal) finger foods. It's fun stuff with an eye toward creativity and can-do.

Click HERE to get to their download page, then on the "direct epub link" lower down on the screen.

Free Book - All The Right Reasons

All The Right Reasons, by Sandy James, has been marked down to 99 cents in the Kindle store, but is free direct from AllRomanceEbooks. This is the third in her Damaged Heroes series and is a fairly long novel, at 113,000 words (the rest of the series is $4.79/title on Kindle).

Book Description
Can love heal all wounds? Lucas Mitchell returned from Iraq a bitter, changed man, wracked with guilt over his friend's death. He buys an old mansion and deals with his injuries and grief by restoring his new home and rehabilitating retired racehorses.

Joy Kovacs falls in love with Lucas at first sight. Descended from gypsies who are still influenced by the lingering effects of the Holocaust, her family follows the traditional ways. A husband has already been selected for her, and her father insists she work at their ethnic restaurant. But Joy wants to use her talent and be an artist, and she wants no one but Lucas.

How can Joy find a way to help Lucas break out of his prison of grief? Although they've committed their hearts to each other, can the growing love and passion between Lucas and Joy survive her family's insistence that she marry within her culture?

Click HERE to get the free book. There is no DRM, so the mobi/prc format will work on your Kindle and it or the LIT format are easily converted for other ereader devices. If you want more than one format, you'll have to buy it more than once, as once you download, the format becomes locked in.

Free Book (Sony) - Purgatory

The latest in the Star Wars-Lost Tribe of the Sith series is out, #5: Purgatory, by John Jackson Miller, and Sony has beat everyone else to the punch. So far, they are the only ones listing this one and, as usual, it's a free download.

Book Description
The mighty Sith dynasty founded on the planet Kesh by the survivors of the shipwrecked Omen has endured for a thousand years -- and so has the merciless Sith code, which prizes power above all else. Lady Orielle Kitai enjoys power as the scion of a noble family and member of the elite Sith Sabers. But Lillia Venn, as reigning Grand Lord of the Sith, possesses absolute power . . . and is determined to keep it.

When a failed regicide sparks a political -- and literal -- bloodbath, and suspicion falls on Orielle, she is swiftly condemned to slavery by the ruthless Grand Lord Venn. But seeing the cunning power play for what it is, Orielle vows to strike back. And at the ramshackle home of a poor dirt farmer with an astounding secret, she discovers the means to make her vengeance a devastating reality.

Update: You can get the PDF from the Suvudu Library, HERE.

Bargain Book Roundup

There are a number of books being discounted by some of the big publishers this month, in addition to the freebies that they have been flooding the stores with. The prices are generally the same in all the stores for those in the US, although Sony is sometimes slow to implement a price drop and Kobo doesn't seem to have all of these on it's digital shelves.

Gone, Baby, Gone with Bonus Content ($1.99 Kindle & B&N), by Dennis Lehane, author of Shutter Island ($9.99), is the fourth in his Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro series and contains a preview of his upcoming Moonlight Mile ($12.99 pre-order).

Book Description
The tough neighborhood of Dorchester is no place for the innocent or the weak. A territory defined by hard heads and even harder luck, its streets are littered with the detritus of broken families, hearts, dreams. Now, one of its youngest is missing. Private investigators Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro don't want the case. But after pleas from the child's aunt, they open an investigation that will ultimately risk everything—their relationship, their sanity, and even their lives—to find a little girl-lost.

Street Magic ($2.99 Kindle, B&N & Kobo), by Caitlin Kittredge, is the first in her Black London series.

Book Description
Her name is Pete Caldecott. She was just sixteen when she met Jack Winter, a gorgeous, larger-than-life mage who thrilled her with his witchcraft. Then a spirit Jack summoned killed him before Pete’s eyes—or so she thought. Now a detective, Pete is investigating the case of a young girl kidnapped from the streets of London. A tipster’s chilling prediction has led police directly to the child…but when Pete meets the informant, she’s shocked to learn he is none other than Jack. Strung out on heroin, Jack a shadow of his former self. But he’s able to tell Pete exactly where Bridget’s kidnappers are hiding: in the supernatural shadow-world of the fey. Even though she’s spent years disavowing the supernatural, Pete follows Jack into the invisible fey underworld, where she hopes to discover the truth about what happened to Bridget—and what happened to Jack on that dark day so long ago…

The Magic of Recluce ($2.99 Kindle, B&N & Kobo), by L. E. Modesitt, Jr., the first in the Recluce series.

Book Description
With The Magic of Recluce, L.E. Modesitt made his impressive hardcover debut, breaking out in wide scope and grand scale with a novel in the great tradition of the war between good and evil in a wonderful fantasy world. Modesitt had been producing fast-paced, slickly-written novels of SF adventure, often compared to the work of Keith Laumer and Gordon R. Dickson. Then, in his biggest and best book yet, he broadened his canvas and turned to fantasy and magic, stepping immediately into the front rank of contemporary fantasy writers.

The Magic of Recluce is a carefully-plotted fantasy novel of character about the growth and education of a young magician. In it, Modesitt confronts real moral issues with gripping force, builds atmosphere slowly and convincingly and gives his central character, Lerris, real intellectual challenges. This is the kind of highly-rationalized fantasy that Poul Anderson and Gordon R. Dickson write when they write fantasy, colorful and detailed.

He is given the standard two options: permanent exile from Recluce or the dangergeld, a complex, rule-laden wanderjahr in the lands beyond Recluce with the aim of learning how the world works and what his place in it might be. Many do not survive. He chooses dangergeld.

Though magic is rarely discussed openly in Recluce, it becomes clear, when Lerris is sent into intensive training for his quest, that he has a natural talent for it during his weapons lessons. And he will need magic in the lands beyond, where the power of the Chaos Wizards reigns unchecked. He must learn to use his powers in an orderly way or fall prey to Chaos.

Lerris may resent order, but he has no difficulty choosing good over evil. As he begins his lonely journey, he falls into the company of a gray magician, once of Recluce, who tutors him in the use of magic and shows him some of the devastation caused by the Chaos Wizards in the great wars between Chaos and Order of past times.

Lerris pursues a quest for knowledge and power that leads him across strange lands, through the ghostly ruins of the old capitol of Chaos, down the white roads of the Chaos Wizards to a final battle with the archenemy of Order, discovering in the end true control of magic, true love, and the beginning of true wisdom. An epic adventure, The Magic of Recluce0, is a triumph of fantasy.

Glazed Murder ($2.99 Kindle, B&N & Kobo), by Jessica Beck, is the first in her Donut Shop Mystery series.

Book Description
Meet Suzanne Hart, owner and operator of Donut Hearts coffee shop in April Springs, North Carolina. After her divorce from Max, an out-of-work actor she’s dubbed “The Great Impersonator,” Suzanne decided to pursue her one true passion in life: donuts. So she cashed in her settlement and opened up shop in the heart of her beloved hometown.

But when a dead body is dumped on her doorstep like a sack of flour, Suzanne’s cozy little shop becomes an all-out crime scene. Now, everyone in town is dropping by for glazed donuts and gruesome details. The retired sheriff warns her to be careful—and they’re all suspects. Soon Suzanne—who finds snooping as irresistible as donuts—is poking holes in everyone’s alibis…

Demons Not Included ($2.99 Kindle, B&N & Kobo), by Cheyenne McCray, is the first in her Night Tracker series.

Book Description
Meet Nyx. This half-human, half–Drow private eye investigates paranormal crimes by day and is an elite Tracker of demons by night. She prefers working solo—and playing rough. So when a terrifying force starts murdering innocent humans and paranorms, and leaving strange demonic symbols burned into their buildings, it’s a case Nyx takes very personally…

Meanwhile, Nyx’s fellow Trackers are being killed one by one—and a sexy new Tracker named Torin is shadowing her every move. Torin has powers Nyx can’t read, and sometimes she wonders whose side he’s on. Nyx’s instincts tell her something’s brewing in the city’s meanest supernatural streets, and that it’s ready to unleash hell on Earth. Who can she trust? Now it’s five minutes to permanent midnight…and Nyx’s last chance means risking everything—even her own life.

Fledgling ($2.99 Kindle, B&N & Kobo), by Octavia Butler

Book Description
Octavia Butler's first new novel in seven years, is the story of an apparently young, amnesiac girl whose alarmingly unhuman needs and abilities lead her to a startling conclusion: She is in fact a genetically modified, 53-year-old vampire. Forced to discover what she can about her stolen former life, she must at the same time learn who wanted-and still wants-to destroy her and those she cares for and how she can save herself.

Mr. Shivers ($2.99 Kindle, B&N & Kobo), by Robert Jackson Bennett

Book Description
It is the time of the Great Depression.

Thousands have left their homes looking for a better life, a new life. But Marcus Connelly is not one of them. He searches for one thing, and one thing only. Revenge.

Because out there, riding the rails, stalking the camps, is the scarred vagrant who murdered Connelly's daughter. No one knows him, but everyone knows his name: Mr. Shivers.

In this extraordinary debut, Robert Jackson Bennett tells the story of an America haunted by murder and desperation. A world in which one man must face a dark truth and answer the question-how much is he willing to sacrifice for his satisfaction?

Black And Blue: The Golden Arm, The Robinson Boys, And The 1966 World Series That Stunned America ($2.99 Kindle, B&N & Kobo), by Tom Adelman

Book Description
The most surprising World Series ever? Many baseball fans would agree that it was the epic 1966 clash between the reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers and the perennial underdog Baltimore Orioles.

The godlike Sandy Koufax had led the Dodgers to victory in two previous World Series, and had finished the season with twenty-seven wins, a personal best. Few outside Baltimore gave the Orioles - slugger Frank Robinson leading a young team of no-name kids and promising prospects - more than a fighting chance against such series veterans as Koufax, Don Drysdale, Maury Wills, and the rest. Experts were betting that Los Angeles would sweep it in four. What transpired instead astonished the nation, as the greatest pitching performance in World Series history capped a redemption beyond imagining.

Two Free Books from Rainbow EBooks

There are once-again two free gay-themed books from Rainbow EBooks for the weekend.

Happy New Year, by Kenn Dahll

Book Description
Zane and his lover survived a horrendous year which began last New Year’s Eve with a car accident on the way home from a party. Misfortunes abounded including a rained-out orgy, a Halloween costume mishap, and a bed collapse in the middle of heavy sex. They were hoping that the New Year would bring better luck.

The evening started out great. The two couples seated on either side of them were both fun to talk to and very attractive. Plans were underway for a future get together for six-way sex when calamity struck!

The Hitchhiker, by habu

Book Description
When Chad stops for a barechested hitchhiker, he’s really not sure exactly why, but young Tim, in a well-woven seduction, convinces him of the real reason. As Tim insists on paying Chad for the ride—with sex—Chad revels in the new experience, but he soon learns the great risk of picking up strangers and giving in to temptation.

Game of the Day - Wispa Forest

Wispa Forest ($2.99), a game download for your PC, is Amazon's Video Game Deal of the Day.

Game Description
Take yourself on an enchanted journey as you aid the fairly-like Wispas in clearing the corruption that has covered the landscape in Wispa Forest. Find and remove foreign objects from beautifully hand-drawn scenes, and complete match-3 puzzle battles to eliminate the sources of evil in the land of Underwood. Discover magic, and uncover the whole story as it is revealed through moving cut scenes. Wispa Forest is a spellbinding adventure the whole family will enjoy!

* A stunning hand-drawn world!
* Moving cut scenes!
* 24 challenging hidden object scenes!
* Exciting Match-3 puzzle battles!
* Unique pop-impressionist style!

Free Magazine - Inaugral Issue of Hammer and Bolter

Hammer and Bolter, Issue #1 is this week's free book from The Black Library. The next issue will be available (directly from them, it appears they are bypassing retailers such as Amazon) in November.

Magazine Description
Hammer and Bolter is a monthly publication that will bring you the best in Warhammer, Warhammer 40,000, Horus Heresy and Time of Legends fiction from a mix of established names and hot new talent in a download-only format. This first issue is a perfect snapshot of what you can expect in the months ahead.

Dan Abnett pens the return of an old friend from his Eisenhorn sequence in ‘The Strange Demise of Titus Endor’ and we’ve also snuck in a sneak preview of the first chapter of Prospero Burns to keep you ticking over until its release in January 2011. Anthony Reynolds once more ventures into the realm of Brettonia and the travels of noble Calard with a novella-length tale entitled ‘Questing Knight’. In a first for Black Library, Ben Counter and the Soul Drinkers return in the form of Phalanx – a novel serialised over the first year of Hammer and Bolter’s publication. Nick Kyme swings by to face The Inquisition and is interrogated about his current projects and future plans. The hot new talent angle is covered by Sarah Cawkwell and the first portrayal of the Silver Skulls chapter by a Black Library author in ‘Primary Instinct’.

And, something that we certainly won’t be able to repeat but had to include in the premier issue of such an exciting new venture, ‘A Place of Quiet Assembly’, a previously unpublished tale of Gotrek & Felix by genre legend John Brunner! Originally written back in the early nineties for the very first line of Warhammer fiction, the story has been sitting on various hard drives for the past two decades and, as far as we’re aware anyway, is the last remaining unpublished short story by the Stand on Zanzibar author who sadly died in 1995.
- Christian Dunn

Click HERE for the free book; you can choose between the EPUB and MOBI formats and both are DRM-Free! While you are there, be sure to pick up the previous weeks' books, as well, as they are still available.

Free Book (EPUB) - Ghost Child (AU Only)

Random House Australia has a free book for their followers this month, Ghost Child ($13.20 AU Only), by Caroline Overington. The giveaway is limited to Australian customers only (as is the Kindle edition of this book); you sign up for their newsletter HERE, then follow the link and use the coupon code in the email you receive to get the book from Kobo. Kobo ensures that only Australian customers download the book by checking both your mailing address on file and your IP address.

Book Description
In 1982 Victorian police were called to a home on a housing estate an hour west of Melbourne. There, they found a five-year-old boy lying on the carpet. There were no obvious signs of trauma, but the child, Jacob, died the next day.The story made the headlines and hundreds attended the funeral. Few people were surprised when the boy's mother and her boyfriend went to prison for the crime. Police declared themselves satisfied with the result, saying there was no doubt that justice had been done. And yet, for years rumours swept the estate and clung like cobwebs to the long-vacant house: there had been a cover-up. The real perpetrator, at least according to local gossip, was the boy's six-year-old sister, Lauren...Twenty years on, Lauren has created a new life for herself, but details of Jacob's death being to resurface and the story again makes the newspapers. As Lauren struggles with the ghosts of her childhood, it seems only a matter of time before the past catches up with her.

Free Book (nook) - 5 of USA's Best Trips

5 of USA's Best Trips: Our Favorite Themed Itineraries Across America, by Lonely Planet, is free from Barnes & Noble (nook and nook app only). There doesn't appear to be a comparable book available in the Kindle store, but I'd bet these five trips are included in the volume Lonely Planet USA's Best Trips ($9.99), which has 99 trips, is over 15MB in size and 708 pages in print.

Book Description
Five USA Trips handpicked by Lonely Planet, perfect for a fall getaway:

West Virginia
Vermont
Minneapolis to Milwaukee
Alice Waters' Culinary Tour (California)
Whistle-Stop Brewery Tour (Pacific Northwest, with a detour into Canada)

Easy-to-use maps for each trip, plus driving times and directions
Local experts share their favorite trip ideas
Tune in on the road with our regional music playlists
Family-friendly and pet-friendly listings throughout
Green index lists the most environmentally friendly options

Click HERE for the free book.

Free Book (Sony) - Money Girl's 10 Steps to a Debt-Free Life

Money Girl's 10 Steps to a Debt-Free Life ($3.99 Kindle), by Laura D. Adams, is free in the Sony ebookstore (DRM'd EPUB format). If it shows up free in the Kindle store, I'll post an update. This one is fairly short, only 48KB, so I'd expect something like a business short (or the new Amazon Single) from it.

Book Description
Does the stress of your mounting debt keep you up at night? If you dread opening your monthly credit card statements, Money Girl’s 10 Steps to a Debt Free Life is for you. Laura Adams, host of the top-rated Money Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for a Richer Life podcast, takes you step-by-step through exactly what you need to do get out of debt and stay there.

Laura’s 10 steps will give you the guidance you need to deal with all kinds of debt, from credit card and medical bills, to mortgages and car loans. She’ll help you assess your current financial situation and create a personalized plan you can live with. You’ll learn which debts to pay off first and will get tips on negotiating with creditors and paying off bills faster. Laura’s advice on boosting your credit score, cutting costs, and saving money will help you lay the groundwork for a debt-free, happier life. You’ll be surprised at how easy it is to make simple changes that will have a big impact on your financial health.

Laura Adams explains everything in the informative, practical voice that her legions of followers have come to appreciate in the Money Girl podcast. Her Money Girl’s 10 Steps to a Debt Free Life will give you the knowledge you need to take control of your finances and create a more secure financial future. You will owe less, own more, and rest easier.

Click HERE to get the free book

Free Book (Sony) - Love Lockdown

Love Lockdown ($9.99 Kindle), by Mia Edwards, is free in the Sony ebookstore (DRM'd EPUB format). If it shows up free in the Kindle store, I'll post an update.

Book Description
Tiffany has vowed to get revenge on her half-sister and her boyfriend for killing her father Shon and her long-time lover Saliq. But first, Tiffany has to stay low until the dust settles. Tired of being slept on and disrespected, she meets Rasheeda, one of her father’s former associates, who is also one of the baddest women in the streets. Rasheeda not only runs an elite escort service and a hot nightclub on the Virginia Beach strip, but she’s also one of the major cocaine distributors in the Mid-Atlantic. Rasheeda takes Tiffany under her wing and introduces her to the side of the game that Shon had never revealed to his daughter.

Soon Tiffany reconnects with more of her father’s former associates, settles old debts and rebuilds her father’s drug reign in Virginia. Her reach soon spreads to Charlotte and Memphis. But Tiffany won’t be happy until she finds Kanika and Tyrell. There are people who are willing to help Tiffany seek the just revenge that she’s been craving for years.

Click HERE to get the free book.

Free Book (nook) - Phenomenal Girl 5

Phenomenal Girl 5 ($4.79), by A. J. Menden, is free in the B&N store. This is book 11 in the multi-author SHOMI "series" (an imprint of loosely connected books, but not a series, as such).

Book Description
An up-and-coming superhero finds love with the man assigned to train her—and a plot that will push the couple to the extent of their powers.

Click HERE for the free book.

Free Book (PDF) - The Clockwork Girl

Wowio is giving away a copy of The Clockwork Girl ($4.95 Kindle), by Sean O'Reilly, if you'll "Like" them on Facebook, then click on their Offer tab. This is a graphic novel, so not that many pages (roughly 100), but it is huge (10MB at Amazon and 52MB from Wowio).

Book Description
A nameless robot girl has recently been given the gift of life from her creator, while exploring the wonders of an ordinary world she meets an amazing mutant boy and they share a friendship that must overcome their warring families.

Click HERE to get the free book. You'll need a Facebook account and you'll need to click that you Like them first. If you've done that in the past, you'll see the download link right away and need do nothing extra.

Two Free Books from Rainbow EBooks

There are two free gay-themed books from Rainbow EBooks this weekend. You will need an account (which is a bit of a hassle to sign up for, the first time) and the formats are uneven (I think one is PDF only, while the other has several formats available).

Among the Living (PsyCop #1), by Jordan Castillo Price

Book Description
Victor Bayne, the psychic half a PsyCop team, is a gay medium who’s more concerned with flying under the radar than in making waves.

He hooks up with handsome Jacob Marks, a non-psychic (or “Stiff”) from an adjacent precinct at his ex-partner’s retirement party and it seems like his dubious luck has taken a turn for the better. But then a serial killer with a gruesome M.O. surfaces--and no one agrees what he looks like.

Solving murders is a snap when you can ask the victims whodunit, but this killer’s not leaving any spirits behind.

Self-Organizing Men, by Jay Sennett

Book Description
Self-Organizing Men explores that much-written about, highly politicized, rarely understood phenomenon known as "man." A collection of political cartoons, transgender stories, bio-dude poetry, trans art, drag king experimental prose, and some good ol', yet brand new, theories about (trans)/gender, this book will rock your thoughts about gender and masculinity.

Free Ebooks from Christianbooks.com

Christianbooks.com has started selling ebooks and to introduce them, they are giving some of them away for a limited time. One of these is free in several others stores, while the others are polished editions of public domain texts (and ones they have been selling in paper format, for some time). I've linked in the comparable volume at Amazon, so you can look up the reviews (the first three are from Hendrickson Publishers and the last from Zondervan).

The City of God ($9.99 Kindle), by St. Augustine; Marcus Dods (translator)

Book Description
Saint Augustine of Hippo is one of the central figures in the history of Christianity, and this book is one of his greatest theological works. Written as an eloquent defense of the faith at a time when the Roman Empire was on the brink of collapse, it examines the ancient pagan religions of Rome, the arguments of the Greek philosophers and the revelations of the Bible. Pointing the way forward to a citizenship that transcends worldly politics and will last for eternity, this book is one of the most influential documents in the development of Christianity.

One of the great cornerstones in the history of Christian thought, The City of God is vital to an understanding of modern Western society and how it came into being. Begun in A.D. 413, the book's initial purpose was to refute the charge that Christianity was to blame for the fall of Rome (which had occurred just three years earlier). Indeed, Augustine produced a wealth of evidence to prove that paganism bore within itself the seeds of its own destruction. However, over the next thirteen years that it took to complete the work, the brilliant ecclesiastic proceeded to his larger theme: a cosmic interpretation of history in terms of the struggle between good and evil. By means of his contrast of the earthly and heavenly cities--the one pagan, self-centered, and contemptuous of God and the other devout, God-centered, and in search of grace--Augustine explored and interpreted human history in relation to eternity.

Morning and Evening (KJV) ($13.22 Hardcover), by Charles H. Spurgeon

Book Description
Charles Spurgeon's uplifting messages for each day of the year will comfort and refresh you in your walk with God. Spending time with God at the start and the close of each day will bring a new joy in your life. Supplemented by key verses of Scripture, these devotional passages will help you to experience God's free favor, obtain victory through Christ, and receive help through every trial. As you reflect upon God's Word and His principles, you will find peace about the day you are about to face or the day that has just passed. Spurgeon's rich biblical insights, extraordinary eloquence, and clarity of logic are interwoven throughout the daily selections to enhance your fellowship with God.

Pilgrim's Progess (out of print; other editions available), by John Bunyan

Book Description
Once the most deeply cherished book in English-speaking households other than Bible itself, John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress is the allegorical tale of Christian the pilgrim on his journey to the Celestial City. Along the way, Christian encounters both worthy companions and dreadful adversaries. Although this book was written more than three hundred years ago, this stirring spiritual narrative still bears the power to challenge and encourage readers on their own spiritual journeys.

Intervention (currently free on Kindle), by Terri Blackstock

Book Description
Barbara Covington has one more chance to save her daughter from a devastating addiction: staging an intervention. But when eighteen-year-old Emily disappears on the way to drug treatment---and her interventionist is found dead at the airport---Barbara enters her darkest nightmare of all.Barbara and her son set out to find Emily before Detective Kent Harlan arrests her for a crime he is sure she committed. Fearing for Emily's life, Barbara maintains her daughter's innocence, but does she really know her anymore? Meanwhile, Kent has questions of his own. His gut tells him that this is a case of an addict killing for drugs. But as he gets to know Barbara, he begins to hope he's wrong about Emily.Fear rises as the mysteries intensify: Did Emily's obsession with drugs lead her to commit murder---or is she another victim of a cold-blooded killer?In this gripping stand-alone novel of intrigue and suspense, bestselling fiction author Terri Blackstock delivers the up-all-night drama that readers around the world have come to expect from her.

Here are the links for the free versions at ChristianBooks.com, all in EPUB format:

• The City of God
• Morning and Evening (KJV)
• Pilgrim's Progess
• Intervention

If you are looking for a different way to read the Bible, you might want to check out the Chronological New Testaments at EReaderBibles.com. There are two versions (King James and Modern English) laid out in the order they were written and one Gospel is included. They are in epub format, but easily converted to mobi using Calibre.

Book Description
These bibles layout the new testament in chronological order. These bibles layout the new testament in a way you can read it from start to finish, and get a better picture of the story of Jesus and the Church being created. The chronology is based on that from Frank Viola's "The Untold Story", which is an excellent guide to New Testament providing the reader with mountains of background information to really make the New Testament come alive. You can find out more about "The Untold Story" at his website

This chronological Bible is based around the pairing of Luke-Acts and thusly, only the Gospel of Luke is provided. The intention of this Bible is for you to read it from front to back with the order of events preserved. I am in no way trying to down play any of the other gospels.

Free Book (Kobo) - The Story Of Crass

The Story Of Crass ($9.99 Kindle), by George Berger, is free in the Kobo store.

Book Description
In-depth interviews with the main movers in the punk rock movement-Crass members Penny Rimbaud, Gee Vaucher, and Steve Ignorant-detail the face of the revolution founded by these radical thinkers and artists. When punk ruled the waves, Crass waived the rules-by putting out their own records, films, and magazines and setting up a series of situationist pranks that were dutifully covered by the world-s press. Not just another iconoclastic band, Crass was a musical, social, and political phenomenon: commune dwellers-that were rarely photographed and remained contemptuous of conventional pop stardom. As detailed in this history, their members explored and finally exhausted the possibilities of punk-led anarchy. This definitive biography of the band not only gives backstage access to their lives, philosophies, and the movement that followed, but also to never-before-seen photographs and rare dialogues.

Click HERE for the free book. Don't forget to click "Add to Library" underneath the cover pic, in case you want to download it again later.

Games! Two New on Kindle and a Bargain Download

There are two new games for the Kindle this week, both at bargain prices. The first, of course, is Solitaire (is any device or computing platform that allows development of games without at least one version of Solitaire?), while the second is a brand-new strategy game that is exclusive to the Kindle. For those playing games on their PC or netbook, Amazon has a bargain price on a game download, as well (and my Mom has probably already bought it, as she was playing it earlier this morning when I checked in).

EA Solitaire (12 Card Games to Play on Kindle) ($3.99), by Electronic Arts Inc.

Game Description
Play Solitaire, on Kindle - anytime, anywhere.

EA Solitaire contains 12 different modes of play--the Klondike game you know and love, as well as 11 other variants: Pyramid, Yukon, Golf, Freecell, Wasp, Peaks, Canfield, Spiderette, Eliminator, Easthaven, and Baker's Dozen. It's a lot of card-game fun for both experts and novices alike.

This version of Solitaire comes with handy features such as a "Tutorial Mode" that will get you started on the different game play variants, optional in-game "Tips" as well as an "Auto-Move" feature that will help you out when you're stuck and don't know what to do next. For the Klondike game, there is even a "Vegas" mode to track your winnings in (virtual) dollars.

Enjoy the card game you know and love on Kindle.

Triple Town (A Puzzle Strategy Game for Kindle) ($2.99), by Spry Fox

Game Description
Triple Town is an original strategy game in which you try to grow the greatest possible city. The larger the city you build, the more points you score. You build your city by matching three or more game-pieces: combine three grasses to make a flower, three flowers to make a bush, three bushes to make a tree... until you've filled the board with houses, cathedrals and castles. Along the way, you'll have to outwit evil barbarians and wizards who will try to block your progress.

This is a game that can be played for minutes or hours at a time. You'll have to think several turns ahead if you want to avoid inevitable gridlock as unfinished buildings, barbarians and wizards start to pile up. And sometimes, if you're lucky, you'll be helped along by a magical crystal (which combines with anything) or a powerful bomb (which wipes nuisances off the board). But luck won't save you forever!

How large can you grow your dream city before the board fills and the game ends?

Trinklit Supreme [Game Download] ($2.99), by Funkitron

Game Description
Trinklit is a unique and very fun game. Deceptively simple, but challenging to master, it provides hours of enjoyable and relaxing entertainment. Start with a simple game, and then unlock powerups and game modes as you go and combine them into an endless variety of Trinklit games. Can you discover every powerup? Can you achieve all the awards? Can you beat every daily challenge? Lots to do in Trinklit! Have FUN!

• Unusual! Addictive! Fun! Different!
  
• Relaxing or challenging, make the games how you like.
  
• Unlock new powerups and game modes and build completely new levels.
  
• 15000 different levels can be built.
  
• Daily Infinite Challenges!

Free Book - Nightbringer

Nightbringer, by Graham McNeill, one of the Warhammer 40,000 novels and the first in his Ultramarines series, is this week's free book from The Black Library. Just as with last week's selection, this is an out of print paperback that has just been introduced in ebook form (and isn't in the Kindle store). You can, however, read it on your Kindle by downloading the DRM-free Mobi version from the website below (click with your Kindle and it should load automatically).

Book Description
Newly promoted Ultramarines Captain Uriel Ventris is assigned to investigate Pavonis, an Imperial planet plagued by civil disorder and renegade eldar raiders. But nothing is as straightforward as it appears, and wheels are turning within wheels. Uriel and his allies are forced into a deadly race against time to destroy their shadowy enemy - or the whole planet must be sacrificed for the good of humanity.

Click HERE for the free book; you can choose between the EPUB and MOBI formats and both are DRM-Free! While you are there, be sure to pick up last week's book, as well, as it is still available.

Free Cookbook Plus Raise Money for Meals on Wheels

For every copy of The Celebrity Pasta Lovers' Cookbook that is downloaded thru today, Barilla Pasta will donate one dollar to Meals On Wheels Association of America. Be sure to let all your friends know (even if they don't eat pasta or cook); it appears that just going to the page triggers the donation, but to be sure, go ahead and download the book. The booklet isn't very big, just 32 pages, but has several interesting looking recipes sprinkled thru the pictures and celebrity profiles and quotes.

Book Description
Download our new limited edition cookbook featuring exclusive Mario Batali recipes, inspired by the favorite dishes of Julianne Moore, Jimmy Fallon, Meryl Streep, and more! Available through October 15th.

Free Game (Kindle) - Mine Sweeper

If you've had your Kindle a while, you probably know that it comes with a version of Minesweeper built in. I think I played it perhaps twice on my original Kindle before relegating to the digital dustheap -- yes, you could play, but it was tedious and slow (and I'd rather read when I had my Kindle out). I'm sure the K2 was a bit better (at least there was a joystick), but I never even tried it. Today, however, Amazon has released a new Mine Sweeper and this version uses the new Active Content platform, so only works upgraded Kindle 2, Kindle DX and any Kindle 3 (just as the other games available require). If it combines the addictive qualities of the original (pc based) Minesweeper and the two Kindle word games already available, this one will be a keeper.

Book Description
Do you enjoy puzzle games? With Mine Sweeper you must use your deductive powers in a race against time to quickly clear a minefield.

The objective of Mine Sweeper is to find all of the mines that are hidden on the game grid. When you uncover a location on the grid, the number of mines adjacent to that location is revealed. The game ends when you have successfully identified all the mines and uncovered all the unoccupied locations - or, when you inadvertently uncover a location that contains a mine. The clock is ticking, so challenge yourself to go faster and faster with each game.

The Kindle version of Mine Sweeper contains 3 different grid sizes for various levels of difficulty and thousands of different puzzles for almost endless variety. If you are new to Mine Sweeper, turning on "Tips" will provide helpful hints to get you started.

Exercise and challenge your deductive powers with Mine Sweeper.

Free Book - First and Only

The Black Library (publishers of War Hammer tie-in books) has instituted a new book giveaway to introduce their debut with ebooks. The first one is available now (and a new one will go up soon, go grab this one now), First & Only, by Dan Abnett, which is part of the Gaunt's Ghosts series.

Book Description
In the War-torn future of the 41st millennium, the Sabbat Worlds Crusade has begun. With the massed ranks of the Imperial Guard hard-pressed by the evil forces of Chaos, mankind must prevail - whatever the cost in lives. Commisar Ibram Gaunt has vowed to lead the men of the Tanith First-and-Only safely through this campaign, but they must evade the treacherous scheming of rival regiments just as much as the lethal firepower of the enemy.

Click HERE for the free book; you can choose between the EPUB and MOBI formats and both are DRM-Free!

Free Book (nook) - Hunt at the Well of Eternity

Hunt at the Well of Eternity ($4.79 Kindle), by Gabriel Hunt, is this week's Free Friday pick at Barnes & Noble (although I'm a bit late squeezing it in here). This is, as usual, a DRM'd B&N Epub and works only with the nook or one of the nook Apps.

Book Description
A blood-stained Confederate flag and the beautiful woman carrying it put Gabriel Hunt on the trail of a secret hidden deep in the Central American jungle-a secret that might just be the legendary Fountain of Youth . . .

Click HERE for the free book from B&N.

Free Game - Word Monaco

This week's free game from Sandlot is another repeat, but since it is a word game and I have a lot of new readers, I'm going to repeat my previous post, including how I managed to get it running on my newest computer.

The free game this week at Sandlot Games is Word Monaco ($6.95 Amazon Game Downloads). This was also free back in mid-January, for those who have followed this blog for a while.

I have this installed on my XP notebook, but have been unable to get it to unlock on my Windows 7 computer. Update: I disabled my antivirus software in Windows 7 (since I've been running the same program with no issues on another computer and was using the same install file, there wasn't much risk in this), reinstalled and unlocked with no problem at all. Apparently this can be a problem with some of Sandlot's older games (it depends on the antivirus program, not necessarily the OS version).

Game Description

• A Unique Blend of Word Creation and Solitaire
• 50,000+ Entries In A Massive Word List
• 5 Decks From Easy To Champion
• 75 Progressively Challenging Levels

Welcome to Word Monaco! Relax under the warm sun of the Mediterranean and play a unique blend of word-creation and solitaire. Create words by moving letters from column to column and use power-ups for bonus points. When all of the letters are used, you'll move on to the next of 75 progressively difficult levels in 6 different locations! With a word list of over 50,000+ words and 5 decks of varying difficulty, there are endless possibilities.

Click HERE to sign up for the free download. For step by step purchase and installation instructions, see this post.

26 Free Books from Borders

Borders.com has finally managed to get their ebookstore up and running. So far, it wins my award for worst ebook design by a major company, but they do have up a page where you can download a number of free books. It appears that the list changes from time to time (it's changed just since yesterday, for me) and there is no particular order to the list.  You do need to create an account at Borders.com and be logged in before you try to "buy" the book and most of these are in DRM'd epub format, while a few are DRM'd PDF's (none are Kindle compatible). When you click on the button to get the book, if you are successful, you'll see a message to that effect and an offer to be taken to your ebook library. If unsuccessful for any reason, you see a message that there were technical difficulties. This may mean that the book is only available to download via the Border's Kobo app (which is free) or that you already have the book in your library or that gremlins interfered and you should just try again (which actually worked on a couple of these, for me). If you must use the Border's app, you have to search for these by name and you may or may not even be able to find the book there (did I mention that they have the worst design ever?). If you do, just check to make sure that the app shows that the book is free (if it is not, the price will be clearly displayed on the purchase button).  Books purchased in this way must be read in the Kobo app, but I have had most of them eventually appear as epubs in my library, which means that you can then download them for any epub compatible reader.

Here is the current list:

1. Colters’ Woman
2. A Safe Harbor
3. Crazed Hearts
4. Collision Course, by K. A. Mitchell
5. Distracting The Duchess, by Emily Bryan
6. Fade The Heat, by Colleen Thompson
7. Double Enchantment, by Kathryne Kennedy
8. Hara’s Legacy
9. Fiance At Her Fingertips, by Kathleen Bacus
10. Long Hard Ride
11. Rapture’s Tempest, by Bobbi Smith
12. Lord Of Devil Isle, by Connie Mason
13. Shadow Bound, by Erin Kellison
14. Marked, by Elisabeth Naughton
15. Sin’s Daughter, by Eve Silver
16. The River Nymph, by Shirl Henke
17. Sunrise In A Garden Of Love & Evil, by Barbara Monajem
18. Standoff, by Lauren Dane
19. The Magic Knot, by Helen Scott Taylor
20. The Ghost Exterminator
21. Trey
22. Weddings Can Be Murder, by Christie Craig
23. The Strangely Beautiful Tale Of Miss Percy Parker, by Leanna Renee Hieber
24. To Tempt A Knight, by Gerri Russell
25. The Wicked House Of Rohan, by Anne Stuart
26. Wolf Signs, by Vivian Arend

Click HERE to get the books from Borders.

Pre-Order The Land of Painted Caves for $10

This is a bit above my usual bargain limit, but you can now pre-order The Land of Painted Caves, by Jean M. Auel, for $9.99. This was nearly $15 when it was first made available to pre-order and the digital list price is $30.00; the Hardcover pre-order price is $16.20 and the Large Print edition is nearly $20 (at at over 1200 pages, I hesitate to think how heavy and awkward it would be to carry around and read). I know that a lot of my readers jumped on The Clan of the Cave Bear: with Bonus Content when it became availabe at $1.59 (and so did I), but no doubt hesitated to order the final volume in this series at the initial price. Remember, with a pre-order Kindle book, you'll get the lowest of the price at the time you order or when it is released, but there is no low-price guarantee to get the lowest price in between (although it does happen now and then, I've heard of the former occuring a lot more often). So, if you did have the higher price, be sure to click over and cancel it (on the Manage My Kindle page) and then re-order at this price.

Book Description

The highly anticipated sixth book of Jean Auel's Earth's Children® series, THE LAND OF PAINTED CAVES, is the culmination fans have been waiting for. Continuing the story of Ayla and Jondalar, Auel combines her brilliant narrative skills and appealing characters with a remarkable re-creation of the way life was lived more than 25,000 years ago. THE LAND OF PAINTED CAVES is an exquisite achievement by one of the world's most beloved authors.

Free Game - Bejeweled 2 (Today/Tonight Only)

I found this one pretty late, but if you see this post in the next few hours, you can pick up Bejeweled 2 ($11.82 PC), from PopCap Games, as a free download, tonight only, until 10:00 PM PST.

Game Description
Get set to play the PopCap game that set the standard in casual gaming! Match sparkling gems three at a time to make them burst in showers of color and points. Match four or more to create flashy power gems that boost your score and your mood with brilliant cascades and combos.

Soar to gem-matching heights in Classic mode, or speed through matches against the clock in Action. For even more dazzling fun, bump up your brainwaves with multi-faceted Puzzles, or enter the Zen state of Endless play. Every match is high-carat fun!

Click HERE for the free game. You'll need to use a real email address or print out or save your order code, as you'll need it to activate the game.

Free Book - Barking Dogs

Barking Dogs ($6.99 Kindle), by Terence M. Green, is the free book this month from publisher Phoenix Pick. This is the first in his Mitch Helwig series, the second of which, Blue Limbo ($5.99), is also on Kindle.

Book Description
Is your boss lying to you? Your wife? Husband? Is everybody?

Suppose you could tell. Absolutely.

Suppose you had a Barking Dog.

Mitch Helwig is a cop who has gone over the edge. He’s got a Barking Dog –- an infallible, illegal lie-detector, worn under street clothes –- and he’s tired of being lied to.

He’s a criminal’s worst nightmare.

Click HERE for the free book. Scroll down to find the listing for Barking Dogs and click where it says "Free Ebook for October". After entering an email address and the coupon code 9991566, you'll be able to download the book in one of several DRM-free formats (get Mobi for the Kindle).

There's an additional bonus on the download page. You can get Carolyn Ives Gilman's novel Halfway Human ($9.99 Kindle), for only $1.99. This is an earlier work from last month's author of the then-free Arkfall ($3.89 Kindle), a 2009 Nebula Nominee. For this one, you do have to pick a format, but they have added a 60-day no questions asked money back guarantee, in case you have problems or just decide you didn't like it. I bought the EPUB, since I wasn't sure if the mobi would work on Kindle and there isn't any DRM, so it's easily converted.

Book Description
“The best science fiction novel I’ve read in a long time”—St. Louis Post-Dispatch
****
Tedla is a 'bland,' an asexual class of people that exist only to serve their fellow beings.

Val is an expert on alien cultures but has never seen a bland before.

They come together after Tedla is found light-years away from its home planet—alone, isolated and suicidal. Val's mission is to help Tedla recover. But the more she learns about the beautiful alien being, the more she discovers about the torment Tedla and its kind suffer on their planet.

Little does the rest of the universe know of the hidden world of the blands, a world that hides shocking secrets and unspeakable crimes.

Halfway Human is a mesmerizing look at an intricately created alien world which is strange and distant, yet hauntingly familiar.

The Clan of the Cave Bear under Two Bucks

Jean M. Auel's Earth's Children series is finally available as an ebook and you can pick up the first in the series, The Clan of the Cave Bear: with Bonus Content, for $1.59 at Amazon $1.99 at B&N or Sony). The rest of the series is also available at $6.39 each and all of them are labeled "with Bonus Content". There's no clue yet what that is on the product pages, but I peeked inside and there's a glimpse at the upcoming ending to the series, The Land of the Painted Caves, which is still a bit steeply priced, at a $14.58 pre-order price and delivery next March, and an interview with the author. The remaining titles in the series are (books 2-5):

• The Valley of Horses: with Bonus Content
• The Mammoth Hunters: with Bonus Content
• The Plains of Passage: with Bonus Content
• The Shelters of Stone: with Bonus Content

Book Description
This novel of awesome beauty and power is a moving saga about people, relationships, and the boundaries of love. Through Jean M. Auel's magnificent storytelling we are taken back to the dawn of modern humans, and with a girl named Ayla we are swept up in the harsh and beautiful Ice Age world they shared with the ones who called themselves the Clan of the Cave Bear.

A natural disaster leaves the young girl wandering alone in an unfamiliar and dangerous land until she is found by a woman of the Clan, people very different from her own kind. To them, blond, blue-eyed Ayla looks peculiar and ugly--she is one of the Others, those who have moved into their ancient homeland; but Iza cannot leave the girl to die and takes her with them. Iza and Creb, the old Mog-ur, grow to love her, and as Ayla learns the ways of the Clan and Iza's way of healing, most come to accept her. But the brutal and proud youth who is destined to become their next leader sees her differences as a threat to his authority. He develops a deep and abiding hatred for the strange girl of the Others who lives in their midst, and is determined to get his revenge.

From the Publisher
The stunning epic that stirred the imagination of millions. Here is a novel of awesome beauty and power. A moving saga about people, relationships and the boundaries of love. Through Jean Auel's magnificent storytelling, we are taken back to the dawn of mankind and swept up in the wonderful world of a very special heroine, Ayla. Her enthralling story is one we all can share. A natural disaster has left young Ayla alone, wandering, fending for herself in an unfamiliar land. One day, she is discovered by the Clan of the Cave bear, men and women far different from her own people. Tall, blond, blue-eyed Ayla is a mysterious stranger to the Clan and at first they mistrust her and cast her out. But as she grows to know them and to learn the ways of the Clan, she is welcomed. And as she leads them in their struggle for survival, the Clan come to worship Ayla. For in her blood flows the future of humanity.

Click HERE to buy The Clan of the Cave Bear from B&N or HERE for all of the titles.

Author Spotlight - Brendan Carroll

Brendan Carroll is an indie author who has managed to attract quite a following on some of the Kindle related boards, for his series The Red Cross of Gold. He has just released the nineteenth in the series, The Red Cross of Gold XIX: How Men Do It, and like the entire series (at least currently), it is priced at $2.99. I have to admit that I am a bit behind on the series, myself, but I'm making a note to bump them up my TBR list.

Book Description
The Chevalier Ramsay must return to the Abyss to conduct a bit of damage control in the Seventh Gate in spite of the danger of running into old acquaintances. His old enemies, routed from New Babylon, begin searching for him and the Mighty Djinni with a new plan for bringing chaos to the world of men. Omar must try to run his New World Order from behind the scenes with a new attitude and a new outlook on life. Back at the Isle of Ramsay, Montague is left trying to fend off unknown forces trying to steal some of the Red Cross of Gold’s powerful relics. Mark’s unruly son, Luke Andrew, joins his father’s Order in spite of the obstacles he might face and must prove himself worthy of an apprenticeship. Things do not improve when the new King of the Faeries decides that he needs to get to know the royal family a bit better.

If you haven't been following the series, you'll want to start at the beginning, with The Knight of Death.

Book Description
An apparent kidnapping and rape become the first steps in a mystical journey for the Chevalier du Morte when a routine mission precipitates a spiritual fall from grace. As the tables turn on the abductors, the immortal Knight sinks in a corrupt quagmire of sin while fighting to recover his lost purpose and identity. In the process, he almost destroys the Ancient Order of the Red Cross of Gold when his beloved Brothers turn against him and hunt him down, determined to take him home, in one piece or two.

The immortal Knights of the Council of Twelve comprise the ruling body of the clandestine Order of the Red Cross of Gold, Poor Knights of Solomon's Temple. Some of them have been around since the Crusades in the Holy Lands, secretly directing, aiding and abetting world events that they believe will eventually culminate in the ultimate confrontation of Good and Evil at Armageddon. As Knights of Christ, they live, fight and die safely as God's executioners in the service of the Master of the Universe.

As Assassin and Alchemist for the Order, Mark Ramsay's dark occupations keep him buried in an old mansion in the Scottish lowlands most of the time, but occasionally, when someone needs killing, he is called out to perform his duties as Assassin. He holds the mysterious, divine mystery of the Key of Death and not only has the responsibility of ridding the world of certain criminal elements and undesirable influences; he is the only means of release for his immortal Brothers whenever they are accidentally injured beyond recovery. Ramsay has the ultimate job security. His services are indispensable to the Order and even though his Brothers normally shun his presence and even fear him, they cannot afford to lose him at the risk of suffering forever, eternally locked in physical bodies from whence there is no escape should the unthinkable happen. Without the Knight of Death's services, the Order would not only lose its financial backing, it would fall into ruin and decay.

Sir Ramsay considers himself a simple man and wants nothing more than to live out his years in the relative seclusion offered by the beautifully rolling meadows in Lothian, Scotland. But things are not so simple for the Chevalier du Morte. He has deep-seated emotional and mental problems stemming from personal tragedies suffered during the Crusades. His life as a virtual hermit is about to change drastically when he briefly loses all memory of his life before a certain moment in time when he awakens in the midst of a brutal beating in a serene pecan grove in Central Texas. His past is erased completely and for a few glorious, but tumultuous days, he lives life as a normal man outside the influence of the Order of the Poor Knights of Solomon's Temple, finding love in the middle of a nightmare. His life will never be the same once he begins to reckon time as 'Before Meredith' and 'After Meredith'.

Here is the complete Red Cross of Gold series list, all on Kindle for $2.99 each:
I: The Knight of Death
II: The King of Terrors
III: The Head of the Crow (Assassin Chronicles)
IV: The Hesperian Dragon (Assassin Chronicles)
V: the Quinta Essentia (Assassin Chronicles)
VI: The Dragonslayer (Assassin Chronicles)
VII:. The Wisdom of Solomon (Assassin Chronicles)
VIII: The Silver Caduceus
IX: The Queen of the Abyss (Assassin Chronicles)
X: Genesis 6:5
XI:. Ars Arabia: The Assassin Chronicles
XII: The Son of the Moon
XIII: The Children of the Temple
XIV: The Skull of Sidon (Assassin Chronicles)
XV: My Hope is in God (Assassin Chronicles)
XVI: Omar, the Prophet (Assassin Chronicles)
XVII: Full Circle (Assassin Chronicles)
XVIII: The Company of Women (Assassin Chronicles)
XIX: How Men Do It (Assassin Chronicles)

Mr. Carroll also has one other volume out that is not part of this series, Tempo Rubato: Stolen Time ($3.99)

Book Description
Imagine the virtually unlimited resources of a private company rivaling Microsoft Corporation. Now add to that Albert Einstein's genius coupled with all the technology available in 1995. Now imagine the possibilities...

Maria Elisse Mannheim is a professor of Musicology at a university in Vienna, specializing in the study of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and his works, particularly his original manuscripts of which numerous forgeries abound. Derek Boswell is a New York City detective investigating the murder of a student under very unusual circumstances. The only clue he has to go on is a letter found in the victim's possession that could have been written by the murderer. Unfortunately, the letter is signed W.A. Mozart.

Boswell contacts Miss Mannheim in an attempt to track down any known forgers that might also be worthy of investigation for possible charges in the student's death. As an authority on Mozart, she feels compelled to leave her job and travel to the United States for a first hand look at this particular forger.

Elisse's investigation takes her to West Texas, where the victim formerly worked for a mysterious corporation before her death. The further Elisse digs into the company's business, the more apparent it becomes that not everything is quite as it seems and she suddenly finds her own life in peril.

32 Free Short Stories at All Romance

The AllRomance eBookStore has just posted 32 free paranormal short stories in their Just One Bite Short Story Contest. I looked at a couple and the themes generally are vampires and werewolves, but it appears that ghosts and fae make an appearance, as well. This is round one, so you can read every single one of the stories online and vote for the one that you like the best - 16 votes in all. The first round ends on 10/7, so the number of stories available may drop in half then, so read or grab these while they are available. If you want to save them to read later, you can cut and paste them into a Word or Open Office Writer document, rather than trying to save the entire HMTL page, which can be difficult to read on an ereader device. Once you have them all in the document, save it as a DOC file and email it to your Kindle account (use the free address to avoid charges) and read them offline. If you are using Open Office and Calibre, you can also save the document in ODT format and convert it on your desktop in Calibre.

Click HERE for the contest page. You'll need to have an account (free) and be logged in to see the list and links.

Free Audiobook - Love is a Verb

ChristianAudio's free audiobook this month is the unabridged Love is a Verb: Stories of What Happens When Love Comes Alive ($9.99 Kindle) by Gary Chapman, narrated by Pam Ward, Grover Gardner & Lloyd James.

Book Description
Dr. Gary Chapman has spent his life helping people communicate love more effectively and in turn build more satisfying and lasting relationships. His book The Five Love Languages is a regular on the New York Times Best Sellers list--even after being in print for fifteen years--and has made the term "love language" a part of everyday speech.

Love Is a Verb takes his teaching to the next level. Rather than a typical marriage self-help book filled with lengthy explanations of principles and techniques, it is a compilation of true stories displaying love in action. These stories--written by everyday people--go straight to the hearts of readers, who often say that illustrations are the most effective parts of a book. Gary Chapman adds a "Love Lesson" to each story, showing readers how they can apply the same principles to their own relationships.

Get your free audio download HERE. They have updated the checkout process; a coupon code is no longer required. Lower down on the order page, you'll also find discounted ($4.98) downloads for more from Gary Chapman: The Five Love Languages (Unabridged), Desperate Marriages (Unabridged), The Family You've Always Wanted (Unabridged) and Anger: Handling a Powerful Emotion in a Healthy Way (Unabridged).

After you finishing your order, you will be asked which format you prefer to download - select MP3 if you want to be able to play the book on your Kindle.

Get 5% Bonus on Amazon Gift Cards This Month

As most of you know, I really like using Amazon Gift Cards for my Kindle purchases. Of course, they end up getting used for some other purchases as well, since Gold Box or Lightning Deals and Subscribe & Save must use a gift balance first, before they will charge a credit card. I also generally use their gift cards for a few out of town Christmas presents for younger relatives (who would prefer to pick their own gifts, pretty much any year). This month, Amazon has a great deal for those of use who use both the Amazon.com Rewards Visa® Card and buy Amazon Gift Cards: Get a 5% bonus in gift cards, for all gift card purchases above $50, up to a maximum of a $100 bonus. This deal is valid all month and the gift balance will automatically get applied to your account in November. The gift cards you buy now, you can either apply to your own account or save to send out during the holidays. Just choose an appropriate card design, if you choose physical cards or to print them out; for those you'll use yourself, I usually suggest an emailed gift card, as you'll get it fastest. Starting this month, though, Amazon is also giving your Free One-Day Shipping on the physical gift cards, if you need to send one out in a hurry.

Here is the fine print:

• Visit amazon.com/giftcards
• Buy at least $50 in Amazon.com Gift Cards on or before October 31st, 2010
• Use your Amazon.com Rewards Visa Card to pay (verify during checkout)
• In addition to your rewards points, receive a Gift Card bonus of up to $100
• Amazon will apply the Gift Card bonus directly to Your Amazon Account by Thanksgiving

There are no special codes to remember, it's all automatic, so long as you use an Amazon.com Visa credit card.