Books on The Knob

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Today's Deals and Bargain Books

Two free books that were UK only are now free for US Kindle customers:

Several of the FT Press freebies this week are now also free from Barnes & Noble:

Moving Is Murder (~~$4.49~~ $1.79 Kindle, B&N), the first title in the Mom Zone series by Sara Rosett, is the Nook Daily Find (matched at Amazon).

Book Description
In Search Of A Little Peace And Quiet

Moving four times in five years has honed Ellie's considerable skills. But moving with a newborn daughter and husband Mitch in tow, a record-breaking heat wave, and the realization that their dream neighborhood is known as Base Housing East is enough to make her turn to chocolate for comfort. Now half of their neighbors are with the 52nd Air Refueling Squadron. Forget privacy.

What She Finds Is Murder

Forget peace of mind, too. Driving home from her first squadron barbecue, Ellie finds neighborhood environmental activist Cass Vincent dead on the side of the road. The police call it an accident--Cass, fatally allergic, was stung by wasps--but Ellie's not so sure. And when it looks like Mitch's best friend might be a suspect in the murder, Ellie starts snooping in earnest. What she finds shocks her--and when suspicious "accidents" start happening in her own backyard, Ellie realizes she's getting closer to the killer. . .maybe too close!

Filled with Ellie Avery's Great Tips for an Organized Move!

Death and the Lit Chick ($1.99), the second title in G.M. Malliet's St. Just Mystery series, is today's Kindle Deal of the Day.This finalist for the Anthony Award is another good looking daily deal from Midnight Ink.

Book Description
Cold-blooded murder is, like, totally un-cool As the wildly successful darling of the publishing industry, chick lit mystery writer Kimberlee Kalder is the guest of honor at an exclusive writers' conference at Dalmorton Castle in Scotland. But jealousy and resentment are soon replaced with shock when Kimberlee is found dead at the bottom of the castle's bottle dungeon. Who didn't want to see prima donna Kimberlee brutally extinguished like one of her ill-fated characters? It's up to Detective Chief Inspector St. Just to track down the true killer in a castle full of cagey mystery connoisseurs who live and breathe malicious murder and artful alibis . . .

The Business of Death: The Death Works Trilogy ($7.99), by Trent Jamieson, is a great deal from Orbit: all three books at one low price (and the only place you can get the third book in the trilogy, in ebook form).

Book Description
Steven de Selby has a hangover. Bright lights, loud noise, and lots of exercise are the last thing he wants. But that's exactly what he gets when someone starts shooting at him.

Steven is no stranger to death - Mr. D's his boss after all - but when a dead girl saves him from sharing her fate, he finds himself on the wrong end of the barrel. His job is to guide the restless dead to the underworld but now his clients are his own colleagues, friends, and family.

Mr. D's gone missing and with no one in charge, the dead start to rise, the living are hunted, and the whole city teeters on the brink of a regional apocalypse - unless Steven can shake his hangover, not fall for the dead girl, and find out what happened to his boss - that is, Death himself.

THE BUSINESS OF DEATH includes the first two volumes of the Death Works trilogy, Death Most Definite and Managing Death, as well as the third volume.

In Her Name (Omnibus Edition) ($0.99), by Michael R. Hicks, contains the complete novels of IN HER NAME: EMPIRE, CONFEDERATION, and FINAL BATTLE in a single volume. I though I had all of the series (there is a second trilogy after this one), but I just checked and the last title was just released: In Her Name: Dead Soul ($2.99). With this sale, you can get both for less than I paid for the first three (and the two in-between are also $2.99: DFirst Contact and Legend Of The Sword)

Book Description
... “a grand story of love, power, sacrifice and good versus evil” that seamlessly blends together epic fantasy, science fiction, and romance as it chronicles the coming-of-age of a young warrior hero torn between love and honor...

EMPIRE
This is the coming-of-age story of Reza Gard, a young boy of the Human Confederation who is swept up in the century-long war with the alien Kreelan Empire. Nightmarish female warriors with blue skin, fangs, and razor sharp talons, the Kreelans have technology that is millennia beyond that of the Confederation, yet they seek out close combat with sword and claw, fighting and dying to honor their god-like Empress. Captured and enslaved, Reza must live like his enemies in a grand experiment to see if humans have souls, and if one may be the key to unlocking an ages old curse upon the Kreelan race. Enduring the brutal conditions of Kreelan life, Reza and a young warrior named Esah-Zhurah find themselves bound together by fate and a prophecy foretold millennia before they were born.

CONFEDERATION
Banished from the Kreelan Empire, Reza is once again a stranger in a strange land as he returns to the human Confederation. Befriended by a marooned Confederation naval officer leading a desperate fight against the Kreelans on a distant colony world, she reunites Reza with Nicole Carré. With their help, he fulfills his childhood dream of becoming a Confederation Marine. Reza will need all the help he can get, for dark forces are at work at the heart of the Confederation, and Reza becomes a pawn in a lethal power struggle that leads him back to the planet Erlang. There, a heartbreaking reunion awaits him, along with the discovery of an ages-old power that the Kreelan Empire will stop at nothing to control.

FINAL BATTLE
Reza awakens in a hospital on Earth after having been in a coma for months. Charged with murder and high treason, he finds himself the scapegoat for a daring plot to assassinate the President of the Confederation. Escaping with the help of Jodi Mackenzie, who is now hunted for what she knows about the death of the president, Reza discovers that something is deeply wrong with the Empire: the warriors have lost their will to fight. Compelled to step into a trap set for him and Jodi, the two once again find themselves bound for Erlang. But this time it is to meet Tesh-Dar, who has been captured. When Reza and Jodi are taken prisoner and sentenced to death, they can only watch as a human armada gathers for a strike against the Kreelan homeworld. But the human fleet - and humanity itself - will be doomed to utter annihilation unless Reza can reach the Empress in time...

Farlander, by Col Buchanan, is $1.55 for Canadian Kindlers.

Book Description
The Heart of the World is a land in strife. For fifty years the Holy Empire of Mann, an empire and religion born from a nihilistic urban cult, has been conquering nation after nation. Their leader, Holy Matriarch Sasheen, ruthlessly maintains control through her Diplomats, priests trained as subtle predators. The Mercian Free Ports are the only confederacy yet to fall. Their only land link to the southern continent, a long and narrow isthmus, is protected by the city of Bar-Khos. For ten years now, the great southern walls of Bar-Khos have been besieged by the Imperial Fourth Army. Ash is a member of an elite group of assassins, the Roshun - who offer protection through the threat of vendetta. Forced by his ailing health to take on an apprentice, he chooses Nico, a young man living in the besieged city of Bar-Khos. At the time, Nico is hungry, desperate, and alone in a city that finds itself teetering on the brink. When the Holy Matriarch’s son deliberately murders a woman under the protection of the Roshun; he forces the sect to seek his life in retribution. As Ash and his young apprentice set out to fulfil the Roshun orders – their journey takes them into the heart of the conflict between the Empire and the Free Ports . . . into bloodshed and death.

Married to Bhutan ($2.99), by Linda Leaming, was briefly free in April for UK customers only, but is now discounted for those in the US.

Book Description
Tucked away in the eastern end of the Himalayas lies Bhutan: a tiny, landlocked country bordering China, India, and Nepal. One of the most remote places in the world, Bhutan is rich in natural beauty, exotic landscapes, and ancient wisdom, where people are genuinely happy with very few material possessions and the government embraces “Gross National Happiness” instead of Gross National Product. As one of the few Americans to have lived in Bhutan, Linda Leaming offers a rare glimpse at the peaceful mountain kingdom so many have only dreamed of. For over ten years, Leaming has lived and taught in the small town of Thimphu, where there are fewer than 100,000 people and no traffic lights. “If enlightenment is possible anywhere,” she writes, “I think it is particularly possible here.” The Bhutanese way of life—quieter, slower, and more tranquil—can seem daunting to most Westerners, consumed with time, dates, speed, and efficiency. In Bhutan, people rarely check their e-mail and take their time answering their telephones. But, as Leaming shows us, a little patience—over a cup of warm tea and friendly conversation—can help soothe the most distressed mind and soul. In this funny, magical memoir, Leaming takes us with her on her travels through South Asia, sharing her experiences as she learns the language, customs, and religion; folklore of a revered Tibetan holy man who gave blessings to the people by whacking them on the head with a big wooden phallus; her unlikely romance with a Buddhist artist; and her discoveries about the unexpected path to happiness and accidental enlightenment, where true bliss resides. Married to Bhutan is a reminder that following our dreams is the way to be truly happy.

Unfinished Business ($4.99), by Nora Roberts

Book Description
What was she doing here? Hyattown had changed very little in the years Vanessa Sexton had been away. In some ways her high school sweetheart, Brady Tucker, hadn't changed much either—he was still lean, athletic, rugged…But the once reckless boy had become a solid, dependable man. He'd stood her up on the most important night of her life; could she ever trust him again?

So Vanessa had finally come home, Brady thought. She could still turn him inside out with one of her sultry looks. He couldn't believe she hadn't forgiven him for that night twelve years ago—but he'd had his reasons for not showing up. He'd let her leave town then—but he wasn't going to let her get away this time…

Who Needs God? ($2.15), by Christoph Cardinal Schoenborn

Book Description
We are experiencing a dramatic social upheaval in today’s world, a breakdown of our living conditions and values. A non-stop world: No one can stop it, and we find no place to stop in it. Political boundaries become less important; social structures seem to disintegrate—all is subordinated to cash flow and profit maximization. With growing individualism, the concept of the good and proper life has been lost. Whether one is faithful or unfaithful, fair or unfair, honest or dishonest seems to have less importance. Freedom and prosperity are the magic words. We live flexibly and without commitment, go where we wish, when we wish. This does not produce living conditions that facilitate belief in God and contact with God, as one perhaps had during childhood. The longing for old values such as faith and deeper spiritual meaning has consequently been reawakened.

What repercussions does this development have on society, children, the elderly, the ill? Whom do people allow first to be God? Who is our pilot? Is it the coach, the psychologist, the investment counselor? Who is supposed to support man in the future through his crisis, whether public or private? Who needs God? What does God provide? Can we truly live without faith or the Church? Why does the Church so often seem not to understand us and our needs?

In Session: Dr. Morgan Snow with Steve Berry's Cotton Malone, Lee Child's Jack Reacher & Barry Eisler's John Rain ($1.99), by MJ Rose

Book Description
As a therapist specializing in sexual issues, psychiatrist Dr. Morgan Snow isn't easily shocked, or shaken, as readers of the popular "Butterfield Institute" novels know. There are times, however, when the need for her services leads her out of the office... and into unfamiliar worlds.

In these stories the therapist matches her wits -and her training - against three men of mystery: Jack Reacher, John Rain, and Cotton Malone.

Those characters are, of course, familiar to readers as the creations, respectively, of NYT bestselling authors Lee Child, Barry Eisler, and Steve Berry. All three swore that their characters would never agree to therapy - unless Rose found a way to get then there. And she did.

In EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCES with Steve Berry's Cotton Malone, a woman seeks help for her lover, and sends Dr. Snow overseas on a most unusual house call....

DECISIONS, DECISIONS where Barry Eisler's John Rain forces Dr. Snow out of her own comfort zone, and into the world of a former patient's worst nightmare...

And KNOWING YOU'RE ALIVE with Lee Child's Jack Reacher results in revelations for both the injured Dr. Snow, and her unexpected savior/patient...

The Reincarnationist ($4.85), by M. J. Rose

Book Description
A bomb in Rome, a flash of bluish-white, and photojournalist Josh Ryder's world explodes. As Josh recovers, thoughts that have the emotion, the intensity, the intimacy of memories invade him. But they are not his. They are ancient...and violent with an urgency he cannot ignore--pulling him to save Sabina...and the treasures she protects. But who is Sabina?

Desperate for answers, Josh turns to the Phoenix Foundation--a research facility that scientifically documents past-life experiences. He is led to an archaeological dig and to Professor Gabriella Chase,who has discovered an ancient, powerful secret that threatens to merge the past with the present.

Here, the dead call out to the living, and murders of the past become murders of the present.

The pre-order price for Mercury Rises, by Robert Kroese, has dropped to $2.99. This is the second in his Mercury series, following Mercury Falls, also currently marked down to $2.99.

Book Description
Jaded religion reporter Christine Temetri and Mercury, a renegade angel, have just thwarted two diabolical plots to destroy the world. But their work isn’t finished yet: mysterious powers outranking even the Heavenly bureaucracy seem intent on keeping the Apocalypse on track. While the world is plagued by natural disasters and nations prepare for war, crazed billionaire Horace Finch plots to use a secret device hidden beneath the African desert to discover the deepest secrets of the Universe—even if he has to destroy the Universe to do it. Meanwhile, unassuming FBI investigator Jacob Slater tries in vain to find a rational explanation for the mysterious destruction of downtown Anaheim—a quest that ultimately brings him to Kenya, where he meets Christine and Mercury. Together, the three must stop Finch from activating the device and tearing reality to pieces. Uproarious and wildly entertaining, Mercury Rises proves that the devil is in the details!

Carrot Cake Murder ($2.29), by Joanne Fluke, is the tenth in her Hannah Swensen series (with recipes).

Book Description
Between baking up a storm for The Cookie Jar and unraveling the mystery of her cat Moishe's recent strange behavior, Hannah Swensen has a lot on her plate. But she'll always make time for her business partner, Lisa, who's in the midst of preparing for a big family reunion. Everyone is delighted when Lisa's long-lost uncle makes a surprise appearance. No one has heard from Gus in twenty-five years. Uncle Gus is immediately the hit of the reunion. He's almost as popular as Hannah's scrumptious carrot cake, which is also Gus's favorite dessert. But the next morning, as the whole family gathers for the group photo, one person is missing. Hannah offers to track down Uncle Gus, but her search leads to a shocking find. Over by the bar at the pavilion, she spots two slices of her infamous carrot cake, frosting-side down on the floor--and Gus's corpse with an ice pick jutting out of his chest!

Now Hannah's got to sift through a long list of suspects to find a killer--even if it could mean a recipe for her own demise. . .

Calm, Cool, and Adjusted: The Pursuit of Life, Love and the Perfect Pedicure! ($4.86), by Kristin Billerbeck, is the third in her
Spa Girls series.

Book Description
Silicon Valley chiropractor Poppy Clayton is as calm, cool, and adjusted as they come . . . or is she?

Known for her bad fashion sense, a love for all things natural, and the inability to get a second date, Poppy is beginning to wonder if she might be misaligned herself.

Poppy's route to self discovery will be an unnatural one involving a plastic surgeon (of all people!), a condemned house in Santa Cruz, and a wedding date from the dark side. It's enough to send a girl and her gal pals running for their favorite spa!

The Land of Later On ($2.99), by Anthony Weller

Book Description
Kip—a New York jazz pianist whose career was cut short by a neurological disease—returns from a failed suicide attempt with a vivid, detailed memory of his journey through the afterlife. Resembling the world as he knows it, but unlimited in space and time, it’s unlike any eternity he has contemplated. Its residents are those who choose not to reincarnate, which would erase all memory of who they once were. Kip has a quest: to find his beloved Lucy, a yoga teacher who shared his apartment for years but died of leukemia before he took his own life. Is she still here? Has she waited for him, or “gone back” to become someone else? In his odyssey across centuries and locales (Istanbul to the Marquesas Islands, India to Oklahoma and New Guinea) to find her, Kip is guided by Walt Whitman—who urges him to write this memoir on his return.

Pursuit of Justice ($3.99), by DiAnn Mills, is the third in her Call of Duty series.

Book Description
Special Agent Bella Jordan is assigned to investigate a series of murders in West Texas that are linked to the Spider Rock Treasure. Since she spent the first fifteen years of her life in this area, FBI authorities believe she can get the job done. What they don’t know is that one of their prime suspects—a man who’s been on their wanted list for years—is deeply connected to Bella’s past.

The other prime suspect is Carr Sullivan, the man who owns the ranch where the murders occurred. Carr was once one of the wealthiest businessmen in Dallas and has a shady past a mile long. But it appears he’s turned his life around. Can Bella trust him, or is he just trying to cover his tracks?

As Bella probes deeper into the case, threats on her own life convince her the killer is someone she knows. But it soon becomes clear he’s not working alone, and she’ll need to face the past she’s tried so desperately to forget in order to solve the case and prevent more murders.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

New Kindle Game and 99 Cent Game Sale

Although it isn't 99 cents, you may also want to check out the Gold Box and Lightning Deals today, as it appears that every one of them is going to be a video game of some sort, with most of the game consoles and players covered at least once.

Mahjong Solitaire Halloween Edition (~~$3.99~~ $0.99), by Mobigloo. This one I grabbed immediatey, but haven't had time to play yet (OK, I'll admit, I'm addicted to games, as well as books -- I actually have all but one of the games in this post!).

Game Description
It's time to celebrate Halloween with this special edition of the popular matching game Mahjong Solitaire on Kindle.

In Mahjong Solitaire, you match pairs of identical tiles in order to remove them from the board. Only free tiles can be matched. Tiles are considered free if they do not have other tiles to either the left or right of them, or on top of them. The objective of the game is to clear all the tiles from the board. The game ends when all tiles have been removed or when there are no more free tiles left to match.

Mahjong Solitaire tracks the number of pairs of free tiles available to be matched for you. In addition, the game allows for unlimited undos, and contains a Hint feature that will give you suggestions for your next move, as well a Shuffle feature that will rearrange the tiles when you get stuck.

The Mahjong Solitaire Halloween Edition gives you 13 different game board layouts to choose from and two special Halloween tile sets. This game is so fun it's scary!

Mystery Castle: Dawn of Illusion (~~$1.99~~ $0.99), by Runestone Games Limited

Game Description
Mystery Castle: Dawn of Illusion is a puzzle adventure featuring Monty the wizard as he attempts to save the inhabitants of the castle from an evil creature of the night.

You play Monty on his quest as he outwits fiendish puzzles on his journey deeper and deeper into the mysterious castle, to the inevitable showdown with a monster too scary to name. You must tread carefully on cracked and crumbling floors, while using teleporting staircases and magical keys to enter new areas. You may even need to push boxes into dangerous crags to make new paths and use bombs to get through walls to complete your quest. If you find the Eye of Truth, you can explore places that were once hidden as you try to uncover the identity of the creature assaulting the castle.

Mystery Castle: Dawn of Illusion is well suited for people who like puzzles and brain teasers, and contains 24 levels of excitement and adventure. Can you solve all the mystery puzzles in the castle? Monte is counting on you!

Poker of the Dead (~~$1.99~~ $0.99), by Gameblend Studios

Game Description
Poker of the Dead is a Hold'em Poker solitaire game.

Zombies are trying to break down your door! Play "heads up" poker against them to stay alive. Fortunately, zombies aren't normal poker opponents. They have no brains, never fold, and will always call your bet. Play the odds to fend them off and earn new high scores. To win, survive all seven days (10 hands per day). At the start of a hand, you and the zombie are dealt 2 cards each. Next follows 3 betting rounds, over which 5 shared cards are dealt. At each stage, you can call, raise, fold, or go all-in (if available). The best 5-card hand wins the pot. Win 3 hands to activate the "all-in" shotgun, and use it to double your money and blast a zombie. Each new day increases the stakes with higher ante and bet amounts. If you run out of money, the game is over. Poker of the Dead features a full tutorial, detailed game statistics and 12 special challenges to complete.

Can you survive the horde of poker playing zombies?

Blossom Halloween Edition (~~$1.99~~ $0.99), by Braintonik Games

Game Description
Planting takes an eerie twist in Blossom Halloween Edition, where you are challenged to create a network of pipes that feed your Jack-O-Lanterns with potion from the witch's pot.

The goal of the game is to build an irrigation system that delivers a spooky brew to pumpkins by manipulating the game tiles with pipes on them. Just select the pipe tiles and rotate them until the potion flows through them and reaches the pumpkins to make them grow.

When a pipe is connected to the witch's cauldron it will fill up with potion. Make sure the brew flows in all the pipes to keep your pumpkins menacing. You'll have to rotate the tiles with pipes, pumpkins, and that all-important cauldron to make each part of the grid connect together and fill up every tile. All the pumpkins need to be connected to the cauldron and every pipe must be used to finish the puzzle. Are you facing a drought? The Hint system is there to help you figure out the next best move.

Halloween may be just around the corner, but with Blossom Halloween Edition's 120 puzzles, waiting has never been such a guilty pleasure!

Choice of the Vampire (~~$2.99~~ $0.99), by Choice of Games

Game Description
Choice of the Vampire is a text-based game where your choices control the story.

Play as a newly created vampire, struggling to survive your first nights of immortality. Begin your two-hundred-year journey as a vampire in New Orleans of 1815, and choose whether to seek love, power, or redemption as you negotiate the growing pains of the young Republic.

Throughout the game you'll choose between a set of options which decide the action your vampire will take next. Will you embroil yourself in the intrigues of elder vampires? Can an undead creature find true love? How will you balance your waning humanity against your thirst for blood?

If you love gamebooks, you'll love Choice of the Vampire. Its unique approach to interactive fiction allows larger, deeper, and richer stories than traditional gamebooks. Will you discover all of the hidden endings?

Please note: Choice of the Vampire contains content that may be inappropriate for children.

Moron-o-Meter (An Irreverent Quiz for Kindle) ($0.99), by puzzle.tv, is new in the Kindle store.

Game Description
Are you smarter than a fourth grader? Than a rock? You might be surprised. Let Moron-o-Meter set you straight.

Moron-o-Meter is a game that will test every ounce of your brain power, but not in a serious way. Do you know what comes once a year, but twice a week? It's not Santa Clause, it's 'e'. Your brain will be pestered with similar brain teasers when you take this challenge. If you want to be entertained while finding out if you're a Genius, a Moron, or any form of intelligent life at all, then this is the game for you.

A clever blend of serious, not-at-all serious and downright tricky questions will be asked in an attempt to bamboozle you into thinking you might be a moron. The game will amuse and test players of all abilities with three funny, creative and occasionally diabolical tests to complete. Get declared the ultimate brain by completing the tests in record time.

Throw down the gauntlet to your friends and family and take part in the irreverent Moron-o-Meter challenge. Reap the ultimate satisfaction and prove to yourself that you are indeed farther up the evolutionary ladder than bread mold!

Today's Deals

Deviant Behavior: A Novel of Sex, Drugs, Fatherhood, and Crystal Skulls ($3.49 Kindle, B&N), by Mike Sager, is today's Nook Daily Find (matched at Amazon).

Book Description
Jonathan Seede is the picture of Washington, DC, respectability, an urban pioneer with a pretty wife, a new baby, and a job at the town’s most esteemed newspaper. But ten blocks from the White House, on the notorious Fourteenth Street strip, a war is raging over deviant behavior. And Seede is on the front lines, deep into a secret freelance project that’s taking him to places where most people would never dare to go.

As he descends into an inferno of repressed urges and human frailties, Seede’s journey plays out against a brilliantly realized portrait of the nation’s capital, featuring pimps and hustlers, an accidental hooker, an honest cop, a storefront prophet/marijuana dealer, a beautiful teenage runaway, a crack-addicted music legend, an A-list gay activist, and a diminutive billionaire who is searching for the answers to life’s greatest questions in a crystal skull. The first novel from best-selling journalist Mike Sager,Deviant Behavioris a mad, vivid, and daring romp through a society in crisis, and the story of what happens when one frustrated father decides to Just Say Yes.

The Phoenix Apostles ($1.99), by Lynn Sholes and Joe Moore, is today's Kindle Deal of the Day. This looks to be the start of a new series, Seneca Hunt Mysteries, and so far has very good reviews.

Book Description
Magazine journalist Seneca Hunt is reporting on the opening of Montezuma’s tomb in Mexico City when the dig team, led by her fiancé Daniel Bernal, learns that the remains of the Aztec emperor are missing. Within moments of the discovery, an apparent terrorist attack kills everyone at the site—including Daniel. Seneca barely escapes the carnage.

Determined to get answers, Seneca starts investigating. She finds out that someone is stealing the remains of the most infamous mass murderers in history—and plotting to slaughter millions in the name of an ancient cult. Teaming up with bestselling novelist Matt Everhart, Seneca tries to stay one step ahead of those who want her dead as she and Matt follow a deadly 2000-year-old trail that leads back to the death of Jesus Christ.

Free Book (Kindle) - My Lunatic Life

My Lunatic Life, the start of the Lunatic Life series by Sharon Sala, is free in the Kindle store. This is a new series (the book released in August), aimed at teen readers, with the next one "in the works", but not yet available for pre-order.

Book Description
She plays for Team Spirit.

High school senior Tara Luna's got all the usual teen problems: a new school, her attraction to a hunky guy, feuds with the Mean Girls, being regarded as an oddball outsider-PLUS she has psychic powers, a duo of protective, meddlesome ghosts AND an angry, threatening teen girl ghost who wants Tara to solve her murder-or else.

Now you know why she calls this "my lunatic life."

Sharon Sala's books repeatedly make the big lists, including The New York Times, USA Today, and Publisher's Weekly lists, and she's been nominated for a RITA seven times, which is the romance writer's equivalent of having an Oscar or an Emmy nomination.

Monday, October 17, 2011

Bargain Book Roundup

Amazon price-matched the Nook Daily Find deal: Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries (~~$8.61~~ $3.19 Kindle; $3.19 B&N), by Neil deGrasse Tyson. Also, you can get the first book in the Maximum Ride series by James Patterson, The Angel Experiment, for $2.99.

Updates on available formats for free books:

Come Monday (Kindle/nook/noDRM)
Curse of the Gargoyle (Kindle/nook/noDRM)
Terror by Night (Kindle/EPUB/nook)
Laboring in the Harvest (Kindle/EPUB)

A very old freebie has returned to the Kindle store: CK-12 Trigonometry. You can get more info on getting it and others on Kindle, iBooks or as PDF's (and possibly DRM-free EPUB's), HERE.

Nairobi Heat (Melville International Crime) ($2.61), by Mukoma Wa Ngugi

Book Description
A cop from Wisconsin pursues a killer through the terrifying slums of Nairobi and the memories of genocide

IN MADISON, WISCONSIN, it’s a big deal when African peace activist Joshua Hakizimana—who saved hundreds of people from the Rwandan genocide—accepts a position at the university to teach about “genocide and testimony.” Then a young woman is found murdered on his doorstep.

Local police Detective Ishmael—an African-American in an “extremely white” town—suspects the crime is racially motivated; the Ku Klux Klan still holds rallies there, after all. But then he gets a mysterious phone call: “If you want the truth, you must go to its source. The truth is in the past. Come to Nairobi.”

It’s the beginning of a journey that will take him to a place still vibrating from the genocide that happened around its borders, where violence is a part of everyday life, where big-oil money rules and where the local cops shoot first and ask questions later—a place, in short, where knowing the truth about history can get you killed.

Lord of the Vampires 4-in-1: Lord of the Vampires\The Darkest Angel\The Amazon's Curse\The Darkest Prison ($5.38), by Gena Showalter

Book Description
Once upon a time…the Blood Sorcerer vanquished the kingdom of Elden. To save their children, the queen scattered them to safety and the king filled them with vengeance. Only a magical timepiece connects the four royal heirs…and time is running out….

Nicolai the vampire was renowned for his virility, but in a twist of fate, "the Dark Seducer" had become a sex slave in the kingdom of Delfina—stripped of his precious timepiece and his memory. All that remained was a primal need for freedom, revenge…and Jane Parker, the only woman who could help him rediscover his destiny.

Hush ($3.99), by Cherry Adair

Book Description
A reckless adventure in a deadly paradise.

Thrill seekers Zakary and Gideon Stark travel the globe in search of extreme adventure, but a trip to Venezuela to jump off the world’s highest falls catapults them into a perilous game of life or death—where they don’t know the rules.

A one-night stand that will change his life forever.

Kidnapped with a woman Zak knows nothing about, the brothers are held prisoner deep in the jungle. A risky, deathdefying escape separates them and nearly claims Zak’s life . . . until his recovery reveals a baffling new sixth sense.

An unexpected diversion with lethal consequences.

Now, to find his missing brother, Zak and the mysterious Acadia Gray will have to out-smart, out-gun, and out-maneuver not just the brutal kidnappers but also a new player who joins the adrenaline game: a ruthless opponent who wants the Stark brothers dead—at any cost.

Dark Protector (Paladins of Darkness, Book 1) ($3.99), by Alexis Morgan

Book Description
Devlin Bane: Born a Paladin, he is a member of an ancient band of warriors locked in a centuries-old war against evil.

His destiny: To die over and over again to protect mankind from the Others, only to be revived each time by his mortal Handler.

But his fierce strength and courage cannot save him from gradually becoming one of the monsters he was born to destroy.

Dr. Laurel Young, who has spent years training to become a Handler, must remain detached from her patients. But each time she revives the darkly compelling Devlin Bane, he claims a little more of her soul and incites in her desires that grow wilder and wilder -- even as he inches closer to losing his humanity. As the war against the Others grows more desperate, Laurel and Devlin can't help but give in to the fierce hunger that's sizzled between them for so long. Now they'll face the ultimate battle together -- to save a dark, passionate love that goes against every rule as they join forces to fight an enemy who is closer than they ever imagined....

Moonlight Warrior ($3.99), by Janet Chapman

Book Description
Eve Anderson is darned tired of Kenzie Gregor meddling in her business. She might be struggling to keep herself and her ailing mother financially afloat, but she's no princess in need of a strong, capable knight in a black SUV to rescue her -- even if he is easy on the eyes. Besides, there's something very odd about him...and she's sure the strange events occurring in their small coastal Maine town are linked to his recent arrival.

Once an immortal warrior cursed to live as a panther, Kenzie is finally free to live and die as a man, and his destiny is to help other displaced souls. Of course, if he can get tiny, blue-eyed, curly blond Eve out of the deal, well...life doesn't get any better. But she's as stubborn and fierce as a lioness, and in order to win her love, he must tempt her with forbidden desires....

I Burn For You ($3.99), by Susan Sizemore

Book Description
Embrace the darkness in a sensual new vampire romance novel from acclaimed author Susan Sizemore....

The world holds great danger for Alec Reynard and his kind. As the dark hollows of his soul threaten to overwhelm him, he undergoes secret medical treatments that allow him to bear daylight. Living a double life as a bodyguard, he must also battle the powerful chemistry that explodes between him and Domini Lancer, a mere mortal -- and, unbelievably, his soulmate.

Domini knows nothing of Alec's true nature. But when danger threatens, he kidnaps her to his clan's stronghold to protect her....and there, he can no longer hide who -- or what -- he is. As the forces aligned against Domini draw near, Alec wonders whether she'll accept the darkness within him -- or whether she's actually a vampire slayer who's cleverly infiltrated his clan.

Earl of Darkness (Heirs of Kilronan) ($3.99), by Alix Rickloff

Book Description
The magic she tries to hide . . .

Born a lady, but reduced to surviving in the slums of Dublin, Catriona O’Connell has been hired to steal a mysterious book from Aidan Douglas, Earl of Kilronan. But Cat is secretly Other, an age-old mixture of Fey and human—something Aidan recognizes immediately when he surprises the lovely young burglar in his library, about to steal a magical diary.

. . . is the magic he desperately wants.

From the moment Aidan sees her, Cat’s spirited beauty enchants him, but her uncanny abilities are what he truly needs, for Cat can understand the mystical language in the diary he inherited from his murdered father. So Aidan makes an offer: translate the book or be thrown in prison as a thief. And as Cat slowly deciphers each page, she and Aidan are drawn together by passion . . . and into the violence of the Other world that is the Kilronan legacy. Can they defeat those who seek the book, or are their lives in even greater danger than their hearts?

Blood Trinity ($3.99), by Sherrilyn Kenyon and Dianna Love (*currently reading - recommended)

Book Description
Supernatural warriors bound by an extraordinary code of honor face an ultimate test of loyalty in the exciting new paranormal thriller from New York Times bestselling authors Sherrilyn Kenyon and Dianna Love.Atlanta has become the battlefield between human and demon. All her life, Evalle Kincaid has walked the line between the two. Her origins unknown, she’s on a quest to learn more about her past . . . and her future.When a demon claims a young woman in a terrifying attack and there’s no one else to blame, Evalle comes under suspicion. Now she’s on a deadly quest for her own survival. Through the sordid underground of an alternate Atlanta where nothing is as it seems to the front lines of the city, where her former allies have joined forces to hunt her, Evalle must prove her innocence or pay the ultimate price.But saving herself is the least of her problems if she doesn’t stop the coming apocalypse. The clock is ticking and Atlanta is about to catch fire. . . .

Gentlemen Prefer Succubi (Succubus Diaries) ($3.99), by Jill Myles

Book Description
Who Knew An Angel Could Get A Girl In So Much Devilish Trouble?
Jackie Brighton woke up in a Dumpster this morning, and her day has only gotten weirder. Her familiar B-cups have somehow become double Ds, her sex drive is insatiable, and apparently she had her first one-night stand ever...with a fallen angel. All she remembers is gorgeous Noah's oddly hypnotic blue eyes...and then a dark stranger whose bite transformed her into an immortal siren with a sexy Itch.

With help from Noah, Jackie begins to adapt to her new lifestyle -- until she accidentally sends Noah into the deadly clutches of the vampire queen and lands herself in a fierce battle for an ancient halo with the queen's wickedly hot righthand man. Who just happens to be the vampire who originally bit her. How's a girl supposed to save the world when the enemy's so hard to resist?

Awaken Me Darkly ($3.99), by Gena Showalter

Book Description
RIDDING THE WORLD OF EVIL, ONE ALIEN AT A TIME: THAT'S MIA SNOW'S MISSION.

Snow is in the forecast.

In a time and place not too far away, Mia Snow is an alien huntress for the New Chicago Police Department. Heading up her expert team of Alien Investigation and Removal agents, Mia's unmatched at battling the elusive enemy among us, and she's the perfect girl for the job. She's seen her brother die at the hands of aliens. She's earned each of her scars. And she'll die before she cries. Now, a series of killings have Mia and her partner Dallas tracking alien suspects -- but a sudden blast of violence leaves Dallas fighting for his life.

They are ice and fire.

The chance to save Dallas appears in the form of a tall, erotic stranger. An alien. A murder suspect. Kyrin en Arr, of the deadly Arcadian species, holds the power to heal the injured agent but not without a price. For Mia Snow, that price is surrendering to Kyrin's forbidden seduction...and embracing their electric attraction. She's walking a knife's edge, risking her badge and even her life. The closer she gets to Kyrin, the more Mia learns about her own heart, her human needs -- and the shocking secret that will shatter everything she's ever believed.

A Hunger Like No Other (Immortals After Dark, Book 1) ($3.99), by Kresley Cole

Book Description
A mythic warrior who'll stop at nothing to possess her . . .

After enduring years of torture from the vampire horde, Lachlain MacRieve, leader of the Lykae Clan, is enraged to find the predestined mate he's waited millennia for is a vampire. Or partly one. This Emmaline is a small, ethereal half Valkyrie/half vampire, who somehow begins to soothe the fury burning within him.

A vampire captured by her wildest fantasy . . .

Sheltered Emmaline Troy finally sets out to uncover the truth about her deceased parents -- until a powerful Lykae claims her as his mate and forces her back to his ancestral Scottish castle. There, her fear of the Lykae -- and their notorious dark desires -- ebbs as he begins a slow, wicked seduction to sate her own dark cravings.

An all-consuming desire . . .

Yet when an ancient evil from her past resurfaces, will their desire deepen into a love that can bring a proud warrior to his knees and turn a gentle beauty into the fighter she was born to be?

Dark Warrior Unleashed ($3.99), by Alexis Morgan

Book Description
He's on a mission to annihilate the enemy.

A Talion enforcer, Ranulf Thorsen has served his people for a thousand years, delivering the eye-for-an-eye justice by which his kinsmen live. Weary of the centuries-long fight, the fierce warrior with icy blue eyes has secluded himself on a mountain far from the chaos of the modern world below. Now he's been summoned to face the most dangerous battle of his life -- and the fate of his people is on the line.

But when he meets the beautiful woman he has sworn to defend...

Ranulf and his bitter rival, fellow Talion Sandor Kearn, must find the rogue Kyth who set a violent fire in a nightclub. The near-deadly blaze's unlikely heroine, Kerry Logan, is also a Kyth, possessing the ancient Nordic people's unique ability to manipulate human energy. She just doesn't know it yet.

...who will protect his heart?

Kerry finds more than comfort in her warrior's embrace, and Ranulf hungers to both defend and claim the petite powerhouse for his own. But with time ticking away and their lives on the line, will Kerry believe the wild tale he's telling her, and master her powers...before it's too late?

Save $10 on The Twilight Saga Movies (KSO)

This offer is only for those with a Kindle with Special Offers:

Save $10 on Deluxe Editions of The Twilight Saga Movies

Click on offer, then click on the link on the offer page to receive an email with the promotion code. Sign-up for this offer expires on October 24.

You'll get an email (right away), a link to the Special Offer page and a promotion code to enter at checkout. Once you have the promotional code, you have until November 19 to complete your purchase. Like previous offers, this one requires you to use the full checkout process in order to enter your promotional code. Also, like all Amazon sales that use promotional codes, if you have a gift card balance, you must use it for the payment (if there is not a sufficient balance, then you can pick which credit card or other payment to use).

Limit one offer per customer and per device.

Looks like this ad got released or placed a bit late, as it's off the usual 4-day cycle, has a few extra days for signup, but expires at the same time as the other offers currently active. In addition, the ad on the Kindle is confusing (at least, to me), as the text implied that you had to buy movie tickets in order to get the special prices on the DVD/Blu-Ray sets. In fact, you can get the deal without buy tickets at all (although a link to Fandango to buy tickets is included in the email you get). Another confusing thing about this offer - it's for $10 off, limit one, but you can put up to three items from the offer into your cart at once. I don't know if you'll get $10 off each one or just a single $10 off (but, if that were true, why bother having any limit on the items placed in your cart?).

Free Book (Kindle) - Tall, Dark, and Lonesome (UK/DE)

Tall, Dark, and Lonesome (US/UK link/DE link), by Debra Dixon, is free for UK and European Kindle customers. Not likely to be free in the US, as it's a different imprint (agency publisher) and ASIN.

Book Description
A fabulous FREE eBook from the sensational new Loveswept digital series!

Loveswept brings you the very best of classic romance - from treasured favourites to exciting new talent, these are love stories you'll never forget. Find out about other titles in the series and choose your next Loveswept hero at www.lovesweptbooks.co.uk

Tall, Dark and Lonesome is an irresistible tale of a reporter determined to forget her past, a cowboy with secrets of his own, and a passionate journey of discovery...

Newspaper columnist Niki Devlin isn't thrilled about following a bunch of city slickers on their holiday cattle drive, and even less so when she discovers that this job will take her back to the homeland she's tried so hard to forget: Wyoming, USA. All that stands between finishing her assignment and getting back to New York is a pair of sexy grey eyes flashing from under the brim of a cowboy hat. The lean, rugged form of trail boss Zack Weston makes Niki want everything she doesn't want: Wyoming, a good man, and love.

Zack likes being just a cowboy to Niki. His name, his political ambitions, and his ranching empire are all but forgotten as he rides alongside this beautiful, gutsy woman who makes him realize what he's been missing. Once, tragedy and bitterness drove her away from this place he will always call home. Is the passion they awaken under starry skies enough to convince her that wherever this journey leads them, they belong together?

Loveswept: Love stories you'll never forget by authors you'll always remember.

Today's Deals

Update: Amazon price-matched the Nook Daily Find deal.

Today's the last day for the Save $10 on Software Downloads KSO offer. According to Amazon, these are some of the upcoming KSO offers:

Save 50% on select Kindle covers
Get $5 off a $10 purchase at Amazon.com
Get 1 of 100 mysteries & thrillers for $1

Hopefully we'll be able to pick up a cover for the Fire or Touch with that first one and the last two should be ones that everyone can use.

Provincetown Follies, Bangkok Blues (Kindle/EPUB/nook) is now also free on nook, while these three UK Kindle freebies are now free in the US:

MAX ($2.99), the fifth in the (young adult) Maximum Ride series by James Patterson, is today's Kindle Deal of the Day.

Book Description
Maximum Ride and the other members of the flock have barely recovered from their last Arctic adventure, when they are confronted by the most frightening catastrophe yet. Millions of fish are dying off the coast of Hawaii and someone--or something--is destroying hundreds of ships. Unable to discover the cause, the government enlists the flock to help them get to the bottom of the disaster before it is too late.

While Max and her team are exploring the depths of the ocean, their every move is being carefully tracked by Mr. Chu--a criminal mastermind with his own plans for the flock. Can they protect themselves from Mr. Chu's army of mercenaries and save the ocean from utter destruction?