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Saturday, January 28, 2012

Free Small Press/Backlist/Indie Books

New coupon this weekend at Fictionwise. Those with an original Nook can use the EREADER (DRM'd) format, while all can use the MultiFormat books (magazines are multiformat, there).
012712 - 40% off (all but Samhain); Expires: Jan 30 (or a couple of days later, usually)
Pure (DRM'd) EPUB formats now available for these free books:

Today's backlist/indie free books on Kindle (not likely to be free for long). Be careful clicking to check that the prices haven't gone up since I've posted.

Free Book - Band of Sisters (K)

Band of Sisters: American Women at War in Iraq, by Kirsten Holmstedt, is free in the Kindle store. This title won both the 2007 American Authors Association Golden Quill Award and the 2007 Military Writers Society of America Founders Award.
Book Description
In Iraq, the front lines are everywhere . . . and everywhere in Iraq, no matter what their job descriptions say, women in the U.S. military are fighting--more than 155,000 of them. A critical and commercial success in hardcover, Band of Sisters presents a dozen groundbreaking and often heart-wrenching stories of American women in combat in Iraq, such as the U.S.s first female pilot to be shot down and survive, the militarys first black female pilot in combat, a young turret gunner defending convoys, and a nurse struggling to save lives, including her own.

Free Book - Osama (K)

Osama, by Lavie Tidhar, is free in the Kindle store. This was just shortlisted for the BSFA Award for Best Novel, so I'd grab it while it is free.
Book Description
Lavie Tidhar was in Dar-es-Salaam during the American embassy bombings in 1998, and stayed in the same hotel as the Al Qaeda operatives in Nairobi. Since then he and his now-wife have narrowly avoided both the 2005 King’s Cross and 2004 Sinai attacks—experiences that led first to his memorable short story “My Travels with Al-Qaeda” and later to the creation of Osama.

“In a world without global terrorism Joe, a private detective, is hired by a mysterious woman to find a man: the obscure author of pulp fiction novels featuring one Osama Bin Laden: Vigilante...”

Free Book - Murder in Store (K/N/E)

Murder in Store (Quint McCauley Mystery), by DC Brod, is free in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble and Sony.
Book Description
Preston Hauser, owner of a famous department store, asks his head of security, Quint McCauley, to investigate some threatening letters he has received. No sooner does Quint take on the job, than Preston is poisoned by one of his own vitamin pills. With Quint looking on. Suspicion falls on Hauser’s young wife, Diana, but Quint quickly learns she’s not the only one who might benefit from the millionaire’s death.
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from Sony.

Today's Deals

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People ($0.99), by Stephen Covey, is today's Kindle Deal of the Day.
Book Description
In The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, author Stephen R. Covey presents a holistic, integrated, principle-centered approach for solving personal and professional problems. With penetrating insights and pointed anecdotes, Covey reveals a step-by-step pathway for living with fairness, integrity, service, and human dignity -- principles that give us the security to adapt to change and the wisdom and power to take advantage of the opportunities that change creates.

From the Publisher
The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People is a comprehensive program based on developing an awareness of how perceptions and assumptions hinder success---in business as well as presonal relationships. Here's an approach that will help broaden your way of thinking and lead to greater opportunities and effective problem solving. Be Pro-Active: Take the initiative and the responsibility to make things happen. Begin With an End in Mind: Start with a clear destination to understand where you are now, where you're going and what you value most. Put First Things First: Manage yourself. Organize and execute around priorities. Think Win/Win: See life as a cooperative, not a comprehensive arena where success is not achieved at the expense or exclusion of the success of others. Seek First to Understand: Understand then be understood to build the skills of empathetic listening that inspires openness and trust. Synergize: Apply the principles of cooperative creativity and value differences. Renewal: Preserving and enhanving your greatest asset, yourself, by renewing the physical, spiritual, mental and social/emotional dimensions of your nature. Stephen R. Covey is the most respected motivator in the business world today. Learn to use his 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People--and see how they can change your life.

The Privileges ($1.54 / £0.99 UK), by Jonathan DEE, is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $11.99).
Book Description
Smart, socially gifted, and chronically impatient, Adam and Cynthia Morey are so perfect for each other that united they become a kind of fortress against the world. In their hurry to start a new life, they marry young and have two children before Cynthia reaches the age of twenty-five. Adam is a rising star in the world of private equity and becomes his boss's protégé. With a beautiful home in the upper-class precincts of Manhattan, gorgeous children, and plenty of money, they are, by any reasonable standard, successful.But the Moreys' standard is not the same as other people's. The future in which they have always believed for themselves and their children - a life of almost boundless privilege, in which any desire can be acted upon and any ambition made real - is still out there, but it is not arriving fast enough to suit them. As Cynthia, at home with the kids day after identical day, begins to drift, Adam is confronted with a decision that tests how much he is willing to risk to ensure his family's happiness and to recapture the sense that, for him and his wife, the only acceptable life is one of infinite possibility.The Privileges is an odyssey of a couple touched by fortune, changed by time, and guided above all else by their epic love for each other. Lyrical, provocative, and brilliantly imagined, it is a timely meditation on wealth, family, and what it means to leave the world richer than you found it.

Death and the Penguin ($2.99 Kindle, B&N), by Andrey Kurkov, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.
Book Description
A masterful tale set in post-Soviet Kiev that's both darkly-funny and ominous...

In the widely hailed prequel to Penguin Lost, aspiring writer Viktor Zolotaryov leads a down-and-out life in poverty-and-violence-wracked Kiev—he’s out of work and his only friend is a penguin, Misha, that he rescued when the local zoo started getting rid of animals. Even more nerve-wracking: a local mobster has taken a shine to Misha and wants to keep borrowing him for events.

But Viktor thinks he’s finally caught a break when he lands a well-paying job at the Kiev newspaper writing “living obituaries” of local dignitaries—articles to be filed for use when the time comes.

The only thing is, it seems the time always comes as soon as Viktor writes the article. Slowly understanding that his own life may be in jeopardy, Viktor also realizes that the only thing that might be keeping him alive is his penguin.

Free Book - Kidz Bop Plus One (K/N/E)

Kidz Bop Plus One: A Junior Novel, by Bethany Bryan, is free in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble and Sony.
Book Description
When one of the Kidz Bop stars twists an ankle while rehearsing for their sold-out concert at Madison Square Garden, they need a replacement--and fast. But which of the talented kids who show up at the Kidz Bop Awesome Auditions held at theaters around the nation will win the coveted slot? Each Kidz Bop star has an opinion and sparks begin to fly!

By the time the dust settles, there's a new Kidz Bop star in the making. But just as the curtain is about to go up, the injured party shows up, fully recovered and ready to perform. In the scramble to accommodate Kidz Bop Plus One, everyone must rise to the occasion, swallow their pride, put aside their disappointment, and forget their fears as they give the performance of their lives!
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from Sony.

Friday, January 27, 2012

Free and Bargain Book Roundup

Score a double feature (and replace those tattered copies) with Erich Segal's Love Story ($0.99) and the sequel Oliver's Story ($3.99) ... just be sure to stock up on Kleenex before reading!
Love Story
Lose your heart to the novel that defined a generation then...and now.

Love means never having to say you're sorry...

He is Oliver Barrett IV, a rich jock from a stuffy WASP family on his way to a Harvard degree and a career in law.

She is Jenny Cavilleri, a wisecracking, working-class beauty studying music at Radcliffe.

Opposites in nearly every way, Oliver and Jenny immediately attract, sharing a love that defies everything ... yet will end too soon. A love that will linger in your heart now and forever.


Oliver's Story
Oliver Barrett IV found the love of his life in Jenny Cavilleri. And though the time they spent together was brief, it was enough to last a lifetime. Or so Oliver told himself. Living without her for two years now, he still believes he will never love again. Until the day he meets a beautiful and mysterious woman, and suddenly the future seems very different than Oliver thought it would be.

The tale of one man's journey out of the lonely darkness of heartbreak into the warm embrace of love, this moving and beautiful sequel to Love Story will capture your heart as only Erich Segal can.

War Horse ($4.99), by Michael Morpurgo
Book Description
A powerful tale of war, redemption, and a hero's journey....

In 1914, Joey, a beautiful bay-red foal with a distinctive cross on his nose, is sold to the army and thrust into the midst of the war on the Western Front. With his officer, he charges toward the enemy, witnessing the horror of the battles in France. But even in the desolation of the trenches, Joey's courage touches the soldiers around him and he is able to find warmth and hope. But his heart aches for Albert, the farmer's son he left behind. Will he ever see his true master again?

God is an Englishman ($1.99), by R. Delderfield, is one I'll be glad not to have to read in paper, as it weighs in at a hefty 659 pages!
Book Description
The first novel in the epic God Is an Englishman series, this book is a stirring saga of England in the 19th century, as the Industrial Revolution takes hold, forever changing the landscape of England and her people.

Adam Swann, scion of an army family, returns home in 1858 after service with Her Majesty's army in the Crimea and India, determined to build his fortune in the dog-eat-dog world of Victorian commerce. Swann is soon captivated by Henrietta, the high-spirited daughter of a local mill owner. As Swann works to build his name, he and Henrietta share adventures, reversal, and fortune.

A beloved novel by a beloved author, God Is an Englishman is a treasure both for Delderfield fans and the growing legion of fans of historical fiction.

The Old Man and the Wasteland ($0.99), by Nick Cole, is self-published, with a large number of reviews (over 500) that are overwhelming 4 and 5 stars.
Book Description
Forty years after the destruction of civilization...Man is reduced to salvaging the ruins of a broken world. One man’s most prized possession is Hemingway’s classic ‘The Old Man and the Sea.’ With the words of the novel echoing across the wasteland, a survivor of the Nuclear Holocaust journeys into the unknown to break a curse.

What follows is an incredible tale of survival and endurance. One man must survive the desert wilderness and mankind gone savage to discover the truth of Hemingway’s classic tale of man versus nature. Part Hemingway, part Cormac McCarthy’s The Road, a suspenseful odyssey into the dark heart of the Post-Apocalyptic American southwest.

A book lover’s action flick.

If you liked Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games ($4.69; KLL) or are looking for a title for a slightly younger reader, you might want to check out Gregor the Overlander ($4.99), which kicks off her The Underland Chronicles series for early teens (although the best deal is still the Gregor the Overlander Collection, which contains all five books for $19.22).
Book Description
This irresistible first novel tells the story of a quiet boy who embarks on a dangerous quest in order to fulfill his destiny -- and find his father -- in a strange world beneath New York City.

When Gregor falls through a grate in the laundry room of his apartment building, he hurtles into the dark Underland, where spiders, rats, cockroaches coexist uneasily with humans. This world is on the brink of war, and Gregor's arrival is no accident. A prophecy foretells that Gregor has a role to play in the Underland's uncertain future. Gregor wants no part of it -- until he realizes it's the only way to solve the mystery of his father's disappearance. Reluctantly, Gregor embarks on a dangerous adventure that will change both him and the Underland forever.

For those who can't do pre-orders or want to sample first, What It Was, by George Pelecanos, has shipped and it is still 99 cents on Kindle and from B&N.
Book Description

It isn't just the mid-list authors that are releasing their backlist and short stories on their own. Lawrence Block has released a large number of short stories in the 99 cent price range, along with an anthology of two novelettes, a collection of columns on stamps and seven novels being released by Open Road, all at $2.99 (for now).
The Burglar Who Dropped In On Elvis ($0.99)
Between 1977 and 1983, I wrote and published five books about the lighthearted and lightfingered Bernard Grimes Rhodenbarr, with his secondhand bookstore and his dogwashing buddy, Carolyn. It was 1994 before a sixth Burglar book came along, but by then I’d written a pair of short stories about our lad.

The first, “Like a Thief in the Night,” was exceptional in that it’s told from the point of view of the young woman who walks in on Bernie while he’s burgling a suite of midtown offices. (She’s pretty and personable, and he’s Bernie, so everything works out just fine.) A few years later I was holed up at a writers colony in Virginia with time on my hands, and a whole batch of short stories was the happy result. One was this one, in which Bernie’s enlisted by a supermarket tabloid to take forbidden photos at Graceland.

That same stint in Virginia also yielded “Answers to Soldier,” about a hit man on a job in a small city in Oregon. Each story went straight to Alice Turner at Playboy, who bought them both. A couple of years later I found I had more to say about that hit man, whose name was Keller; there have now been four books about him, and I suspect there’ll be at least one more to come. And as for Bernie, there have been five more books, making a total of ten. And there’s been one more short story, “The Burglar Who Smelled Smoke.” And every once in a while an entire day goes by without someone asking me when I’m going to write another book about the fellow…


Afterthoughts ($0.99)
A collection of afterwords from Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Lawrence Block’s most acclaimed works

In a career spanning more than fifty years, Lawrence Block has produced over one hundred books, ranging in genre from hard-boiled detective stories to pseudonymous erotica. Collected here for the first time are more than forty-five afterwords from the works that made him a master of modern fiction.

Each afterword is an insightful reflection on the experiences that have brought Block’s fiction to life, from the lessons he learned as a reader at a literary agency to the unlikely—and semi-autobiographical—origins of the acclaimed Matthew Scudder series. Witty and inspiring, Afterthoughts is a must-read for Block fans and mystery lovers alike.

This ebook features an illustrated biography of Lawrence Block, including rare photos and never-before-seen documents from the author’s personal collection.


The Night and The Music ($2.99)
Lawrence Block’s 17 Matthew Scudder novels have won the hearts of readers throughout the world—along with a bevy of awards including the Edgar, the Shamus, the Philip Marlowe (Germany), and the Maltese Falcon (Japan). And it’s MattScudder who’s been largely reponsible for Block’s lifetime achievement awards: Grand Master (Mystery Writers of America), The Eye (Private Eye Writers of America), and the Cartier Diamond Dagger (UK Crime Writers Association).

But Scudder has starred in short fiction as well, and it’s all here, from a pair of late-70s novelettes (Out the Window and A Candle for the Bag Lady) through By the Dawn’s Early Light (Edgar) and The Merciful Angel of Death (Shamus), all the way to One Last Night at Grogan’s, a moving and elegiac story never before published. It was short fiction that kept the series alive on the several occasions when the flow of novels wass ingterrupted, and short stories that took Scudder down different paths and showed us unmapped portions of his world.

Some of these stories appeared in such magazines as Alfred Hitchcock, Ellery Queen, and Playboy. The title vignette, The Night and the Music, was written for a NYC jazz festival program; another, Mick Ballou Looks at the Blank Screen, has appeared only as the text of a limited-edition broadside. And the final story, putting Matt and Elaine at a table with Mick and Kristin Ballou in a shuttered Hell’s Kitchen saloon, has its first appearance in this volume.

Several stories look back from the time of their writing, with Scudder recounting events from his former life as a cop, first as a patrolman partnered with the legendary Vince Mahaffey, then as an NYPD detective leading a double life. In Looking for David, Matt and Elaine are on vacation in Florence, where they encounter a man Matt arrested decades earlier; now Matt finally learns the motive behind a brutal homicide.

Along with the eleven stories and novelettes, The Night and The Music includes a list of the seventeen novels in chronological order, and an author’s note detailing the origin and bibliographical details of each of the stories.

Brian Koppelman, the prominent screenwriter and director (Solitary Man, Ocean’s Thirteen, Rounders) and a major Matt Scudder fan, has sweetened the pot with an introduction.


Generally Speaking ($2.99)
In the summer of 2009, award-winning novelist Lawrence Block began contributing a monthly column to Linn’s Stamp News, America’s leading philatelic publication. A collector as a boy and young man, Block had returned to the hobby in the 1990s. Before long he had begun writing about stamps when one of his characters, an assassin-for-hire named Keller, took up philately so he’d have something to do in his impending retirement.

Collectors can probably imagine what became of Keller’s retirement fund; it dwindled even as his collection thrived, and he’s gone on to star in four novels—Hit Man, Hit List, Hit Parade, and Hit & Run—with a fifth, Hit Me, coming from Mulholland Books in 2013.

Block’s column, “Generally Speaking,” quickly became one of Linn’s most popular features. It consists of the reflections and observations of a general worldwide collector—the author, like Keller, collects the whole world during philately’s first century, 1840 to 1940, plus British Empire through the reign of George VI.

The column ranges widely in theme, sometimes dealing with the choices a collector has to make (“Mint or Used?”, “Condition, condition, condition”), sometimes with the day to day tasks one confronts (“Album Bulge and Other Afflictions”, “Buying the Same Stamp Twice”), and often shining the light of philately upon some intriguing social or cultural topic. (“The Philatelic Upside of War” examines the profusion of collectible stamps resulting from the First World War; the philatelic impact of Germany’s hyperinflation of 1923 is assessed in “How Much is That Dachshund in the Fenster?”)

Generally Speaking gathers together the first twenty-five of Block’s columns. If you’ve been reading them in Linn’s, now you can have all the columns at hand in one place. If you’re a collector but haven’t read Lawrence Block before, you’re in for a treat.

And if you’re a fan of the bestselling author’s fiction, but have always regarded a stamp as something to stick on an envelope, here’s your chance to get a little more insight into what keeps Keller hard at work. Even if you don’t rush out to equip yourself with a pair of tongs and a packet of hinges, you’ll have a good time reading about it, and will very likely emerge with a little more respect for what has long been called the King of Hobbies and the Hobby of Kings.

My Heart May Be Broken, but My Hair Still Looks Great ($0.99), by Dixie Cash, is one of several superbargains from HarperCollins right now.
Book Description
Welcome to Salt Lick, Texas, home of big hair,
big ranches, and two of the biggest busybodies ever
to wield a blow-dryer—Debbie Sue and Edwina,
also known as the Domestic Equalizers. Their motto:
Don't run over him—get over him! Their mission:
Track down and expose your straying man. And they
won't stop until female domestic justice is served.

Debbie Sue Overstreet and Edwina Perkins-Martin have never encountered a problem that couldn't be fixed with a strong margarita, a whole lot of hairspray, and an ear for gossip. They've learned that you'll only find a straying spouse—or solve a crime—by keeping your senses alert. After all, every red-blooded Texas woman knows ears are more than just a place to hang your diamond earrings!

Newcomers stand out in Salt Lick like a preacher in a liquor store, and all ears—and eyes—are on Paige McBride and Spur Atwater. Paige arrived in town with nothing more than two hundred dollars in her pocket and a Cadillac SUV packed with designer clothes. Her oil-rich daddy has cut her off without a penny and now it's time for her to get one of those real jobs.

The Domestic Equalizers know that Paige and her Barbie-doll looks are gonna stir things up. Soon every cowboy, trucker, and even one of Debbie Sue's ex-boyfriends, a rodeo star, is knocking on Paige's door. And, at just about the time she turns up to start her job tending the best cutting horses in Texas, the horses start disappearing from all the local ranches.

Paige discovers she actually likes her work. After all, horses are more loyal than most men. But she doesn't like Spur, the new town veterinarian. Besides being movie-star good-looking, Spur's an ex–football star. Women of all ages love the new vet, and suddenly, more cats and dogs are getting sick than ever before.

Working on the ranch means Paige can't avoid the man, and all those disappearing horses bring her together with the Domestic Equalizers. Edwina and Debbie Sue think that Spur and Paige make the cutest couple—whether they're too bull-headed to realize it or not. But finding themselves knee-deep in the muck of a horse-thievin' and husband-cheatin' escapade is a whole other issue. No doubt about it, hearts are definitely going to get broken, but if these gals have anything to do with it, the hairstyles around town are still gonna look great!

Untie My Heart ($1.99), by Judith Ivory
Book Description
Stuart Aysgarth, the new Viscount Mount Villiars, doesn't know he's playing with fire when he inadvertently runs afoul of Emma Hotchkiss. True, the exquisite Yorkshire lady is a mere sheep farmer, but she also guards a most colorful past that makes her only more appealing to the handsome, haunted lord. Emma has come to him seeking justice -- and Stuart is determined that she will not leave until she has shared her secrets ... and his bed. Her clever revenge scheme must fail in the face of his soft words and tender caress -- and then he turns the tables on his bewitching adversary, seducing her into a daring deception of his own ...

Still in My Heart (Ryland Brothers) ($0.99), by Kathryn Smith
Book Description
Brahm Ryland is a man used to getting everything he desires...

Another London season has just wound down and Brahm Ryland, Viscount Creed, is thankful for it. Since a horrible mistake ruined his betrothal to the beautiful Lady Eleanor Durbane, his life as a scandalous bachelor has grown tedious; every day without Eleanor seems longer than the last. But then a break in the monotony appears: an invitation to a shooting party at the home of Lord Burrough, Eleanor's father, and he knows his chance to make amends has come at last.

Yet Brahm soon finds that Eleanor will need more than a simple apology to atone for his betrayal -- and after so many years of hurt it will take time and care to make her learn to trust again. When all her sisters warn her against him, she knows she would be a fool to give their passion another chance. But what Eleanor doesn't know is that London's boldest viscount will do anything -- anything -- it takes for a second chance at his one true love ...

The First Rule of Ten (Dharma Detective) ($0.99), by Gay Hendricks and Tinker Lindsay, is an interesting looking title from Hay House.
Book Description
"Don't ignore intuitive tickles lest they reappear as sledgehammers." That's the first rule of Ten. Tenzing Norbu ("Ten" for short)-ex-monk and soon-to-be ex-cop-is a protagonist unique to our times. In The First Rule of Ten, the first installment in a three-book detective series, we meet this spiritual warrior who is singularly equipped, if not occasionally ill-equipped, as he takes on his first case as a private investigator in Los Angeles. Growing up in a Tibetan Monastery, Ten dreamed of becoming a modern-day Sherlock Holmes. So when he was sent to Los Angeles to teach meditation, he joined the LAPD instead. But as the Buddha says, change is inevitable; and ten years later, everything is about to change-big-time-for Ten. One resignation from the police force, two bullet-wounds, three suspicious deaths, and a beautiful woman later, he quickly learns that whenever he breaks his first rule, mayhem follows. Set in the modern-day streets and canyons of Los Angeles, The First Rule of Ten is at turns humorous, insightful, and riveting-a gripping mystery as well as a reflective, character-driven story with intriguing life-lessons for us all.

The Power of Intention ($0.89), by The Power of Intention, is another Hay House bargain.
Book Description
Intention is generally viewed as a pit-bull kind of determination propelling one to succeed at all costs by never giving up on an inner picture. In this view, an attitude that combines hard work with an indefatigable drive toward excellence is the way to succeed. However, intention is viewed very differently in this book. Dr. Wayne W. Dyer has researched intention as a force in the universe that allows the act of creation to take place. This book explores intention—not as something you do—but as an energy you’re a part of. We’re all intended here through the invisible power of intention. This is the first book to look at intention as a field of energy that you can access to begin co-creating your life with the power of intention.

Part I deals with the principles of intention, offering true stories and examples on ways to make the connection. Dr. Dyer identifies the attributes of the all-creating universal mind of intention as creative, kind, loving, beautiful, expanding, endlessly abundant, and receptive, explaining the importance of emulating this source of creativity. In Part II, Dr. Dyer offers an intention guide with specific ways to apply the co-creating principles in daily life. Part III is an exhilarating description of Dr. Dyer’s vision of a world in harmony with the universal mind of intention.

In My Heart (Donally Family) ($0.99), by Melody Thomas
Book Description
After a whirlwind affair and elopement with one of her father's officers, Lady Alexandra Marshall, daughter and sole heir of the Earl of Ware, watched helplessly as her husband was shipped off. An annulment followed, and though she waited with packed bags, Christopher never returned for her. Now, 10 years later, she can't help but wonder if fate is giving them a second chance at love.

Anne Frank ($1.99), by Francine Prose, is a well-reviewed addition to the body of Anne Frank literature available.
Book Description
In June 1942, Anne Frank received a red-and-white- checked diary for her thirteenth birthday, just weeks before she and her family went into hiding in an Amsterdam attic to escape the Nazis. For two years, with ever-increasing maturity, Anne crafted a memoir that has become one of the most compelling documents of modern history. She described life in vivid, unforgettable detail, explored apparently irreconcilable views of human nature—people are good at heart but capable of unimaginable evil—and grappled with the unfolding events of World War II, until the hidden attic was raided in August 1944.

But Anne Frank's diary, argues Francine Prose, is as much a work of art as a historical record. Through close reading, she marvels at the teenage Frank's skillfully natural narrative voice, at her finely tuned dialogue and ability to turn living people into characters. And Prose addresses what few of the diary's millions of readers may know: this book is a deliberate work of art. During her last months in hiding, Anne Frank furiously revised and edited her work, crafting a piece of literature that she had hoped would be read by the public after the war.

Read it has been. Few books have been as influential for as long, and Prose thoroughly investigates the diary's unique afterlife: the obstacles and criticism Otto Frank faced in publishing his daughter's words; the controversy surrounding the diary's Broadway and film adaptations; and the claims of conspiracy theorists who have cried fraud, along with the scientific analysis that proved them wrong. Finally, Prose, a teacher herself, considers the rewards and challenges of sharing one of the world's most read, and most banned, books with students.

How has the life and death of one girl become emblematic of the lives and deaths of so many, and why do her words continue to inspire? Anne Frank: The Book, The Life, The Afterlife tells the extraordinary story of the book that became a force in the world. Along the way, Francine Prose definitively establishes that Anne Frank was not an accidental author or a casual teenaged chronicler, but a writer of prodigious talent and ambition.

How has the life and death of one girl become emblematic of the lives and deaths of so many, and why do her words continue to inspire? Anne Frank: The Book, The Life, The Afterlife tells the extraordinary story of the book that became a force in the world. Along the way, Francine Prose definitively establishes that Anne Frank was not an accidental author or a casual teenage chronicler, but a writer of prodigious talent and ambition.

The Red Heart of Jade ($1.99) is the third in the Dirk & Steele series by Marjorie M. Liu. It's likely you already have Tiger Eye, as it was free last August.
Book Description
Beneath passion and purifying fire is . . . The Red Heart of Jade

Dean Campbell can see and sense things that others cannot—an extraordinary ability that drew the ex-cop to the Dirk & Steele Detective Agency, a global association of more-than-human men and women. Dean and his peers—shapeshifters, psychics, and other paranormals—are dedicated to protecting life. But there are those who live for destruction.

Now Dean's investigation into a series of unthinkable killings is calling him to Taipei, where a pattern is emerging that is more deadly than anything he could have foreseen. At the center is a power that could change the world . . . and the woman who can truly complete him: Mirabelle Lee, the girl Dean loved in his youth, the childhood sweetheart he once believed dead. Now that his heart has been reawakened, he will not lose her again—even as the forces of an immortal evil gather to destroy them and everything they love.

Deep in the Heart ($1.99), by Sharon Sala, is only one of a number of this author's titles currently being discounted. This one is published by HarperCollins, but I see Mira and Silhouette amongst the other titles (I counted 23 titles under $4, ranging from pure romance to romantic suspense).
Deep in the Heart
Samantha Carlyle knows someone is watching her—someone who wants her dead. So she runs to the safety of her tiny Texas hometown, and to the sweet, haunting memories of John Thomas Knight. A dedicated small-town sheriff as tender as he is tough, John Thomas was Samantha's best friend, her first love—and now he is her only chance. Fate has carried them down different roads, but the fire has never died—and the passion flares white-hot the moment their eyes meet again. But this time Samantha must trust the proud, strong, devastatingly handsome lawman with more than her heart—she must trust him with her life. Because there is another man who wants her, and he's waiting for the right time to strike. And the next sweet, sensuous kiss she and John Thomas share could well be Samantha's last.

Snowfall ($3.59)
A killer's hunger rages.... A woman waits in fear.... A cop races to stop the unthinkable....

It's December in Manhattan. Falling snow blankets the city--and covers the body of a murdered woman that bears a special message from a twisted killer.

High in her elegant apartment, bestselling mystery author Caitlin Bennett shivers in fear, holding the latest in a string of notes from a deranged "fan." No longer able to endure the growing terror alone, Caitlin agrees to hire ex-cop Connor "Mac" McKee as a bodyguard.

With Mac's protection, Caitlin begins to feel safe again. But when two more victims are discovered, each bearing a remarkable resemblance to Caitlin, they realize that she's the target. And that a deranged killer is now coming to claim his final victim....

Today's backlist/indie free books on Kindle (not likely to be free for long):
The Indie Book Collective is having another contest, with five free books by the sponsoring authors. You should be able to visit all five today, leave a comment and get a book in your email.

Free Book - India's Summer (K/N/E)

Update: 1/28/12 Now free from Sony.

India's Summer, by Therese, is free in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble, courtesy of Fiction Studio.
Book Description
India Butler, single and about to turn forty, travels to LA in an attempt to reinvent her life. In a world rarely illuminated by the flashbulbs of the paparazzi, she discovers the true meaning of “having it all.”
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from Sony.

Today's Deals

There are new 25% off coupon codes for KoboBooks this weekend: jan26au25, jan26us25, jan26uk25, jan26ca25, jan26row25

There are actually 20 free books in the B&N Classics program right now (thanks, Pinky, for the heads up!), so I've updated the links on this post to help you find them:

City of Masks ($1.99), the first in the Cree Black series by Daniel Hecht, is today's Kindle Deal of the Day. It has good reviews (critical and customer), features New Orleans and ghosts and doesn't end after just a few pages (and you don't have to try to keep all 466 pages balanced and open when reading on the Kindle!); I'm definitely grabbing a sample on this one.
Book Description
In City of Masks, the first Cree Black novel, parapsychologist Cree and her partner take a case in New Orleans's Garden District that leaves them fearing for their own lives. The 150-year-old Beauforte House has long stood empty, until Lila Beauforte resumes residence and starts to see some of the house's secrets literally come to life. Tormented by an insidious and violent presence, Lila finds herself trapped in a life increasingly filled with childhood terrors. It takes Cree's unconventional take on psychology and her powerful natural empathy with Lila to navigate the dangerous worlds of spirit and memory, as they clash in a terrifying tale of mistaken identity and murder.

The Final Murder ($1.54 / £0.99 UK), the second title in the Johanne Vik (Vik and Stubo) series by Anne Holt, is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $12.99 and titled What Never Happens).
Book Description
All over Oslo, celebrities are turning up dead in the most macabre of situations: a talk show host with her tongue cut out, a politician crucified with a copy of the Koran stuffed up her private parts, a literary critic stabbed in the eye. It's clear that the killer seeks some sort of retribution, but for what?

Adam Stubo and Johanna Vik, recently new parents, are reluctantly drawn into the investigation. As Stubo leads the inquiry, Johanna is exhausted by the new baby. But she is haunted by a pattern she discovers from a time long ago when she was in the FBI, a time she has tried to forget . . . and time is running out to stop the killer from completing this chilling series of murders.

Seek Me with All Your Heart (Land of Canaan Series #1) ($3.99 Kindle, B&N), by Beth Wiseman, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.
Book Description
What would cause the Amish to move to Colorado, leaving family and friends behind?

Some Amish are making the trek to Colorado for cheaper land. Others are fleeing strict bishops with long memories.

For Emily Detweiler and her family, the move is more personal. Tragedy struck Emily in Ohio, shaking loose everything she believed was firm, including her faith. Her family took the bold step of leaving Ohio to resettle in a small Amish community in Canaan, Colorado, where they hope the distance will help erase painful memories.

David Stoltzfus's family moved to Colorado for reasons he doesn't understand. But Canaan is turning out to be something other than the promised land they all anticipated. Fearing that a health condition will cut his life short, David plans to return home to Paradise, Pennsylvania, as soon as he can. But then he meets Emily, who stirs feelings in his heart despite his apprehension about the future.

Emily's growing love for David surprises her, but she fears that he will find out the truth about her past and reject her. But what if the truth is that they are made for each other? And that God longs to give them the desires of their hearts if only they will seek Him first?

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Ten Twenty Free Books from B&N Classics Series (N)

Update: OK, I've taken Pinky's list and added direct links for the ones that B&N doesn't put on their own Classics list (instead, these are labeled as part of their Kickstart Program, but don't show up in searches).

B&N has made 10 of their Barnes & Noble Classics Series available for free, once again (if you've collected these in the past, you probably already have them all, as I do). The ones available for free are:
  1. Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
  2. Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
  3. Emily Dickinson by Emily Dickinson
  4. Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift
  5. House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
  6. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
  7. Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy
  8. Odyssey by Homer
  9. Paradise Lost by John Milton
  10. Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
  11. Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Dubliners by James Joyce
  12. Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
  13. Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
  14. Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
  15. The Art of War by Sun Tzu
  16. The Awakening and Selected Short Fiction by Kate Chopin
  17. The Good Soldier by Ford Madox Ford
  18. Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
  19. Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne
  20. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
These are more than just scans of the classics, as B&N uses their own translations and illustrations and generally includes commentary and other notes from a scholar in the field.
Series Description
Barnes & Noble Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of Barnes & Noble Classics:

  • New introductions commissioned from today's top writers and scholars
  • Biographies of the authors
  • Chronologies of contemporary historical, biographical, and cultural events
  • Footnotes and endnotes
  • Selective discussions of imitations, parodies, poems, books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and films inspired by the work
  • Comments by other famous authors
  • Study questions to challenge the reader's viewpoints and expectations
  • Bibliographies for further reading
  • Indices & Glossaries, when appropriate
All editions are beautifully designed and are printed to superior specifications; some include illustrations of historical interest. Barnes & Noble Classics pulls together a constellation of influences—biographical, historical, and literary—to enrich each reader's understanding of these enduring works.

Free Book - Highland Sanctuary (K/N/E)

Update: 2/27/12 Repeat freebie in all three stores.

Highland Sanctuary, the second title in the Highland series by Jennifer Hudson Taylor, is free in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble and ChristianBook, courtesy of Christian publisher Abingdon Press.
Book Description
A Sanctuary of Secrets...

Gavin MacKenzie, a chieftain heir who is hired to restore the ancient Castle of Braigh, discovers a hidden village of outcasts who have created their own private sanctuary from the world. Among them is Serena Boyd, a mysterious and
comely lass, who captures Gavin's heart in spite of harboring a deadly past that could destroy her future.

The villagers happen to be keeping an intriguing secret as well. When a fierce enemy launches an attack against them, greed leads to bitter betrayal. As Gavin prepares a defense, the villagers unite in a bold act of faith, showing how God's love is more powerful than any human force on earth.
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from ChristianBook.

Free Book - A Time for Peace (K/N/E)

Update: 2/27/12 Repeat freebie in all three stores.

A Time for Peace, the third (and latest) title in the Quilts of Lancaster County series by Barbara Cameron, is free in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble and ChristianBook, courtesy of Christian publisher Abingdon Press.
Book Description
After Years of Hardship, Jenny's Life Appears Perfect. So Why Does Something Seem to Be Missing?

Jenny Bontrager finally feels loved and cherished by her husband, Matthew, and his children. Life seems golden with both her family and career as a writer. Then one day her grandmother, Phoebe, falls ill, and Jenny cares for her. As she reaches into Phoebe's closet for a robe, Jenny finds a letter from her father dated the summer when she was nearly eighteen. As she struggles to understand her father's words, Jenny's love for him, and her recently renewed faith and trust in God are thrown into question again. And without warning, her perfect life is thrown into question . . .
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from ChristianBook.

Free Book - A Texan's Promise (K/N/E)

Update: 2/27/12 Repeat freebie in all three stores.

A Texan's Promise, the first title in the Heart of a Hero series by Shelley Gray, is a repeat freebie in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble and ChristianBook, courtesy of Christian publisher Abingdon Press.
Book Description
Past promises will be tested as new ones are given...

When Clayton Proffitt, foreman of the Circle Z Ranch in Texas, discovers Vanessa Grant is the victim of her stepfather's advances, Clayton knows he must spirit her away to safety.

As they make their way west, a deep bond develops between Vanessa and Clayton- far more significant than mere friendship or his sense of duty. But their journey also brings unexpected confrontations with Vanessa's stepfather. As Clayton and Vanessa place their faith in God, will they find healing and hope for the future together? Written by NY T bestselling author Shelley Gray.
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from ChristianBook.

Free Book - Always the Baker, Never the Bride (K/N/E)

Update: 2/27/12 Repeat freebie in all three stores.

Always the Baker, Never the Bride, by Sandra D. Bricker, is a repeat freebie in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble and ChristianBook, courtesy of Christian publisher Abingdon Press.
Book Description
Thirty-six-year-old Emma Rae Travis has been baking specialty cakes and melt-in-your-mouth pastries at The Backstreet Bakery in historic Roswell, just outside of Atlanta, for the last six years. But here's the rub about her job as a baker Emma is diabetic. When she tastes her creations, it can only be in the most minute portions. Emma is considered an artisan for the stunning creme brulee wedding cake that won her the Passionate Palette Award last year, but she's never even had one full slice of it.

When Jackson Drake hears about this local baker who has won a prestigious award for her wedding cake artistry, he tells his assistant to be sure and include her in the pastry tastings scheduled at his new wedding destination hotel the following week. And for Jackson, that particular day has started out badly with two workmen trapped in a broken elevator and a delivery of several dozen 300-thread-count bed linens in the wrong size abandoned in the lobby. But when the arrogant baker he met a week prior in Roswell stumbles into the dining room with a platter of pastries and a bucketful of orders, he knows for certain: It's going to be a really rotten day.

Can these two ill-suited players master the high-wire act and make a go of their new business venture? Or will they take each other crashing downward, without a net? And will the surprise wedding at The Tanglewood be theirs?
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from ChristianBook.

Today's Deals

Today is the last day to take advantage of this KSO deals:
There are several albums in the $5 (pre-coupon) range and if you are into Classical Music, there is one at $1.99 and another at $2.49 that are good choices.

A Drowned Maiden's Hair ($0.99), by Newbery Medalist Laura Amy Schlitz, is today's Kindle Deal of the Day. Looks like one you'll want in your library if you have middle grade readers in your household (or will have in the future).
Book Description
Maud Flynn is known at the orphanage for her impertinence. So when the charming Miss Hyacinth chooses her to take home, the girl is pleased but baffled, until she learns of her new role: helping to stage elaborate séances for bereaved patrons. As Maud is drawn deeper into the deception, playing the "secret child," she is torn between her need to please and her growing conscience. It takes a shocking betrayal to make clear just how heartless her so-called guardians are. Filled with fascinating details of turn-of-the-century spiritualism and page-turning suspense, this novel from Newbery Medalist Laura Amy Schlitz features a feisty heroine whom readers will not soon forget.

Mirage Men ($1.70 / £1.09 UK), by Mark Pilkington, is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $9.99).
Book Description
In Mirage Men Mark Pilkington explores the complex, symbiotic relationship between the US military and intelligence agencies and the UFO enigma itself, together with its attendant culture of researchers, enthusiasts, mystics and charlatans. Amongst them are the Mirage Men, a close-knit group of men and women whose careers span science, medicine, the military and the intelligence services. All believe that they have received parts of a flying-saucer-shaped puzzle whose final pieces lie tantalisingly out of reach. Yet for how long?

Many of the Mirage Men believe that official ‘disclosure’ – a government announcement about the extraterrestrial presence – is just around the corner.The catch is that the world of the Mirage Men may actually be the real world, or at least the world as it really is – it’s just that the rest of us haven’t realised it yet. If we listen to the Mirage Men, somewhere deep within the sprawling apparatus of US government lies the ultimate truth about UFOs and extraterrestrials. This is the Holy Grail that the Mirage Men are chasing.

Mirage Men is not your average UFO book: it is about UFOs, those who believe in them, and those who would have us believe in them.

Fifty-to-One ($1.99 Kindle, B&N), by Charles Ardai, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle. This is the 50th book published by small press Hard Case Crime.
Book Description
CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF HARD CASE CRIME!

Okay, not really. But what if, instead of having been founded 50 books ago, Hard Case Crime had been founded 50 years ago, by a rascal out to make a quick buck off the popularity of pulp fiction? Such a fellow might make a few enemies – especially after publishing a supposed non-fiction account of a heist at a Mob-run nightclub, actually penned by an 18-year-old showgirl. With both the cops and the crooks after them, our heroes are about to learn that reading and writing pulp novels is a lot more fun than living them...

If you are a big football fan and like video games, you might want to check out this current deal: $10 Off Madden NFL 12 plus Get the Madden NFL 12 (Kindle Fire Edition) Free.
Game Description
Madden NFL 12 continues the rich tradition of the storied franchise by bringing fans closer to the NFL than ever before. Featuring all 32 teams, stadiums, and your favorite players in the league, Madden NFL 12 is true to the game.

All-New Collision System
Now maintain full control of players up to the point of impact - from tackling to blocking - providing the most authentic collisions in franchise history. This new system uses a player's momentum and over 100 new tackle animations, including 40 gang tackles, to provide more impactful hits, stolen tackles, and consecutive hit tackling.

Advanced Defensive AI
Over 100 defensive A.I. enhancements resulting in the smartest Madden defense ever. Players in zone and man coverage will properly recognize and react to plays, including the ability to break out of assignments when appropriate, resulting in a defensive team that truly works together.

Custom Playbooks
The #1 most requested feature by fans in recent years, allows you to build the ultimate game plan by modifying an existing playbook or creating your own by selecting up to 400 offensive or defensive plays from 75 different playbooks. Integrate your custom playbook into a game plan for use with the improved GameFlow system, which executes an authentic, situational game plan for you.

Broadcast Redefined
Experience NFL Sundays like never before with completely overhauled presentation, including 32 team-specific run outs featuring mascots and cheerleaders, over 500 dynamic broadcast cameras authentic to every NFL stadium, innovative "real" on-field cameras shot by expert NFL Films cameramen, and a network inspired new broadcast graphics package.

Unprecedented On-Field Authenticity
Hundreds of visual improvements across all areas of the game including: new player equipment, helmet stickers, pylon and ball physics, a player degradation system that affects uniforms and helmets based on weather and field surface, 3D grass, and new player specific animations that showcase the personalities of each NFL player.

Build a Franchise
Over 100 new features and enhancements for franchise fanatics that includes expanded rosters, cut days in preseason, an all-new rookie scouting system, a free-agent bidding system, player roles, hot and cold streaks in-season, and much more.


The Fine Print:
Until February 5, 2012 get $10 off Madden NFL 12 for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, or Wii plus get the Madden NFL 12 (Kindle Fire Edition) for free.

Simply add any version of Madden NFL 12 from the list below to your cart and proceed to checkout in order to receive the promotion. You will receive a $4.99 promotional code valid on Madden NFL 12 (Kindle Fire Edition) via e-mail within two days after your order ships.
  • Valid when shipped and sold by Amazon.com, while supplies last.
  • Shipping fees and taxes may apply.
  • Amazon reserves the right to change or terminate this promotion at any time.
  • The promotion is limited to one per customer.
  • Offer expires at 11:59 p.m. PST on Sunday, February 5.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Seven Free Books from New Word City (K)

There are seven new free titles from New Word City today (and three still free from their earlier promotions). Here are the new titles:
  1. The Real Pirates of the Caribbean, by Colin Woodard
  2. The Making of The Constitution, by Thomas Fleming
  3. George Washington's First Test, by Thomas Fleming
  4. The Story of Flight, by Andrew Curry
  5. Harry Truman Gives 'Em Hell, by Willard Sterne Randall and Nancy Nahra
  6. What You Can Learn from Dwight D. Eisenhower, by Maurice Coyle and Donna Sammons Carpenter
  7. The Wikinomics Way, by Don Tapscott and Anthony Williams