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Monday, February 13, 2012

Free Book - Have a New Husband by Friday (K/N)

Update: 2/13/12 Now free in the US Kindle store.

Have a New Husband by Friday: How to Change His Attitude, Behavior & Communication in 5 Days (US/UK), by Kevin Leman, is free for UK customers in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble, courtesy of Christian publisher Revell. It should be free for US Kindle customers by morning.
Book Description
Have a new husband by Friday? Is that even possible? Dr. Kevin Leman says it is. The New York Times bestselling author and self-help guru shows even the most frustrated wife how she can have a new husband by Friday. Leman reminds any wife that if what she's doing to get better behavior out of her husband isn't working now, it never will. So it's time for a change. That means it's time to change her own patterns of behavior. Here's how Leman suggests she handle it day to day:
  • Monday: Secrets Revealed: Cracking the Male Code?
    Yes, you're different species, but you can work together in harmony.
  • Tuesday: Creatures from Another Planet . . . or Creatures of Habit?
    To understand men, you have to track 'em to their den.
  • Wednesday: Think about What You Want to Say, Then Divide It by Ten
    How to talk so your guy will really listen . . . and listen so your guy will really talk.
  • Thursday: Think of Him as a Seal Waiting for a Three-Pound Fish
    Why making love to your man is a key to who he is and how satisfied he'll be, and what's in it for you.
  • Friday: It Takes a Real Woman to Make a Man Feel like a Real Man
    How to open your man's heart, revolutionize your love life, and turn him into the knight you've always dreamed of.
Dr. Kevin Leman, an internationally known psychologist, humorist, radio and television personality, and speaker, has taught and entertained audiences worldwide with his wit and commonsense psychology. He has made hundreds of house calls for radio and television programs, including The View, Fox & Friends, Today, CBS's The Early Show, Janet Parshall's America, CNN's American Morning, The 700 Club, Life Today with James Robison, and Focus on the Family. He has also served as a contributing family psychologist to Good Morning America.
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.

Free Book - Medical Error (K/N/E)

Update: 3/1/12 Repeat freebie on Kindle and from B&N and ChristianBook.
Update: 2/14/12 Now free from ChristianBook.
Update: 2/13/12 Now free in the US Kindle store.

Medical Error (US/UK), the second in the Prescription for Trouble series by Richard Mabry, is a repeat freebie for UK customers in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble, courtesy of Christian publisher Abingdon Press. It should be free for US Kindle customers by morning.
Book Description
Dr. Anna McIntyre's life was going along just fine until someone else started living it. Her patient died because of an identity mix-up, her medical career is in jeopardy because of forged prescriptions, and her credit is in ruins. She thought things couldn t get worse, but that was before she opened the envelope and saw a positive HIV test with her name on it. Her allies are two men who are also competing for her affection. Dr. Nick Valentine is a cynic who carries a load of guilt. Attorney Ross Donovan is a recovering alcoholic. The deeper Anna digs to discover who's behind the identity thefts, the higher the stakes. Finally, when her life is on the line, Anna finds that her determination to clear her name might have been a prescription for trouble.
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from ChristianBook.

Free Book - Walking on Broken Glass (K/N/E)

Update: 2/14/12 Now free from ChristianBook.
Update: 2/13/12 Now free in the US Kindle store.

Walking on Broken Glass (US/UK), by Christa Allan, is a repeat freebie for UK customers in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble, courtesy of Christian publisher Abingdon Press. It should be free for US Kindle customers by morning.
Book Description
Leah Thornton’s life, like her Southern Living home, has great curb appeal. But a paralyzing encounter with a can of frozen apple juice in the supermarket shatters the façade, forcing her to admit that all is not as it appears. When her best friend gets in Leah’s face about her reliance on alcohol to avoid dealing with her life, Leah must make an agonizing choice—seek help against her husband’s wishes or put herself first for once. Joy and sadness converge and unwelcome insights intrude, testing Leah’s commitment to sobriety, her marriage, her motherhood, and her faith.
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from ChristianBook.

Free Book - The Pastor's Wife (K/N/E)

Update: 2/14/12 Now free from ChristianBook.
Update: 2/13/12 Now free in the US Kindle store.

The Pastor's Wife (US/UK), by Jennifer Allee, is a repeat freebie for UK customers in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble, courtesy of Christian publisher Abingdon Press. It should be free for US Kindle customers by morning.
Book Description
Maura Sullivan never intended to set foot in Granger, Ohio, again. But when circumstances force her to return, she must face all the disappointments she tried so hard to leave behind: a husband who ignored her, a congregation she couldn’t please, and a God who took away everything she ever loved.

Nick Shepherd thought he had put the past behind him, until the day his estranged wife walked back into town. Intending only to help Maura through her crisis of faith, Nick finds his feelings for her never died. Now, he must admit the mistakes he made, how he hurt his wife, and find a way to give and receive forgiveness.

As God works in both of their lives, Nick and Maura start to believe they can repair their broken relationship and reunite as man and wife. But Maura has one more secret to tell Nick before they can move forward. It’s what ultimately drove her to leave him six years earlier, and the one thing that can destroy the fragile trust they’ve built.
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from ChristianBook.

Free Book - The Call of Zulina (K/N/E)

Update: 2/14/12 Now free from ChristianBook.
Update: 2/13/12 Now free in the US Kindle store.

The Call of Zulina (US/UK), the first title in the Grace in Africa series by Kay Marshall Strom, is a repeat freebie for UK customers in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble, courtesy of Christian publisher Abingdon Press. It should be free for US Kindle customers by morning.
Book Description
The Grace in Africa series is a sweeping three-part historical saga of slavery and freedom that takes the reader from an island off the west coast of Africa to Southern plantations and finally on to Canada. All her life, Grace Winslow, the daughter of a mixed marriage between an English sea captain and an African princess, has been sheltered from the truth about the family business--the capture and trade of slaves.

Set in 1787 in West Africa, The Call of Zulina opens as the scorching harmattan winds blow. Desperate to avoid marriage to an odious suitor, Grace escapes the family compound only to be caught up in a slave revolt at the fortress of Zulina. Soon, she begins to grasp the brutality and ferocity of the family business. Held for ransom, viciously maimed by a runaway slave, and threatened with death, Grace is finally jerked into reality and comes to sympathize with the plight of the captives. She admires their strength and courage and is genuinely moved by the African Cabeto’s passion, determination, and willingness to sacrifice anything, including his own life, for his people’s freedom.
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from ChristianBook.

Free Book - From Ashes to Honor (K/N/E)

Update: 2/14/12 Now free from ChristianBook.
Update: 2/13/12 Now free in the US Kindle store.

From Ashes to Honor (US/UK), the first in the First Responders series by Loree Lough, is a repeat freebie for UK customers in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble, courtesy of Christian publisher Abingdon Press. It should be free for US Kindle customers by morning.
Book Description
If he had only answered that last phone call from the World Trade Center . . .Minutes before two jumbo jets changed U.S. history, New York police officer Austin Finley ignored the call from his brother, who’d been bugging him for days. Trying to live with his one regret causes hatred and bitterness to consume Austin, and when counselor Mercy Samara recommends desk duty, Austin resigns. Haunted by her own memories of 9/11, Mercy takes a job as a school counselor in Baltimore. When Austin, now an EMT, responds to an emergency at Mercy’s school, both are stunned and wary.Finally their common—and painful—memories turn suspicion into friendship, then romance.But hard questions linger: Can they truly move beyond their past harsh judgments and harsh words? Will their past finally bring them closer or—as the tenth anniversary of 9/11 draws near—drive them farther apart?
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from ChristianBook.

Free Book - Shrouded in Silence (K/N/E)

Update: 2/14/12 Now free from ChristianBook.
Update: 2/13/12 Now free in the US Kindle store.

Shrouded in Silence (US/UK), by Robert Wise, is a repeat freebie for UK customers in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble, courtesy of Christian publisher Abingdon Press. It should be free for US Kindle customers by morning.
Book Description
Determined to find an answer, Jack and Michelle Townsend set out on a quest to find the original ending to the Gospel of Mark.

Following ancient clues, they head for Rome, but what starts out as a scholarly search turns violent as two separate groups strive to stop the Townsends, plunging their quiet research into chaos.

After a bomb destroys their office, the Townsends are pushed to the limits of their determination and commitment to God’s will. Can faith in God’s purposes endure in a swirl of conspiracy and espionage that brings the couple to the brink of death?
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from ChristianBook.

Free Book - Young and in Love (K/N/DF)

Update: 2/14/12 Now free from ChristianBook (DRM-free).
Update: 2/13/12 Now free in the US Kindle store.

Young and in Love: Challenging the Unnecessary Delay of Marriage (US/UK), by Ted Cunningham, is for free UK customers in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble, courtesy of Christian publisher David C. Cook. It should be free for US Kindle customers by morning.
Book Description
What if We’ve Got This Purity Thing All Wrong?

In Young and In Love, pastor, author, and speaker Ted Cunningham boldly argues that young love should be celebrated, even promoted. Early marriages can be God’s will and often provide the key to sexual purity. With this in mind, Cunningham shares the secrets to a successful early marriage with those in their late teens and early twenties who are in love.

This book suits anyone experiencing young love who struggles with naysayers who dismiss or hinder a God-designed relationship. It also addresses young adults who struggle with the teachings of other popular books on abstinence or on delaying dating or marriage. And it offers parents and pastors who feel concerned about a relationship a source of wise counsel that carefully prepares young adults for a godly marriage.
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from ChristianBook.

Free Book - The Transforming Power of the Gospel (K/N)

Update: 2/13/12 Now free in the US Kindle store.

The Transforming Power of the Gospel (US/UK), by Jerry Bridges, is free for UK customers in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble, courtesy of Christian publisher Navpress. It should be free for US Kindle customers by morning.
Book Description
The apostle Paul writes that we are to be transformed, but for many Christians, figuring out how to approach spiritual transformation can be elusive. Bestselling author Jerry Bridges helps us understand that we have available to us the ultimate power source for true spiritual growth: the gospel.

In The Transforming Power of the Gospel, Bridges guides you through a thorough examination of:
  • what the biblical meaning of grace is and how it applies to your life
  • how Jesus’ work in His life and death applies to the believer in justification and adoption
  • why basic spiritual disciplines are necessary for spiritual growth
  • what role the Holy Spirit plays in both definitive and progressive sanctification
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Free Book Roundup

Today's backlist/small press/indie free books on Kindle (not likely to be free for long; double check prices before one-clicking):
So, tell me - do you use these lists? Are you finding a few to read? If not, they take quite a while to put together and I can skip posting them, if no one is looking thru them...

7 Free Books from Kaplan and New Word City (K)

New Word City has another batch of free books in the Kindle store, which are likely to only remain free for a day or so, and Kaplan Test Prep has added a couple of intro books for those planning for college entrance exams.
  1. Intro to ACT, by Kaplan Test Prep
  2. Intro to SAT, by Kaplan Test Prep
  3. Marlon Brando, A Life In Film, by Richard Schickel
  4. George Washington, Spymaster Extraordinaire, by Thomas Fleming
  5. George Washington's First Love, by Thomas Fleming
  6. Ernest Shackleton, Exploring Leadership, by Nancy F. Koehn
  7. Clint Eastwood, A Life

Free Book - Grazing The Long Acre (K)

Grazing The Long Acre, by Gwyneth Jones, is free in the Kindle store.
Book Description
Gwyneth Jones’s novels have been acclaimed for three decades, and her modern fairytales Seven Tales And A Fable won two World Fantasy Awards in 1996. And now we have Grazing the Long Acre, the first UK collection of her short fiction. Some of the stories selected, including the BSFA award-winning “La Cenerentola”, have been anthologised; several have never before been reprinted. The earliest here “The Eastern Succession” was written in 1985, the most recent “In The Forest Of The Queen” in 2007.

The settings range from a lyrical, Zelazny-influenced far-future South East Asia, to black comedy sci-fi in the New Space Opera style. There are ghosts and miracles, magical science and scientific magic; characters from novels, investigations of sexual difference, speculations on a future in which physics and neuroscience move into convergence, interrogations of our fascination with the other. Gwyneth Jones’s capacity to move and astonish the reader is undimmed, when distilled into the shorter form.

Free Book - Stein, Stoned (K/N)

Stein, Stoned, by Hal Ackerman, is free in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble, courtesy of Adams Media. An unrelated, but on topic indie book that we've been giggling about over on MobileReads is The Stoner's Cookbook, which is also free today (Kindle only), for those who are a little more closely acquainted with this particular substance (also, please remember to use a CLEAN, UNUSED kitty litter box for that cake at the end of the book...).
Book Description
A soft-boiled detective story where The Big Lebowski meets Fletch.

In the sixties, Harry Stein was the foremost authority on cannabis, writing a book on indoor cultivation and inventing thirteen different hybrids. Nowadays, he stays straight to keep joint custody of his daughter. But when a crop of "orchids" goes missing, Stein must re-enter the haze he thought he'd left behind.

Hal Ackerman has been on the faculty of the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television for the past twenty-four years. His book Write Screenplays That Sell . . . The Ackerman Way, is in its third printing.
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
You can also access an older edition online.

Today's Deals

Today's Kindle Deal of the Day features Four Romance Novels, all part of the McCloud Brothers series by Shannon McKenna, at 99 cents apiece. For those that don't like to read a series out of order, I'm including links to the missing ones in between (which are at bargain prices, as well), as well as the latest in the series:
If you pick up the first seven in the series, that averages out to $2.56/title and even adding the last one in the series only brings the average up to $3.24. That's a pretty good deal for romantic suspense/thriller fans; for those who are tired of glittery vampires and paranormal monsters/gods with awesome powers (which are more and more unbelievably overcome), this will be a nice change of pace, as it appears that only a tiny hint of the paranormal exists in this series (psychic powers, #7).
Standing In The Shadows #2
Ex-FBI agent Connor McCloud can never forget the day he was set up to die at the hands of trusted friend and fellow agent Ed Riggs. Hard justice and loyalty to his badge have cost Connor what he wants most--Ed's shy, studious daughter Erin. He can never have her now, but her beauty still haunts and torments his every waking hour and his most fevered erotic dreams. But now that his old enemy Kurt Novak has returned, Connor is prepared to do anything to protect the vulnerable young woman from a killer who has vowed a brutal payback ... a killer with a predator's lethal patience.

Erin has been harboring secret fantasies about Connor McCloud since she first laid eyes on him--but that was before his testimony sent her father to jail. Her world is falling apart and it's all she can do to hold her family together. But now Connor is knocking on her door, telling her she needs his protection, whether she wants it or not. He won't give up and he won't stay away. He's sworn to guard her life with his own and his fierce protectiveness awakens long-buried feelings--and a fiery sexuality deep within her soul....


Out of Control #3
In Behind Closed Doors and Standing in the Shadows, Shannon McKenna introduced the McCloud Brothers: intense, rugged, and super-sexy. Now, Davy McCloud is about to meet a woman he can't trust-or live without...

Disillusioned P.I. Davy McCloud has an ironclad rule: never follow blind impulse when it comes to women. But he breaks it the instant gorgeous Margo Vetter shows up to teach at the gym next door. The sexual hunger-and the instinctual protectiveness-that she awakens is much too strong to resist. Broke and on the run, framed for a murder she didn't commit, Margot has no one to turn to but Davy McCloud. But the closer he comes, the more Margot discovers that holding back-or hiding-from this enigmatic, powerful man is impossible. In every way...

Then passion flares with unexpected intensity. But Margot's past has finally caught up with her, and life is about to get more than complicated. It's turning deadly...


Edge Of Midnight #4
On the very day an arsonist burns down Liv Endicott's bookstore in a small town in the Washington mountains, she finds fate has another shock in store for her. Amid the smoke, rubble, and tears, Sean McCloud appears, calling her name. He's every inch the man he always was--the man she kept on wanting. But wanting is not the same as trusting, and she doesn't dare let him get too close. Yet a ruthless killer is gunning for Liv, and she'll die unless they join forces to unearth a chilling truth--and come together in a blaze of searing passion. . .

Fade To Midnight #7
Gone But Not Forgotten...

When the McCloud brothers discover that Kev is still alive, they won't rest until they find him ... Beaten and tortured, Kev Larsen was found eighteen years earlier in a warehouse alley. He survived his brutal ordeal, but his memories before that night were completely erased. When he nearly dies saving someone from drowning, the brain surgery he has to save his life triggers fragmented, terrifying images. With only these fractured scenes to guide him, Kev is determined to unlock the secrets to his past.

Edie Parrish has always been good at not letting anyone get too close to her. If the wrong person were to learn of her unusual gift, her life would be immediately jeopardized. But when Kev Larsen discovers who she really is, Edie's only choice is to trust him. And soon, Edie can't resist her consuming desire for him—even though she knows she'll have to pay a price for it.

The Cold, Cold Ground ($2.04 / £1.29 UK), the first title in the Detective Sean Duffy series by Adrian McKinty, is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (no US edition).
Book Description
Belfast. Spring 1981. Hunger strikes. Riots. Power cuts. A homophobic serial killer with a penchant for opera.

A young woman's suicide that may yet turn out to be murder.

On the surface, the events are unconnected, but then things -- and people -- aren't always what they seem.

Detective Sergeant Duffy is the man tasked with trying to get to the bottom of it all. It's no easy job -- especially when it turns out that one of the victims was involved in the IRA, but last seen discussing business with someone from the UVF. Add to that the fact that as a Catholic policemen, it doesn't matter which side he's on, because neither side trust him -- and Sergeant Duffy really is in a no-win situation.

Fast-paced, evocative and brutal, Cold, Cold Ground is a brilliant depection of Belfast at the height of the Troubles -- and a cop treading a thin, thin line....

An Amish Wedding ($3.49 Kindle, B&N), an anthology from Christian publisher Thomas Nelson, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.
Book Description
Three Amish women yearn for the perfect wedding.

"A Perfect Plan" by Beth Wiseman
Priscilla King has been planning to marry Chester Lapp since she was sixteen years old, and when Chester proposes on Priscilla's nineteenth birthday, wedding plans begin immediately. What wasn't planned was all the problems the couple encounters as their big day approaches. A house disaster, a ruined wedding dress, and a sick attendant all make the couple wonder if God's sending them signs to call things off.

"The Perfect Match" by Kathleen Fuller
Naomi Fisher has had great success at matchmaking her family members and friends. Now with her sister's wedding right around the corner, Naomi wonders why she's able to find husbands for her friends and family, but not one for herself.

"The Perfect Secret" by Kelly Long
Rose Bender has recently become engaged to handsome but somber Luke Raber. She agrees out of a sense of duty and a willingness to settle for solid friendship as a basis for the engagement. But as she watches her friend's excitement over her soon-to-be wedding, Rose wonders if there shouldn't be more to her relationship with Luke. She begins to examine Luke and his life more closely and is amazed when she stumbles upon an exciting, secret side of him that engages her mind and heart.

Free Book - On Writing Romance (K/N)

On Writing Romance: How to Craft a Novel That Sells, by Leigh Michaels, is free in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble.
Book Description
Sweep Readers Off Their Feet With a Romance They'll Never Forget

In On Writing Romance, award-winning romance novelist Leigh Michaels talks you through each stage of the writing and publishing process. From the origins and evolution of the romance novel to establishing a vital story framework to writing that last line to seeking out appropriate publishers, everything you ever wanted to know about writing a romance novel is here. In addition to a comprehensive breakdown of more than thirty romance subgenres, including such categories as historical, inspirational, Regency, and sweet traditional, you'll discover how to:
  • Steer clear of clichés and stereotypes by studying the genre
  • Craft engaging and realistic heroes and heroines readers will adore
  • Convincingly develop the central couple's blossoming relationship
  • Add conflict by utilizing essential secondary characters like the "other woman"
  • Use tension and timing to make your love scenes sizzle with sensuality
  • Get your characters to happily-ever-after with an ending readers will always remember
Plus, read a sample query letter, cover letter, and synopsis, and learn how to properly prepare you romance novel for submission to agents and editors. On Writing Romance has everything you need to leave readers swooning!
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.

Free Book - The Life Recovery Devotional (K/N/E)

The Life Recovery Devotional, by Stephen Arterburn and David Stoop, is free in the Kindle store and from Barnes & Noble and ChristianBook, courtesy of Christian publisher Tyndale House.
Book Description
Inspired by the Life Recovery Bible, The Life Recovery Devotional takes readers on a devotional journey through the Twelve Steps, with thirty inspiring and encouraging meditations from Scripture for each step along the road to recovery. Opens with a complete listing of the Twelve Steps. Also features helpful and encouraging Bible verses from the New Living Translation.
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.
Get the free ebook from ChristianBook.

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Win a Kindle Fire and a $2,000.00 Gift Card

Amazon is giving away a Kindle Fire plus a $2,0000 gift certificate in their "Dr. Seuss' The Lorax" Movie Sweepstakes.
Enter for a chance to win a Kindle Fire plus a $2,000.00 Amazon.com Gift Card. Use your gift card to build your Kindle Fire library, buy books to donate to your school or library, or shop from millions of other items at Amazon.com.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Begins on 2/10/12, at 12:00:01 a.m. PT and ends on 3/4/12 , at 11:59:59 p.m. PT. Must be a legal resident of the 50 US or DC, 18 or older. See Official Rules for complete details. Sponsor: Amazon Services LLC.

Feel free to share a link to this post via Facebook, Twitter or email and let everyone you know enter.

Save $2 on MP3 Albums

This deal is for everyone, whether you have a Kindle or not!

Save $2 on Valentine's Day MP3 Album Gifts

Note that the offer page says "gifts", but since you can gift the album to yourself, that isn't really an issue. In fact, it also says "Valentine's Day MP3 Albums", but it is really for any album with a price of $5 or more:
Happy Valentine's Day! Through midnight February 14, send any MP3 album of $5 or more to your friends and loved ones, and get $2 off with code GIFTLOVE.
That means that you can choose any album from this month's 100 MP3 Albums for $5 and pay only $3! You do have to use the Gift option, though, as that is the only way to get the page that allows you to enter the promo code, GIFTLOVE, before you checkout:
3. Follow the instructions to personalize your MP3 album gift and click the "Proceed to Checkout" button. Ensure the "Select the entire album as a gift" option is selected. (If you do not currently have a credit card and billing address associated with your account, you will need to add them.)

4. On the checkout page, enter code GIFTLOVE in the box labeled "Have any gift cards, gift certificates, or promotional claim codes?" and click the "Apply" button. Your $2 credit will be added. If you receive an error, make sure you've entered the code correctly and that the promotion is still valid and has not expired.
There is a limit of one per customer, but nothing says that you and your Valentine's Day choice of partner can't send each other an album apiece, so long as you have separate accounts.

Amazon has a button that lets you share the deal with everyone via FaceBook or Twitter, but if you appreciate finding the deal here, why don't you share a link to this post instead?

Today's Deals

For those who have been waiting on the magic 60% off coupon at Fictionwise, here it is: 021012 (Expires: Feb 14 or so, not valid for Samhain titles). I generally get my SF/Fantasy/Mystery magazines, as they are multiformat (work on any ereader) and stay in your library forever. Their "Ereader" format books will only work on their app and original nook readers (not the current models), so most of you will need to avoid the DRM'd titles.

Over at Kobo eBooks, we have a new set of 25% off coupon codes: feb10us25, feb10ca25, feb10au25 and feb10row25 (sorry UK and NZ, you got left out this time, it seems).

Additional formats on these free books are now available (be careful at B&N if not using the links, as some have multiple editions, not all of which are free):
Today is the last day to take advantage of these KSO deals:

Not Comin' Home to You ($0.99), by Lawrence Block, is today's Kindle Deal of the Day. In addition, Open Road seems to have put several more of his titles on sale, many of them originally published under various pseudonyms, including "Jill Emerson". A couple, though, appear to have been published under his own name:
Book Description
A pair of disaffected Midwestern youths meet, fall in love, and light out on a cross-country killing spree...

Jimmie John Hall wasn’t anything until he was a killer, and Betty Dienhardt wasn’t anything until she met Jimmie John Hall. When they get together, sparks fly and bullets follow. The first to go are Betty’s parents, but Betty isn’t bothered. She only wants to be with her man—the first person to ever make her feel special. They set off on a cross-country spree, killing for gas money and food, killing to swap their car for one the police aren’t looking for. As the dragnet draws tighter they only grow closer, riding a road that leads to death because death has surrounded them all the time.

Taking inspiration from the true story of Charles Starkweather and Caril Ann Fugate—the murderous teenage couple whose rampage inspired the film Badlands—Lawrence Block has crafted a pulsating narrative, as enthralling and terrifying as only young love can be.

This ebook features an illustrated biography of Lawrence Block, including rare photos and never-before-seen documents from his personal collection, and a new afterword written by the author.

Look at Me ($1.57 / £0.99 UK), by Pulitzer Prize winner Jennifer Egan, is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $11.99).
Book Description
Reconstructive facial surgery after a car crash so alters Manhattan model Charlotte that, within the fashion world, where one's look is oneself, she is unrecognizable. Seeking a new image, Charlotte engages in an Internet experiment that may both save and damn her. As her story eerily converges with that of a plain, unhappy teenager - another Charlotte - it raises tantalizing questions about identity and reality in contemporary Western culture.

Jennifer Egan's bold, innovative novel, demonstrating her virtuosity at weaving a spellbinding, ambitious tale with language that dazzles, captures the spirit of our times and offers an unsettling glimpse of the future.

Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time ($2.99 Kindle, B&N), by Dava Sobel, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle. If you missed it when it was the Kindle Deal of the Day just after New Year's, then this is a good price to pick it up.
Book Description
Anyone alive in the eighteenth century would have known that “the longitude problem” was the thorniest scientific dilemma of the day-and had been for centuries. Lacking the ability to measure their longitude, sailors throughout the great ages of exploration had been literally lost at sea as soon as they lost sight of land. Thousands of lives, and the increasing fortunes of nations, hung on a resolution. The scientific establishment of Europe-from Galileo to Sir Isaac Newton-had mapped the heavens in both hemispheres in its certain pursuit of a celestial answer. In stark contrast, one man, John Harrison, dared to imagine a mechanical solution-a clock that would keep precise time at sea, something no clock had ever been able to do on land. Longitude is the dramatic human story of an epic scientific quest, and of Harrison's forty-year obsession with building his perfect timekeeper, known today as the chronometer. Full of heroism and chicanery, it is also a fascinating brief history of astronomy, navigation, and clockmaking, and opens a new window on our world.

Free Book - Pandora Park (K)

Piers Anthony has signed up with a digital publisher, for some of his backlist and some unpublished and new works, who has made Pandora Park, a young adult title, free in the Kindle store this weekend. In addition, three other titles are on sale for 99 cents each (only the last of which seems to have been issued in print), which are for a more adult audience Strangely enough, the first two are classified as erotica at Amazon, but that seems to be a more minor element (as is true of all his non-YA titles), while the last is only marked as romance and is very much erotica.

The 99 cent titles:
Book Description

In Albany, New York, Mark hates getting dumped at the mall park while his mom shops. It’s so embarrassing! But Mark quickly changes his mind after he discovers a mysterious path leading to a magical forest.

In Bejing, China, Kelsie finds a similar path, and somehow, she meets Mark in the same magical world!

Now the two friends must work together to unravel the origins of Pandora Park. This wild adventure crosses the globe and is packed with magical powers, dragons, talking unicorns, candy trees, on a roller coaster ride that never stops.

Friday, February 10, 2012

Free and Bargain Book Roundup

If you pre-ordered "The Assassin Trilogy: The Silver Bear, Columbus, Dark Men" by Derek Haas, be sure and open the book that was delivered this week - it appears that a major screw-up or bait-and-switch has been committed, as the product page is missing, the cover is now showing "The Face of the Assassin" and the book is actually the Oxford Classics' edition of Moby Dick. Be sure to write Amazon and both get a refund and protest not getting the book paid for.

For those who ordered The 101 Habits Of Highly Successful Screenwriters: Insider's Secrets from Hollywood's Top Writers, by Karl Iglesias, when it was the nook Daily Find (all of yesterday!), you might want to get a refund and re-order, as the price has dropped from $3.99 to $2.72.

KoboBooks is running a Great Deals on Romantic Reads sale, with 33 titles priced at $0.99 to $2.99.

Fan's of Jennifer Estep's Elemental Assassin series will want to pick up Thread of Death ($1.99), a novella that fits between Spider's Revenge and the forthcoming By a Thread (Feb 28), to be followed by Widow's Web (Aug 21). If you haven't started this series, hopefully you have the first title, Spider's Bite, which was marked down to $1.99 last fall and can get started.
Book Description
Gin Blanco, aka the assassin the Spider, might have finally killed her nemesis, Mab Monroe, but that doesn’t mean that it’s smooth sailing. Gin goes to Mab’s funeral to say her goodbyes and runs into some of Ashland’s most notorious underworld power players, including Jonah McAllister and Phillip Kincaid. McAllister wants her dead, and Kincaid has his own murky motives when it comes to the Spider, and Gin once again finds herself fighting for her life. Only this time, she might wind up in the cemetery right next to Mab….

Easy Pickings ($2.99) is a crossover novella by CE Murphy and Faith Hunter, authors of The Walker Papers (Luna) and Jane Yellowrock (Penguin) series, respectively. In this self-published work, they have teamed up the heroines from each series in a shared world that matches neither ones usual environment.
Book Description
Two heroines. Two magics.

One world.

There’s nowhere in America like the Big Easy. Just ask Jane Yellowrock, shapeshifting vampire killer, whose hunting grounds run the length and breadth of the Bayou.

Just ask Joanne Walker, whose shamanic magic has drawn her to the heart of American Weird.

But it’s not Joanne’s world, and it isn’t Jane’s either. In a New Orleans where Katrina never hit and supposedly-dead vampires stalk the streets, Jane and Jo have to find and defeat the magic that brought them there–or they just might find themselves…

EASY PICKINGS!

Dr. Spock's Baby and Child Care, 9th Edition ($1.99 pre-order), by Benjamin Spock M.D. and Robert Needlman M.D
Book Description
With over 50 million copies in print, Dr. Spock's Baby and Child Care is now available as an e-book. Updated and expanded by Dr. Robert Needlman, this is the book that will answer the questions parents have about raising their children in today's modern world. Providing advice on a wide range of subjects--such as choosing your baby's doctor, what makes toddler's tick, and common behavior concerns--this book also covers new subjects for today's modern family, including: adoption; discipline; the internet, video games, and TV, gay and lesbian parents; divorce; eating disorders; planning for college; and much more.

That's Amore ($1.99 pre-order), by Wendy Markham
Book Description
Ralphie Chickalini is on the verge of living happily ever after with the perfect woman. His fiance Francesca Maria Buccigrossi of Astoria Boulevard is a curvaceous, fun-loving brunette. His late father, whose recent death the family is still mourning, adored Francesca's homemade pesto sauce and declared her a "keeper," his brothers think she's a hoot, his sisters adore her, and his nephews and niece already call her "aunt." But as the wedding date approaches, Ralphie begins to question his love.

When Ralphie bumps into two psychic sisters at a New Year's Eve party, his life will be thrown in an unexpected direction. Daria and Tammy might not look alike, but they do have more than just a maternal bloodline in common. They both have a psychic gift. Tammy or "Madame Tamare" is a storefront psychic who predicted the marriage between Ralphie's brother Dominic's marriage and an unlikely bride. Now, Daria is channeling a spirit with a message for Ralphie: his father has returned to guide him to true love. But Daria has her own life to live, and she plans to move back to Arizona, messages from another world aside. Despite contrary inclinations, Daria and Ralphie will soon realize that their paths are destined to collide.

Everything I Know about Love I Learned from Romance Novels ($2.99), by Sarah Wendell
Book Description
Take a dashing hero with a heart of gold and a mullet of awesome. Add a heroine with a bustle and the will to kick major butt. Then include enough contrivances to keep them fighting while getting them alone and possibly without key pieces of clothing, and what do you have? A romance novel. What else? Enough lessons about life, love, and everything in between to help you with your own happily-ever-after.

Fallen Angel: A Novel ($2.99), by Jeff Struecker and Alton Gansky
Book Description
Major Jeff Struecker (a real life Black Hawk Down veteran) and his award-winning coauthor tell a space-based intelligence story of intense extremes in their new novel, Fallen Angel, named for the "Angel-12" American satellite that is ambushed by China and falls 22,000 miles to land in remote Siberia. U.S. Sgt. Major Eric Moyer and his Special Ops unit are deployed to find Angel-12 and keep its advanced nuclear fuel from enemy hands-and there are many. A Russian shadow government bent on restoring the former USSR pursues the satellite as does the Chinese special forces group that knocked it from the sky. A rash of military and domestic hostage concerns ensues as the stark truth looms: three nations are racing to the satellite, but only one will get there first.

Dirty Work ($1.99 pre-order), by Larry Brown
Book Description
Dirty Work is the story of two men, strangers—one white, the other black. Both were born and raised in Mississippi. Both fought in Vietnam. Both were gravely wounded. Now, twenty-two years later, the two men lie in adjacent beds in a VA hospital.Over the course of a day and a night, Walter James and Braiden Chaney talk of memories, of passions, of fate.

With great vision, humor, and courage, Brown writes mostly about love in a story about the waste of war.

Blues: the Basics ($2.72), by dick weissman
Book Description
Blues: The Basics gives a brief introduction to a century of the blues; it is ideal for students and interested listeners who want to learn more about this treasured American artform. The book is organized chronologically, focusing on the major eras in blues's growth and development. It opens with a chapter defining the blues form and detailing the major genres within it. Next, the author gives the beginning blues fan points on how to listen to and truly enjoy the music. The heart of the book traces blues's growth from its folk origins through early recordings of city blues singers like Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith and country blues stars like Robert Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson. Finally, the author gives an overview of the blues scene today. The book concludes with lists of key recordings, books, and videos.

Blues: The Basics serves as an excellent introduction to the players, the music, and the styles that make blues an enduring and well-loved musical style.

The Secret Sentry: The Untold History of the National Security Agency ($2.99), by Matthew M. Aid
Book Description
In February of 2006, Matthew Aid’s discovery of a massive secret historical document reclassification program then taking place at the National Archives made the front page of the New York Times. This discovery is only the tip of the iceberg of Aid’s more than twenty years of intensive research, culled from thousands of pages of formerly top secret documents. In The Secret Sentry, he details the untold history of America’s most elusive and powerful intelligence agency, the National Security Agency (NSA), since the end of World War II. This will be the first comprehensive history of the NSA, most recently in the news with regards to domestic spying, and will reveal brand new details about controversial episodes including the creation of Israel, the Bay of Pigs, the Berlin Wall, and the invasion of Iraq. Since the beginning of the Cold War, the NSA has become the most important source of intelligence in the US government: 60% of the president’s daily briefing comes from the NSA. Matthew Aid will reveal just how this came to be, and why the NSA has gone to such great lengths to keep its history secret.

There Is No Me Without You: One Woman’s Odyssey to Rescue Her Country’s Children ($2.99), by Melissa Fay Greene
Book Description
Two-time National Book Award nominee Melissa Fay Greene puts a human face on the African AIDS crisis with this powerful story of one woman working to save her country’s children.

After losing her husband and daughter, Haregewoin Teferra, an Ethiopian woman of modest means, opened her home to some of the thousands of children in Addis Ababa who have been left as orphans. There Is No Me Without You is the story of how Haregewoin transformed her home into an orphanage and day-care center and began facilitating adoptions to homes all over the world, written by a star of literary nonfiction who is herself an adoptive parent. At heart, it is a book about children and parents, wherever they may be, however they may find each other.

You just have time to study a few ideas from 1001 Ways to Be Romantic: Now Completely Revised and More Romantic Than Ever ($2.99) or 1001 Ways to Be Romantic: More Romantic Than Ever ($2.99), by Gregory J.P Godek, before next Tuesday.
Book Description
More Romantic than Ever!

Sure, you could buy some roses.
Yes, you could cook an elegant romantic dinner.
Of course, you could give a heart-shaped box of chocolates.

But sometimes you want to do more than that. Sometimes you want to show just how much you really care, how much passion you really feel, and how much more your partner means to you than absolutely anything else.

Packed with unique suggestions, easy gestures, and thoughtful gift ideas, 1001 Ways to Be Romantic is "worth memorizing" (Boston Herald). More than one and a half million people have used this book to kick up the fun and romance, making it a modern classic and #1 national bestseller. It's a must-have for anyone, in any relationship, who wants to spark some more love in their lives.

For those who have no one to practice the above techniques upon, you might be interested in Love by the Numbers: How to Find Great Love or Reignite the Love You Have Through the Power of Numerology ($2.69), by Glynis McCants (and you thought studying math was a waste of time! Oh, wait...).
Book Description
The love you have always desired is in the Numbers?

International bestselling author and media sensation Glynis McCants created this exciting guide to love through the power of Numerology because she believes that the greatest gift one can receive is that of true and lasting love. The secret is in understanding you and your partner by the Numbers, and gaining the insights you need to keep your love thriving!

Glynis' celebrated system is a contemporary spin on the ancient Science of Numerology that is easy to use and amazingly accurate. She'll teach you the simple way to create a Numerology Blueprint that reveals what kind of mate would fulfill your?or a potential mate's?innermost needs and desires.
  • If you're single, you'll learn how to pick the right partner from the start!
  • If you're in a relationship that's lost its spark, you'll have the information you need to reignite the passionate love you once had.
With Love by the Numbers as your guide, you can ensure that your love relationship stays healthy, satisfying, and on track for a lifetime.

Today's backlist/small press/indie free books on Kindle (not likely to be free for long; double check prices before one-clicking):

22 Free Books from New Word City (K)

New Word City has another batch of free books in the Kindle store, which are likely to only remain free for a day or so.
  1. Heart of Dark Chocolate, by Rowan Jacobsen *
  2. Parma: Ham, Cheese, and the Taste of Time, by Rowan Jacobsen *
  3. The Perfect Chef, by Todd Kliman
  4. Me, Myself, and Ribeye, by Steven Rinella (from the Travel Channel)
  5. Murder In Yosemite, by Joshua Hammer
  6. The Quest for the North Pole, by Charles F. Horne
  7. The Earthquake of Messina, by F. Marion Crawford
  8. Managing Up, by Captain D. Michael Abrashoff
  9. Lead from the Front, by Edwin D. Fuller
  10. How McDonald's Got Its Groove Back
  11. How Coca-Cola Got Its Fizz Back
  12. Andrew Carnegie: From Rags To Richest (American Lives), by Willard Sterne Randall, Nancy Nahra
  13. L. Frank Baum: The Wonderful Creator Of Oz, by Bruce Watson
  14. Frank Capra: A Life In Film, by Richard Schickel
  15. John Ford: A Life In Film, by Richard Schickel
  16. Ronald Reagan, A Life In Film, by Richard Schickel
  17. What Presidents Say About Each Other, by Thomas Fleming (repeat)
  18. George Patton Leads The Charge, by Willard Sterne Randall, Nancy Nahra
  19. As Auschwitz Crumbles, by Andrew Curry
  20. Unconditional Surrender: The Policy That Prolonged World War II, by Thomas Fleming
  21. The Real Lafayette, by Thomas Fleming
  22. The Real Stalin, by Andrew Curry
* Rowan Jacobsen is an award winning food writer and has several books put out by Bloomsbury that look interesting, including Fruitless Fall: The Collapse of the Honey Bee and the Coming Agricultural Crisis

Free Book - Hearts at Stake (N)

Hearts at Stake ($2.51 Kindle), by Alyxandra Harvey, is this week's Free Friday selection from Barnes & Noble. For those that could only get one of the Kobo coupons to work (and chose the more expensive title), this is your chance to pick up the other one at no charge. Since there is no coupon code on this one, you can report the lower price to Amazon and they may match it.
Book Description
On Solange’s sixteenth birthday, she is going to wake up dead. As if that’s not bad enough, she also has to outwit her seven overprotective older brothers, avoid the politics involved with being the only daughter born to an ancient vampire dynasty, and elude Kieran Black-agent of an anti-vampire league who is searching for his father’s killer and is intent on staking Solange and her entire family.

Luckily she has her own secret weapon-her human best friend Lucy-who is willing to defend Solange’s right to a normal life, whether she’s being smothered by her well-intentioned brothers or abducted by a power-hungry queen. Two unlikely alliances are formed in a race to save Solange’s eternal life-Lucy and Solange’s brother Nicholas, and Solange and Kieran Black-in a dual romance that is guaranteed to jump start any romance-lover’s heart.

Even fans of the genre who’ve seen it all will find a fresh read with kick-butt characters and family dynamics that ring true for all brothers and sisters-vampire or otherwise.
Get the free ebook from Barnes & Noble.