Under the Dome pre-order price drop to $7.99

It's not as good a deal as the momentary drop to $7.20 a while back, but Under the Dome, by Stephen King (December 24, 2009), can be pre-ordered now in the Kindle store for $7.99.

If you have already pre-ordered at a higher price, I'd recommend canceling that order and re-ordering at the new price (but do so quickly, after confirming the new price, as it can go up again at any time). Apparently the pre-order price guarantee at Amazon may not cover Kindle books, as they don't display the "Pre-Order Price Guarantee" banner that is required (and there are reports of people who have and haven't received lower prices on Kindle pre-orders).. Easy enough to order again, since it's only a couple of extra clicks.

12 Days of Christmas (Music) Contest at Amazon

Amazon is giving away 12 prize packages in their 12 Days of Christmas Music Contest, each one selected by a different musical artist/group. They also are having one or more of the artist's CD's on sale the day that they are featured; today it is A Cherry Cherry Christmas, by Neil Diamond, for $8.99. on CD or as an MP3 Download

Every day's entry is different, so I've put up a link to the contest in the top banner, so you (and I) can find it each day to enter. The contest started yesterday (you can still enter that day's contest) and continues through through Thursday, December 17.

Free Audiobook - The Brothers Karamazov

ChristianAudio's free download this month is The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky, narrated by Simon Vance (various Kindle versions $0.95 and up). After adding the audiobook to your cart, enter the coupon code DEC2009 during checkout. There are also a few other Dostoevsky on sale there, this month, most at $7.49; you can see them at the bottom of the free download page.

Fyodor Dostoevsky's crowning life work, The Brothers Karamazov, stands among the greatest novels in world literature. His exploration of faith, doubt, morality, and the place of suffering in life are equaled in no other work of literature, save the Bible.

The book explores the possible role of four brothers in the unresolved murder of their father, Fyodor Karamazov. At the same, it carefully explores the personalities and inclinations of the brothers themselves. Their psyches together represent the full spectrum of human nature, and continuum of faith and doubt. Ultimately this novel seeks to understand the real meaning of existence and includes much beneficial philosophical and spiritual discussion that moves the reader towards faith.

This new abridgment done exclusively for Hovel Audio by Russian Studies scholar Thomas Beyer keeps the important religious themes of the novel intact. It is an excellent way for the admirer of Dostoevsky to refresh himself, or to introduce Dostoevsky to a friend who has yet to experience the joy of reading his works.

Fyodor Dostoevsky (1821-1881) writes with a passion and keen insight of biblical grace like no other modern novelist. His works Crime and Punishment and The Idiot testify to his great skill. The Brothers Karamazov has been hailed by readers for over a century as one of the finest achievements in all of western literature.

Thomas R. Beyer is Professor of Russian at Middlebury College in Vermont. He holds three degrees in Slavic Literature including a Ph.D. from the University of Kansas. In his decades of teaching, Tom Beyer has read The Brothers Karamazov dozens of times. His abridgment of the novel for Hovel Audio shows his thorough knowledge of his subject.

Get your free audio download HERE (be sure to use the coupon code shown, so you won't get charged). After you finishing checking out, you will be asked which format you prefer - select MP3 if you want to be able to play the book on your Kindle.

Free Book - When the Time Was Fulfilled

When the Time Was Fulfilled, by Eberhard Arnold, Christoph Blumhardt, & Alfred Delp, can be downloaded in one of several formats, including PRC for the Kindle and EPUB for the Sony or Nook.

Book Description
The meditations in this collection are written by three seekers who struggled hard and long to find, in the words of Søren Kierkegaard, “the contemporary Christ.” They witness to the fact that the birth of Jesus is more than history – it is a reality – but only for those who feel their need and are personally ready to come to the manger.

A revised and expanded edition of an old favourite, the 40 short, pithy readings in this book will not leave you sitting comfortably this Christmas.

There are a number of other free books there as well, all with a religious theme and many translated into other languages.

Free Read - The Vampire Diaries

Another free online read (no downloading) from Harper Collins is The Struggle ($6.99 Paperback), by LJ Smith. This is the second in the The Vampire Diaries series and a re-issue of the 2001 version, with a new cover to match the televisions series on CW. So far, not available on Kindle (although the first in the new Vampire Diaries, The Return series, Nightfall, is).

Book Description
Torn between two vampire brothers

Damon: Determined to make Elena his, he'd kill his own brother to possess her.

Stefan: Desperate for the power to destroy Damon and protect Elena, he gives in to his thirst for human blood.

Elena: The girl who can have anyone finds herself in the middle of a love triangle . . . one that might turn deadly

Click HERE to start reading.

Lord of the Rings (price drop)

Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien, is back down to $10.88 again today.

Book Description
All three parts of the epic masterpiece combined in one definitive edition of the text.

From the comments of those who purchased this recently, all the formatting issues of the original version have been corrected. So if you were an early purchaser and have found errors in your version of the book, be sure to contact Kindle Customer Service to return it (for formatting issues, they'll do this long after the 7 day period), then purchase this version in it's place.

Free Romance

All Romance Books and Harlequin are giving away a free copy of of the Mini novel Wrapped and Ready ($0.99 Kindle), by Julie Kenner

Book Description
Can volunteer elf Annie turn department-store heir Brent from snooty Scrooge to sexy Santa?

A girl from the "wrong side of the tracks," Annie Silver's always been something of a loner, depending only on her best friend, Faith Howard, for friendship and her family for love. In school, she excelled academically, but she never tried to make friends with the "in" crowd,
content to watch them from afar. And, in particular, she watched Brent Carrington.

Christmas is her favorite holiday, and every year she's worked holiday shifts at Brent's family's department store. This year, however, she's got something more than holiday work in mind. Now that she's about to leave her hometown of Bishop, Ohio, for Manhattan, she's determined to have what she's always wanted—Brent.

Click HERE for the free book, in either PDF or EPUB format. While you are there, you might want to check out these titles, all recently added and free:

Exy Devil, by Brit Ryan (a full length novel)
Forbidden: The Union, by Samantha Sommersby
Standing Guard, by Leigh Ellwood

These are all short stories, in PDF form, from Samhain

Fall, Falling, Fallen by Karalynn Lee
Grounded: a Hayle Raven Story by Ella Drake
Doll, Interrupted by Juniper Bell
For Love of Persephone by Renee Wildes
Late for Dinner by Inez Kelley
Four Gold Rings by T.A. Chase
The Worst Christmas by Ellie Marvel