Everyone's Reading - and now they can do it for free!

Mills and Boon publishing is celebrating the fist anniversary of their ebook program by giving everyone a free book out of each of their series, ten in all. They also have a contest to win a Sony Reader (they are in the UK, so the Kindle isn't there, yet) and it appears you can re-enter each month until the end of the year. Some of these are either out of print or only available as imports in the US, but enough of them are at Amazon that I'm including links here, for those that want to check out the reviews before downloading. All total, these books would cost $26.40 if bought thru Amazon and you'd have to skip three of them completely.

Romance
Mistress: Hired for the Billionaire's Pleasure ($3.40 Kindle)
The Rake's Unconventional Mistress ($4.32 Kindle)
Pleasure, Pregnancy and a Proposition ($3.40 Kindle)
The Midwife's Little Miracle ($3.40 Kindle)
Father Material ($3.96 Kindle)
Adopted: Outback Baby ($2.88 Kindle)
The Player (Out of Print)
The Billionaire's Baby Negotiation (Out of Print)

Mystery/Suspense/Thrillers
Diagnosis: Danger (IMPORT)
Silent in the Grave ($5.04 Kindle)

Click HERE to get the free downloads. You can choose between EPUB or MOBI/PRC (Kindle) formats (I'd skip having the book sent to your phone, unless you are in the UK). Also, it's a bit tricky to download the books. First, click on the cover image of the book you are interested in (not the "download" button underneath). The image at the right of the screen will change, showing you the book's cover. Next, click on the red banner over the large cover image. This will replace the image with a synopsis of the book and the two links (just above the synopsis). Click on the picture of the format your want - the first one is EPUB and the second picture shown is for Mobi/PRC (that's the one you want for your Kindle). You'll be prompted to save the file; just be sure to pick a place you can find it later, when you want to copy it onto the Kindle. If you are not prompted to save the file and instead the MobiPocket Reader (or other program) starts when you click the link, you'll need to instead Right Click and choose Save Link As or Save Target As from the menu, then name the book once the save file dialog is displayed.

UPDATE: If you open the books on your Kindle and there seems to be nothing there other than a few pages of advertisements, check the location number -- some people are reporting that the books open at the end, rather than the beginning. To find the beginning, use the Menu to select the Cover, Table of Contents or Location (enter "1"), not "the Beginning", as this flag is incorrectly set. I haven't seen the issue on the desktop with the Mobi or Epub, but don't have a Sony Reader to test it there (someone want to send me one?).

Two Dollar Deals from Hatchette Publishing

In addition to Brian Haig's Secret Sanction (see Monday's post), Hatchette Books has four more titles discounted to $1.99 this month.

Storm Track, by Margaret Maron, is a legal mystery/thriller under the Mysterious Press imprint.

Book Description
Judge Deborah Knott blows the lid off a murder investigation with gale force winds in this newest entry in the award-winning series. As Hurricane Fran strikes the North Carolina coast, Judge Knott seeks clues to a motel murder and a determined killer finds a perfect time to strike again.

The Hook, by Donald E. Westlake, is another from Mysterious Press, this time more psychological suspense than thriller.

Book Description
Bryce Proctorr has a multi-million dollar contract for his next novel, a trophy wife raking him over the coals of a protracted divorce, a bad case of writer's block and an impending deadline. Wayne Prentice is a fading author in a world that no longer values his work. Proctorr has a proposition: if Prentice will hand over his unsold manuscript to publish under Proctorr's name, the two will split the book advance fifty-fifty. There's just one small rider to the deal...

Dead Before Dying, by Deon Meyer, is also a thriller, but this time under Little, Brown and Company.

Book Description
Someone in Cape Town has chosen a conspicuous murder weapon -- a century-old German handgun, with ancient bullets that tear through flesh and bone. Three men who have nothing in common are found murdered, and the string of vicious killings pushes the city toward panic. Captain Mat Joubert is left scrambling for answers in a case that might be his last chance to prove that his life's slow spiral will not pull him under. DEAD BEFORE DYING is a heart-racing thriller about a troubled detective determined to find the single thread that weaves together what is otherwise just an assortment of strangers, dead by the same hand.

Bitten & Smitten, by Michelle Rowen is another romance from the Warner Forever label. There were four of these back in June (one is still available for 1.99),

Book Description
In Rowen's death-defyingly funny debut--a cross between "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Sex in the City"--Sarah Dearly goes on a blind date . . . with a vampire.

If you don't have a Kindle, but have a Sony Reader, you can find these same deals in the Sony EBookstore.

UPDATE: Looks like you can get all of these at BooksOnBoard.com as well, although the formats available vary (all appear to be available in DRM'd PDF, some also in Mobi/PRC, Epub or LIT). You can even get the audio version of Secret Sanction for $1.99, which is a real bargain. As for Fictionwise.com - they only have one of the titles at the $1.99 price, so I'd skip them for this deal, just as with the Orbit Dollar Book that they still haven't marked down this month.

Two Books from Brian Haig for Two Bucks

From August 1st-August 31st, 2009, you could buy Brian Haig's Secret Sanction and receive a free download of Mortal Allies. At the time, both were being sold for $6.39 and I meant to order them, but never go around to doing so. This month, Secret Sanction has been marked down to $1.99 (along with a few others ... post upcoming with details) and due to what is no doubt a glitch at Amazon, you still get the second book for free. It's not the first time - several of the "expired" Buy One, Get One Free offers from Amazon still work, although there this no longer any indication of the deals on the first book's product page.

Secret Sanction
Word of Honor meets A Few Good Men in this gripping thriller that pits the Green Berets, the CIA and the U.S. government against a top Army lawyer conducting an investigation everyone wants quashed.

Mortal Allies
Army lawyer Sean Drummond has gotten himself in way over his head-with a case that challenges his deepest fears and a co-counselor who challenges just about everything else.

Two Trilogy Conclusions: Ravenshade & Final Battle

The endings to two different trilogies I've been reading were recently released on Kindle. Both are at bargain prices for a limited time. For those without a Kindle, the second series is available at Mobipocket.com, as well.

Ravenshade ($0.99), by C.S. Marks, completes the Alterra series, concluding the quest of the heroines Gaelen and Nelwyn, Wood-elves of the Greatwood Forest, began in Elfunter ($0.99) and continued in Fire-Heart ($2.99). I expect the sale price on this third volume to rise to the same $2.99 as the second volume, in the next week or so (if not sooner). You can get the entire trilogy for under $5 (under three, if you grabbed Fire-Heart when it was introduced at 99 cents), a bargain and a good read, so far, for the entire family. These are also quite large volumes - this one looks to be close to the same 2.5 MB size as the last one, as it includes all the graphics from the print version, which has a page count of "only" 540 pages versus 732 for the middle volume and for the 516 first.

Book Description
In the third of the Tales of Alterra, the World that Is…

…the Elfhunter is forced into a confrontation with Gaelen of the Greatwood, setting into motion a tale of deceit and betrayal from which neither may emerge. In an effort to prevail over his wily enemy, Gorgon forms a powerful, poisonous alliance with an ancient, sinister force darker and deadlier than any the Company has yet known. Each side must weave a web of deception that ultimately drives them deep into the ruined northern lands, even as the World of Alterra is plunged into war. Will the armies of Lord Wrothgar overwhelm all who stand against them? Does the fate of the Light rest on the shoulders of one small Wood-elf as Gaelen strives to defeat the Elfhunter at last? At the heart of it all is the Stone of Léir and the mighty but forlorn spirit trapped within it.

The second trilogy that has been completed is In Her Name, by Michael R. Hicks, concluding with the volume Final Battle ($1.59). This trilogy was released first as a single volume and was later split into three titles due to the sheer size (bookstores complained about the print edition). The author has been hard at work on a prequel trilogy, the first of which has now released (In Her Name: First Contact, $4.79), so was delayed getting the separate conclusion volume out for this first one. Not only is it available at a bargain price, he's also lowered the price of the Omnibus Edition that has all three volumes back to the original $5.59 introduction price, as well as each individual volume (Empire, Confederation, Final Battle) to $1.59, letting you choose whether or not you want all three volumes on your home page, or one massive entry where the progress bar moves along quite slowly.

Book Description
In the final book of an epic trilogy, In Her Name: Final Battle picks up where In Her Name: Confederation left off:

Reza Gard awakens in a hospital on Earth after having been in a coma for months. Charged with murder and high treason, he finds himself the scapegoat for a daring plot to assassinate the President of the Confederation.

Escaping with the help of Jodi Mackenzie, who is now hunted for what she knows about the death of the president, Reza discovers that something is deeply wrong with the Empire: the warriors have lost their will to fight. Compelled to step into a trap set for him and Jodi, the two once again find themselves bound for Erlang. But this time it is to meet Tesh-Dar, who has been captured.

Captured and sentenced to death, they can only watch as a human armada gathers for a strike against the Kreelan homeworld. But the human fleet - and humanity itself - will be doomed to utter annihilation unless Reza can save his Empress from death...

Fictionwise Sale

Fictionwise is having a Labor Day sale - 10% off all ebooks, using the coupon code LABOR09. In addition, this week they have changed all their New York Times Bestsellers to have a 100% MicroPay Rebate (store credit), if paid for via PayPal or credit card. These are not readable on the Kindle, but can be read on some other ereaders, including the Iphone, depending on the format purchased, and all can be read on your PC (all formats of these books have DRM, which limits their use, but copies stay in your library, although Fictionwise does, like all ebookstores, recommend you keep backup copies as well as backup of your DRM key, if needed to unlock the books). With Fictionwise, you can always redownload the book, if your reader changes: if you get a new netbook, just add the mobipocket PID and redownload the book (you maintain the list of up to 4 authorized PID's and can change them at any time); the same process is used if you need to change the credit card used for the Ereader format (Fictionwise's own that, no doubt, Barnes & Noble will use on their ereader later this year).

When you are looking for something to use that store credit (MicroPay) on, check out their magazine selection. They have Asimov's Science Fiction, Analog Science Fiction and Fact, Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine and Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine ($2.99/each/month Kindle), amongst others, all at lower prices than Amazon (even without the sale, they are $30-$33/year versus $36 at Amazon), with no DRM and in multiple formats. You can also purchase individual copies, going back several months, rather than only starting with the current issue. Click HERE to see all the magazines, or search for "subscription" in the title to just see those.

If you join the Buywise club ($30/year, with multi-year discounts), you get another 15% off all their titles (plus one free title up to $10 list). If you joined the club, bought a few bestsellers and a couple of magazines, how would that work out, pricewise? You would want to use several orders, to maximize the discounts.

First, use the discount code for 10% off and pay $29.95 for the membership. Once this order has completed, you'll get the 15% member discount on all future orders, for one year (and you can use the coupon code you get with it for a free book, up to a $10 list price; for this one, you can't count any discounts, but it's usually good for something that is out in paperback already).

Next, buy your bestsellers. Let's say there are four you want, all of them with current list prices (or sale prices) of $20 (to keep things simple - there are some there that are more and many that are less). With a 15% member discount, plus the 10% off discount code, above, instead of $17 for the book, you'll pay $15.30 per book. You'll be charged $61.20 for the four books when you run the order thru (using either PayPal or your credit card), all of which goes back into your account after payment. In fact, since the order is over $50, you'll get an additional 10% in your account due to their large order bonus rebate (which you only get when paying by PayPal or credit card). So, your account will have $67.32 in it at this point.

With that credit, you pick two of the one-year subscriptions (we'll pick Analog and Asimov's, the two more expensive ones). The 10% discount doesn't work on these, but you do get the 15% member discount, so that $28.02 each. After checkout, you'll still have $11.28 in micropay credit and the coupon code for a free book you received for joining their club. Your total outlay is more than if you purchased the two magazines thru Amazon ($91.10 versus $71.76), but in addition to the two years of magazine subscriptions, you have four NYT bestsellers (which would be $9.99 each on Kindle, most likely), $11 .28 in credit (enough for another book or two) and a coupon code to get a $10 book. If you added the bestsellers at Amazon, you'd be out $111.72, or about $20 more and have at least two fewer books to show for it.

Of course, you don't have to use that store credit on magazines. There are a number of multiformat books in the Fictionwise store, which work on the Kindle and other readers, as well as DRM'd books (that are not Kindle compatible), often at competitive prices. The multiformat books are often from independent authors, but those who either have a very large number of books or work with small publishing houses, as Fictionwise doesn't have the same type of DTP system that Amazon has, so authors with only a few books cannot list there (then again, you also don't have hundreds of duplicate public domain titles - searching for Pride and Prejudice returns 12 books, not 245). I'll admit, you aren't getting the same low prices as Amazon's DTP authors, but it can be a good deal to supplement your reading.

You can also just let your store credit build up - so far, Fictionwise has been having a big sale once or twice a year that even includes the magazines, dropping the good prices into the great range. They've even had 100% rebates on store memberships, lowering the upfront cost even more. And I've seen some 25% off all (not just ebook) coupons, as well as a year-end 100% rebate on every "featured" book they had for a year, for those that missed their earlier sales. They seem to have a 100% rebate on four or five new titles each week and have said the Twilight series will be at 100% rebate for the indefinite future. No doubt a lot of these sales are now being funded by Barnes & Noble, as the competition for readers heats up between them and Amazon. If you decide to close your Fictionwise account, it appears you can get a refund of your micropay balance (at least, according to their faq pages), but expect it to take a lot of time (up to 60 days, it says) and possibly have some strings attached (I would not expect it to include those 10% large transaction rebates, for example, if all you bought were 100% rebate books, as this would give you the books for free, plus a 10% bonus).