End of Month Reminder

Just a reminder that it's the last night for the current 100 Kindle Books for $3.99 or less sale; in addition, for those that have Amazon Prime, it's the last night to rent a book this month, if you haven't done so already. I keep a list of those I might want to rent (in a wishlist) and will have to check it tonight myself, since I haven't used up my rental, either.

Today's Deals

As I suspected, yesterday's late release from The Charles River Editors was in preparation for making this month's freebies into repeats - current count is now over 100 free titles.

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is The Boarding House ($1.99), by Sharon Sala (Bell Bridge Books). Searching in the Kindle store, quite a number of her suspense novels are on sale under $10 (the ones from Harper are more expensive). When I checked my library, I found 15 of her novels (one of them a YA fantasy), but not this one.

Book Description
Ellie Wayne doesn't just live. She survives.

New York Times bestselling author Sharon Sala brings emotional intensity to an unforgettable story of survival, empowerment and raw courage.

Ellie Wayne has grown up in frightening circumstances, damaged by a sexually abusive father and mentally fragile mother. Scarred and still threatened by a father she hates and fears, Ellie believes her future holds nothing more than danger, shame and secrets . . . until the unspeakable happens, and Ellie is forced to choose. She can claim her life or continue to hide in the shadows.

One amazing man might be the miracle worker who can help Ellie see that she has the power to move on with her life, to hope for something more. If she can trust him.

Readers will cheer for this amazing woman as she struggles to leave victimhood behind.

About the Author
Sharon Sala is a long time member of Romance Writers of America writing as Sharon Sala and Dinah McCall. She writes romantic suspense, Young Adult, and Women's Fiction. First published in 1991, she's a seven-time RITA finalist, winner of the Janet Dailey Award, four-time winner of the Career Achievement award from RT Magazine, five time winner of the National Reader's Choice Award and five time winner of the Colorado Romance Writers Award of Excellence as well as the Bookseller Best Award. Her books are New York Times, USA Today, Publisher's Weekly mass market best-sellers. Writing changed her life, her world, and her fate.

Habits of the House ($1.57 / £0.99 UK), the first title in the Love & Inheritance series by Fay Weldon, is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $12.99).

Book Description
Fay Weldon’s new novel takes us inside the lives of an aristocratic household in the last three months of the nineteenth century. It’s a time of riot and confusion, social upheaval, war abroad and shortage of money. Tea gowns are still laced with diamonds; there are still nine courses at dinner, but bankruptcy looms for the Dilbernes. Whilst the Earl, gambler and man about town, must seek a new post in government; his wife Lady Isobel’s solution is to marry off their son Arthur to a wealthy heiress, and without delay. But how? It’s the end of the season, and choices are few. There’s Minnie O’Brien from Chigaco - rich enough, but daughter of a stockyard baron, and with a vulgar mother and dubious past. Hardly suitable ...! Fay Weldon tells this tale of restraint and desire, manners and morals with wit and sympathy - if no small measure of mischief - as young Minnie and Arthur, thrown together by their parents, strive to determine their own destiny.

Coming Home ($2.99 Kindle, B&N), by Karen Kingsbury, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.

Book Description
Coming Home is a novel about tremendous victory and unprecedented loss, a story of faith and a forever kind of love, love that will stay with you long after the last page. This stand-alone novel will serve as either a grand introduction or a beautiful conclusion in the saga of the Baxter Family.The Baxters make plans to come together for a summer lakeside reunion, a celebration like they haven’t had in years. But before the big day, the unthinkable happens. As the Baxter Family rallies together, memories come to light in the grief-stricken hours of waiting and praying, memories that bring healing and hope during a time when otherwise darkness might have the final word.In a season that changes all of them, the brilliance of family love overshadows even the valley of heartache as the Baxters draw closer to God and each other. Along the way, secrets are revealed and the truth about the Baxter Family history is finally made known. Ultimately, in this portrait of family love, the Baxters cling to each other and to God’s promise of forever.

The Strange Case of Origami Yoda ($9.84 Kindle pre-order, $1.99 B&N), by Tom Angleberger, is the Nook Daily Find for Families. This is a PagePerfect NOOK Book, so it requires NOOK Color, NOOK Tablet or NOOK Study, while the Kindle edition works on the Kindle Fire, Kindle Cloud Reader, Kindle for iPad or Kindle for Android apps.

Book Description
In this funny, uncannily wise portrait of the dynamics of a sixth-grade class and of the greatness that sometimes comes in unlikely packages, Dwight, a loser, talks to his classmates via an origami finger puppet of Yoda. If that weren’t strange enough, the puppet is uncannily wise and prescient. Origami Yoda predicts the date of a pop quiz, guesses who stole the classroom Shakespeare bust, and saves a classmate from popularity-crushing embarrassment with some well-timed advice. Dwight’s classmate Tommy wonders how Yoda can be so smart when Dwight himself is so clueless. With contributions from his puzzled classmates, he assembles the case file that forms this novel.

Grade Level: 3 and up

Today's Kindle Kids Daily Deal is Frank Was a Monster Who Wanted to Dance ($1.99), by Keith Graves.

Book Description
Frank was a monster who wanted to dance. So he put on his hat, and his shoes made in France... and opened a jar and put ants in his pants! So begins this monstrously funny, deliciously disgusting, horrifyingly hilarious story of a monster who follows his dream. Keith Graves' wacky illustrations and laugh-out-loud text will tickle the funny bone and leave readers clamoring for an encore.

Grade Level: P and up

In Winter's Shadow ($10.09 Kindle, $3.99 B&N), by Gillian Bradshaw, is the Nook Weekend Deal; it's not yet price matched on Kindle, but that may change over the weekend (especially if the lower price gets reported enough).

Book Description
Vows broken. . .
Friendships betrayed. . .
The fate of heroes finally revealed. . .

As powerful enemies attack the throne from inside the kingdom, Arthur, his queen, and his greatest warrior Gwalchmai will be put to the ultimate test. Never faltering in her loyalty to the king, Gwynhwyfar has stood at Arthur's side through rebellion and war. But one desperate decision could cost her all they've built. With the kingdom crumbling around them, following the Queen's heart could be the greatest threat of all. ..

Today's Deals

Be sure to check out the Free Android App and Music today - Angry Birds (ad-free) and a very good broadway musical selection (link fixed).

New coupon codes at Kobo: aug2530ij for 25% off on Bestsellers and aug2930ty for 30% off select "Amazing" titles (both exp Sep 3) and the big one: use Romance50 to get 50% off of Romance Bestsellers (exp Sep 9).

A reader spotted Beguilement, by multiple Hugo Award-winning author Lois McMaster Bujold, currently marked down to $0.99! I'd be grabbing it at this price, if it weren't one I picked up from Fictionwise (before the Agency agreements went into place). Originally conceived as a two-volume series, The Sharing Knife saga ended up spanning four volumes.

Book Description
Troubled young Fawn Bluefield seeks a life beyond her family’s farm. But en route to the city, she encounters a patrol of Lakewalkers, nomadic soldier–sorcerers from the northern woodlands. Feared necromancers armed with mysterious knives made of human bone, they wage a secret, ongoing war against the scourge of the "malices," immortal entities that draw the life out of their victims, enslaving human and animal alike.

It is Dag—a Lakewalker patroller weighed down by past sorrows and onerous present responsibilities—who must come to Fawn’s aid when she is taken captive by a malice. They prevail at a devastating cost—unexpectedly binding their fates as they embark upon a remarkable journey into danger and delight, prejudice and partnership . . . and perhaps even love.

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is The Soldier's Wife ($1.99), by Margaret Leroy.

Book Description
A novel full of grand passion and intensity, The Soldier’s Wife asks “What would you do for your family” “What should you do for a stranger” and “What would you do for love”

As World War II draws closer and closer to Guernsey, Vivienne de la Mare knows that there will be sacrifices to be made. Not just for herself, but for her two young daughters and for her mother-in-law, for whom she cares while her husband is away fighting. What she does not expect is that she will fall in love with one of the enigmatic German soldiers who take up residence in the house next door to her home. As their relationship intensifies, so do the pressures on Vivienne. Food and resources grow scant, and the restrictions placed upon the residents of the island grow with each passing week. Though Vivienne knows the perils of her love affair with Gunther, she believes that she can keep their relationship—and her family—safe. But when she becomes aware of the full brutality of the Occupation, she must decide if she is willing to risk her personal happiness for the life of a stranger.

A Carpet Ride to Khiva: Seven Years on the Silk Road ($1.57 / £0.99 UK), by Christopher Aslan Alexander, is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $9.90).

Book Description
Chris Alexander originally travelled to Khiva, a remote walled city in Uzbekistan on the route of the ancient Silk Road, to write a guidebook. But he stayed, mesmerized by a world of silk and forgotten 15th-century carpet designs – discovering indigo blue, madder red, pomegranate gold and the subtle shades of life in a desert oasis. Alexander’s entrancing travelogue sees him stripped naked at a former Soviet youth camp, crawling through silkworm droppings, tackling a carpet-thieving mayor, distinguishing natural dyes from sacks of opium in Northern Afghanistan, bluffing his way through My Heart Will Go On for Uzbek TV and seeking sanctuary as an anti-Western riot consumed the Kabul carpet bazaar. The result is an unforgettable true story of a journey to the heart of the unknown.

Heroes and Monsters: An Honest Look at What It Means to Be Human ($2.99 Kindle, B&N), by Josh James Riebock, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.

Book Description
Every one of us is both a hero and a monster, and the world we inhabit is both beautiful and twisted. We are shaken by changes, losses, gains, insights, desires, mistakes, and transitions. And just when we've gotten settled back down, things get shaken up again. This is the life we've been given. So how do we make sense of life's unexpected nature, find a way to embrace the tension, and live with a sense of peace despite pain?

In this stunningly honest, compelling, and ultimately hopeful book, Josh James Riebock explores issues of trust, obedience, intimacy, dreams, grief, purpose, and the unexpected stops along the journey that form us into the people we are. In a creative way, he shows readers that pain and beauty are so inextricably linked that to lose the former costs us the latter.

Those grappling with life's inconsistencies and trials will especially find a welcome resonance between their lives and Heroes and Monsters. Riebock both validates their experiences and challenges them to live beyond them in this ever-changing life.

The Brimstone Key ($2.99 Kindle, B&N), the first title in the Grey Griffins: The Clockwork Chronicle series by Derek Benz and Jon S. Lewis, is the Nook Daily Find for Families, price matched on Kindle.

Book Description
A brand new adventure starring The Grey Griffins!

Max---the leader
Natalia---the brains
Ernie---the changeling
Harley---the muscle

A year ago, Max, Natalia, Ernie, and Harley were just regular kinds from Avalon, Minnesota, but that was before they learned that evil faeries, werewolves, and other unthinkable monsters existed just beyond our world. Now they are the Grey Griffins: monster hunters, celebrated heroes, and allies to the legendary Templar Knights--but even heroes have to go to school.

This year, they're attending Iron Bridge Academy, a school where students learn to fight against the forces of evil. Here, the Griffins find themselves in a whole new adventure when The Clockwork King, a Templar foe from the past, returns with a deadly plan.

Grade Level: 3 and up

Today's Kindle Kids Daily Deal is A Certain Slant of Light ($1.99), a YA novel by Laura Whitcomb.

Book Description
Someone was looking at me, a disturbing sensation if you’re dead.

Though I could not feel paper between my fingers, smell ink, or taste the tip of a pencil, I could see and hear the world with all the clarity of the Living. They, on the other hand, did not see me as a shadow or a floating vapor. To the Quick, I was empty air.

Or so I thought.

In the class of the high school English teacher she has been haunting, Helen feels them: For the first time in 130 years, human eyes are looking at her. They belong to a boy, a boy who has not seemed remarkable until now. And Helen–terrified, but intrigued–is drawn to him. The fact that he is in a body and she is not presents this unlikely couple with their first challenge. But as the lovers struggle to find a way to be together, they begin to discover the secrets of their former lives and of the young people they come to possess.

Today's Deals

On B&N's Facebook page, you can now vote for this weekend's $3.99 deal: Pearl in the Sand by Tessa Afshar vs. In Winter's Shadow by Gillian Bradshaw. It was an easy vote for me this week, since Afshar's book was free last May.

Audible has another sale, with all books in eight Top Series On Sale for $7.95 apiece. I'm tempted by Piers Anthony's Adept series (which I haven't read in many years).

In a price match to Kobo, Adrenaline, the first title in Jeff Abbott's Sam Capra series and one of Amazon's Best Books of the Month, July 2011, is currently marked down to $2.99. The price has already gone back up at Kobo, so this discount won't last long.

Book Description
"If you knew this was our final day together, what would you say to me?"
"Anything but good-bye. I can't ever say good-bye to you."

ADRENALINE

Sam Capra is living the life of his dreams.

He's a brilliant young CIA agent, stationed in London. His wife Lucy is seven months pregnant with their first child. They have a wonderful home, and are deeply in love.

They have everything they could hope for...until they lose it all in one horrifying moment.

On a bright, sunny day, Sam receives a call from Lucy while he's at work. She tells him to leave the building immediately. He does...just before it explodes, killing everyone inside. Lucy vanishes, and Sam wakes up in a prison cell. As the lone survivor of the attack, he is branded by the CIA as a murderer and a traitor.

Escaping from the agency, Sam launches into a desperate hunt to save his kidnapped wife and child, and to reveal the unknown enemy who has set him up and stolen his family. But the destruction of Sam's life was only step on in an extraordinary plot-and now Sam must become a new kind of hero.

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is Innocent Monster ($1.99), the sixth in the Moe Prager series by Reed Farrel Coleman.

Book Description
Seven years have passed since the brutal murder that tore Moe Prager’s family apart and it's been six years since Moe’s brushed the dust off his PI license. But when his estranged daughter Sarah comes to him with a request he cannot refuse, Moe takes a deep breath and plunges back into the icy, opaque waters of secrets and lies. Sashi Bluntstone, an eleven-year-old art prodigy and daughter of Sarah’s dearest childhood friend, has been abducted. Three weeks into the investigation, the cops have gotten nowhere and the parents have gotten desperate. Desperation, the door through which Moe Prager always enters, swings wide open. Just as in Sashi’s paintings, there’s much more to the case than one can see at a glance.

With the help of an ex-football star, Moe stumbles around the fringes of the New York art scene, trying to get a handle on where the art stops and the commerce begins. Much to Moe’s surprise and disgust, he discovers that Sashi is, on the one hand, revered as a cash cow and, on the other, reviled as a fraud and a joke. Suspects abound beyond the usual predators and pedophiles, for it is those closest to Sashi in life who have the most to gain from her death. Cruel ironies lurk around every corner, beneath every painting, and behind every door. Almost nothing is what it seems.

Beware the innocent monster, for it need not hide itself and it lives closely among us: sometimes as close as the mirror.

Reed Farrel Coleman's mysteries starring Moe Prager have won or been nominated for many of the crime fiction world's biggest awards, including the Edgar, the Shamus, the Barry, and the Anthony. The Moe Prager mysteries were named as part of Maureen Corrigan's Best Books of 2009.

Greyhound ($1.57 / £0.99 UK), by Steffan Piper, is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $3.99/KLL Eligible).

Book Description
Ushered out from his Stockton, California home by his emotionally detached mother and her latest boyfriend, twelve-year-old Sebastien Ranes must fend for himself and travel two thousand miles across the country. He is on his way to live with his grandmother and sister in Pennsylvania. Along the way, he will learn that sometimes caring, guidance and understanding can come from some unlikely people.

Marcus, a fellow bus passenger, is a man who has been neglected more by society than his family. As a young black ex-con, he is not the epitome of the person most would pick as a chaperone for their child's cross country trip. Yet rather than be held apart by their differences, Marcus and Sebastien are drawn together by the things that make us all alike.

Along the way, he acts as both guide and protector, as Virgil was to Dante and Jim to Huck Finn. Imparting his own style of wisdom, he shows Sebastien that, despite the darker parts of the human condition, people can and do care for one another. This is a modern day journey not just from one house to another. This is a journey taken by a young boy into manhood, and by the reader into his world. Like every trip, there are many stops along the way. But this journey differs in the way young Sebastien arrives at his destination. Greyhound is the story of this journey.

The Edge of Desire ($7.99 $1.99 Kindle, B&N), the eighth title in the Bastion Club series by Stephanie Laurens, is the Nook Daily Find. This is yet another Agency priced book that is supposed to be the same price everywhere, but it's only been dropped at B&N so far. Update: Now price matched on Kindle!

Book Description
In The Edge of Desire, they proved their bravery fighting for His Majesty's Secret Service and were rewarded with brides of great beauty and breeding. But one member of the Bastion Club has remained a bachelor . . . until now.

"Christian, I need your help. There is no one else I can turn to . . . L."

When Christian Allardyce, 6th Marquess of Dearne, reads those words, his world turns upside down. Lady Letitia Randall is a woman like no other, and the day he left her behind to fight for king and country was the most difficult of his life. He never forgot the feel of her lips against his, but never expects to see her again. Yet now she seeks his help, and Christian knows he will not resist her plea.

Letitia believes that Christian abandoned her when she needed him most, and she hates to call on his aid. But to clear her brother's name, she has sworn to use every weapon at her command, even if it means seducing her ex-lover. Yet all the while, Christian is waging a war of his own—a campaign of pure pleasure and sweet revenge that will take them both beyond The Edge of Desire.

The House of Power ($2.99 Kindle, B&N), the first title in Patrick Carman's Atherton series, is the Nook Daily Find for Families, price matched on Kindle.

Book Description
Edgar, a gifted climber, secretly scales the treacherous walls separating the three worlds of Atherton: the humble grove that is his home...a mysterious highland realm of untold beauty and sinister secrets ...and a vast wasteland below, where a monstrous danger lurks that could destroy them all.

While searching the forbidden cliffs for a treasure lost in his faded memory, Edgar discovers the first of many startling revelations to come: the three realms are beginning to collapse, turning his entire world inside out. Atherton is not what it seems, but something far more dangerous, with a history locked inside the mind of a madman and a future beyond Edgar's wildest imagining.

Grade Level: 3 and up

Today's Kindle Kids Daily Deal is The Hiccupotamus ($1.99), by Aaron Zenz.

Book Description
There was a hippopotamus
who hiccupped quite-a-lotamus.
And every time he got'emus . . .
he'd fall upon his bottomus!

Calamity ensues when an elephant, a centipede, and a rhinoceros try finding a cure for hippo's colossal case of hiccups. Zenz's creativity shines through with his use of colored pencil in this off-the-wall read-aloud. HIC! HIC! HIC!

Grade Level: Pre K and up

Today's Deals

Rumors of what new Kindle models are coming are continuing to build and we now have a good guess on an announcement date: Amazon has called a press conference for Sept 6! Both models of the Kindle Touch are now out of stock with no estimated delivery date and are no doubt going to be replaced by new models soon (you can still get a Certified Refurbished Kindle Touch 3G). There is no issue with the Kindle Fire stock, so any new tablet that gets announced will probably be the anticipated larger size to compete with the iPad (I hope it also has a camera; that and and SD card are really needed on any tablet released these days, unless the intent is to capture the bottom end of the market, such as the low-end tablets you can find at Big Lots).

Over at O'Reilly, you can get 50% off books on using Regular Expressions, using coupon code WKRGEX. - Deal expires September 4, 2012.

All the picks are up for Audibles $6.95 Beachcomber Sale and prices are good thru Aug 31. The sale is limited to those with some type of "membership", not just an account. If you don't have a membership, you can sign up for a free trial, use the credit and cancel - you should be offered the opportunity to sign up for the $10/year light membership at that point. You don't get any credits with that membership, but do get access to all of their sales. If you buy more than one audiobook a year during their sales, you'll come out ahead vs. paying non-member prices.

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is Spitfire ($1.99), by Annette Sandoval (publisher: Thomas & Mercer).

Book Description
Twenty-eight-year-old Tomi Reyes is a documentary filmmaker who moonlights as a receptionist to pay the bills. It’s a pretty easy gig—until she receives an unexpected promotion, and her somewhat interesting life goes totally insane.

For starters, her new boss, Scott Martin, morphs from nice guy into creepy dictator in the space of, like, five seconds. Then Justin Thyme, Tomi’s occasional boyfriend, is found murdered and stuffed inside his refrigerator. Before Tomi can get over the shock, her friend Whim meets the same gruesome fate. Tomi has a sneaking suspicion that new-boss-Scott has a hand in all of this, but the evidence to both of the murders is pointing to her! She is wondering how she'll look in an orange jumper, when her childhood pal is assigned to the case. Nicholas “Nickels” Turino, is now an FBI agent, and a hot one at that. When the killer starts stalking Tomi—going as far as turning her fridge into her waiting tomb—the not-so-swift hand of justice drives Tomi to act. She sets out to unmask the killer herself or die trying. Seriously underdressed for such a cold-blooded death, Tomi is determined to live.

With its larger-than-life heroine and delightfully sarcastic tone, Spitfire offers readers a refreshing alternative to the ho-hum crime novels crowding today’s bookshelves.

Foal's Bread ($2.04 / £1.29 UK), by Australian author Gillian Mears, is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (no US edition).

Book Description
The long-awaited new novel from the award-winning author of The Grass Sister tells the story of two generations of the Nancarrow family and the high-jumping horse circuit prior to the Second World War. A love story of impossible beauty and sadness, it is also a chronicle of dreams 'turned inside out', and miracles that never last, framed against a world both tender and unspeakably hard.

The sound of horses' hooves turns hollow on the farms west of Wirri. If a man can still ride, if he hasn't totally lost the use of his legs, if he hasn't died to the part of his heart that understands such things, then he should go for a gallop. At the very least he should stand at the road by the river imagining that he's pushing a horse up the steep hill that leads to the house on the farm once known as One Tree.

Set in hardscrabble farming country and around the country show high-jumping circuit that prevailed in rural New South Wales prior to the Second World War, Foal's Bread tells the story of two generations of the Nancarrow family and their fortunes as dictated by the vicissitudes of the land.

It is a love story of impossible beauty and sadness, a chronicle of dreams 'turned inside out', and miracles that never last, framed against a world both tender and unspeakably hard. Written in luminous prose and with an aching affinity for the landscape the book describes, Foal's Bread is the work of a born writer at the height of her considerable powers. It is a stunning work of remarkable originality and power, one that confirms Gillian Mears' reputation as one of our most exciting and acclaimed writers.

The Rose Garden ($4.90 Kindle, B&N), by Susanna Kearsley, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.

Book Description
Eva Ward returns to the only place she truly belongs, the old house on the Cornish coast, seeking happiness in memories of childhood summers. There she finds mysterious voices and hidden pathways that sweep her not only into the past, but also into the arms of a man who is not of her time.

But Eva must confront her own ghosts, as well as those of long ago. As she begins to question her place in the present, she comes to realize that she too must decide where she really belongs.

From Susanna Kearsley, author of the New York Times bestseller The Winter Sea and a voice acclaimed by fans of Gabaldon, du Maurier, and Niffenegger alike, The Rose Garden is a haunting exploration of love, family, the true meaning of home, and the ties that bind us together.

11 Birthdays ($5.24 Kindle, $1.99 B&N), by Wendy Mass, is the Nook Daily Find for Families.

Book Description
This hilarious novel from award-winning author Wendy Mass is now available in paperback!

It's Amanda's 11th birthday and she is super excited---after all, 11 is so different from 10. But from the start, everything goes wrong. The worst part of it all is that she and her best friend, Leo, with whom she's shared every birthday, are on the outs and this will be the first birthday they haven't shared together. When Amanda turns in for the night, glad to have her birthday behind her, she wakes up happy for a new day. Or is it? Her birthday seems to be repeating iself. What is going on?! And how can she fix it? Only time, friendship, and a little luck will tell. . .

Grade Level: 4 and up

Today's Kindle Kids Daily Deal is My Monster Burrufu ($1.99), by Alberto Corral and Alessandra Sorrentino (Illustrator).

Book Description
Seven-year-old Olivia has just moved to a new house—the same house where a lonely monster named Burrufu lives hidden in a secret attic. One night, unable to resist the smell of delicious cookies, Burrufu sneaks out and is discovered by Olivia. The two soon learn that you can find friendship in the most unexpected places.
'My Monster Burrufu' is a story of fear overcome, a curse, and a most unusual monster who learns from a little girl how to trust his heart.

Age Level: 9 and up