Today's Deals 12/20

Put off shopping until the last minute? Amazon is now giving everyone Free Two-Day Shipping on Kindle devices. Maybe you too can have this scene at Christmas?



Amazon posted a link to it on their website and I thought I'd share it with you.

Amazon has several hardcover cookbooks in the Holiday Book Deals today and Planet Barbecue! should be on sale there shortly.

Today's Audible Daily Deal is James Patterson's Along Came a Spider for $8.95. Members with credits can shot the James Patterson BOGO boutique (if you've used your credits up, then you should see an offer to buy 3 at a discount, up next to your name in the upper right corner of the page).

At Harlequin, Save 50% on featured Christmas books or ebooks, using coupon code HOHOHO50 at Checkout to claim this deal!

Additional formats on free books:

• Paradise Lost (K/N)
• Seven Wonders Journals: The Select (K/N)

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is Terminal Value ($0.99), by Thomas Waite.

Book Description
"Be careful what you wish for." That’s a warning Dylan Johnson should have listened to. When his mobile computing firm is bought out by Mantric Technology, a red-hot company about to go public, it seems like a dream come true for the young entrepreneur and his partners. But the closer they get to payout, the more uncertain Dylan becomes.

Something doesn't feel right. When one of his colleagues is found dead on what should have been their night of triumph, Dylan is determined to find out what happened. But asking questions plunges him into a web of digital deceit and betrayal that will shake everything he thought he knew…

Today's Kindle Romance Daily Deal is Woodrose Mountain ($1.99), by Raeanne Thayne.

Book Description
Evie Blanchard was at the top of her field in the city of angels. But when an emotional year forces her to walk away from her job as a physical therapist, she moves from Los Angeles to Hope's Crossing seeking a quieter life. So the last thing she needs is to get involved with the handsome, arrogant Brodie Thorne and his injured daughter, Taryn.

A self-made man and single dad, Brodie will do anything to get Taryn the rehabilitation she needs…even if it means convincing Evie to move in with them. And despite her vow to keep an emotional distance, Evie can't help but be moved by Taryn's spirit, or Brodie's determination to win her help—and her heart. With laughter, courage and more than a little help from the kindhearted people of Hope's Crossing, Taryn may get the healing she deserves—and Evie and Brodie might just find a love they never knew could exist.

Today's Kindle SciFi/Fantasy Daily Deal is A Kingdom Besieged ($0.99), the first novel in the Chaoswar Saga by Raymond E. Feist. The only reason not to grab this is if you already have it in your library! Or, I guess if you don't have a single person in the house that might, someday, read epic fantasy. You'll have plenty of time to finish reading it before the second volume in the series is released next Spring.

Book Description
After nearly thirty years and more than two dozen novels, Raymond E. Feist's Riftwar Cycle has become one of the most iconic, beloved, and enduring sagas in modern fantasy. The Riftwars—including the original Riftwar, the Serpentwar, the Darkwar, and the Demonwar—were epic battles between Good and Evil whose ramifications have echoed through generations. The latest entry in the epic, A Kingdom Besieged, ushers in the most fearsome threat the Kingdom has yet faced—the Chaoswar—a magic apocalypse with cataclysmic results.

A Kingdom Besieged

Years ago, the Empire of Great Kesh failed in its attempt to conquer Krondor after the Serpentwar, thanks to the bravery, cunning, and magic of the sorcerer Pug and the Conclave of Shadows. Since then, peace has benefitted both nations, and the Kingdom has been free from the threat of another Keshian invasion. Yet now, the dark clouds of war gather again. . . .

From the Far Coast in the west to the frontier with the Eastern Kingdoms, rumors, uncertainty, and political instability are rampant. Spies have gone missing—some were murdered while others have turned traitor. Factions are rising, powerful legions from the Keshian Confederacy have been mobilized, and an attack on the kingdoms of the Isles and Roldem is all but certain.

As the men of the Western Realm begin to mount a defense, Martin conDoin, the middle son of Lord Henry, Duke of Crydee, finds himself leading the charge against the invaders—like his legendary ancestor, Prince Arutha, who stood firm to the death against the Tsurani invasion. But Arutha had an entire army at his command. Martin has just a ragtag force comprised of a few old men and young boys.

As Kesh's invading hordes once again descend upon the Kingdom, no one is safe—not experienced masters of intrigue Lord James Dasher Jamison and the beguiling and deadly Lady Franciezka; not the brave warrior Knight-Adamant Sandreena and a new generation of loyal yet untested defenders; not even the great Pug himself, the most powerful magician the world of Midkemia has ever known. A threat far more terrifying has arisen, an evil whose burgeoning power portends Midkemia's demise. And soon even the Kingdom's enchanted defender will find himself questioning everything he's ever held abiding, true, and treasured . . . including the loyalty and desires of his beloved son, Magnus.

The Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK is three titles for £0.99 each (80% off).

Above Suspicion (Main/UK), by Lynda La Plante (US edition $5.99)

Young detective Anna Travis has been assigned to her first murder case - and it couldn't be a more shocking, more horrific set of killings. They began eight years before; now the body count is up to six. The method of killing is identical, the backgrounds of the girls very similar - all of them were drug-ridden prostitutes. Then a seventh body is found, same modus operandi but this time the victim is a young student, sweet and innocent, with the 'face of an angel'. The profile of the murderer has changed dramatically.

Anna stumbles on a vital piece of information which links one man to the killings. A household name, a much-loved actor who is about to become an international movie star. He has charm, good looks and the gift of the gab. Denial and protestations of innocence spring easily and confidently to his lips. An arrest, in the face of intense publicity, would create a media frenzy. And if he was found beyond doubt to be the wrong man, his career would be finished and Anna's hard fought-for reputation in the police force destroyed once and for all …

With absolute authenticity and extraordinary power, Lynda La Plante takes us deep into the criminal mind and the criminal world. And, in heroine Anna Travis, she has created another memorable and utterly engaging new female detective.

Want to Play? (Main/UK), by P. J. Tracy (US edition $9.99 titled Monkeewrench)

Want to Play? is the electrifying debut crime novel from PJ Tracy.

In this electrifying debut, the slaying of an old couple in small town America looks like one-off act of brutal retribution. But at the same time, in Minneapolis, teams of detectives scramble to stop a sickeningly inventive serial killer striking again in a city paralysed by fear.

When the two separate investigations converge on an isolated catholic boarding school, decades old secrets begin to fall away. It seems an old killer has resurfaced. Yet still the killer's real identity remains dangerously out of reach ...

Want to Play? introduces PJ Tracy's cult thriller characters Grace MacBride and Detectives Gino and Magozzi. Follow their journeys in subsequent works including Play to Kill and Dead Run.

Cemetery Girl (Main/UK), by David Bell (US edition $11.99)

In Cemetery Girl, David Bell's gripping psychological thriller, a father tries to uncover the secrets of his daughter's inexplicable disappearance.

Tom and Abby Stuart had everything: a perfect marriage, successful careers, and a beautiful twelve-year-old daughter, Caitlin. Then one day Caitlin vanished without a trace. For a while they grasped at every false hope and followed every empty lead, but the tragedy ended up changing their lives, overwhelming them with guilt and dread, and shattering their marriage.

Four years later, Caitlin is found alive-dirty and disheveled yet preternaturally calm. She won't discuss where she was or what happened. Then the police arrest a suspect connected to her disappearance, but Caitlin refuses to testify, leaving the Stuarts with a choice: Let the man who may be responsible for destroying their lives walk away, or take matters into their own hands. And when Tom decides to try to uncover the truth for himself, he finds that nothing that has happened yet can prepare him for what he is about to discover.

David Bell's Cemetery Girl will have readers biting their nails, and will accompany his new novel The Hiding Place. A real treat for all fans of Kate Atkinson, Dennis Lehane and Heather Gudenkauf.

The Toaster Project: Or A Heroic Attempt to Build a Simple Electric Appliance from Scratch ($2.99 Kindle, B&N), by Thomas Thwaites, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.

Book Description
"Hello, my name is Thomas Thwaites, and I have made a toaster." So begins The Toaster Project, the author's nine-month-long journey from his local appliance store to remote mines in the UK to his mother's backyard, where he creates a crude foundry. Along the way, he learns that an ordinary toaster is made up of 404 separate parts, that the best way to smelt metal at home is by using a method found in a fifteenth-century treatise, and that plastic is almost impossible to make from scratch. In the end, Thwaites's homemade toaster—a haunting and strangely beautiful object—cost 250 times more than the toaster he bought at the store and involved close to two thousand miles of travel to some of Britain's remotest locations. The Toaster Project may seem foolish, even insane. Yet, Thwaites's quixotic tale, told with self-deprecating wit, helps us reflect on the costs and perils of our cheap consumer culture, and in so doing reveals much about the organization of the modern world.

Today's Kindle Kids Daily Deal is Six Holiday-Themed Picture Books for $1.99 each (80% off).

Turkey Claus, by Wendi Silvano (Author), Lee Harper (Illustrator)

Turkey needs Santa’s help so he won’t be eaten for Christmas dinner.

Turkey is in trouble. Again. He made it through Thanksgiving without becoming a turkey dinner, but now it’s almost Christmas, and guess what’s on the menu? Turkey decides the only thing to do is to ask Santa for help. He sets off for the North Pole, but getting in to see Santa at Christmastime isn’t as easy as Turkey expected. It’s going to take all his ideas—and his clever disguises—to find a way into Santa’s house. After many hilarious attempts, Turkey comes up with the perfect disguise, and Santa has the perfect solution! In this holiday treat, a companion to Turkey Trouble, Wendi Silvano’s story is once again matched with the watercolor artwork of Lee Harper.

Grade Level: Pre-K and up

The Twelve Days Of Christmas, by Gennady Spirin

"The Twelve Days of Christmas" is sung in churches, houses, and concert halls throughout the Christmas season. It would be hard to imagine a Christmas celebration without it. From the partridge in the pear tree to the five golden rings to the twelve drummers drumming, carolers enjoy taking turns singing different verses.

Gennady Spirin's sumptuous paintings bring new life and spectacular beauty to this classic song, making it a gift to be treasured at Christmastime. An Illustrator's Note is included which addresses the song's origin and history.

Sneezy the Snowman, by Maureen Wright (Author), Stephen Gilpin (Illustrator)

B-R-R-R-R! AH-CHOO! Sneezy the Snowman is cold, cold, cold. To warm up, he drinks cocoa, sits in a hot tub, stands near a warm fire – and melts! But the children know just what to do to build him up again – and make him feel "just right". Hilarity chills the air with playful mixed-media illustrations by Stephen Gilpin as Sneezy attempts to warm himself with some silly results.

Grade Level: 1st and up

The Reader, by Amy Hest (Author), Lauren Castillo (Illustrator)

In this timeless picture book, a new reader trudges through deep snow with a mysterious suitcase in tow. He has something important to share with his faithful companion, who bolts ahead to wait at the top of a tall hill. Our small hero climbs higher and higher, until finally, he is there, too. Then he opens his suitcase—click, click—and soon the only sound in the world is the sound of the reader reading their very favorite book to the very last page…the very last word.

Amy Hest’s spare evocative text is a true celebration of new readers and good friends everywhere, while Lauren Castillo’s pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations, with their bold saturated colors against winter white, perfectly capture the wonder and delight of this magical day.

Grade Level: Pre-K and up

Snowzilla, by Janet Lawler

It snowed without stopping for week after week. When it ended at last, Cami Lou took a peek. She bundled and booted and zipped up her brother. “Let’s build a huge snowman unlike any other!” Cami Lou and her brother build the biggest, hugest, most mammoth snowman the world has ever seen. It’s Snowzilla! The snowman becomes an instant sensation, and tourists pour into the small town. But not everyone is impressed. Some say the giant snowman brings giant problems. Then a judge rules that Snowzilla must come down. Can Cami Lou and her brother save Snowzilla? This fun winter story combines rhyming text with adorable acrylic and colored pencil artwork.

Grade Level: Pre-K and up

Cock-a-doodle Christmas!, by Will Hillenbrand

When Old Rooster leaves the farm to live with his sister, young Harold takes over the job of waking the farm animals each morning. But Harold has a soft voice, and nobody can hear his cock-a-doodle-doo. Then one evening, the sky lights up and a miraculous birth takes place, causing Harold to shout the good news for all to hear. In this Christmas story, Will Hillenbrand shows with gouache, ink, and collage illustrations that even a small creature is changed by the birth of the Christ child.

Grade Level: 1st and up

Gluten Free Cooking Trio (K)

I've been watching for Blackbird Bakery Gluten-Free: 75 Recipes for Irresistible Desserts and Pastries ($3.99), by Karen Morgan and Knoxy (Photographer) , to drop in price since I was given a review copy. You can see a couple of the recipes in the free sample (something I wish more cookbooks would arrange, as so many samples don't give you any real feel for how the recipes will work).

Book Description
Celebrities such as Courteney Cox and Laura Dern love Blackbird Bakery for its famously scrumptious gluten-free desserts. Now these same sweets can be yours too, thanks to this beautiful cookbook that collects 75 delicious recipes for classic desserts and gorgeous French pastries, all made without gluten. Celiac disease is on the rise (more than 3 million Americans and an equal number of Europeans have been diagnosed), and millions more seek gluten-free products to supplement a healthy lifestyle. With this cookbook, gluten-conscious gluttons can dish up all sorts of delectable desserts -- anytime the craving strikes!

Gluten Free, Hassle Free ($2.99), by Marlisa Brown (a dollar less than when I bought this over the summer).

Book Description
Learning how to live gluten-free can seem so difficult and overwhelming- especially with all the mixed information out there. Gluten-Free, Hassle-Free shows you how easy and delicious it can be to go gluten-free! This down to earth, clear and friendly guide offers a wealth of simple and practical solutions, strategies, and shortcuts. It provides an easy-to-follow, three-step process for living a gluten-free life and eating your way back to health. In This Book You Will Find: Over 100 Delicious Gluten-Free Recipes Three Terrific Meal Plans Dining Out Cards in Fourteen Languages...and Much More

PLEASE NOTE ERRATA CORRECTION: An error in publication appears on page 49 of the Detailed Food Chart. The entry, Dinkle or spelt (S), is incorrect. The correct entry should be: Dinkle or spelt (NS).

Quintessential Quinoa Cookbook ($1.99), by Wendy Polisi, isn't an entirely gluten free cookbook, but many of the recipes in it are naturally gluten free and it appears it is well annotated for several common allergens.

Book Description
With over 200 pages of quinoa-inspired cuisine, The Quintessential Quinoa Cookbook is unlike any other quinoa cookbook. Inside you’ll find Wendy’s exclusive, hand-crafted recipes, photographs of every recipe, nutritional information for every recipe, and alternative ingredients and preparation methods. Included are vegan, gluten-free, sugar-free, fast & easy, eating clean, quinoa recipes for kids, and even desserts! Let’s take a quick peek at the recipes included: Strawberry Spinach Quinoa Salad, Black Bean and Quinoa Tostadas, Quinoa Burgers, Almond Fudge Quinoa Brownies, Sun-Dried Tomato and Goat Cheese Pizza, and much more!

Today's Deals 12/19

Enter the Amazon Music Gift Card Sweepstakes and you could win a $500 Gift Card.

Today's Audible Daily Deal is "Books from Our ACX Collection for $3.95 each". Looks like a number of really good deals and Wool Omnibus Edition (Wool 1 - 5) is only $1.99 (I suspect because I have the Kindle book).

At Harlequin, FREE stocking stuffers for your loved one. "These IOU coupons make perfect stocking stuffers for your loved one! Enjoy sharing this special little treat and put a smile on your loved one's face."

If you are a student or have an .EDU email address, you can sign up for Amazon Prime on the Amazon Student for half-price. Besides free 2-day shipping, Prime Instant Videos and the Kindle Lending Library, students also get special deals throughout the year. Not a student? Send the link on to any you know.

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is Pocket-47 ($0.99), a Nicholas Colt Thriller by Jude Hardin.

Book Description
Fifteen-year-old Brittney Ryan has taken to the streets. Leitha, her older sister and legal guardian, hires private investigator Nicholas Colt to find her and bring her home. Piece of cake, Colt thinks. With Brittney's forbidden boyfriend's address in hand, he plans to make a surprise visit and put this one in the scrapbook.But something more sinister is behind Brittney's disappearance, and Colt soon finds himself in an ever-widening maze of deceit, betrayal, and murder. When Colt learns what the mysterious phrase Pocket-47 means, he is haunted even more by the plane crash that killed his family and rock band twenty years ago-a crash he now realizes might not have been an accident.Determined to save Brittney, Colt struggles to untangle the threads of his own tortured past. Unfortunately, one of the most heinous and violent criminals in modern history has other ideas.

Today's Kindle Romance Daily Deal is The Laws of Love ($0.99), by Lisa White.

Book Description
Associate General Counsel Livi Miller believes she has reached the top rung of Hampton Steel’s corporate ladder. She is young, ambitious, and the best deal-maker Hampton Steel has seen since her boss started drinking. However, when her high school sweetheart Jake returns home from Iraq, Livi painfully discovers that having it all does not necessarily mean having it all at once.

When a newcomer threatens to destroy Hampton Steel, Livi is forced to make a decision: save her hometown or save her happiness.

Sensuality Level: Sensual

Today's Kindle SciFi/Fantasy Daily Deal is Wolf's Bluff ($1.99), The third title in the Nick Lupo series by Bram Stoker Award Nominee W. D. Gagliani. The first in the series, Wolf's Trap ($5), is what earned him the nomination and the second in the series, Wolf's Gambit, was a bargain book a couple of years ago (which is when I picked it up). I had a comment left yesterday that said you could read these books from the library, but here's an example of a series I can't find (electronically) at my library, but that that is much more affordable to read due to the bargains I've posted.

Book Description
Homicide cop -- and werewolf -- Nick Lupo has battled other werewolves before, killers who unlike Nick have no problem hunting human prey. So when a new series of savage animal attacks terrifies the area, Nick already has a suspect in mind. And he knows that if he's right it'll be up to him to destroy her. But even as he begins his surveillance, someone else is out there, watching them both. Someone with a very deadly plan. Someone who knows just what it takes to kill a werewolf.

The Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK is A Selection of 8 Books for £0.99 Each.

There's something for everyone in today's Kindle Daily Deal, from Christmas-themed crime to cutting-edge psychology. The eight books are: Running With Scissors by Augusten Burroughs, The Boy from Berlin by Michael Parker, Soul Dust by Nicholas Humphrey, Burned by Thomas Enger, The Sky's Dark Labyrinth by Stuart Clark, The Limit by Michael Cannell, If I Touched the Earth by Cynthia Rogerson and A Highland Christmas by MC Beaton.

The Given Day ($1.99 Kindle, B&N), by Dennis Lehane, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.

Book Description
Set in Boston at the end of the First World War, bestselling author Dennis Lehane's extraordinary eighth novel unflinchingly captures the political and social unrest of a nation caught at the crossroads where past meets future. Filled with a cast of richly drawn, unforgettable characters, The Given Day tells the story of two families—one black, one white—swept up in a maelstrom of revolutionaries and anarchists, immigrants and ward bosses, Brahmins and ordinary citizens, all engaged in a battle for survival and power. Coursing through the pivotal events of a turbulent epoch, it explores the crippling violence and irrepressible exuberance of a country at war with, and in the thrall of, itself.

Today's Kindle Teen Daily Deal is Wicked Lovely ($1.99), by Melissa Marr. Check your libraries on this one, as there was a Bonus edition free in early 2010.

Book Description
Rule #3: Don't stare at invisible faeries.

Aislinn has always seen faeries. Powerful and dangerous, they walk hidden in mortal world. Aislinn fears their cruelty—especially if they learn of her Sight—and wishes she were as blind to their presence as other teens.

Rule #2: Don't speak to invisible faeries.

Now faeries are stalking her. One of them, Keenan, who is equal parts terrifying and alluring, is trying to talk to her, asking questions Aislinn is afraid to answer.

Rule #1: Don't ever attract their attention.

But it's too late. Keenan is the Summer King who has sought his queen for nine centuries. Without her, summer itself will perish. He is determined that Aislinn will become the Summer Queen at any cost—regardless of her plans or desires.

Suddenly none of the rules that have kept Aislinn safe are working anymore, and everything is on the line: her freedom; her best friend, Seth; her life; everything.

Faerie intrigue, mortal love, and the clash of ancient rules and modern expectations swirl together in Melissa Marr's stunning 21st century faery tale.

Today's Deals 12/18

Join the festivities with 12 Days and 12 FREE comics during comiXology’s 12 Days of Gifting! Today, (until 1PM) get Happy #1, the first issue of the new image series for FREE today!

Today's Kindle Teen Daily Deal is Legend ($2.99), the first novel in the series by Marie Lu.

Book Description
What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.

From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths - until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias's death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.

Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills.

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is The Devil of Nanking ($1.99), by Mo Hayder.

Book Description
With the redolent atmosphere of Ian Rankin and the spine-chilling characters of Thomas Harris, Mo Hayder's The Devil of Nanking, takes the reader on an electrifying literary ride from the palatial apartments of yakuza kingpins to deep inside the secret history of one of the twentieth century's most brutal events: the Nanking Massacre.

A young Englishwoman obsessed with an indecipherable past, Grey comes to Tokyo seeking a lost piece of film footage of the notorious 1937 Nanking Massacre, footage some say never existed. Only one man can help Grey. A survivor of the massacre, he is now a visiting professor at a university in Tokyo. But he will have nothing to do with her.

So Grey accepts a job in an upmarket nightspot, where a certain gangster may be the key to gaining the professor's trust. An old man in a wheelchair surrounded by a terrifying entourage, the gangster is rumored to rely on a mysterious elixir for his continued health. Taut, gritty, sexy, and harrowing, The Devil of Nanking is an incomparable literary thriller set in one of the world's most fascinating cities-Tokyo-from an internationally best-selling author.

Today's Kindle Romance Daily Deal is Love, Eternally ($0.99), the first title in the Roman Time Travel series by Morgan O'Neill.

Book Description
A witch's ancient curse propels talented flutist Gigi Perrin back to A.D. 408, to the court of the depraved Roman Emperor Honorius and his admirable sister, Princess Galla Placidia.

There, Gigi grapples with her disbelief about what has happened, and with the strange, new world of violent politics, social upheaval, and Visigoth barbarians straining at the very gates of an empire.

Through it all, she must struggle with her powerful attraction to a pagan senator and military commander, Quintus Magnus, a man exotically different from anyone she has ever known. On the brink of a dark and war-torn age, Gigi joins forces with Magnus, battling to save a princess and her people, and ultimately finding love amid the chaos, before the fall of Rome.

Sensuality Level: Sensual

Morgan O’Neill: Two authors writing as one, Cary Morgan Frates and Deborah O’Neill Cordes invite the reader on a journey to worlds of ancient splendor and abiding love.

Today's Kindle SciFi/Fantasy Daily Deal is Old Man's War ($2.99), by John Scalzi, with the companion audiobook for $3.95. This is a good price for those that didn't manage to grab it for free in 2008.

Book Description
John Perry did two things on his 75th birthday. First he visited his wife's grave. Then he joined the army.

The good news is that humanity finally made it into interstellar space. The bad news is that planets fit to live on are scarce--and alien races willing to fight us for them are common. So: we fight. To defend Earth, and to stake our own claim to planetary real estate. Far from Earth, the war has been going on for decades: brutal, bloody, unyielding.

Earth itself is a backwater. The bulk of humanity's resources are in the hands of the Colonial Defense Force. Everybody knows that when you reach retirement age, you can join the CDF. They don't want young people; they want people who carry the knowledge and skills of decades of living. You'll be taken off Earth and never allowed to return. You'll serve two years at the front. And if you survive, you'll be given a generous homestead stake of your own, on one of our hard-won colony planets.

John Perry is taking that deal. He has only the vaguest idea what to expect. Because the actual fight, light-years from home, is far, far harder than he can imagine--and what he will become is far stranger.

Trains and Lovers: The Heart's Journey ($1.60 / £0.99 UK), by Alexander McCall-Smith, is the first Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $11.99 pre-order).

Book Description
In the words of Alexander McCall Smith: 'You feel the rocking of the train, you hear the sound of its wheels on the rails; you are in the world rather than suspended somewhere above it. And sometimes there are conversations to be had, which is what the overarching story in this collection is all about. It is a simple device: people brought together entertain one another with tales of what happened to them on trains. It takes place on a journey I frequently make myself and know well, the journey between Edinburgh and London. It is best read on a train, preferably that one.'

The Invisible Circus ($1.60 / £0.99 UK), by Jennifer Egan, is the second Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $11.99).

Book Description
In Jennifer Egan's highly acclaimed first novel, set in 1978, the political drama and familial tensions of the 1960s form a backdrop for the world of Phoebe O'Connor, age eighteen.

Phoebe is obsessed with the memory and death of her sister Faith, a beautiful idealistic hippie who died in Italy in 1970. In order to find out the truth about Faith's life and death, Phoebe retraces her steps from San Francisco across Europe, a quest which yields both complex and disturbing revelations about family, love, and Faith's lost generation.

This spellbinding novel introduced Egan's remarkable ability to tie suspense with deeply insightful characters and the nuances of emotion.

The Still Point ($1.60 / £0.99 UK), by Amy Sackville, is the third Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $9.99).

Book Description
At the turn of the twentieth century, Arctic explorer Edward Mackley sets out to reach the North Pole and vanishes into the icy landscape without a trace. He leaves behind a young wife, Emily, who awaits his return for decades, her dreams and devotion gradually freezing into rigid widowhood. A hundred years later, on a sweltering mid-summer's day, Edward's great-grand-niece Julia moves through the old family house, attempting to impose some order on the clutter of inherited belongings and memories from that ill-fated expedition, and taking care to ignore the deepening cracks within her own marriage. But as afternoon turns into evening, Julia makes a discovery that splinters her long-held image of Edward and Emily's romance, and her husband Simon faces a precipitous choice that will decide the future of their relationship. Sharply observed and deeply engaging, "The Still Point" is a powerful literary debut, and a moving meditation on the distances - geographical and emotional - that can exist between two people.

No Proper Lady ($0.99 Kindle, B&N), by Isabel Cooper, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.

Book Description
Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year; Library Journal Best Book of the Year; RT Book Reviews Seal of Excellence and Finalist for Best Book of the Year

When a half-naked woman suddenly appears on his country estate, Simon Grenville doesn't have time to be shocked. Demonic beasts are hot on his heels until the beautiful stranger unsheathes several knives strapped to her skin-tight trousers and kills them. As he stares at her fierce, heart-stopping face, Simon knows he's in a hell of a lot of trouble...

Joan is from a time where demons run rampant and humanity is fighting for its existence. To prevent this terrible future, she is sent back to Victorian England to kill the magician responsible for unleashing the dark forces. But Joan is a soldier more used to sparring than dancing. To get close to her target, she'll need Simon to teach her how to fit into polite society. Joan doesn't mind practicing proper flirtation on Simon, but she can't allow herself to be distracted by his gentle hands or devilish smile-the very future depends on it.

Free AudioBook Short Story

The audiobook edition of How the Grinch Stole Christmas, a short story by Dr. Seuss, narrated by Walter Matthau, is free from Audible.

Book Description
The Grinch, whose heart is two sizes too small, hates Who-ville's holiday celebrations, and plans to steal all the presents to prevent Christmas from coming. To his amazement, Christmas comes anyway, and the Grinch discovers the true meaning of the holiday.

Get free audiobook at Audible (use the link; the edition you find by searching isn't free).

Today's Deals 12/17

Today's Gold Box Deal at Amazon is a Roku box for $39.

At Amazon, the 5 Free Holiday Songs have updated, although I already had two of them, there are three newly free.

Amazon's Android Appstore spotlight today is on Zombiewood: Kindle Tablet Edition (free)

Today's Audible Daily Deal is The Magic Treehouse series for $1.99 Each

At Harlequin, Enter for a chance to win one of five $50 shopping sprees on Harlequin.com.

Join the festivities with 12 Days and 12 FREE comics during comiXology’s 12 Days of Gifting! Today, (until 1PM) Dynamite Entertainment proudly presents Masks #1 for FREE today only! After 1PM, the free download will change.

Today is the last day to take advantage of this KSO deal:

• $2 Instant Amazon Instant Video Credit

Today's Kindle Teens Daily Deal is Sanctum ($1.99), the first novel in Sarah Fine's Guards of the Shadowlands YA urban fantasy series. Although a relatively newly published author (this came out in October), she has another book coming out next year and a contract for two more starting in 2014, so we'll be seeing more of her work in the future.

Book Description
"My plan: Get into the city. Get Nadia. Find a way out. Simple."

A week ago, seventeen-year-old Lela Santos’s best friend, Nadia, killed herself. Today, thanks to a farewell ritual gone awry, Lela is standing in paradise, looking upon a vast gated city in the distance – hell. No one willingly walks through the Suicide Gates, into a place smothered in darkness and infested with depraved creatures. But Lela isn’t just anyone – she’s determined to save her best friend’s soul, even if it means sacrificing her eternal afterlife.

As Lela struggles to find Nadia, she’s captured by the Guards, enormous, not-quite-human creatures that patrol the dark city’s endless streets. Their all-too human leader, Malachi, is unlike them in every way except one: his deadly efficiency. When he meets Lela, Malachi forms his own plan: get her out of the city, even if it means she must leave Nadia behind. Malachi knows something Lela doesn’t – the dark city isn’t the worst place Lela could end up, and he will stop at nothing to keep her from that fate.

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is The Last Block In Harlem ($1.99), by Christopher Herz, with the companion audiobook also $1.99.

Book Description
All fire escapes lead back to the same block in Sugar Hill, Harlem- where kids run through hydrants and music blares from stereos plugged into lampposts. When a new resident (the story's unnamed narrator) notices the trash polluting the picturesque streets and tainting the block's beauty, he is spurred to action. However, his best intentions go awry when the clean-up brings media coverage that in turn, sets off a rash of evictions and ushers in an influx of new and affluent tenants. In an attempt to preserve his neighborhood, the tenant mobilizes a grassroots effort to improve the neighborhood from the inside out.

Realizing he has yet again polluted his reality with unintended consequences, his fight to clean up the block evolves into a quest to cleanse his soul. The choices he makes cannot change the past and the secrets that haunt him, but will alter the future for himself, his family...and the last block in Harlem.

Today's Kindle Romance Daily Deal is Sunny Days for Sam ($0.99), by Jennifer Shirk.

Book Description
Sunnyva 'Sunny' Fletcher is a firm believer in fairy tales. With the recent debt she's acquired, the hope of something magical happening in her life is the only thing keeping her going. She needs a job fast. So when Sunny learns the sexy new vacationer in town is looking for a nanny, she starts to believe she just may have a fairy godmother after all!

Internet guru Sam Calloway is only in town for the summer and needs a nanny for his two small children. However, the beautiful and inexperienced Sunny is not exactly the kind of caregiver Sam has in mind. It doesn't take long for Sunny's tenderhearted and bubble-blowing ways to soon have the children -- and Sam -- enamored with her. She's a dream come true. But after what Sam's been through, he's stopped believing in fairy tales long ago.

Sunny manages to work her way into Sam's closed-off heart, but at the end of the summer, will the workaholic dad go back to his life in New York City, or will he decide his days are much sunnier here with Sunny?

Today's Kindle SciFi/Fantasy Daily Deal is Roadside Picnic ($2.99), by Arkady Strugatsky and Boris Strugatsky, a Rediscovered Classic with a foreword by Ursula K. Le Guin. I'm definitely adding this to my TBR list and hope the Chicago Review Press brings more of their work back into print.

Book Description
Red Schuhart is a stalker, one of those young rebels who are compelled, in spite of extreme danger, to venture illegally into the Zone to collect the mysterious artifacts that the alien visitors left scattered around. His life is dominated by the place and the thriving black market in the alien products. But when he and his friend Kirill go into the Zone together to pick up a “full empty,” something goes wrong. And the news he gets from his girlfriend upon his return makes it inevitable that he’ll keep going back to the Zone, again and again, until he finds the answer to all his problems.

First published in 1972, Roadside Picnic is still widely regarded as one of the greatest science fiction novels, despite the fact that it has been out of print in the United States for almost thirty years. This authoritative new translation corrects many errors and omissions and has been supplemented with a foreword by Ursula K. Le Guin and a new afterword by Boris Strugatsky explaining the strange history of the novel’s publication in Russia.

The Dead Women of Juarez ($1.59 / £0.99 UK), by Sam Hawken, is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $5.72).

Book Description
Since 1993 over 500 women have been murdered in Ciudad Juárez.

Residents believe the true number of disappeared stands at 5,000.

When a new disappearance is reported, Kelly Courter, a washed-up Texan boxer, and Rafael Sevilla, a Mexican detective, are sucked into an underworld of organised crime, believing they can outwit the corruption all around. The Dead Women of Juárez follows these two men obsessed with seeking the truth about the female victims of the Mexican border wars.

The Templeton Twins Have an Idea ($1.99 Kindle, B&N), by Ellis Weiner, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.

Book Description
Suppose there were 12-year-old twins, a boy and girl named John and Abigail Templeton. Let's say John was pragmatic and played the drums, and Abigail was theoretical and solved cryptic crosswords. Now suppose their father was a brilliant, if sometimes confused, inventor. And suppose that another set of twins—adults—named Dean D. Dean and Dan D. Dean, kidnapped the Templeton twins and their ridiculous dog in order to get their father to turn over one of his genius (sort of) inventions. Yes, I said kidnapped. Wouldn't it be fun to read about that? Oh please. It would so. Luckily for you, this is just the first in a series perfect for boys and girls who are smart, clever, and funny (just like the twins), and enjoy reading adventurous stories (who doesn't?!).

Grade Level: 4 and up

Get 1 of 50 Books for $1

This offer is set up via AmazonLocal and anyone (in the US) can participate.

Free Voucher to Purchase Select eBooks from the Amazon Kindle Store for $1

Click to "purchase" the voucher, sign in (to Amazon) and click thru a few more pages and you'll find the voucher code you need under "Your Vouchers" (link in top/right corner of the page). Sign-up for this offer expires December 18, 2012 or when the number of vouchers set aside by Amazon have been exhausted.

To use the Voucher, just click back to Amazonlocal and then on View Code next to the offer title. Click to copy the code, the on the link in step #2, to apply the code to your account (make sure you see the green "Success" message after entering the code). It works like a gift card and once applied to your account first, you can then shop from your Kindle or desktop, picking any one of the 50 qualifying titles. You should be able to gift the book to someone else (I have in the past), if there isn't one you want yourself (the full price shows all the way thru, but on the invoice summary, you will see the $1 promotional price). The voucher will expire if not used toward a qualifying Kindle book purchase from Amazon.com by 11:59 p.m. PST, December 26, 2012

I don't see this offer on any of my Kindles (eInk or Fire), but it is set up just like the Fire Special Offers I've signed up for in the past (via AmazonLocal), so I wouldn't be surprised if it shows on the Special Offers page for some people.

Today's Deals 12/16

Amazon has a web page up for their Top Whispersync for Voice Picks for 2012 and you can add professional narration to any of the 75 books on the page for $4.99 or less.

Today's Audible Daily Deal is Ernest Cline's Ready Player One for $9.95. Members with credits get a bonus deal: Sci-Fi & Fantasy 3 for 2 boutique (and if you don't have two credits, Audible will probably show you a Buy 3 discount page.

At Harlequin, save 20% on any Carina Press Fantasy books, today only! Use CPFANTASY20 at Checkout

Join the festivities with 12 Days and 12 FREE comics during comiXology’s 12 Days of Gifting! Today, Dynamite Entertainment proudly presents Masks #1 for FREE!

Today's Kindle Kids Daily Deal is The Ruins of Gorlan ($2.99), the first title in John Flanagan's teen Ranger's Apprentice series. As a bonus, you can get the companion audiobook for $4.99.

Book Description
The international bestselling series with over 5 million copies sold in the U.S. alone!

They have always scared him in the past—the Rangers, with their dark cloaksand shadowy ways. The villagers believe the Rangers practice magic that makes them invisible to ordinary people. And now 15-year-old Will, always small for his age, has been chosen as a Ranger's apprentice. What he doesn't yet realize is that the Rangers are the protectors of the kingdom. Highly trained in the skills of battle and surveillance, they fight the battles before the battles reach the people. And as Will is about to learn, there is a large battle brewing. The exiled Morgarath, Lord of the Mountains of Rain and Night, is gathering his forces for an attack on the kingdom. This time, he will not be denied. . . .

Perfect for fans of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, T.H. White’s The Sword in the Stone, Christopher Paolini’s Eragon series, and George R. R. Martin’s Game of Thrones/A Song of Ice and Fire series.

Grade Level: 5 and up

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is Always Looking Up ($1.99), by Michael J. Fox.

Book Description
There are many words to describe Michael J. Fox: Actor. Husband. Father. Activist. But readers of Always Looking Up will soon add another to the list: Optimist. Michael writes about the hard-won perspective that helped him see challenges as opportunities. Instead of building walls around himself, he developed a personal policy of engagement and discovery: an emotional, psychological, intellectual, and spiritual outlook that has served him throughout his struggle with Parkinson's disease. Michael's exit from a very demanding, very public arena offered him the time-and the inspiration-to open up new doors leading to unexpected places. One door even led him to the center of his own family, the greatest destination of all.

The last ten years, which is really the stuff of this book, began with such a loss: my retirement from Spin City. I found myself struggling with a strange new dynamic: the shifting of public and private personas. I had been Mike the actor, then Mike the actor with PD. Now was I just Mike with PD Parkinson's had consumed my career and, in a sense, had become my career. But where did all of this leave Me? I had to build a new life when I was already pretty happy with the old one..

Always Looking Up is a memoir of this last decade, told through the critical themes of Michael's life: work, politics, faith, and family. The book is a journey of self-discovery and reinvention, and a testament to the consolations that protect him from the ravages of Parkinson's.

With the humor and wit that captivated fans of his first book, Lucky Man, Michael describes how he became a happier, more satisfied person by recognizing the gifts of everyday life.

Today's Kindle Romance Daily Deal is Prelude to a Seduction ($0.99), by Lotchie Burton.

Book Description
David Broussard is a handsome, successful businessman with the unsavory reputation of a player. He’s known for his allure, charming personality, and ability to draw and seduce women. He’s gifted by nature with an unbelievably erotic scent that emanates from his body—natural pheromones that attract women in droves. Having used this advantage in the past with great success, he expects the same results as he sets his sights on Sarona Maxwell. He finds himself fascinated to the point of obsession with Sarona and has made it his priority to woo her, to seduce her, and to get her into his bed. However, in his quest to captivate and capture, he finds Sarona is more woman than he’s bargained for, and he’ll need more than cunning, charm, and nature’s gift to achieve his goal.

Sarona is undeniably attracted to the charisma and roguish good looks of David Broussard, and like any red-blooded female alive she’s fallen victim to his intoxicating scent. Unfortunately, his reputation for being on the prowl and always in search of his next conquest precedes him. She has no illusions he has any interest in her. Considering her size and the fact that she’s black, she’s sure she doesn’t fit his usual preference for eye candy. She sees herself as merely a spectator, observing from a distance his penchant to hunt, and she watches him play his game of pursuit, seduction, and surrender.

Sarona has no idea that the rules of the game have changed. She doesn’t realize that there’s no such thing as being safe standing on the sidelines and that now, suddenly she’s become the prey set in the sights of the hunter.

Sensuality Level: Hot

Today's Kindle SciFi/Fantasy Daily Deal is The Color of Magic ($1.99), by Terry Pratchett. This is a definitely recommended title and worth re-reading if it has been a while (and one I bought, long ago).

Book Description
Terry Pratchett's profoundly irreverent, bestselling novels have garnered him a revered position in the halls of parody next to the likes of Mark Twain, Kurt Vonnegut, Douglas Adams, and Carl Hiaasen.

The Color of MagicM is Terry Pratchett's maiden voyage through the now-legendary land of Discworld. This is where it all begins -- with the tourist Twoflower and his wizard guide, Rincewind.

The Amazon exclusive translation of Fujisan ($1.59 / £0.99 UK), by Randy Taguchi and Raj Mahtani (Translator), is the Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $4.99/KLL Eligible).

Book Description
From acclaimed Japanese author Randy Taguchi come four unforgettable stories of redemption, discovery, loss, and remembrance anchored by one of the world’s holiest peaks. Mount Fuji has been a source of spiritual inspiration since it was first ascended by a monk over a millennium ago.

“Blue Summit” introduces a former cult member struggling to maintain his escape from a mountain monastery, seeking solace in the fluorescent lights of the convenience store he manages. In “Sea of Trees,” three teenage boys who share a fascination with the metaphysical confront the startling realities of death and despair on their final adventure together before parting ways for different schools. “Jamila” chronicles a privileged young man’s descent into disillusionment as he works with a compulsive hoarder to clear her mess. And in “Child of Light,” a nurse struggles as she comes to terms with her role in the oft-brutal cycle of birth, life, and death.

Throughout the stories, Mount Fuji stands sentinel even as it fades in and out of view—watching and remembering as it always has.

Girl Meets Boy: Because There Are Two Sides to Every Story ($1.99 Kindle, B&N), by Kelly Milner Halls, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.

Book Description
What do guys and girls really think? Twelve of the most dynamic and engaging YA authors writing today team up for this one-of-a-kind collection of he said/she said stories he tells it from the guy's point of view, she tells it from the girl's. Stories of love and heartbreak, like the good-looking jock who falls for a dangerous girl and the flipside of the toxic girl who never learns to be loved; a basketball star and the artistic (and shorter) boy she never knew she wanted; and a gay boy looking for love online and the girl who could help make it happen, teach us that relationships become complicated because there are two sides to every story.

Free & Bargain Books by T. Jefferson Parker (K)

T. Jefferson Parker appears to be self-publishing some of his backlist police procedurals and today he has The Blue Hour, the first title in his Merci Rayborn series, free in the Kindle store.

Book Description
Tim Hess is a semi-retired homicide cop staring at his own death sentence – lung cancer. Time is running out. Thrice divorced and childless, Hess is the classic loner cop – so he’s happy to accept the difficult job offered to him: find and stop a serial killer who’s been abducting beautiful young women in Orange County.

His new partner, and boss, is the brash, ambitious Merci Rayborn. She’s unpopular and unloved by her fellow cops, but she’s also relentless, smart and principled. Hess, challenged by the investigation and by his own disease, isn’t happy about taking orders from Merci, and he certainly isn’t planning for her to fall in love with him…
Intricately plotted and surprisingly moving, THE BLUE HOUR is T. Jefferson Parker’s most compelling – and satisfying – thriller yet.

You can also get the second in the series, Red Light, for 99 cents (and the companion audiobook for $1.99). Black Water is published by Hyperion, still, but is under $5 currently.

Not connected to any series, two more novels are also currently on sale for 99 cents: Silent Joe and Where Serpents Lie. I have several of his novels in my library, but not a single one of the ones on this sale (yay!).

Bargain Duo (K)

To go with the free copy of White Witch today, you may be interested in the next two in Trish Milburn's Coven series, both of which are on sale today, starting with Bane ($0.99).

Book Description
In White Witch, Jax Pherson fled the darkest of covens to escape from her own father’s evil. In that life-and-death battle, she gained staggering power. Power so intense, so dangerous, she fears the darkness that now dwells inside her
like a living thing. If she can’t control the power, she may become as evil as the witches she conquered.

For a brief moment, her courage was rewarded. She found everything she’d ever wanted. A normal life. An amazing boyfriend. An envy-worthy best friend.

Now, in Bane, her past puts those she loves in danger again, forcing another confrontation with the covens. Jax must leave her new life behind.

With her friend Egan, she heads for the one place that might hold the answers she desperately needs—Salem, Massachusetts.
There, her research unearths a hopeful but shocking
discovery: The Bane, a secret group of witches dedicated to the same cause as Jax—thwarting the covens.

Finding The Bane is easier said than done; Jax must use all her skills in the search, while evading a deadly witch hunter.

As the tension rises, her sinister powers begin to tempt her. If she succumbs, Jax may have as much to fear from the hunter and The Bane as from the evil covens.

Magick ($1.99)

Book Description
The covens are coming for her.

But is she a White Witch or a Dark Witch? In a war for control of the witch world, the answer will save-or doom-everyone she loves.

In White Witch, Jax gained friends she'd die for and a staggering power that threatens them all.

In Bane, Jax did the unthinkable and killed a supernatural hunter to protect her friends. She found herself lost in darkness and prisoner to the Bane, a secret society of witches sworn to prevent the use of the dark magic.

Now, in Magick, the powers of Jax and her friend Egan have been magically bound by the Bane. She must convince the Bane she can learn to control her power and become a White Witch in truth. She's their only hope now that the dark covens have called a Conclave with one purpose-to kill this generation's White Witch and anyone who has ever stood with her. If Jax can't amass an army of her own, rebuild the trust of her friends and boyfriend, and find the White Witch's elusive weapon against the dark, it may be too late.

Today's Deals 12/15

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter ($1.99), by Tom Franklin.

Book Description
Tom Franklin's extraordinary talent has been hailed by the leading lights of contemporary literature—Philip Roth, Richard Ford, Lee Smith, and Dennis Lehane. Reviewers have called his fiction "ingenious" (USA Today) and "compulsively readable" (Memphis Commercial Appeal). His narrative power and flair for character-ization have been compared to the likes of Harper Lee, Flannery O'Connor, Elmore Leonard, and Cormac McCarthy.

Now the Edgar Award-winning author returns with his most accomplished and resonant novel so far—an atmospheric drama set in rural Mississippi. In the late 1970s, Larry Ott and Silas "32" Jones were boyhood pals. Their worlds were as different as night and day: Larry, the child of lower-middle-class white parents, and Silas, the son of a poor, single black mother. Yet for a few months the boys stepped outside of their circumstances and shared a special bond. But then tragedy struck: Larry took a girl on a date to a drive-in movie, and she was never heard from again. She was never found and Larry never confessed, but all eyes rested on him as the culprit. The incident shook the county—and perhaps Silas most of all. His friendship with Larry was broken, and then Silas left town.

More than twenty years have passed. Larry, a mechanic, lives a solitary existence, never able to rise above the whispers of suspicion. Silas has returned as a constable. He and Larry have no reason to cross paths until another girl disappears and Larry is blamed again. And now the two men who once called each other friend are forced to confront the past they've buried and ignored for decades.

Today's Kindle SciFi/Fantasy Daily Deal is Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell ($1.99), by Susanna Clarke.

Book Description
It's 1808 and that Corsican upstart Napoleon is battering the English army and navy. Enter Mr. Norrell, a fusty but ambitious scholar from the Yorkshire countryside and the first practical magician in hundreds of years. What better way to demonstrate his revival of British magic than to change the course of the Napoleonic wars? Susanna Clarke's ingenious first novel, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, has the cleverness and lightness of touch of the Harry Potter series, but is less a fairy tale of good versus evil than a fantastic comedy of manners, complete with elaborate false footnotes, occasional period spellings, and a dense, lively mythology teeming beneath the narrative. Mr. Norrell moves to London to establish his influence in government circles, devising such powerful illusions as an 11-day blockade of French ports by English ships fabricated from rainwater. But however skillful his magic, his vanity provides an Achilles heel, and the differing ambitions of his more glamorous apprentice, Jonathan Strange, threaten to topple all that Mr. Norrell has achieved.

Today's Kindle Romance Daily Deal is Rainshadow Road ($2.99), by Lisa Kleypas.

Book Description
Lucy Marinn is a glass artist living in mystical, beautiful, Friday Harbor, Washington. She is stunned and blindsided by the most bitter kind of betrayal: her fiancé Kevin has left her. His new lover is Lucy’s own sister. Lucy's bitterness over being dumped is multiplied by the fact that she has constantly made the wrong choices in her romantic life. Facing the severe disapproval of Lucy's parents, Kevin asks his friend Sam Nolan, a local vineyard owner on San Juan Island, to "romance" Lucy and hopefully loosen her up and get her over her anger. Complications ensue when Sam and Lucy begin to fall in love, Kevin has second thoughts, and Lucy discovers that the new relationship in her life began under false pretenses. Questions about love, loyalty, old patterns, mistakes, and new beginnings are explored as Lucy learns that some things in life—even after being broken—can be made into something new and beautiful.

The Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK is three novels written by Andrew Garve and published by Bello, for $1.59 / £0.99 (no US editions).

The Galloway Case (UK)

When the boundaries between reality and fiction become blurred it is left to one man to seek the truth . . . Journalist Peter Rennie discovers more than he bargained for after being sent to the Channel Islands to do an interview for his news paper. A chance meeting with the mysterious Mary Smith not only has Peter falling head over heels in love with the vivacious woman, but also leads him onto a much more intriguing investigation of his own. Using all his professional knowledge, Peter must get to the bottom of a complex murder case in order to win back the woman he has given his heart to. But when the case in question involves two crime authors, two near-identical novels, a gruesome death and an elaborate paper trail the truth seems impossibility out of his grasp . . .

A Hole in the Ground (UK)

Have you ever wondered what undiscovered gems lie waiting to be found in your garden? Lawrence Quilter, a man in a position of power, finds some interesting records amongst his great grandfather’s papers. This leads him to uncover a labyrinth of secret underground caves that have been hidden for decades. Julie, Lawrence’s long-suffering wife, knows that her husband is an obsessive man with a quirky personality but she stands by him all the same. That is until her husband’s behaviour becomes increasingly worrying and she is forces to reconsider the man she has married. One moment brings about a tragic chain of events which affects both Lawrence and his wife. This is an exciting and unusual story which takes us into the realms of the frightening as well as the fantastically beautiful and delves into the very depths of human nature.

The Narrow Search (UK)

It doesn’t take Clare Hunter many years of married life to discover that her husband, Arnold, is ruthless and unscrupulous. But it is not until she attempts to break up their unsatisfactory marriage that she herself becomes victim of his power-complex. To prevent her leaving him, Arnold resorts to blackmail—of a highly specialised variety. Ordinary legal methods seem powerless to cope with the situation and Clare is becoming desperate when she finds an ally in a former colleague, Hugh Cameron. With little to guide them but their own ingenuity, these two can only rely on each other.

Crashed ($3.99 Kindle, B&N), the first novel in the Junior Bender Mystery series by Timothy Hallinan, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle.

Book Description
INTRODUCING JUNIOR BENDER, THE FAVORITE BURGLAR-TURNED-PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR OF HOLLYWOOD CROOKS

Junior Bender is a Los Angeles burglar with a magic touch. Since he first started breaking into houses when he was fourteen years old, he’s never once been caught. But now, after twenty-two years of an exemplary career, Junior has been blackmailed by Trey Annunziato, one of the most powerful crime bosses in LA, into acting as a private investigator on the set of Trey’s porn movie venture, which someone keeps sabotaging. The star Trey has lined up to do all that’s unwholesome on camera is Thistle Downing, America’s beloved child star, who now lives alone in a drug-induced stupor, destitute and uninsurable. Her starring role will be the scandalous fall-from-grace gossip of rubber-neckers across the country. No wonder Trey needs help keeping the production on track.

Junior knows what that he should do—get Thistle out and find her help—but doing the right thing will land him on the wrong side of LA’s scariest mob boss. With the help of his precocious twelve-year-old daughter, Rina, and his criminal sidekick, Louie the Lost (an ex-getaway driver), Junior has to figure out a miracle solution.

Today's Kindle Kids Daily Deal is A Mutiny in Time ($1.99), the first title in the Infinity Ring series by James Dashner, author of The Maze Runner, which is what I am currently reading. The title currently on sale is intended for a bit younger market, as is The 13th Reality, Volume 1: The Journal of Curious Letters, which is also on sale ($3.99).

Book Description
Scholastic's next multi-platform mega-event begins here!

History is broken, and three kids must travel back in time to set it right!

When best friends Dak Smyth and Sera Froste stumble upon the secret of time travel -- a hand-held device known as the Infinity Ring -- they're swept up in a centuries-long secret war for the fate of mankind. Recruited by the Hystorians, a secret society that dates back to Aristotle, the kids learn that history has gone disastrously off course.

Now it's up to Dak, Sera, and teenage Hystorian-in-training Riq to travel back in time to fix the Great Breaks . . . and to save Dak's missing parents while they're at it. First stop: Spain, 1492, where a sailor named Christopher Columbus is about to be thrown overboard in a deadly mutiny!

Grade Level: 3 and up

Today's Deals 12/14

It's the last day to register for the gift card giveaway on Amazon's 12 Days of Book Deals promotion page. Today's book is The Third Wheel (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 7) [Hardcover] for $1.99.

Today's Audible Daily Deal is J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit for Just $6.95.

At Harlequin, buy 2 books or more and get ANY third book FREE!.

Join the festivities with 12 Days and 12 FREE comics during comiXology’s 12 Days of Gifting! Today, get Terry Moore’s Strangers in Paradise #1.

Starbucks continues their Buy One, Share One Event in the store on all their "holiday beverages". This is valid from 2pm to 5pm, every day thru Dec 16 at all participating stores. There may be other in-store specials (yesterday was an unannounced BOGOF on Holiday VIA).

Today's Kindle Daily Deal is Swimming Home ($1.99), by Deborah Levy.

Book Description
As he arrives with his family at the villa in the hills above Nice, Joe sees a body in the swimming pool. But the girl is very much alive. She is Kitty Finch: a self-proclaimed botanist with green-painted fingernails, walking naked out of the water and into the heart of their holiday. Why is she there? What does she want from them all? And why does Joe's enigmatic wife allow her to remain?

A subversively brilliant study of love, Swimming Home reveals how the most devastating secrets are the ones we keep from ourselves.

Today's Kindle Romance Daily Deal is What a Texas Girl Wants ($0.99), by Kristina Knight.

Book Description
Kathleen Witte is a down-to-earth girl. She has to be, with the family ranch on the verge of success. After seven months of keeping it all together by swearing off men, however, Kathleen needs a bit of fun in the sun. Waking up with a husband she can’t remember isn’t how she planned to blow off steam.

The last thing Jackson Taylor wants in his life is a down-to-earth girl. He has four weeks of freedom in which to find his birth mother. He’s done well avoiding commitment until now, so when he wakes up on a Mexican beach with Kathleen his first reaction is curiosity. When he spies the matching wedding rings on their left hands curiosity turns to concern.

Neither Jackson nor Kathleen want to stay married, but when her family shows up, they have no choice. Once back in Texas, however, can they keep this all-business marriage from turning into an all-consuming love?

Sensuality Level: Sensual

Once upon a time, Kristina Knight spent her days running from car crash to fire to meetings with local police—no, she wasn't a troublemaker, she was a journalist. When the opportunity to focus a bit of energy on the stories in her head, she jumped at it. And she’s never looked back. Now she writes magazine articles by day and romance novels with spice by night. She lives on Lake Erie with her husband, three-year-old daughter, and twenty-year-old fur-kid. Happily ever after.

Today's Kindle SciFi/Fantasy Daily Deal is Aftertime ($1.99), by Sophie Littlefield. This looks like one I'll add near the top of my TBR list. Be careful if searching for this one on your Kindle; there are two editions and the other, a pre-order, is $6.39. Also, if you've been reading for a while, you should have the prequel novella, Survivors, in your library, as it was free twice last year.

Book Description
Awakening in a bleak landscape as scarred as her body, Cass Dollar vaguely recalls surviving something terrible. Having no idea how many weeks have passed, she slowly realizes the horrifying truth: Ruthie has vanished.

And with her, nearly all of civilization.

Where once-lush hills carried cars and commerce, the roads today see only cannibalistic Beaters—people turned hungry for human flesh by a government experiment gone wrong.

In a broken, barren California, Cass will undergo a harrowing quest to get Ruthie back. Few people trust an outsider, let alone a woman who became a zombie and somehow turned back, but she finds help from an enigmatic outlaw, Smoke. Smoke is her savior, and her safety.

For the Beaters are out there.

And the humans grip at survival with their trigger fingers. Especially when they learn that she and Ruthie have become the most feared, and desired, of weapons in a brave new world….

Today's Kindle Kids Daily Deal is Closed for the Season ($1.99), by Mary Downing Hahn.

Book Description
A contemporary thriller by the bestselling author of THE OLD WILLIS PLACE.

Two 13-year-old boys, Arthur and Logan, set out to solve the mystery of a murder that took place some years ago in the old house Logan's family has just moved into. The boys' quest takes them to the highest and lowest levels of society in their small Maryland town, and eventually to a derelict amusement park that is supposedly closed for the season.

Grade Level: 5 and up

Little Boy Blue ($4.99 Kindle, B&N), by Kim Kavin and Jim Gorant, is the Nook Daily Find, price matched on Kindle. It just squeaks in as a bargain book, but I have to say that I love the cover.

Book Description
When journalist Kim Kavin decided that she wanted a puppy, she did what millions of people do every year: clicked on an online photo and submitted an application. She had no idea that the adorable brindle puppy—advertised as healthy and near her home in New Jersey—was actually a last-minute rescue from a gas-chamber shelter in North Carolina. Blue had arrived in the Northeast with at least a dozen other dogs in an RV that is just one among countless transports whose sponsors are dedicating their efforts to saving dogs by any means possible. Blue was happy and friendly, but he seemed to have endured some unusual albeit unknown ordeal. The dog’s manner prompted Kavin to trace his history all the way back to a long row of cages where Blue had been tagged to be put down in just three more days. Little Boy Blue is the true story of one sweet puppy’s journey of survival. It’s also a shocking exposé that describes a brutal ongoing reality inside some of this country’s taxpayer-funded shelters. But Little Boy Blue also tells an inspiring story of the grass-roots rescue network that has exploded across the nation in recent years. Readers will come to know and love a very special dog who now brings smiles to the faces of everyone he meets. From a single click of Kim Kavin’s computer mouse, Blue’s journey of a lifetime began. This is the story of Little Boy Blue, told with candor and a great deal of love. Readers will see Blue and other foster dogs that have been rescued by Kim Kavin in this book’s color photo insert.

The Perfect Present ($1.59 / £0.99 UK), by Karen Swan, is the first of three Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (no US edition).

Book Description
Haunted by a past she can’t escape, Laura Cunningham desires nothing more than to keep her world small and precise - her quiet relationship and growing jewellery business are all she needs to get by. Until the December day when Rob Blake walks into her studio and commissions a necklace that will tell his enigmatic wife Cat’s life in charms. As Laura interviews Cat’s family, friends and former lovers, she steps out of her world and into theirs – a charmed world where weekends are spent in Verbier and the air is lavender-scented, where friends are wild, extravagant and jealous, and a big love has to compete with grand passions. Hearts are opened, secrets revealed and as the necklace begins to fill up, Cat’s intoxicating life envelops Laura’s own. By the time she has to identify the final charm, Laura’s metamorphosis is almost complete. But the last story left to tell has the power to change all of their lives forever, and Laura is forced to choose between who she really is and who it is she wants to be.

Ever Fallen in Love ($1.59 / £0.99 UK), an LGBT romantic suspense novel by Zoe Strachan, is the second Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (no US edition).

Book Description
Richard fell for Luke at university. Luke was handsome, dissolute, dangerous; together they did things that Richard has spent the last decade trying to forget. Now his career is on the brink of success, but his younger sister Stephie’s life is in pieces. Her invasion of Richard’s remote west coast sanctuary forces Richard to confront the tragedy and betrayal of his past, and face up to his own role in what happened back then. In this compelling, visceral tale of how not to fit in, Zoë Strachan takes us on a journey through hedonistic student days to the lives we didn’t expect to end up living, and the hopes and fears that never quite leave us.

Hartsend ($1.59 / £0.99 UK), by Janice Brown, is the third Kindle Deal of the day for those in the UK (the US edition is $9.32).

Book Description
At the turn of the year, in a village in Central Scotland, several people come together at the funeral of Mrs Crosthwaite, a dominating woman famed for her fruit scones. Her middle-aged daughter Lesley now has a chance to break out – if it’s not too late. Lesley’s virtuous neighbour Ruby Robertson, the Scourge of E-numbers, conjures up conspiracy where none exists. Her faithful friend Duncan at the age of fifty is suddenly susceptible to romance, but has an awful lot to learn about women. And the younger generation has its own love tangles to sort out. Meanwhile, out of everyone’s sight, something terrible is about happen.