eBook Deals, or Books I Bought Recently

I couldn't resist a couple of these, especially Ray Bradbury's short story below. As a science fiction fan and as a fan of great ideas in general, his passing is a great tragedy. At least he will live forever through his writings.

The Playground by Ray Bradbury (short story) [$0.99] - If you need a small fix of Ray Bradbury, this may be the perfect thing.
The Exodus Gate (Rising Dawn Saga #1) by Stephen Zimmer [FREE] - Zimmer's done a great job around the blogging community, I really need to give this small press author a try.
John Carter Barsoom Series (7 Novels) by Edgar Rice Burroughs [$0.99] - It looks like this is a pretty huge collection with illustrations, everything I read about it looks like it's really what it says it is.
Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut [$3.99] - I know I've posted this before, but it's still such a good deal I just had to post it again. :)

News & eBook Deals, or Books I Bought Lately

First, the news:

Beware Damnation Books, Inc. They're a small press publisher who have put out a lot of good stuff over the last few years. One of their authors, Tim Marquitz, is attempting to get out of his contract and is having some problems as he explains.

Also, in much happier news (especially for Tim), the second book in his Blood War Trilogy, Embers of an Age ($3.95), is out already. Book one, Dawn of War, is still Free-ninety-nine (that's free).


eBook Deals:

The Hammer by KJ Parker [$2.99] - This was a tough one. I haven't actually read Parker, but I have some other stuff of hers/his and I'm 99% positive I will enjoy it all. :)
Crown of Vengeance (Fires in Eden #1) by Stephen Zimmer [$2.99] - Our former blog-mate, EdiFanoB, really enjoyed this one. (review here)
Dream of Legends (Fires in Eden #2) by Stephen Zimmer [$2.99]
Spirit of Fire (Fires in Eden #3) by Stephen Zimmer [$2.99] - This one was just released.

eBook Deals, or Books I Bought Recently

Tim Marquitz's sequel to Dawn of War is coming out soon so he's having a deal at the moment. It's free for the Barnes and Noble Nook at the moment with the hope that Amazon will drop its price in the next little while as well.

Dawn of War by Tim Marquitz [Free for Nook] [$1.99 Kindle]
Four in the Morning Edited by Tim Marquitz (anthology) [$3.99]
Call Me Joe by Pohl Anderson (short story) [$0.99]

The following is a special deal, not for an ebook, but for a good cause. Only $0.99 for this great picture and it will go to the Children’s Hospice Charity. This picture was created by author Mark Lawrence's daughter, Celyn. Find out more here.

eBook Deals, or Books I Bought Recently

I know the title says "or Books I Bought Recently," but that's not always the case. It was at first and I buy a good many of them, but not all. The ones I already own in paper, I don't tend to buy unless it's an extremely good deal. I just can justify that yet, not to mention I still enjoy paper reading more than eReading. I thought I should make that clear although I wish I could afford all these Discworld books that are listed below.

Talion: Revenant by Michael A. Stackpole ($4.99)
Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowel ($2.99)
Night Watch by Surgei Lukyenenko ($3.99)
Tales of Wonder and Imagination edited by Ellen Datlow (anthology) ($1.99) - Features authors such as Stephen King, George R.R. Martin, and Neil Gaiman.
Hawkwood and the Kings by Paul Kearney (omnibus) ($5.87)

Quite a few Discworld books are discounted, I don't think they're likely to go any lower since it's such an established series. Although I could be wrong. I listed the number of the book in the series, but for the most part, that doesn't matter.

The Light Fantastic (#2) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
Equal Rites (#3) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
Sourcery (#5) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
Pyramids (#7) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
Guards! Guards! (#8) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
Reaper Man (#11) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
Witches Abroad (#12) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
Lords and Ladies (#14) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
Men at Arms (#15) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
Interesting Times (#17) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
Feet of Clay (#19) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
Hogfather (#20) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
The Last Continent (#22) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
The Fifth Elephant (#24) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
Going Postal (#33) by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)

Non-Discworld:
Strata by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)
The Dark Side of the Sun by Terry Pratchett ($5.29)

eBook Deals, or Books I Bought Recently

Admittedly, some of these aren't the greatest deals ever, but the best I've found for Kearney's Macht series. Then, there are some good deals on some classics of science fiction and fantasy.


The Ten Thousand (Macht 1) by Paul Kearney ($5.87)
Corvus (Macht 2) by Paul Kearney ($5.87)
Kings of the Morning (Macht 3) by Paul Kearney ($5.87)
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley ($2.99)
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut ($2.99)
Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut ($2.99)
Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut ($2.99)
Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut (short stories) ($2.99) - My review.
The Giver by Lois Lowry ($4.70)
I Am Legend by Richard Matheson ($2.99) - Keep in mind this is novella-length. The normal volume that includes this story has a bunch of Matheson's short stories as well.
The Fellowship of the Ring (Lord of the Rings, book 1) by JRR Tolkien ($3.99)

Also check out the last eBook deals post (two posts down), where I updated one of the entries.

eBook Deals, or Books I Bought Recently

I couldn't resist these deals, but I completely stole them from other source(s). I was out of town this week, give me a break. :D



The Winds of Khalakovo by Bradley P. Beaulieu (FREE)
The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold ($0.99) - I've been meaning to read this series for a while.
Theft of Swords by Michael J. Sullivan ($4.99) - This is for two books, so it's an even better deal. :) My review - loved it.
The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks ($4.99) - This is not for two books, but still a good deal and great series.
EDIT: Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind ($2.99) - I know I posted about this earlier, but it's now an even better deal. Reason for Edit: Price dropped another dollar.

It's News To Me - Composites of Famous Characters, Metahumans, and eBook Deals

Spring Break starts as we speak and I may or may not have anything to post this upcoming week, it just depends on how much time I have (which you'd think I'd have plenty) and how much internet access I have. Also, I'm hoping to finish a book or two in the next couple days so I can actually have a review to post as well.

But here are a couple interesting things I've found lately:

Composite sketches of Literary Characters - "[U]sing law enforcement composite software and descriptions of literary characters" this guy creates these images. Great idea, although they kinda end up looking the same after a while.

Aomame, 1Q84, Haruki Murakami

Corrupts Absolutely? - I've been reading this anthology and thought I'd share it with you while the price is low ($5.95 for now). I'm about halfway through and it's been good to excellent so far.

Corrupts Absolutely? collects twenty brand-new stories from veteran authors and newcomers, each with a unique perspective on what it might really be like to be superhuman in today’s day and age. In the center of such a roiling mass of uncertainty and excitement lies one important truth: the fight against good or evil is never as important as the fight for or against oneself.

The editor, Lincoln Crisler, has been running a series of panels on his blog that are pretty entertaining, looking at metahumans, villains, and female characters. Also, one author, Ed Erdelac, talks about writing his piece.


eBook Deals

• The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun by J.R.R. Tolkien ($2.79) - Hope you liked the poems and songs of Lord of the Rings. Oh? You skipped those? I bought this because, you know, it's JRRT. But how much I will enjoy it remains to be seen.
• A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs (FREE) - Anyone seen the new John Carter movie and is it any good? I need to see it, it had me at Willem Defoe. Here's the original book and it's free-ninety-nine.
• EDIT: The Princess Bride by William Goldman ($3.99) - Thanks again to The Tattered Scroll for this one, I've been meaning to read this one for ages.
  

eBook Deals, or Books I Bought Recently

Again, no unifying theme this week, but I think these are some good ones.


The Forever War by Joe Haldeman ($4.99) - This is a classic and worth a read. Here's Alec's Review.
A Madness of Angels by Kate Griffin ($2.99) - Orbit's Digital Drop
Snow in the Desert by Neal Asher (Short stories) ($1.38)
Manhattan in Reverse by Peter F. Hamilton ($4.99)
Girl in the Arena by Lise Haines ($2.99)
Wool (Omnibus, books 1-5) by Hugh Howey ($4.99)
Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut ($4.09) - Here's my review, I can't get enough of the Vonnegut.
Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal ($2.99)
Agatha H. and the Airship City by Phil and Kaja Foglio (FREE)

eBook Deals, or Books I Bought Recently

Not really a theme this week like last time, but here's what I found appealing...


Patient Zero by Jonathan Maberry ($2.99) - Thanks to The Tattered Scroll for this one.
Mile 81 by Stephen King (short story) ($2.99) - This was 99 cents not too long ago, sorry for being late.
The Borrowers by Mary Norton (children's classic) ($1.59)
The God Engines by John Scalzi ($4.99)
Shadow Prowler by Alexey Pehov ($2.99) - We may not be a fan around these parts, but you may want to give it a go.

Audiobook
Hounded by Kevin Hearn ($11.99) - As far as audiobooks go, this is a really good price.

Paperback
Swords and Dark Magic Edited by Lou Anders ($6.40) - The ebook is $9.99, but I thought this was quite the deal for the paperback.

eBook Deals, or Books I Bought Recently

I've been reading some Vonnegut lately and found out there are a lot of good deals on his books in eBook form. Sorry for being Kindle-specific, these are just the deals I find while feeding my addiction. There's a lot of good conversion software out there if it helps. :)

-Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman ($2.99)
-The Darkening Dream by Andy Gavin (creator of Crash Bandicoot and Jak & Daxter) ($2.99)
-Crystal Rain by Tobias Buckell ($2.99)
-The Door Into Summer by Robert Heinlein ($2.99)
-Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke ($2.99) - Still a good deal.
-God Bless You Mr. Rosewater by Kurt Vonnegut ($2.99)
-Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut ($3.99) - A favorite of mine.
-Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut ($4.79) - So it goes...
-2BRO2B by Kurt Vonnegut (short story) (Free) - Vonnegut has some of the best short science fiction.
-The Big Trip Up Yonder by Kurt Vonnegut (short story) (Free) - Same goes here.
-The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut ($5.24) - Easily my favorite Vonnegut, but one of my favorite books in general.

eBook Deals, or Books I Bought Recently

I found some more good stuff. There's a few from Angry Robot, but if you look them up on Amazon, there's really not a bad deal on any of their books. If you were wondering, I am just slapping these together, I have no system for this other than searching for things I'm interested in.


-Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind ($4.99) - Just finished, review to come shortly.
-The Damned Busters by Matthew Hughs ($2.99) - I'm reading this right now and it's great.
-Empire State by Adam Christopher ($3.99)
-Moxyland and Zoo City by Lauren Beukes ($2.99 and $2.99)
-Strata by Bradley Beaulieu and Stephen Gaskell (novella) (Staffer's Musings review)($0.99)
-Nemesis Worm by Guy Haley (novella) (Free)
-Dominion: A Coldfire Saga by C.S. Friedman ($2.99) - This is probably the normal price since it's not a full novel.
-Bio of a Space Tyrant Vol. 1: Refugee by Piers Anthony ($2.99) - This is probably the normal price as well since it was free not too long ago. Still a good deal for a full-length novel.

Free eBooks from Baen

I'm sure you already know about Baen's Free library. I always knew about it, but could never get myself to read a whole book on a browser. Well, and this is probably something you already know as well, but it's also really easy to download any of their free library directly onto your eReader.

Here are a few of the free books I just downloaded:

There Will Be Dragons by John Ringo (Always wanted to read this, but this cover's bad even for Baen)
On Basilisk Station by David Weber
Sheepfarmer's Daughter by Elizabeth Moon
1632 by Eric Flint

There are also plenty of other high profile authors I haven't read, but that I'll be checking out such as Mercedes Lackey, Lois McMaster Bujold, and David Drake. Thought you might want to know if you didn't.

eBook Deals - I.e. Books I Recently Bought/Downloaded

I thought this was a good idea when I saw others doing similar posts. Now that I'm much more aware of eBook deals on my Kindle, I'll try to let you know what I've found even though you can probably find a million more sources for better information.

(Free ninety nine)

Of Blood and Honey by Stina Leicht (review - A Dribble of Ink) [Free]
This is Not a Game by Walter John Williams (Loved his story in Songs of the Dying Earth) [$2.99]
An Election by John Scalzi (short story) [$0.99]
The Tale of the Wicked by John Scalzi (short story) [$0.99]
If at First... by Peter F. Hamilton (short story) [Free]
Wild Cards I Edited by George R.R. Martin [$2.99]
Miserere: An Autumn Tale by Teresa Frohock [$3.99]
The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale [$2.24]
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde [Free]
H.P. Lovecraft Collections [Anywhere from Free to $2.99]
Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson [Free]

News: Amazon Unveils Encore Publishing

     Amazon announced a new initiative to help out the little guy. Have an e-book on Amazon that hasn't sold well but has gotten some amazing reviews? Well, today might be your lucky day. Amazon plans to comb through the overlooked masterpieces and go the whole nine yards with them.
     The AmazonEncore program will see Amazon partner with authors to reboot their works on the scale that they deserve. Amazon will help with the marketing and distribution and republish the book in multiple formats. As far as I can tell, this may lead to an increase in 'fake' reviews, which I alluded to in my post about trusting homegrown book reviews. Then again, this may also vindicate self publishing and lead to a totally new way of finding your next great read.
     The Amazon write-up is below or you can read it direct from Amazon themselves:

Unearthing Exceptional Books and Emerging Authors for More Readers to Enjoy

  Even great books can be overlooked. And authors with great potential often struggle to connect with the larger audience they deserve to reach. We’re fortunate at Amazon.com to have customers who know a good book when they read one, so we've introduced AmazonEncore to help connect authors and their books with more readers.
  AmazonEncore is a new program whereby Amazon will use information such as customer reviews on Amazon.com to identify exceptional, overlooked books and authors with more potential than their sales may indicate. Amazon will then partner with the authors to re-introduce their books to readers through marketing support and distribution into multiple channels and formats, such as the Amazon.com Books Store, Amazon Kindle Store, Audible.com, and national and independent bookstores via third-party wholesalers.

  Our premiere AmazonEncore title, Legacy, written by 14-year-old Cayla Kluver (now 16), had review titles such as "loved it, loved it," "rich lyrical tapestry and story," and "breath-taking in scope and execution!" In addition to raves from customers, Ms. Kluver has won several awards from literary groups. The new version of Legacy will be available in Fall 2009.