Dec 8 2012
Daily Deals: A variety of deals with a controversial inclusion
It appears that Agency pricing has been dropped for Simon & Schuster, the last of the settling defendants. There are small drops in most prices (around 5-20%). However, Amazon may experiment in deep discounting for some. The other good news is that places like BooksonBoard and All Romance can include those books in their discount programs. BoB, for example, has a 40% off sale with the coupon code “gingerbread.”
One of the problems I am finding is that Amazon is having better discounts than other retailers. The question I’m grappling with is whether I include Amazon only specials or try to continue to include deals that are in both ePub and Kindle somewhere.
Through a Glass Darkly by Karleen Koen. $ 2.99
From the Jacket Copy:
Karleen Koen’s sweeping saga contains unforgettable characters consumed with passion: the extraordinarily beautiful fifteen-year-old noblewoman, Barbara Alderley; the man she adores, the wickedly handsome Roger MontGeoffry; her grandmother, the duchess, who rules the family with cunning and wit; and her mother, the ineffably cruel, self-centered and licentious Diana. Like no other work, Through a Glass Darkly is infused with intrigue, sweetened by romance and awash in the black ink of betrayal.
AmazonBNSonyKoboBook DepositoryAREApple
Cassandra Clare: The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare. $ 18.80 / $19.00
From the Jacket Copy:
Don’t miss The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, soon to be a major motion picture in theaters August 2013.
The first five books in the #1 New York Times bestselling Mortal Instruments series, now available in a collectible hardcover boxed set.
Enter the secret world of the Shadowhunters with this handsomely packaged boxed set that includes City of Bones, City of Ashes, City of Glass, City of Fallen Angels, and City of Lost Souls. The Mortal Instruments books have more than five million copies in print, and this collectible set of five hardcover volumes is a perfect gift for newcomers to the series and for loyal fans alike.
The price is $19.00 at Books on Board and $19.99 at BN.
AmazonBNSonyKoboBook DepositoryAREApple
Miss Lavigne’s Little White Lie by Samantha Grace. $ .99
From the Jacket Copy:
A Scoundrel Drives a Hard Bargain…
Spirited and determined to protect her young brother at any cost, Lisette Lavigne is desperate to flee New Orleans. There’s only one ship sailing to England, though, and the rakish Captain Daniel Hillary will only allow Lisette’s family aboard for a very steep price…
But a Lady Always Gets the Upper Hand…
Daniel prides himself on running a tight ship, and he knows a lady will be nothing but trouble on a long voyage. Yet he can’t help but break his own ironclad rules when Lisette persuades him that being gentlemanly just this once is his wisest course of action…
AmazonBNSonyKoboBook DepositoryAREApple
Magic Under Glass by Jaclyn Dolamore. $ 1.99.
From the Jacket Copy:
Nimira is a foreign music-hall girl forced to dance for mere pennies. When wealthy sorcerer Hollin Parry hires her to sing with a piano-playing automaton, Nimira believes it is the start of a new and better life. In Parry’s world, however, buried secrets are beginning to stir. Unsettling below-stairs rumors swirl about ghosts, a madwoman roaming the halls, and Parry’s involvement with a league of sorcerers who torture fairies for sport. Then Nimira discovers the spirit of a fairy gentleman named Erris is trapped inside the clockwork automaton, waiting for someone to break his curse. The two fall into a love that seems hopeless, and breaking the curse becomes a race against time, as not just their love, but the fate of the entire magical world may be in peril.
AmazonBNSonyKoboBook DepositoryAREAppleBooks on Board
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Dec 08, 2012 @ 12:43:52
15 years ago someone recommended I read Through a Glass Darkly. I’m still angry at that person for not warning me it was a depressing read. So for all you who like books with a HEA, here’s your warning!
Dec 08, 2012 @ 13:15:14
I have no idea if this is the case for US buyers, too, but with my German credit card I can still use the Thanksgiving code at Kobo Brian told us about – Bargainmoose40 – and have it work on every book which has the option of using a code.
Dec 08, 2012 @ 13:20:48
I might have to buy Magic Under Glass in hardcopy just for the cover alone. Gorgeous.
I’m not comfortable buying or reading any of Clare’s books. Not because of possible fanfic origins–I’m fine with that if the source of inspiration transfers well into an original world and characters–but because of the plagiarism kerfuffle and related incidents. Maybe someday I’ll get a reassuring recommendation and try the books, but, for now, I just get a bad feeling about her writing.
Dec 08, 2012 @ 13:40:14
@Suzanna Medeiros: Thank you for the heads up; that could have been ugly.
Please no to the Amazon only specials. I’m already put out by their exclusives.
Dec 08, 2012 @ 14:03:19
Well, an Amazon exclusive for bargains is different to me than an Amazon exclusive for publishing a title. The whole point of getting rid of agency pricing is that retailers should be able to choose whether or not they want to discount a book and for how much. So, we should expect that we will sometimes only see a particular deal at one retailer, since not all retailers will have the same strategy for driving sales. While it is frustrating not to be able to get that deal as a non-Kindle user (which I am), I don’t think it’s unreasonable for you to show them along with deals that are more widely available. (And really, my wallet thanks you for days when I can’t or don’t want to take advantage of all the deals…)
Dec 08, 2012 @ 14:11:04
BoB hasn’t lowered their price on any of the S&S books. Also, if it works the same as the HaperCollins books, the dicounted price is the only discount you receive, their coupon doesn’t work. One more thing, you can’t use your rewards dollars either. I would love to see some real sales on these titles, I have a ton in my wish list.
Dec 08, 2012 @ 14:17:54
It appears that many of Jennifer Blake’s books are available on Amazon for .99 (free to Prime members). Her Louisiana History Collection (Part 2, whatever that means, is four books) is currently free to all.
Even as a Nook owner, I’ve fallen prey to how easy Amazon makes purchasing their digital books. You’d think the wireless connection to B&N would win out, but, honestly, it’s the ease with which I can find books on Amazon, “look inside” them, read reviews and use their wish list to keep track of what I’m waiting to buy. B&N has similar features, but they’ve never run as smoothly as Amazon’s; throw price into the equation and I’m all Amazon these days.
Dec 08, 2012 @ 14:54:20
@Lisa J: I noticed the same thing. The Hachette and S&S books I’ve gone to purchase at BoB to get their holiday discounts have not worked. The site still says “This format’s price is set by the publisher and is not subject to discounts or rewards specials” for all the books I’ve tried. So … those books will stay on my wishlist until I can get them at BoB at the discount or Amazon comes down more than 5% on most of them. (Figures the books I want are the ones that only came down 5%)
Dec 08, 2012 @ 15:29:10
@Rosie: Exactly! I’m in the same boat. It looks like we’ll have to keep waiting.
Dec 08, 2012 @ 15:38:49
As a non-kindle owner, I vote for not too many Amazon exclusive discounts.
Dec 08, 2012 @ 16:10:17
@Estara:
To the best of my knowledge the Bargainmoose40 code is good until the end of the year, or at least that’s what I’ve heard,
Dec 09, 2012 @ 06:06:45
Maybe you could make an extra post with Amazon only specials. If you don’t have a kindle it would be easy to skip it.
Dec 09, 2012 @ 08:13:19
@Brian: My goodness… considering how much I’ve been using it so far and that it works on big publisher books for me that’s a lot of money saved (on the other hand my purse is getting emptier and emptier). Anyway, thank you very much for that particular code ^^
Dec 09, 2012 @ 15:02:25
Speaking as both a print and ebook pubbed author but more specifically as a reader, I truly appreciate knowing where to find book bargains. I dislike Amazon for their draconian methods and own a Nook, but I can read mobi on a number of other devices if I absolutely must. I’ve been waiting for the discounting to begin, refusing to pay full price for e-books, so anything that encourages retailer to give up the greed and let us read at a reasonable price is good with me.
Dec 11, 2012 @ 16:57:49
Through a Glass Darkly is so not not not (did I say NOT!) a romance. It’s cruel and filled with disappointment and betrayal and there is no HEA. It is an amazing rich portrait of an era and the people are complex and real and not often likeable. It’s a saga. The wise grand matriarch survives ordeals and tragedies and dotes on her granddaughter who survivies broken dreams and tragedies and finds her inner strength. Good book. Not a romance.