Archive for the ‘E-books’ Category

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And it’s Cyber Monday!

Monday, November 26th, 2012

And, it’s Cyber Monday! I tend to do my holiday shopping all throughout the year, so I’ve never been a Black Friday shopper, but sometimes Cyber Monday sucks me in. I do spend a lot of time on the computer after all….

I like my Kindle and I’m not looking to replace it. However, I know my brother wants one, and the Paperwhite is already backordered to December 21, so it looks like I’m not the only one on the hunt. And if you’ve been looking for a Kindle Fire, they’re just a little bit cheaper today.
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Posted in Bookstores, E-books, Lynn AAR | 3 Comments »

Freading? The Continuing Saga of EBooks and Library Lending

Thursday, November 15th, 2012

I have to admit that my passion, ire and wrath about publishers and eBook pricing has been more about how it affects me as a consumer. But now that things seem to be turning around I have lost some of my tunnel vision and realize that our libraries have been through the wringer as much as we have(if not more, quite frankly), and they still don’t have a viable resolution yet.

Oh, I have talked about it before in this blog but it is not something that I followed religiously. One reason is that as a Kindle owner, library lending wasn’t an available feature for a long while since Amazon didn’t have any type of agreement with libraries. And finally when they did add this feature, I found a very limited collection of books available. Almost all major publishers such as Macmillan Publishing, Simon & Schuster, Penguin Group, Brilliance Audio, and Hachette Book Group blocked libraries’ access to eBooks. HarperCollins limited the access to 26 times before the book expired. Random House reaffirmed its commitment to the library eBook market but tripled their prices. (more…)

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Posted in E-books, Leigh AAR | 7 Comments »

Cheap EBooks: Bane, Boon, or Bust for Readers?

Wednesday, November 14th, 2012

If you follow eBook news, you know it’s often all about pricing. From complaints about high prices and allegations of collusion on prices to concerns about cheap eBooks, customers are always keeping their eye on the price. It’s annoying to find that the new eBook you want is $14.99, while the hardback often costs less (including shipping).

To avoid paying too much for eBooks, I check out bargains on the MobileRead Deals, Freebies, and Resources forum every day. The eBook Bargains thread is also hugely popular on AAR’s own Potpourri board. It’s great to find free and bargain eBooks from authors I love, or from authors I’ve been wanting to read. Not long ago, I got nostalgic and gladly bought some Newberry Award winners for $1.99 each because the books reminded me of those great trips to the school library. Of course, I also wound up buying some higher priced titles because I just had to get a copy of The Witch of Blackbird Pond again. (more…)

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Posted in Anne AAR, E-books, Publishing | 15 Comments »

E-Lending and the LendInk Brouhaha

Tuesday, August 14th, 2012

kindlebook The latest Internet scandal about piracy isn’t about piracy — it’s about misunderstanding what eBook lending is all about. What happened proved that social media can be a powerful force, but those powers aren’t always used in the right way. Just ask the owner and users of LendInk, a legitimate eBook lending site that did not host any files. LendInk was taken down because of erroneous takedown notices from concerned authors. This story even made news in Australia.

Writers are one of the biggest forces in getting eBook pirating sites shut down. This power is a good thing. But what if the site isn’t actually a piracy site? What if, like LendInk, it’s one of several lending sites, sites that are allowed by Amazon, B&N, and other eBook vendors? Then we have a problem. (more…)

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Posted in Anne Marble, E-books, Publishing | 10 Comments »

J.K. Rowling, Pottermore, and eBooks

Wednesday, April 25th, 2012

01-pottermore2jpgIt’s no news that eBooks caught 99% of the population unawares.  (Check out the article link in the next paragraph – boy, have we come a long way.)  I’d say most authors got with the times, and most have now been e-publishing current books as well as backlists for a few years.

Except for one writer: Joanne Kathleen Rowling, aka the Woman Who Can Do Whatever the Hell She Wants.  Seven years ago, she officially refused to make the Harry Potter series available as eBooks, despite rampant piracy – until last year, when she announced the arrival of Pottermore, a “unique and free-to-use Web site which builds an exciting online experience” around Harry Potter, and produced in partnership with Sony (according to the press release).  Ten months later, Pottermore opened to the public, and hoo boy, the windmills start again.

What is Pottermore?  It’s two things.  First and foremost, it’s an online portal through which you can relive the Harry Potter books, see chapters and scenes gently animated, interact with the Harry Potter universe, discover characters’ backstories and behind-the-scenes tidbits, and engage with others in the Pottermore community.  You can go shopping on Diagon Alley, collect galleons, magical artefacts, and Chocolate Frog Cards, duel with other wizards – oh, and you answer two nifty quizzes to get a wand and be sorted into houses.  (My wand, by the way, is a 10-inch unyielding ash with unicorn core, and I am now officially in Gryffindor.)

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Posted in Authors, Book news, Books, Characters, E-books, Jean AAR, Online, Reading | 5 Comments »

eReading Survey

Wednesday, April 18th, 2012

The must-have device for readers these days seems to be an e-reader whether Kindle, Nook, Sony, BeBook, or other dedicated reader. For those who want to do more than simply read on a device, there are always computer screens, tablet computers, netbooks, and more.

To test how up to date you are on eReading, I’ve come up with a little multiple choice quiz. (I’m a former teacher. Testing’s in my blood.) The answers come from the recent PEW Report on E-Readers published in April 2012. (The questions use PEW wording so that the results stay true.)

What percentage of Americans have read an eBook?

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Posted in Books, E-books, Pat Henshaw, Reading | 9 Comments »

The Obligatory Fifty Shades of Grey Post

Friday, March 9th, 2012

greyEvery once in a while, a book will pop out of nowhere and get all kinds of mega media attention.  Usually, this is limited to Nicholas Sparks’ novels in which the heroine (and sometimes the hero) usually dies, but this time out it’s linked to a novel that is, unmistakably, a romance.  With an HEA and everything.

I’ve read the book – the first two, in fact – and, excuse me, if I just don’t see what the Big Deal is all about.  Fifty Shades of Grey flirts with BDSM, but isn’t really, since the focus is on how “wrong” the hero is for his obsession and it seems to me as if the BDSM lifestyle is diminished increasingly throughout the first two books.  I haven’t read the last one, yet, but I’d be pretty damn surprised if a BDSM-lite HEA isn’t involved.

Now, for the eleventy-seventh time, I’m not knocking BDSM, but it’s just not my thing, okay? But the BDSM in this book is of the ultra mild variety so, if any of the masses out there are reading it for their secret BDSM thrill, the truth is there really have to be books out there that can more effectively satisfy that desire.

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Posted in Book news, Books, Characters, E-books, Reading, Romance reading, Sandy AAR | 44 Comments »

eBook Lending – A Reader’s View

Thursday, March 1st, 2012

kindlebook Last week, I mentioned that certain publishers won’t let libraries lend their eBooks. To bring it home more, if you are looking for romance eBooks by Sherrilyn Kenyon, Lora Leigh, Keiran Kramer published by Macmillan Publishing at your local library or Simon & Schuster’s authors such as Jayne Ann Krentz or Sabrina Jeffries, don’t waste your time looking because their eBooks are not available for lending. If that is not enough, Penguin, which only offered backlist eBook titles for library lending, announced that it is terminating its contract with OverDrive, the library digital vendor, and starting February 10 will cease to offer any of its eBooks to libraries.
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Posted in E-books, Leigh AAR, Publishing, Reading, Uncategorized | 17 Comments »

Book Digital Copies

Wednesday, February 1st, 2012

It is now almost one year since I bought my Nook Color.  Some things have changed – I definitely access more books than I used to, and some of it (maybe 30-40%) is digital.  But I confess I’m still primarily a paper reader.  For me, it’s a matter of comfort, and I just can’t use the Nook Color as my primary reading source.

But my friend came over the other day and looked at my shelves and shelves of books.  And she said, “Wow. You have a lot of books.”  She’s not wrong – guesstimating, I’d say I have about 350-500 romance novels, depending on whether I have random stacks hidden away somewhere (which is probably a yes), and most of which I’ve accumulated in the last two years.  And I still gain about 4-5 romances a month.

Well, what if my house burns down?  Am I going to have to lose all those books?  It seems stupid not to take advantage of the digital age and just get eBooks.  I’m sure most of us agree that uniformity amongst the publishers has far to go, but the convenience, pricing, and durability of an eBook make total sense at this point.  And yet why shouldn’t I buy a paper copy if I want, especially since they’re still available, and it’s what works for me?

Then it hit me: Digital copies.  They don’t do it for CDs, because it’s legal to buy a CD then make a digital copy yourself.  But they do it for DVDs, because it’s illegal to rip a DVD, even if you own it.  So you pay a little more, get extra features or Blu-Ray, and get licensed to download a digital copy of your DVD.  And you’ll have it for all eternity.  (Frankly, the legality of ripping CDs versus DVDs doesn’t make much sense to me, but whatever.  They’re both on their way out.)

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Posted in Books, E-books, Jean AAR | 53 Comments »

The Other Guy’s Bride: Exclusive Excerpt from Connie Brockway

Tuesday, November 1st, 2011

brockwayI am really excited about this one, so fair warning.

On November 22nd, The Other Guy’s Bride, the long, long, long(!) awaited sequel to As You Desire will finally hit your Kindle, with the print version following one month later.  I’ve read the book and it’s fair to say that’s one of the reasons I’m so excited.  I’ll have more to say later, but this new book is a worthy successor to a book so fondly remembered by so very many of us.

You know, there was so much controversy over how this book is being published and now we’re down to what really matters.

We’ll be back in a few weeks with a giveaway, but, in the meantime, Connie offered us an exclusive excerpt from the book to whet your appetite.  So, read it, enjoy – and leave a question or your reaction for Connie in the comments.

- Sandy AAR

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Posted in Authors, Book news, Books, E-books, Publishing, Reading, Romance, Romance reading, Sandy AAR | 34 Comments »

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