Monday, December 12, 2011

Free Kindle books: Mon: 279 books, Sun: 299, Sat: 6, Fri: 680 ! + Free parental control app for Kindle Fire - UPDATE 12/13


TOO MANY free Kindle books, even for the Kindle forum free-book stalwarts

Never thought we'd see this situation.
  As you know, I haven't been around much, but things are calming down so I can get back to more regular blogging.  The first thing I find is that Joyce has posted, Sunday:
' Good morning to all ... Well, here we go again with another round of 299 freebies. I'm sorry, but I will need to pass this off to your search one more time. '

Then Joyce refers readers to one of the many good sites she visits to collect her daily specimens (there are several sites recommended in these threads I've pointed to you a few times a week).  The site she recommends for searches (kinlib) has a few per page with good information though not the quickest if people are in a hurry.
And they give advice for using it, when people feel it's laborious, and name other sites.  Another good site they recommend removes free books whose price have been raised back. (ereaderiq)

  The responses from the forum readers include naming the free books they felt were interesting enough to 'buy' (for $0.00), so I'll post some of these instead and -- as always -- am referring you to Joyce's ongoing daily forum threads so you can get all the forum alerts and links to finder-places 'first-hand' -- the forum message titles and threads are separate for each set of release-alerts and are otherwise hard to find unless you are right there in the forum to find and follow them.

 They tend to list on a regular basis which website sources they use so that you can find, bookmark, and regularly use them.

Sample reactions to the glut:
  "Oh no, not again!
  "Sometimes too much is simply too much!  Fortunately I am on vacation right now.
"

Amazon now lets self-publishers set promo pricing of $0.00
The likely reason for this unmanageable glut of free books is that Amazon has finally allowed Amazon-self-published writers who agree to offer their books for the Prime Lending Program (which allows members to borrow one free book per month with no waiting list and no due-date) the ability to set their prices to $0.00 instead of just under $1.
 And they can do this once (per year, I think per 90 days.  
Update - 12/13 - Those interested in this aspect can read how that works, in an article by Mark Coker of Smashwords (Link: huff.to/prime-indies ), whose site is one of those that are negatively affected by the Prime terms for Indy authors.  Unfortunately too many of them decided to do it the first week, and while the idea of briefly pricing their books at $0.00 is to let people find those books, this will be difficult this week.

 Add that the authors' books can be included in the monthly Prime borrowing program, with the added exposure, if they pull those titles from competitor sites where they do make some money.  In other reading (Nate Hoffelder's The Digital Reader (Link: bit.ly/prime-indy ), I see that one author (Jeff Bennington) said that Amazon had brought him 97% of his e-book sales, so it was an easy decision for him.

  All in all, I don't think most knew that they would be going into a pool of 46,000+ books instead of the original 5,400~ or so when the program started with traditionally published books and invited best-selling authors publishing at Amazon.

  Unless Amazon separates the new Indies books, it could make it harder for Prime members to find what we usually look for in the public libraries that are always on waiting lists.  I hope there's flexibility for the writers who signed up for this and that they are doing this on a trial basis (see Coker article linked in this section).

  When I first explained the new Prime Kindle book borrowing program (Amazon calls it the Lending program), I gave a special link to a browsable webpage listing of of the then 5,379~ Prime-eligible Kindle books (Link: amzn.to/kprimebooks ).

  Today, that link will bring you to over 46,000 Kindle books eligible for Prime program borrowing.   That matches our situation of 1,200+ free books the last few days.


Parental Control app available for Kindle Fire
In connection with some concern over the readily visible product pages for blue books (and I don't mean automobile), there is a very general free app available now for parental control of what can be accessed with the Kindle Fire.
  Here's the Amazon Kindle forum discussion of how the app works, its benefits and limitations.


Today's Kindle Daily Deal
Monday's Daily Deal is a Bellwether Prize-winning novel, Mudbound, by Hillary Jordan set in the Jim Crow South and is discounted from $8.51 to $0.99 (88% off) for one day.


The 1200-1500+ free books listed and discussed in message threads and a LOT of customer recommendations for those not wanting to plow through the listings is next.

  These will be on a 2nd page (if you are reading on the main page), as the long lists are linked to from the main page.

  MORE... ( The temporarily newly-free books on the 2nd page, off the main page)
  Those wanting to go see the discussion threads on these and some user recommendations reprinted here from the forum can do so by: clicking on "MORE" just below (if you're on the main web page).

*****



LATEST DISCOUNTED Kindle books (some temporarily) -
  Forum-thread starter RandomizeME cautions, "This thread is [only] for discounts and price drops that readers find from publishers."  Another main finder is Emily Bronte.
  For 12/7-12 )



TEMPORARILY-Free Books:  Alerts from the Amazon Kindle forums - via the energetic "Happy Reader" Joyce, who is ever on the lookout on behalf of forum members.

  NOTE: The alerts are quoted from Joyce's collecting of mostly temporarily-free books.  They're *not* recommendations by anyone but are a popular, unfiltered daily set of forum release-alerts by Joyce, logged here for those who don't or can't make it to the forums.  The eBooks are often no longer free within days, sometimes, within hours.  Thanks to Joyce for gathering and organizing them for us where possible.


*** [ Joyce writes, on [ Friday, Dec. 9 - and reactions are included in this blog entry. ]

Today there are too many free offers to post...Please enjoy your search (680 Books) and feeding your Kindles...

[ A SEPARATE thread was started in reaction, titled,
    "680 free books today! Does that intimidate anyone besides me?"


*** [ FREE Books - Saturday, Dec. 10, (6 books)

...It has been a little difficult to sort out the freebies this morning from the huge offering yesterday of 680 books.  But, I would like to share a few here with you this morning that might or might not have been on the list.  I think the following books are sure to be of interest to many.  I don't recall seeing them and/or maybe some of you missed...

"Travails of a Stepmom
Author: Ms. Taken
Genre: Non-Fiction - Lifestyle and Home

DESCRIPTION: These articles describe the trials of one stepmom as she fights to do right by her stepkids, son, and husband. There have been some ups. There have been some threats, name calling and private investigators.

*****

Upon the Isles of the Sea
Author: Gordon Ryan
Genre: Fiction - War - Inspirational
* Gordon is a superb writer - Don't miss this one *

DESCRIPTION: LDS Inspirational Fiction: When Seth, a young Stripling Warrior comes home from the wars after nearly eight years of fighting, he barely has time to settle in before Helaman, his former commander, now a missionary, comes to the village and calls him on yet another assignment. But Lilliana is determined that Seth will not leave the village again--at least not without her. Jared, Seth's best friend and also a former Stripling Warrior, is persuaded by General Moroni to remain in government service to infiltrate the devious "Secret Combinations." When Seth and Jared meet Hagoth--an "exceedingly curious man,"--in the City of Bountiful, their quest takes on a whole new dimension. Upon The Isles of The Sea, the first adventure tale from The Nephite Chronicles, is a story of courage, sacrifice, and honor.

*****

Santa's Diary (The Christmas Connection)
Author: Santa Claus
Genre: Christmas - Holidays

DESCRIPTION: A quick message from Santa ... Hello everyone, and welcome to my diary. People have been asking me for years to write about my experiences and what's going on in my world. So I have finally given in and I'm going to share with you all what I'm getting up to. I'll be keeping a record here of all my preparations for Christmas and news for the next fews month. And what a time it's going to be. The elves are already hard at work, and Rudolf and the other Reindeer are well rested. We're all looking forward to another great Christmas. I hope you'll read this diary regularly and send me lots of nice letters, and even track my movements over the coming month.

*****

The Everything Healthy Cooking for Parties
Author: Linda Larsen
Genre: Health - Cookbook

DESCRIPTION: With a third of Americans on a diet at any given time, planning party menus can be a challenge for any hostess. Veteran cookbook author Linda Larsen has the solution! She offers you healthy cooking tips and delicious party-food recipes with your health in mind. Her recipes include lots of fruits and vegetables and low-fat ingredients like turkey bacon and tofu, so the foods are good for you and taste great! You will find many festive recipes: Cantaloupe Punch; High-Fiber Cashew Pear Bread; Low-Fat Turkey Swiss Sandwiches; Lemon Meringue Crunch Trifle; and more! With this book, you will discover that party food doesn't have to be bad for you. And that's reason enough to throw parties more often!

*****

The Miracle Inspector
Author: Helen Smith
Genre: Literay Fiction

DESCRIPTION: A dystopian thriller set in the near future. England has been partitioned and London is an oppressive place where poetry has been forced underground, theatres and schools are shut, and women are not allowed to work outside the home. A young couple, Lucas and Angela, try to escape from London - with disastrous consequences.


*** [ FREE Books - Sunday, Dec. 11 (299 books) Joyce writes:

Good morning to all ... Well, here we go again with another round of 299 freebies. I'm sorry, but I will need to pass this off to your search one more time... Some books that were free the past couple days in the huge number of free book offerings do not remain free for very long. As rumor has been heard, it appears that Amazon is switching out the old and bringing in new titles.
*** BE SURE THE PRICE SHOWS $0.00 BEFORE YOU "ONE-CLICK" *** ...


[D. Baker says:
Some that I "bought"
Advice

Juice recipes to prevent & fight Cancer by mick hann

The Presence of Gladness by George Alexiou

Fitness Training Made Easy [The Fitness Training For Easy Weight Lifting, Exercises Workouts and Workout Routines. Get a Fitness Program To Make Easy Your ... Workouts And Physical Fitness Training.] by Eric Nicolas

Mysteries
Retirement Can Be Murder (A Jake Russo Mystery) by Phil Edwards

MORTAL SIN (The Jake Lassiter Series) by Paul Levine

Hope Falls by Jamieson Wolf

*** MamaSylvia says:
So far I have grabbed the following freebies in addition to those I already listed:
Snowybrook Inn: Book One
A Married Man's Guide To Christmas
The Wobbit A Parody (Of The Hobbit)
Isabelle Around The World - The Trans-Siberian Railway
The Mysteries of Hummingbird Falls (Hummingbird Falls Mysteries)
Dating, Diapers & Denial
100 Unique Ways To Lose Weight
Elusive December (this was really good, I read it today)
Cat Training: How To Train A Cat With Ease [Cat Training - A Guide To Cat Training With Cat Behaviour Demystified, Training And Advices To Take Care Of Your Cat For Happy Cat Training!]
International Kittens of Mystery

and a few others that are no longer free

*** MamaSylvia adds:
There were hundreds more books this morning! Other freebies I picked up that are still free:
Mousetrapped and Backpacked Too
Christmas Journeys: Finding Joy along the Way
At Risk of Being a Fool
Ridgeway Manor
Driving on the Wrong Side of the Road: Humorous Views On Love, Lust, & Lawncare

These are mostly mysteries and humor, and at least the product descriptions used accurate spelling and grammar and gave me an idea of what to expect from the book, so I have hopes they will be readable. And if not, I just delete them from my Kindle and go on to the next book.

MamaSylvia says:
I actually got caught up! The only new freebie I added was:
Mafia Math - sounds like it will either be hysterical or a dud

*** angelmum3 says
Whose Angel Keyring The description sounded interesting :
all these years later, a key that'd gone missing has mysteriously appeared. What does it unlock? Is it just the heirloom clock hiding in plain site on the mantel? Or does the angel keyring unlock far more? Though the e-book stands alone, it alsoextends the Milford-Haven Novels, the critically acclaimed, popular series, a multi-generational saga. Based on Purl's BBC Radio drama Milford-Haven U.S.A.

This is a kid's book - that is probably suited more for the Fire - it will be a gift for DD, so I clicked!
A Stranger At Christmas
Not much description, but again - worth the price!
The Edward Francis Blogs - the complete saga.
This year ...the geek shall inherit the earth! Part-time blogger, full-time social outcast. The story of how eighteen-year-old, Edward Francis had nothing, gained something, lost everything and found himself in-between.A rich, rewarding experience that you'll want to read again and again.Teen / young adult. Some swearing. Includes volumes 1, 2 and 3. Plus the Waiting Room. The complete saga! (putting in the product link I saw that amazon sells volumes 1, 2, 3 separately - so may be more reviews there)

*** [ patrinka says ]
Here's a few I picked up that looked interesting:

Emily Dickinson: Beyond the Myth fictional bio

Out of Time Series Omnibus (Out of Time: A Paranormal Romance & When the Walls Fell) time travel paranormal romance

How to Lower your Cholesterol with French Gourmet Food. A practical guide.

*** AnnieB-Grinch's Nemisis says

Patricia Sierra has several other free books today...

From the Writer Half of My Being: Poems and Short Stories in Search of a Reader

The Absence of Color (a time-travel romance in the age of The Great Gatsby)

Sheet Music

*** dharts says
Lost Gold of the Shenandoah
A lighthearted tale of mystery and adventure set against the historical legacy of the American Civil War.

In the Autumn of 1864, a Confederate payroll train out of Richmond, Virginia, is attacked and plundered by a Union raiding party near Waynesboro, Virginia. The successful band of raiders, with their booty of strongboxes full of gold coins, headed north toward the Union lines near Winchester, Virginia. They never made it back.

One hundred forty-six years later, this tale of the lost gold is regarded only as legend, except in the small Shenandoah Valley town of Apple Grove. The descendants of the town's founding families, the Sons and Daughters of the Stars and Bars, have never stopped looking for the gold. But the trail of clues to its whereabouts has long grown cold, until the summer of 2010.

Lauren Reynolds had recently moved to Apple Grove and purchased the old White Swan Inn. She loved the town's old houses and battlefield park, the working period steam locomotive, and the numerous shops that catered to tourists and Civil War enthusiasts. It was a town where Civil War Reenactors came each year to relive the romance of times gone by. But when Lauren accidently stumbles across hidden secrets from the inn's past, she discovers that there is a darker side to this picturesque Shenandoah Valley town.

A Raucous Time (The Celtic Cousins' Adventures)
"When the final tally is counted, it will be seen that John's vices far outweigh the virtues of other kings," Churchill meant the Magna Carta of course. John also left another legacy though. One which has been hidden from sight for almost one thousand years. Rhyllann Jones's geeky cousin Wren believes he can solve an ancient mystery. And he's willing to sacrifice everything to the race to discover the fabled treasure trove of King John.

Rhyllann Jones longs for a normal family life. His Mum is an animal activist, his gran is in hospital, his aunt is in prison, while his cousin insists he knows where King John's lost treasure is hidden. Somehow Rhyllann finds himself fleeing from a ruthless gang and DI Crombie, over the wild moors of Bodmin and in more danger than he could ever imagine.

*** AmeliaA says
I picked those two up, too -- I'd heard about the Appalachian trail one and had been wanting to look at it.

Here are the links:
Skywalker--Close Encounters on the Appalachian trail
and
Skywalker--Highs and Lows on the Pacific Crest Trail

Here's the first half of the product description for the Appalachian Trail one:
 Why would a middle-aged businessman who had never even spent the night outdoors, attempt to hike the entire Appalachian Trail? Bill Walker, a former commodities trader in Chicago and London, and an avid walker, had developed a virtual obsession to hike this historic 2,175 mile footpath in one hiking season.
So in the spring of 2005 he set off from his home state of Georgia, hoping to make it to Mount Katahdin in northern Maine before the arrival of winter. Immediately, he realized he had plunged into a whole new world. For starters, the Appalachian Trail has some ferociously difficult terrain, winding through dramatically diverse geography and covering the East's highest peaks.

Walker's 6'11' height earned him the trail name, "Skywalker", and drew envious attention from his fellow hikers. However, the height made him more susceptible to weight loss, cold weather, and crushing fatigue. An elemental fear of bears and snakes, as well as getting lost, also loomed large.

*** Andromeda says
Looking for history books I found this, which is easily missed among the huge list of freebies, thought some might like to know about it:

The Battle of Massard Prairie, Arkansas: The 1864 Confederate Attacks on Fort Smith

"On July 27, 1864, Brigadier General Richard M. Gano carried out one of the great open field cavalry attacks of the Civil War. Targeting the camp of the 6th Kansas Cavalry, Southern horsemen charged across miles of open prairie and achieved one of the few overwhelming Confederate victories of the Civil War in Arkansas. On Massard Prairie outside Fort Smith, Gano's Texans fought side by side with Choctaw and Chickasaw soldiers to virtually destroy an entire battalion of Union cavalry in a sweeping victory that opened the way for the noted Cabin Creek expedition just two weeks later. The Battle of Massard Prairie, Arkansas, is the third in a series of studies of small but significant Civil War battles by historian Dale Cox. Other books include The Battle of Marianna, Florida and The Battle of Natural Bridge, Florida. "


*** [FREE Books - Monday, Dec. 12 (278), Joyce said ]
. . .Well, we are starting off yet another day of 278 [+1] free books.

ETA: ** Be sure you check the price is $0.00 before you "one-click". Some books have already gone back to regular pricing, and this list has only been available for 6 hours. **


*** [More recommendations ]
*** Princess "Jingle Bells" (Joyce) says
Well, I have completed my search through today's 278 books, and I have to admit that I did find 8 books that I think I will enjoy reading.

The Wedding Gift
Christmas Dog, The
Love Me Tender
Watermarks
Betrayal (Liv Driscol)
Taking Out the Trailer Trash
The Mediocre Housewife
If We Dare to Dream (The Evans Family, Book One)

*** The SNOW FLAKY squiggly, StoneHeart says
these are the ones i grabbed
: )
Grubbycup's Garden Notes (The Path of the Garden)
Christmas with Family & Friends Cookbook: Favorite recipes, homemade memories and little touches that make the holidays warm & cozy.
Poor Man's Cheesecake. A Simple, Easy to Follow No Bake Cheesecake Recipe.
Easy Indian Curry Recipes
The Addicted Brain: Why We Abuse Drugs, Alcohol, and Nicotine (FT Press Science)

*** AnnieB-Grinch's Nemisis says
The Cloud Roads not what I usually read but had excellent reviews
First Degree Innocence
Eye Sleuth (A Yoko Kamimura Mystery)
Christmas with Family & Friends Cookbook: Favorite recipes, homemade memories and little touches that make the holidays warm & cozy.
Monarch: Egg I'm hoping this is a full book not a preview.
A Christmas in Two Egg, Florida his other books have good reviews.
Christmas O'Clock
A Perfect Flood
The Quest: Mystery Of The Professor's Notebook this is interactive. I also put it on Dan's kindle.
The Wedding Gift I almost forgot this one. :

*** Sweet Diva Reader says
Wading through the list now and I've picked up:
Heir of the Wolf Malediction
Warnings: A Collection
Six of Hearts
New Christmas Stories
Christmas Dog, The
Harvest
Christmas Stories
The Offer: Book 1 (The Skeptic)
Supernatural Witness 1 (Paranormal Factor)
Sisters 3 - Book 1 - The Nine Gates
Watermarks
The Quest: Mystery Of The Professor's Notebook
Torchlight and Shadow
Taking Out the Trailer Trash
Christmas with Family & Friends Cookbook: Favorite recipes, homemade memories and little touches that make the holidays warm & cozy.
Poor Man's Cheesecake. A Simple, Easy to Follow No Bake Cheesecake Recipe.
Temporal Membranes (1)
If We Dare to Dream (The Evans Family, Book One)
Supernatural Witness 2 (Paranormal Factor)
Tales of Merryville
Addicted to Magic
Easy Indian Curry Recipes
SongMaster's Realm
The Wedding Gift
A Christmas in Two Egg, Florida

*** Reindeer Snow Prancer says
...also these additional titles, so far.
The Amun Chamber
In The Shadow of Babylon
Eye Sleuth (A Yoko Kamimura Mystery)
Fiji: A Novel

*** kiss04bam says
The Haret (The Haret Series)
The Forest of Adventures (The Knight Trilogy)
Retirement Can Be Murder (A Jake Russo Mystery)
Skywalker--Close Encounters on the Appalachian trail
MORTAL SIN (The Jake Lassiter Series)
The Suicide Effect
The Eve Tree: A Novel
Motion To Kill (Lou Mason Thrillers)
The Gorge (An Appalachian Thriller Novel)
The Chocolate Gravy Queen
The Wedding Gift
Living Successfully with Screwed-Up People
Christmas Dog, The
Taking Out the Trailer Trash
First Degree Innocence

*** Christine H. says
Christmas Dog, The
The Orwellian Afghanistan War
Thaw
The Offer: Book 1 (The Skeptic)
The Ninth Orphan
Fiji: A Novel
THE "SKULL AND BONES" CULT CREATES WARS FOR PROFIT AND POWER!
Strictly G.I.: The WWII Letters of Cpl. Wanda M. Renn
The Amun Chamber
In The Shadow of Babylon

*** Live2Read says
Thanks Joyce and everyone who shared their picks of the day. Here is what I decided to try:
The Ninth Orphan
The Overtaking (The Overtaking Series)
The Whole Enchilada: A Payton Claymore & John Raines Novel
30 Easy Ways To Draw(for daughter)
Easy Indian Curry Recipes
Changing Curses For Blessings - Loving Yourself and The World Around You
How To Draw An Orchid In Six Easy Steps (daughter)
What a treasure trove of free books we have!


[ AND SO, go to the thread if you want to see what others are adding on for books they found interesting out of too many ] '



Kindle Touch 3G   Kindle Touch WiFi   Kindle Basic   (UK: KBasic)   Kindle Fire
Kindle Keybd 3G   (UK: Kindle Keybd 3G)   K3 Special Offers   K3-3G Special Offers   DX

Check often: Temporarily-free late-listed non-classics or recently published ones
  Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.  Top 100 free bestsellers.  Liked-books under $1
UK-Only: recently published non-classics, bestsellers, or £5 Max ones
    Also, UK customers should see the UK store's Top 100 free bestsellers.

  *Click* to Return to the HOME PAGE.  Or click on the web browser's BACK button . Below are ways to Share this post if you'd like others to see it.
-- The Send to Kindle button works well only on Firefox currently.

Send to Kindle


(Older posts have older Kindle model info. For latest models, see CURRENT KINDLES page. )
If interested, you can also follow my add'l blog-related news at Facebook and Twitter
Questions & feedback are welcome in the Comment areas (tho' spam is deleted). Thanks!

No comments:

Post a Comment

NOTE: TO AVOID SPAM being posted instantly, this blog uses the blogger.com "DELAY" feature.

Am often away much of the day, and postings won't show up right away. Posts done to use referrer-links may never show up.

Usually, am online enough to release comments within a day though, so the hard-to-read match-text tests for commenting won't be needed this way.

Feedback and questions are welcome. Thanks for participating.

Technical Problems?
If you're having problems leaving a Comment, Google's blogger-help asks that you clear the 'blogger.com' cookies on your browser's Tools or Options menu bar and that will fix the Comment-box problems (until they have a permanent fix).

IF that doesn't work either, then UNcheck the "keep me signed in" box -- Google-help says that should allow your comment to post (it's a workaround to a current bug).
Apologies for the problems.

TIP: There's a size limit. If longer than 3500 characters or so, in a text editor, make two posts out of it.

[Valid RSS]