Free and bargain romances in January 2013

[Blossom]

Originally Posted by koland

Just stay on your side of the room and practice safe PC'ing until it's gone!

I cataloged nearly all my paper books using a combination of LibraryThing and their cuecat scanner. Makes it a lot easier to do (although still a bit tedious - and you really need a portable notebook computer, so you can do it at the shelves and not have to carry books around). It's one reason I keep the excel spreadsheet, as it also has info on the paper books (which I should enter into Calibre, but have been to lazy to do except for a few). I do try to remember to put audiobooks into Calibre (manually), so that I don't have to search for those, as they are too large to keep on my main computer.

One tip - if you keep your library on dropbox, make sure it isn't in a publicly accessible folder. I've seen reports of people who've had their DB accounts closed, presumably after receiving a takedown notice from someone after finding a file in a google search (most of them were, no doubt, serving files to many people, but it's safer to keep your book files private, just in case).

Goodreads has something like that on their android app. I keep my audiobooks separate on a external because they are so big! Audibles aren't backed up because of DRM but I'm not too worry.

I keep a backup on DB of my Calibre library but it's not the original one. I use a sync program to to keep it all up to date and sync about once a week. I also keep another backup on a external drive.

Good news It turns out it's not the flu but a nasty cold! I am so relieved. I know, I know I am still contagious for 3 days so I will stay right over here but after seeing hubby have the flu two weeks ago I rather have the cold! Now I have to buy a hair dryer. I never use one but going to bed with damp hair made me catch cold.

On even better news I won $50 today on a scratchie. This is the second time in a two week period bringing my book budget to $100. I never win anything so this is a nice change. Now I just need some sales! Hubby is home today. We had a ice storm so the factory is closed. I'm gonna lay back and start a new book on my PW.

[koland]

Originally Posted by Blossom

Good news It turns out it's not the flu but a nasty cold! I am so relieved. I know, I know I am still contagious for 3 days so I will stay right over here but after seeing hubby have the flu two weeks ago I rather have the cold! Now I have to buy a hair dryer. I never use one but going to bed with damp hair made me catch cold.

I broke down and bought one a couple of weeks ago (cold here for having wet hair) at Costco - cost all of $15 for a really nice one! Steal a bit out of the book budget (after all, it's hard to read when you have the flu).

[3dusty]

BookStrand has 12 books for free, but you've got to download their app to receive these books. http://www.bookstrand.com/bookstrand_on_ios

[Sydney's Mom]

Originally Posted by 3dusty

BookStrand has 12 books for free, but you've got to download their app to receive these books. http://www.bookstrand.com/bookstrand_on_ios

I wish I could figure out how to get them from my android to my computer to import into Calibre. Just got over the flu, and my mind is still a little fuzzy. Yesterday, I couldn't remember how to tie my shoes!

[mikaelalind]

Originally Posted by Sydney's Mom

I wish I could figure out how to get them from my android to my computer to import into Calibre. Just got over the flu, and my mind is still a little fuzzy. Yesterday, I couldn't remember how to tie my shoes!

If you figure that out, can you please tell me?

( If not, I'll just wait. I have heard they will be available from the webpage, sometime in the future. I have a niggling suspicion they will not be free though.)

[3dusty]

I already had an account with bookstrand and had a few books I had purchased. I downloaded their app from google play. When I opened the app, I had to sign in with my bookstrand login. After I did this, all my purchased books plus the 12 app only books showed up. When I clicked on an app only book, it came up a page all about the book with an epub download button and a mobi download button. I hit the epub download button and after the book downloaded, it opened in my moonreader app.

The bookstrand is not a reading app, but a download front for their books. I clicked on each of the 12 app only books and hit the epub download for them.

After I did this, I hooked my phone up to my computer and searched until I found the bookstrand folder in my phone and there were the 12 books. It was a simple matter to copy them to a folder I made on my computer "bookstrand books". From there, I just added the book to calibre from this folder.

Hope that helps.


(Edited): All of these appear to be Drm free as well.

[Sydney's Mom]

Thanks! Don't know if I am up to that. I guess I could download them to my Tab. Maybe tomorrow.

[Sydney's Mom]

Originally Posted by mikaelalind

If you figure that out, can you please tell me?

( If not, I'll just wait. I have heard they will be available from the webpage, sometime in the future. I have a niggling suspicion they will not be free though.)

I thought you meant tying your shoes!!

[koland]

Originally Posted by 3dusty

After I did this, I hooked my phone up to my computer and searched until I found the bookstrand folder in my phone and there were the 12 books. It was a simple matter to copy them to a folder I made on my computer "bookstrand books". From there, I just added the book to calibre from this folder.

File Manager + Dropbox simplifies this quite a bit (esp. since my Asus Transformer doesn't want to be a USB device to the computer, currently).

[Blossom]

I'm still getting over this nasty cold!

I thought I mention here that Kobo has 40% off coupon till the Thursday.

Code: VoucherCodes40

Last night I found a huge amount of Loretta Chase's backlist over there that I could use it on. so each $2.99 book comes to only $1.79!
They are $2.99 on the Kindle. The ones published by Nancy Yost Literary Agency are couponable.

Lois Greiman Also has her backlist by Nancy Yost Literary Agency you can use the coupon on.


Not many KDP freebies lately. I hope this isn't a new trend.

[Blossom]

Free @ Amazon & Other stores:

Snoops in the City by Darlene Gardner
Genre: Contemporary Romance
(Former Dorchester LoveSpell title)
Note: I bought this last month. Now you can have it for free! She writes for Harlequin too.

Smashwords | Nook | Kobo | Sony

Blurb:

Tori Whitley is possibly the world's worst snoop. Who else would fall for the man she was investigating? As a favor to her private-detective cousin, she agrees to tail Seahaven businessman Grady Palmer. How hard can it be -- especially following a man with such a cute rear end? But checking out Grady proves easy on the eyes and hard on her heart. He's packing charm, intelligence, and too many secrets. Tori has no choice but to discover the truth -- by going undercover instead of going under the covers. And all the clues lead to one conclusion: To be a successful private eye, sometimes you have to follow your instincts . . . and hope you bag the man of your dreams.

[Britomart]

There are a number of Austen sequels & variations available for free at Amazon today. They are from Meryton Press. No guarantee as for the quality, but I thought I'd mention them for those who are interested.

[Sydney's Mom]

Thanks. Some of them do look interesting.

[Blossom]

Originally Posted by Britomart

There are a number of Austen sequels & variations available for free at Amazon today. They are from Meryton Press. No guarantee as for the quality, but I thought I'd mention them for those who are interested.

Thanks I picked one up. I don't know if I will ever read all these variants of Austen's books but just in case...

Still getting over my cold. I lost my voice so I think some more rest and reading later for me. I'm currently reading Karen Robards' Dark of the Moon in PB. This is a huge book! I left my Kindle upstairs a few nights ago and was too sick to go get it. So I told my hubby to hand me my other Kindle or book. He picks up this huge Omnibus of Karen Robards and hands it to me. I didn't think I get suck in reading a book this heavy but this story is really good so far. I just wish it was in ebook or audio form. I am spoiled by ebooks!

[koland]

Ellora's Cave freebies are up:

Scarlet Woman, the third title in the Middlemarch Mates series by Shelley Munro, and Passion Next Door, the first title in the Pleasure Brigade series by Cara Carnes

At all the usual outlets, DRM free (at least at EC and ARe)