I have found part of the answer regarding the pricing for "Maelstrom" - I think. The retail price listed by the publisher is $24.95 and that is the price you will pay at Ebooks.com, Kobo, Barnes & Noble, etc - except Amazon.
But the publisher is offering the same ebook title for $6.99 at its own site, (
http://us.penguingroup.com/) where I just bought an epub copy.
I'd still like to know more about whats going on. Is this a war? If so, who are the contenders? What is the battlefield? the objectives? What are the strategies & tactics? Who's winning?
What does it mean for the buyer of ebooks?