FREE/BARGAIN - Science Fiction, Fantasy - 2016

[septentrion]

Originally Posted by ATDrake

Also, if you happen to wish to practice your French-reading skills, publishers Bragelonne and Livre de Poche are holding sales on selected translated titles by Brian Sanderson and Richard K. Morgan at $4.99 CAD each. Normally the Morgan books go for at least $8.99 CAD regularly, and French publishers rarely hold sales, so these are good prices if you're on the lookout for Francophone sf/fantasy. And Bragelonne's Milady imprint is also DRM-free.

Linkage to the Kobo Canada promotional page, but these are usually also price-matched at Amazon & iTunes CA (for some strange reason, Google Play CA does not carry books from the French publishers) as well: Incontournables de la science fiction en promo

Bragelonne and Milady, which are the same group, have regular sales (every Saturday, there's one discounted book) and they sell very interesting bundles (les intégrales) for a limited time. I was able to buy every book by Brent Weeks for 2.99 € each last month. Here is for a look at their currrent sales: http://bragelonne-le-blog.fantasyblog.fr/archives/5266.

[ATDrake]

^

Cool, good to know, and thanks for the link! Francophone sales seem to be slightly more uncommon in Canada, since the last time those Richard K. Morgan translations from Milady were discounted over here, it was only for the first of them, well over a year ago (which was when I picked it up), and most things on my wishlist that I've been tracking seem to never drop at all.

But there does seem to be a something of a trend for at least a couple of the French publishers to put selected stuff on promo a little more often than they used to, and hopefully that keeps up.

[Dngrsone]

Originally Posted by Manabi

This reminds me of something I said about L. Ron Hubbard's ten volume Mission Earth series: It needs to be edited with an axe. (To be completely fair to Hubbard, the books did read fast and were mostly funny, although the humor tended to be heavy-handed. But they really needed to be condensed, a lot. Still sounds a whole lot better than this series.)

Oh, man! I remember picking up the whole ten books in hardcover for like a buck a piece from a wholesaler close to twenty years ago... I slogged through six or seven volumes before petering out and then left them behind because the lot was too heavy to move when it came time to switch apartments.

All I remember about the series is I wanted a pair of "engineers" boots.

[Manabi]

Originally Posted by Dngrsone

Oh, man! I remember picking up the whole ten books in hardcover for like a buck a piece from a wholesaler close to twenty years ago... I slogged through six or seven volumes before petering out and then left them behind because the lot was too heavy to move when it came time to switch apartments.

All I remember about the series is I wanted a pair of "engineers" boots.

I had read the first couple when I was in grade school (probably in junior high) and never got to finish them because I couldn't find the others in libraries or as cheap used books and wasn't about to pay much for them. When I started going to my library again about 5-6 years ago I noticed they had the whole set. So I started over, wanting to see how it ended. Also, my local library has a limited selection of science fiction, so from that standpoint they were a good choice.

They do read fast, even as thick as they are. They are mostly funny, although the humor is sophomoric and unsophisticated. (You can also readily see the things Hubbard dislikes, he bashed the IRS sooooooo damn much.) The story got weirder as it went, and the last couple of books took place back on the alien home world. The ending wasn't what I'd call satisfying, but it did tie up all the loose ends.

Frankly, you didn't miss much. Having read them, I'd never buy them even for a penny. I have grabbed a couple of the e-book versions that showed up as freebies, just to have them in my library (since I did read them) but I don't care if I never get the others. I have no interest in reading them again.

Now the story about the editing of the series? That's pretty interesting.

[ATDrake]

X-link to the DRM-free thread for a new Humble Bundle:

Humble Book Bundle Extraordinary Fiction presented by Small Beer Press full of sfnal novels, story collections, and a non-fiction creative writing memoir about the Clarion Workshop. They're a very high quality speculative fiction publisher and this is excellent value for money if you enjoy sf/f with a literary bent, IMHO.

[Dngrsone]

Originally Posted by Manabi

Frankly, you didn't miss much. Having read them, I'd never buy them even for a penny. I have grabbed a couple of the e-book versions that showed up as freebies, just to have them in my library (since I did read them) but I don't care if I never get the others. I have no interest in reading them again.

Now the story about the editing of the series? That's pretty interesting.

Wow, that was amazing... I liked Battlefield Earth okay, but always thought it could have used a bit of trimming, but I never saw what made Hubbard so popular... now we know.

[orangekiwi]

To those who missed out last time (04-27-2016 this thread post#485) Camber of Culdi (book 1 The Legends of Camber of Culdi) by Katherine Kurtz is again discounted in the US by Open Road publishing this time for $1 more so $2.99

https://www.amazon.com/Camber-Culdi-.../dp/B01AYTUPYM
https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/camber-of-culdi

A Deryni nobleman seeking justice faces a tyrannical king in the magnificent first book of this acclaimed classic fantasy series

Long before Camber was revered as a saint, he was a Deryni noble, one of the most respected of the magical race whose arcane skills set them apart from ordinary humans in the medieval kingdom of Gwynedd. For nearly a century, Camber’s family has had little choice but to loyally serve the ruling Festils, Deryni usurpers who employed dark magic to wrest the throne from the rightful Haldane liege. Now, the land suffers under the tyranny of King Imre, whose savage oppression of the human population weighs heavily on Camber’s heart—a heart that is shattered when the despot and his evil mistress-sister, Ariella, cause the death of Camber’s beloved son.

Once he sought nothing more than a peaceful retirement and an uneventful old age, but the grim demands of justice and vengeance drive Camber far from his family’s estates in search of the last of the Haldane line. This descendant of kings will not be easily persuaded to accept Camber’s unthinkable plan. But with the kingdom in turmoil, the aging mage and the reluctant Haldane heir must confront together the awesome, terrible might of the Festils for the good of all.

[maddz]

£5.62 on Amazon UK, so again no discount over here alas.

[plivesey]

Originally Posted by ATDrake

X-link to the DRM-free thread for a new Humble Bundle:

Humble Book Bundle Extraordinary Fiction presented by Small Beer Press full of sfnal novels, story collections, and a non-fiction creative writing memoir about the Clarion Workshop. They're a very high quality speculative fiction publisher and this is excellent value for money if you enjoy sf/f with a literary bent, IMHO.

I've only read the Kelly Link collection of short stories (from the first ever Humble book bundle if I remember correctly), but it's definitely worth the $1 entry price.

[Rev. Bob]

Originally Posted by Manabi

This reminds me of something I said about L. Ron Hubbard's ten volume Mission Earth series: It needs to be edited with an axe. (To be completely fair to Hubbard, the books did read fast and were mostly funny, although the humor tended to be heavy-handed. But they really needed to be condensed, a lot. Still sounds a whole lot better than this series.)

I remember Mission Earth. Understand that I'm a packrat; I loathe getting rid of books. I've lost books and disposed of extra copies, but I almost never completely eject a book from my collection.

Mission Earth is one of those exceptions. So was John Norman's "Gor" series.

[Dngrsone]

LOL... I forgot about Gor... all I remember is that the covers looked remarkably like the one on Moorcock's Elric books.

[Dr. Drib]

Originally Posted by plivesey

I've only read the Kelly Link collection of short stories (from the first ever Humble book bundle if I remember correctly), but it's definitely worth the $1 entry price.

Got it! (Although I had received an email from them, it's good to have a link here for this GREAT series of titles. Thank you for the link.)

This looks like a WONDERFUL collection of books.

..and ALL FOR ONLY $15 MINIMUM.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Dngrsone

LOL... I forgot about Gor... all I remember is that the covers looked remarkably like the one on Moorcock's Elric books.

The original Gor trilogy is pretty good, although very much a Burroughs derivative. It was only after that it became a bondage-fest.

[Dr. Drib]

Originally Posted by HarryT

The original Gor trilogy is pretty good, although very much a Burroughs derivative. It was only after that it became a bondage-fest.

Some would even include the fourth as OK.

But the rest - 'read' at one's own peril. They are horrible!

[piperclassique]

Dragon Keeper, by Robin Hobb is 99p at Amazon UK
For the weekend,
First of The Wild Rain Chronicles

Sorry, the Rain Wild Chronicles