Ebook Buying Addicts' Support Thread

[poohbear_nc]

Originally Posted by HomeInMyShoes

Stating that there is a booksale somewhere in this thread is akin to throwing a bottle of rye into an AA meeting.

Consider it a test of your willpower!

[or a test of your ability to lie online about what you just bought! ]

[badgoodDeb]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Back from visiting my old digs in Denver. And 46 ebooks heavier and $86 lighter, for an average cost of $1.87.

It means I still need nine more to complete my set (I already had three):

2 The Great Roxhythe (1923)
4 Instead of the Thorn (1923)
5 Simon the Coldheart (1925)
7 Helen (1928)
10 Pastel (1929)
11 Barren Corn (1930)
27 The Spanish Bride (1940)
52 Frederica (1965)
58 Pursuit (in The Queens Book of the Red Cross) (1939)

You are tempting me! Now I have to go take a look at the sale. I must admit, I don't have the books on the above list, except Spanish Bride and Frederica. The others are more historical than romance, and after buying a few, I resold them and decided to drop them from my list. So perhaps I can't say I have a *complete* set. But I don't much like the non-romances.

[badgoodDeb]

PS "Frederica" is there for $2.00 also. At least, when I look. Why didn't you get that one? So is "Spanish Bride" though it says "2.00 - something higher" and may not actually be available for 2.00.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

PS "Frederica" is there for $2.00 also. At least, when I look. Why didn't you get that one? So is "Spanish Bride" though it says "2.00 - something higher" and may not actually be available for 2.00.

How did I miss that one? But I need to find another to avoid the small transaction charge.

[ATDrake]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

How did I miss that one? But I need to find another to avoid the small transaction charge.

If they have that "Heyer's Regency World" guide which is also in the Sourcebooks sale, that's a pretty decent buy. I got it last year and it does help explain a bunch of background/cultural stuff (although in pretty spoilery detail as relates to some of the books, so you may find yourself skimming bits at first).

Otherwise, a lot of the Poisoned Pen Press 2nd/3rd in series titles are also discounted to ~ $2 @ BOB and you can make another trip to the US to pick up the freebie 1st in series which are price-matched at Amazon in North America to get yourself started from the PPP thread in the Deals forum if they're not showing free at iTunes in your region.

I recommend Mary Anna Evans' Faye Longchamp archaeology, Priscilla Royal's Medieval co-ed monastery, Beverle Grave Myers' baroque opera castrato, Mary Reed & Eric Mayer's Byzantine Roman eunuch, and Michael Bowen's intellectual property lawyer series as the best/most enjoyable of the lot. MB's Screenscam is really hilariously funny and I think you'll like it. The first MAE Longchamp book is a little on the sensationalistic side, but the series quickly finds its footing in some well-rooted science-y/anthropological tales, and it's nearly as enjoyable in those respects as Aaron Elkins' Gideon Oliver series.

[badgoodDeb]

Ok. I went and spent (a whole) $12 for 6 of the Heyer mysteries set in the 1920's. I had a couple before, but not these six. NOW I find that I cannot transfer them to my Kindle??? Wahhhhh. I can download the Adobe Reader, and read them on my laptop. But I had carefully checked to ensure that Calibre could indeed convert ePub into MOBI. However .... not encrypted ePub, I guess. Wahhhhh!!!

[ATDrake]

Apprentice Alf is your friend. DRM is not. That's why I'll be getting my Heyers DRM-free MultiFormat* via Sourcebooks' Discover A New Love site even if it may cost me slightly more than elsewhere, depending on what other coupons/discounts might apply.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

Ok. I went and spent (a whole) $12 for 6 of the Heyer mysteries set in the 1920's. I had a couple before, but not these six. NOW I find that I cannot transfer them to my Kindle??? Wahhhhh. I can download the Adobe Reader, and read them on my laptop. But I had carefully checked to ensure that Calibre could indeed convert ePub into MOBI. However .... not encrypted ePub, I guess. Wahhhhh!!!

I read on a Kindle too. I've had no problems with mine, thanks to Apprentice Alf.

[dreams]

Georgette Heyer Birthday Week Sale!
*fingers firmly in my ears*

Coupons! , DRM-free, but a little more!
*fingers _still_ firmly in my ears*

Well, OK, I admit it would be much better to have a blindfold over my eyes, but I ... I .. just can't resist at least _seeing_ all the deals.

I am going to try to resist...
*well, only because I read many of them years ago, already have a few in ebook, and have saved some in pbook.*

But, but, still... the urge is great to just BUY!

[badgoodDeb]

Got it figured out, thanks to several friends. Thanks!! Off to read my new Heyers ..... giggle!! (well, after work. THEN I'll be off ....)

[ATDrake]

Originally Posted by dreams

I am going to try to resist...
*well, only because I read many of them years ago, already have a few in ebook, and have saved some in pbook.*

But, but, still... the urge is great to just BUY!

If it's any help, they did do the Heyer Anniversary sale last year (albeit for $1.99 then) and if it does well this year (which it seems to be, to lure people into doing Ye Olde Dance of Georestriction Circumvention) they'll probably be doing it again next year*.

A well-stocked public library will probably have many in paper if you want to just read them (my excuse for skipping the romances I wasn't really interested in last year†).

* But they could be going for $3.99 next year, if the pattern of annual dollar-upping holds.

† But this year, portable no-waiting for shelf-restock DRM-free MultiFormat small-business-supporting convenience trumps my normally no-romo preferences and besides, I went into the DANL club membership hoping that they'd do the Heyer sale again with the bonus member discount (not the usual 40% like I'd hoped, but an extra 25% is also good), so my plan has worked!

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by dreams

Georgette Heyer Birthday Week Sale!
*fingers firmly in my ears*

Coupons! , DRM-free, but a little more!
*fingers _still_ firmly in my ears*

Well, OK, I admit it would be much better to have a blindfold over my eyes, but I ... I .. just can't resist at least _seeing_ all the deals.

I am going to try to resist...
*well, only because I read many of them years ago, already have a few in ebook, and have saved some in pbook.*

But, but, still... the urge is great to just BUY!

At these prices, with the coupons available, it just makes sense to buy. These are all books that I've had on my wish list forever. The ONLY reason I didn't buy them all last year was because I missed a couple, and at least one of them wasn't on sale. But now I have them all.

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

How did I miss that one? But I need to find another to avoid the small transaction charge.

Simon the Coldheart is there as well, as is The Spanish Bride.

[BelleZora]

What is it about eBooks that's so addicting?

I've always been a voracious reader, but before ereaders most of my books came from libraries, thrift stores, friends, etc. I just couldn't store all the books I read, plus they collected dust.

Now I want to own my books and admire them in Calibre. I also read them - 121 books so far in 2012. I purchase them all fair and square and love looking for deals from my extensive wish list. I've spent more on (e)books this year than probably in the last 20-30 years combined.

Obviously I'm not the only reader whose book purchasing addiction began with the advent of ebooks. I also began spending MUCH more when I no longer feared losing my books due to DRM as I lost music purchases several years ago.

[ATDrake]

I've always been an inveterate book-buyer.

But I admit I splurge more impulsively on e-books because if it turns out I don't really like them, at least they don't take up physical space. I do buy a lot of paper books, but I'm considerably pickier about them and mainly get artbooks, reference stuff, graphic novels, foreign language works, and severely out-of-print sf/fantasy stuff, often after having seen and sampled it at the library or after dithering over the Look Inside feature where available.

I'm a bit more willing to take a chance on/throw in a small amount of money to support a more marginally enjoyable "I'd read this at the library but wouldn't really want this taking up room on my shelf" author in e-book format if the price is low enough than I would on a paper copy at the same cost.

There's a kind of "out of sight, out of mind" thing going on, I think, where I can easily sweep the results under the rug to get them out of the way (something that's harder to do with an 11x17 coffee-table book annotating the symbolism of every little background detail of the Mona Lisa piece by piece).