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What would life have been like if she’d made a different choice? Is it too late to change her mind… The Devil You Know (Dr. Jane McGill Book 2) by Freida McFadden
What would life have been like if she’d made a different choice? Is it too late to change her mind… The Devil You Know (Dr. Jane McGill Book 2) by Freida McFadden
Fate seems to have a peculiar sense of humor. The Budding Detective: The Origin Story for a Grace Thompson Mystery Series by Ginger Ellington
Fate seems to have a peculiar sense of humor. The Budding Detective: The Origin Story for a Grace Thompson Mystery Series by Ginger Ellington
Sometimes love has a price. And now the only question is—can Lyle and Sugar afford to pay it? Wicked Dirty (Wicked Nights Book 2) by J. Kenner
Sometimes love has a price. And now the only question is—can Lyle and Sugar afford to pay it? Wicked Dirty (Wicked Nights Book 2) by J. Kenner
When Carson Flint traded his Commonwealth military badge for the quiet life, he thought he’d left his battles behind. Owning a Spacebar by John Walker
When Carson Flint traded his Commonwealth military badge for the quiet life, he thought he’d left his battles behind. Owning a Spacebar by John Walker
It’s Giveaway time! Get a free bonus entry into our monthly raffle and check out Flashback (Kendra Michaels) by Roy Johansen, Iris Johnsen
It’s Giveaway time! Get a free bonus entry into our monthly raffle and check out Flashback (Kendra Michaels) by Roy Johansen, Iris Johnsen
One picture really can reveal more than 1,000 words… Tune Up (Detective Qigiq Book 2) by Joe Klingler
One picture really can reveal more than 1,000 words… Tune Up (Detective Qigiq Book 2) by Joe Klingler
Tabitha was used to being a social pariah. Could her standing in society get any worse? A Proud Woman: A Historical Romance Mystery (Tabitha & Wolf Historical Mystery Series Book 1) by Sarah F. Noel
Tabitha was used to being a social pariah. Could her standing in society get any worse? A Proud Woman: A Historical Romance Mystery (Tabitha & Wolf Historical Mystery Series Book 1) by Sarah F. Noel
The only hope that the unique history and stories will survive lies with one unlikely Storykeeper. Storykeeper: Epic Historical Saga of Destruction and Survival in 16th Century America (Nine-Rivers Valley Book 1) by Daniel A. Smith
The only hope that the unique history and stories will survive lies with one unlikely Storykeeper. Storykeeper: Epic Historical Saga of Destruction and Survival in 16th Century America (Nine-Rivers Valley Book 1) by Daniel A. Smith
It’s Giveaway time! Get a free bonus entry into our monthly raffle and check out Phantoms by Dean Koontz
It’s Giveaway time! Get a free bonus entry into our monthly raffle and check out Phantoms by Dean Koontz
The allegation is homicide. But defending it could be professional suicide… Dark Moon, A Legal Thriller by Deborah Hawkins
The allegation is homicide. But defending it could be professional suicide… Dark Moon, A Legal Thriller by Deborah Hawkins
Forget sugar and spice and everything nice … this year we want to show off our naughty side. Knotty or Nice (Kringle & Co Book 1) by Ines Johnson
Forget sugar and spice and everything nice … this year we want to show off our naughty side. Knotty or Nice (Kringle & Co Book 1) by Ines Johnson
A radical challenge to be a passionate follower of Christ… Ageless Faith: Wisdom for Overcoming Today’s Challenges by Rick McKinney and Jane McKinney
A radical challenge to be a passionate follower of Christ… Ageless Faith: Wisdom for Overcoming Today’s Challenges by Rick McKinney and Jane McKinney
Speaking of Marco and Instapaper, may I say that Instapaper is absolutely the most important tool that I use in my relentless effort to keep up with what is going on not only in the Kindlesphere but in the entire world. I use it every day with my Kindle, my iPad, and my Mac, and it allows me to store away all the interesting tidbits, articles, posts, and websites that I find anywhere on the web, so that I can read them later. I just wish Marco or comebody would come up with an app that would allow me to expand the dimensions of later.
All the publishers who are worried about the Kindle and ebook sales should be at least as worried about the announcement this week that Amazon’s CreateSpace printing, publication, and distribution subsidiary has passed the 2 million title milestone. I could tell them from personal experience that CreateSpace is unmatched when it comes to professional printing quality, production and distribution cost, customer service, and worldwide penetration to bookstores and libraries. For books as well as music, CreateSpace is not just a DIY or indie or self-publishing option; it’s an enterprise solution that is luring a growing number of formerly traditional publishers to a far more profitable and risk-free 21st-century no-inventory model.
Speaking of alternative publishing approaches, Barnes & Noble has launched a new direct ebook publishing pathway, presumably to compete with Amazon’s Kindle Digital Text Platform (DTP). Yet another confirmation that the best way to predict what Barnes & Noble will do at any given time is to look at what Amazon did two or three years ago.
Oops, I almost forgot to mention the name of the new Barnes & Noble publishing program. It’s called “pubit.” Long U? Short U? I don’t know. It goes with B&N;’s ebook reader, which is called the “nook.” “pubit.” “nook.” Okay, call me sophomoric for noticing, but isn’t this pretty close to a confirmation that the guy in charge of naming things at B&N; is Jake Harper, the adolescent nephew on Two and a Half Men? Heh, heh. You said “nook.”
Reading Brad Stone’s New York Times report today that Justice Department “investigators had asked in particular about recent allegations that Apple used its dominant market position to persuade music labels to refuse to give the online retailer Amazon.com exclusive access to music about to be released,” I can’t help but wonder if it is not just a matter of time before the G-men start a full-bore inquiry into Apple’s collusion with so-called agency model book publishers to fix prices in the ebook marketplace in order to turn competition upside down in an effort to block Amazon’s pro-consumer ebook pricing strategies.
These two novels from religious publisher Zondervan were free in the Kindle Store a week ago, then paid, and this morning they are free again. Why ask why?
Discover books, read about the author, find related products, and more. Visit the page.
For seventeen years, before his thrillers landed him on The New York Times Bestseller list, Kevin O’Brien made his living as a railroad inspector and did all his writing at night. His second novel, Only Son (1996), was optioned for film rights, thanks to interest from Tom Hanks. It was also chosen by Readers Digest for its Select Editions along with John Grisham’s The Partner and John Nance’s Medusa’s Child.
Kevin has been writing full time ever since.
The Next to Die, Kevin O’Brien’s third novel–and first thriller–was a USA Today Bestseller. So if on occassion, you find a scene in a Kevin O’Brien thriller in which a dead body is discovered in an old railroad yard or depot, well, now you know why.
Kevin O’Brien’s last four thrillers have all been New York Times Bestsellers. The most recent is Final Breath. Kevin lives in Seattle, loves Hitchcock movies, and is hard at work on his new thriller, Vicious, which will be available in May, 2010.
“Free” in the Kindle Store refers, for now, to the price for download to US-based Kindles. Amazon adds charges for Kindles based beyond US borders.
Originally posted to Kindle Nation Daily 5.26.2010.
The best way to find out about these free listings right away, when they occur, is to subscribe to the Kindle edition of Kindle Nation Daily, which pushes Kindle Nation Daily Free Book Alerts directly to your Kindle Home screen 24/7. And in the case of many free listings that disappear within a matter of hours or days, “right away” is often just in time.
No Kindle Required: Whether you are a long-time Kindle owner or you’ve just acquired an iPad and are filling it with ebooks for the first time or you are reading Kindle books on a PC, Mac, BlackBerry, iPhone or iPad Touch, you can get any and all of these titles absolutely free on your Kindle-compatible device of choice! Click here to download a free Kindle App for your device.
Book Description Closeted teenager Jeremy is sent to live with wealthy relatives after his mother enters rehab. Struggling to fit into the posh world of Ballena Beach, Jeremy joins the high school swim team, dates a popular girl, and begins to think he may have landed in paradise—until his great aunt Katharine starts to dictate his every move … and a late-night phone call insinuates that his father’s accidental death was not so accidental after all.
As Jeremy grows accustomed to the veneer of a fabulous life, so grows his need for answers—as well as the danger of immeasurable harm. Weaving together a murder mystery, sexual ambiguity, and characters with hidden identities and agendas , Nick Nolan offers readers a deliciously witty page-turner about the “puppet” who wishes only to be a real boy. Strings Attached is also a surprisingly heartfelt story about coming-of-age and coming out—not necessarily in that order.
A Q&A; with Author Nick Nolan Question: Tell us more about 17-year-old Jeremy Tyler, and how you created your lead character? Nick Nolan: I set out to create someone with a dazzling character arc; someone that people–gay or straight–could relate to and root for. And I’ve always loved the sort of conflict that arises with a “fish out of water” storyline–watching how someone adapts to a cataclysmic life change is fascinating. And one’s teen years are inherently cataclysmic, so poor Jeremy is nearly overwhelmed. He goes from being poor and fatherless and hopeless to rich and fabulous and sought-after–but still miserable because he isn’t being himself. I believe that he’s a protagonist that most people will sympathize with. Question:Strings Attached touches on themes of betrayal, greed, wealth, lust, beauty, love, and temptation. That is a lot for a young man to deal with. Would you explain how you weave these into the plot? Nick Nolan: Lust is desire mixed with obsession, and many of the characters in this story can’t separate the two–sometimes to their great detriment. Each of these elements is related: those in possession of beauty and wealth can tempt those without to lust and temptation and greed, but seldom to love. These are all tied-up inside the human experience of “wanting.” In the book, Jeremy’s father tells him–in a dream–that one needs to be selfish with respect to what one needs, but to pursue judiciously that which one wants–it’s a paradox that few ever take the time to understand. Question: Your book is a loose reinvention of the classic Pinocchio story. Would you tell us a little more about your connection with the Pinocchio tale, and your decision to work it into your story? Who is struggling with ‘strings attached’? Nick Nolan: Pinocchio is a great tale, which is why everyone remembers it; I think it reflects the pan-human desire to become a better version of ourselves–the wish to become our ideal. So I studied the original story, written by Carlo Collodi many years before that famous cartoon movie. His book seems like a fairy tale, but scholars will tell you that it is steeped in social commentary–and so is my book. Jeremy really is a puppet of the adults around him–with the exception of Arthur, who plays the Blue Fairy; Arthur anticipates his every need, and at the end of the book when we find-out his true identity we learn how important his contact with Jeremy truly is. I have a villain who echoes the original antagonist in Collodi’s book, and I’ve made more plausible that wishing on a star business–I draw a parallel between that and the old Greek and Roman belief that the constellations were the gods, to whom they prayed for protection and guidance. And finally, there is a very believable twist on the original puppet’s nose-growing; something similar happens when Jeremy lies…but that’s a bit graphic for this interview. Suffice to say that the Pinocchio parallels are there, but the similarities are subtle–and the story stands on its own without revealing them. And as for who is struggling with “strings attached”… at first one thinks that these bind Jeremy only, and then it becomes clear later on that everyone, except Arthur, in the story struggles against them, because every major theme in the story–beauty, wealth, love, betrayal, lust, greed and temptation–has consequences, or “strings,” attached to it. Question: Nick, who is your target audience? Who would enjoy reading your book? Nick Nolan: Initially my target audience was youngish gay men, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised that the appeal of Strings Attached crosses boundaries of age and gender and sexual preference… probably because it’s a coming-of-age story; this particular genre endures because those years are burned into every adult’s psyche. And who doesn’t relate to struggle, and misfortune, and learning to stand up for yourself? Enjoying a good read has little to do with how old you are or whom you sleep with–everyone loves a page-turner when the hero stands victorious at the end. (This author Q&A; is adapted from an author interview conducted by Juanita Watson, Assistant Editor of Reader Views, and is republished with permission.)
Review
“Strings Attached is the literary equivalent of a prime-time soap opera…readers will have no trouble turning the pages of this engrossing novel…an easy book to get sucked into.” –PHILADELPHIA GAY NEWS
“Beautifully told, it grabs at your heart and emotions and does not let go…Nolan’s language is lush and his description is beautiful … His book is one to cherish and hold onto. We shall not see many like it.” –Amos Lassen, LITERARY PRIDE
“Strings Attached is a wonderful story…a multifaceted piece of fiction dealing with co-dependency, parent-child relationships, anger, violence, love, sexual exploration, and maturation…This is a fast read.” –Rich Wiesenthal, DIVERSITY RULES MAGAZINE
“Nolan’s debut novel is a kitchen sink of genres – coming of age, coming out, mystery, romance, erotica, even a dash of the supernatural – that add up to an impressive story about the passage from boyhood to manhood.” –Richard Labonte, BOOKS TO WATCH OUT FOR
Carson Scott is the king of one-night stands, so a naughty encounter with a sexy brunette in a nightclub supply closet is right up his alley. When his mysterious seductress disappears, he-s blindsided by an unfamiliar emotion-disappointment. One thing-s for sure-if he ever encounters his lady of the evening again, he won-t let her slip away so easily.
Between her catering business, family issues, and her broken heart, Holly Lawson has too much on her plate to think about committing to a serious relationship. Hot, sweaty, anonymous sex with a Navy SEAL-now that sounds like the perfect appetizer to take the edge off. With no plans to ever see him again, she indulges in a fling. Only to come face to face with him weeks later while working a wedding.
Worse, Carson is hell-bent on the one thing she doesn-t want. The R word. She has no intention of falling for him, but in the face of his seductive, mind-changing methods, her resistance is crumbling-
Warning: This title contains a ridiculously hot Navy SEAL, a sassy heroine, and sex in a supply closet. Read only if you have time to take a cold shower afterwards. Graphic sex, explicit language.
Discover books, read about the author, find related products, and more. Visit the page.
For seventeen years, before his thrillers landed him on The New York Times Bestseller list, Kevin O’Brien made his living as a railroad inspector and did all his writing at night. His second novel, Only Son (1996), was optioned for film rights, thanks to interest from Tom Hanks. It was also chosen by Readers Digest for its Select Editions along with John Grisham’s The Partner and John Nance’s Medusa’s Child.
Kevin has been writing full time ever since.
The Next to Die, Kevin O’Brien’s third novel–and first thriller–was a USA Today Bestseller. So if on occassion, you find a scene in a Kevin O’Brien thriller in which a dead body is discovered in an old railroad yard or depot, well, now you know why.
Kevin O’Brien’s last four thrillers have all been New York Times Bestsellers. The most recent is Final Breath. Kevin lives in Seattle, loves Hitchcock movies, and is hard at work on his new thriller, Vicious, which will be available in May, 2010.
“Free” in the Kindle Store refers, for now, to the price for download to US-based Kindles. Amazon adds charges for Kindles based beyond US borders.
Originally posted to Kindle Nation Daily 5.25.2010.
The best way to find out about these free listings right away, when they occur, is to subscribe to the Kindle edition of Kindle Nation Daily, which pushes Kindle Nation Daily Free Book Alerts directly to your Kindle Home screen 24/7. And in the case of many free listings that disappear within a matter of hours or days, “right away” is often just in time.
No Kindle Required: Whether you are a long-time Kindle owner or you’ve just acquired an iPad and are filling it with ebooks for the first time or you are reading Kindle books on a PC, Mac, BlackBerry, iPhone or iPad Touch, you can get any and all of these titles absolutely free on your Kindle-compatible device of choice! Click here to download a free Kindle App for your device.
Book Description Closeted teenager Jeremy is sent to live with wealthy relatives after his mother enters rehab. Struggling to fit into the posh world of Ballena Beach, Jeremy joins the high school swim team, dates a popular girl, and begins to think he may have landed in paradise—until his great aunt Katharine starts to dictate his every move … and a late-night phone call insinuates that his father’s accidental death was not so accidental after all.
As Jeremy grows accustomed to the veneer of a fabulous life, so grows his need for answers—as well as the danger of immeasurable harm. Weaving together a murder mystery, sexual ambiguity, and characters with hidden identities and agendas , Nick Nolan offers readers a deliciously witty page-turner about the “puppet” who wishes only to be a real boy. Strings Attached is also a surprisingly heartfelt story about coming-of-age and coming out—not necessarily in that order.
A Q&A; with Author Nick Nolan Question: Tell us more about 17-year-old Jeremy Tyler, and how you created your lead character? Nick Nolan: I set out to create someone with a dazzling character arc; someone that people–gay or straight–could relate to and root for. And I’ve always loved the sort of conflict that arises with a “fish out of water” storyline–watching how someone adapts to a cataclysmic life change is fascinating. And one’s teen years are inherently cataclysmic, so poor Jeremy is nearly overwhelmed. He goes from being poor and fatherless and hopeless to rich and fabulous and sought-after–but still miserable because he isn’t being himself. I believe that he’s a protagonist that most people will sympathize with. Question:Strings Attached touches on themes of betrayal, greed, wealth, lust, beauty, love, and temptation. That is a lot for a young man to deal with. Would you explain how you weave these into the plot? Nick Nolan: Lust is desire mixed with obsession, and many of the characters in this story can’t separate the two–sometimes to their great detriment. Each of these elements is related: those in possession of beauty and wealth can tempt those without to lust and temptation and greed, but seldom to love. These are all tied-up inside the human experience of “wanting.” In the book, Jeremy’s father tells him–in a dream–that one needs to be selfish with respect to what one needs, but to pursue judiciously that which one wants–it’s a paradox that few ever take the time to understand. Question: Your book is a loose reinvention of the classic Pinocchio story. Would you tell us a little more about your connection with the Pinocchio tale, and your decision to work it into your story? Who is struggling with ‘strings attached’? Nick Nolan: Pinocchio is a great tale, which is why everyone remembers it; I think it reflects the pan-human desire to become a better version of ourselves–the wish to become our ideal. So I studied the original story, written by Carlo Collodi many years before that famous cartoon movie. His book seems like a fairy tale, but scholars will tell you that it is steeped in social commentary–and so is my book. Jeremy really is a puppet of the adults around him–with the exception of Arthur, who plays the Blue Fairy; Arthur anticipates his every need, and at the end of the book when we find-out his true identity we learn how important his contact with Jeremy truly is. I have a villain who echoes the original antagonist in Collodi’s book, and I’ve made more plausible that wishing on a star business–I draw a parallel between that and the old Greek and Roman belief that the constellations were the gods, to whom they prayed for protection and guidance. And finally, there is a very believable twist on the original puppet’s nose-growing; something similar happens when Jeremy lies…but that’s a bit graphic for this interview. Suffice to say that the Pinocchio parallels are there, but the similarities are subtle–and the story stands on its own without revealing them. And as for who is struggling with “strings attached”… at first one thinks that these bind Jeremy only, and then it becomes clear later on that everyone, except Arthur, in the story struggles against them, because every major theme in the story–beauty, wealth, love, betrayal, lust, greed and temptation–has consequences, or “strings,” attached to it. Question: Nick, who is your target audience? Who would enjoy reading your book? Nick Nolan: Initially my target audience was youngish gay men, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised that the appeal of Strings Attached crosses boundaries of age and gender and sexual preference… probably because it’s a coming-of-age story; this particular genre endures because those years are burned into every adult’s psyche. And who doesn’t relate to struggle, and misfortune, and learning to stand up for yourself? Enjoying a good read has little to do with how old you are or whom you sleep with–everyone loves a page-turner when the hero stands victorious at the end. (This author Q&A; is adapted from an author interview conducted by Juanita Watson, Assistant Editor of Reader Views, and is republished with permission.)
Review
“Strings Attached is the literary equivalent of a prime-time soap opera…readers will have no trouble turning the pages of this engrossing novel…an easy book to get sucked into.” –PHILADELPHIA GAY NEWS
“Beautifully told, it grabs at your heart and emotions and does not let go…Nolan’s language is lush and his description is beautiful … His book is one to cherish and hold onto. We shall not see many like it.” –Amos Lassen, LITERARY PRIDE
“Strings Attached is a wonderful story…a multifaceted piece of fiction dealing with co-dependency, parent-child relationships, anger, violence, love, sexual exploration, and maturation…This is a fast read.” –Rich Wiesenthal, DIVERSITY RULES MAGAZINE
“Nolan’s debut novel is a kitchen sink of genres – coming of age, coming out, mystery, romance, erotica, even a dash of the supernatural – that add up to an impressive story about the passage from boyhood to manhood.” –Richard Labonte, BOOKS TO WATCH OUT FOR
Carson Scott is the king of one-night stands, so a naughty encounter with a sexy brunette in a nightclub supply closet is right up his alley. When his mysterious seductress disappears, he-s blindsided by an unfamiliar emotion-disappointment. One thing-s for sure-if he ever encounters his lady of the evening again, he won-t let her slip away so easily.
Between her catering business, family issues, and her broken heart, Holly Lawson has too much on her plate to think about committing to a serious relationship. Hot, sweaty, anonymous sex with a Navy SEAL-now that sounds like the perfect appetizer to take the edge off. With no plans to ever see him again, she indulges in a fling. Only to come face to face with him weeks later while working a wedding.
Worse, Carson is hell-bent on the one thing she doesn-t want. The R word. She has no intention of falling for him, but in the face of his seductive, mind-changing methods, her resistance is crumbling-
Warning: This title contains a ridiculously hot Navy SEAL, a sassy heroine, and sex in a supply closet. Read only if you have time to take a cold shower afterwards. Graphic sex, explicit language.
First, now that the Kindle Store bestseller list has been divided into “paid” and “free,” we notice that titles moving from “free” to “paid” status, like this one, are counted as if entering the “paid” list for the first time, which almost inevitably would move them for the first 24 hours to the very highest levels of the Movers and Shakers List.
1.Ranking has gone up in the past 24 hours
Sales Rank in Kindle Store: 13 (previously unranked)
4.7 out of 5 stars(9 customer reviews) Auto-delivered wirelessly
Kindle Price: $7.99
Next, we see that a swell of media buzz for Edgar finalist Olen Steinhauer, including a couple of New York Times mentions, has vaulted his titles into prized territory in the Kindle Store.
3.Ranking has gone up in the past 24 hours311%
Sales Rank in Kindle Store: 54 (was 222 yesterday)
3.9 out of 5 stars(89 customer reviews) Auto-delivered wirelessly
Kindle Price: $6.39
Nothing brilliant to say about the next two titles, except they appear to be part of reader’s continuing embrace of brown-paper bag material in the Kindle Store. What, I shouldn’t notice this on the very day when Kindle Nation Daily has been passed in the Kindle Blogs sales rankings by, er, the Sexy Stories blog?
13.Ranking has gone up in the past 24 hours63%
Sales Rank in Kindle Store: 238 (was 388 yesterday)
4.0 out of 5 stars(4 customer reviews) Auto-delivered wirelessly
Kindle Price: $2.18
But that’s not the only good news for readers! There are increasing signs that the Kindle Store’s shelves are swelling more and more each day with quality backlist reads at fair prices. Many of these titles come from Penguin, which is in a great position for backlist sales through the Kindle, even if it is continuing to withhold its new releases.
16.Ranking has gone up in the past 24 hours59%
Sales Rank in Kindle Store: 309 (was 493 yesterday)
SEATTLE, May 21, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) –Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) announced today that it will webcast its 2010 Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be held in Seattle on May 25, 2010, at 9:00 a.m. PT/12:00 p.m. ET.
The event will be webcast live, and the audio and associated slides will be available for at least three months thereafter, at www.amazon.com/ir.
SOURCE: Amazon.com, Inc.
As Amazon prepares for the meeting, its shares closed Friday at $122.72, down (with the rest of the market) from its all-time high of $151.09 last month, but up from about $66 when the company announced the Kindle 2 on February 9, 2009 (see comparison with Nasdaq and Dow indices below).
Book Description Closeted teenager Jeremy is sent to live with wealthy relatives after his mother enters rehab. Struggling to fit into the posh world of Ballena Beach, Jeremy joins the high school swim team, dates a popular girl, and begins to think he may have landed in paradise—until his great aunt Katharine starts to dictate his every move … and a late-night phone call insinuates that his father’s accidental death was not so accidental after all.
As Jeremy grows accustomed to the veneer of a fabulous life, so grows his need for answers—as well as the danger of immeasurable harm. Weaving together a murder mystery, sexual ambiguity, and characters with hidden identities and agendas , Nick Nolan offers readers a deliciously witty page-turner about the “puppet” who wishes only to be a real boy. Strings Attached is also a surprisingly heartfelt story about coming-of-age and coming out—not necessarily in that order.
A Q&A; with Author Nick Nolan Question: Tell us more about 17-year-old Jeremy Tyler, and how you created your lead character? Nick Nolan: I set out to create someone with a dazzling character arc; someone that people–gay or straight–could relate to and root for. And I’ve always loved the sort of conflict that arises with a “fish out of water” storyline–watching how someone adapts to a cataclysmic life change is fascinating. And one’s teen years are inherently cataclysmic, so poor Jeremy is nearly overwhelmed. He goes from being poor and fatherless and hopeless to rich and fabulous and sought-after–but still miserable because he isn’t being himself. I believe that he’s a protagonist that most people will sympathize with. Question:Strings Attached touches on themes of betrayal, greed, wealth, lust, beauty, love, and temptation. That is a lot for a young man to deal with. Would you explain how you weave these into the plot? Nick Nolan: Lust is desire mixed with obsession, and many of the characters in this story can’t separate the two–sometimes to their great detriment. Each of these elements is related: those in possession of beauty and wealth can tempt those without to lust and temptation and greed, but seldom to love. These are all tied-up inside the human experience of “wanting.” In the book, Jeremy’s father tells him–in a dream–that one needs to be selfish with respect to what one needs, but to pursue judiciously that which one wants–it’s a paradox that few ever take the time to understand. Question: Your book is a loose reinvention of the classic Pinocchio story. Would you tell us a little more about your connection with the Pinocchio tale, and your decision to work it into your story? Who is struggling with ‘strings attached’? Nick Nolan: Pinocchio is a great tale, which is why everyone remembers it; I think it reflects the pan-human desire to become a better version of ourselves–the wish to become our ideal. So I studied the original story, written by Carlo Collodi many years before that famous cartoon movie. His book seems like a fairy tale, but scholars will tell you that it is steeped in social commentary–and so is my book. Jeremy really is a puppet of the adults around him–with the exception of Arthur, who plays the Blue Fairy; Arthur anticipates his every need, and at the end of the book when we find-out his true identity we learn how important his contact with Jeremy truly is. I have a villain who echoes the original antagonist in Collodi’s book, and I’ve made more plausible that wishing on a star business–I draw a parallel between that and the old Greek and Roman belief that the constellations were the gods, to whom they prayed for protection and guidance. And finally, there is a very believable twist on the original puppet’s nose-growing; something similar happens when Jeremy lies…but that’s a bit graphic for this interview. Suffice to say that the Pinocchio parallels are there, but the similarities are subtle–and the story stands on its own without revealing them. And as for who is struggling with “strings attached”… at first one thinks that these bind Jeremy only, and then it becomes clear later on that everyone, except Arthur, in the story struggles against them, because every major theme in the story–beauty, wealth, love, betrayal, lust, greed and temptation–has consequences, or “strings,” attached to it. Question: Nick, who is your target audience? Who would enjoy reading your book? Nick Nolan: Initially my target audience was youngish gay men, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised that the appeal of Strings Attached crosses boundaries of age and gender and sexual preference… probably because it’s a coming-of-age story; this particular genre endures because those years are burned into every adult’s psyche. And who doesn’t relate to struggle, and misfortune, and learning to stand up for yourself? Enjoying a good read has little to do with how old you are or whom you sleep with–everyone loves a page-turner when the hero stands victorious at the end. (This author Q&A; is adapted from an author interview conducted by Juanita Watson, Assistant Editor of Reader Views, and is republished with permission.)
Review
“Strings Attached is the literary equivalent of a prime-time soap opera…readers will have no trouble turning the pages of this engrossing novel…an easy book to get sucked into.” –PHILADELPHIA GAY NEWS
“Beautifully told, it grabs at your heart and emotions and does not let go…Nolan’s language is lush and his description is beautiful … His book is one to cherish and hold onto. We shall not see many like it.” –Amos Lassen, LITERARY PRIDE
“Strings Attached is a wonderful story…a multifaceted piece of fiction dealing with co-dependency, parent-child relationships, anger, violence, love, sexual exploration, and maturation…This is a fast read.” –Rich Wiesenthal, DIVERSITY RULES MAGAZINE
“Nolan’s debut novel is a kitchen sink of genres – coming of age, coming out, mystery, romance, erotica, even a dash of the supernatural – that add up to an impressive story about the passage from boyhood to manhood.” –Richard Labonte, BOOKS TO WATCH OUT FOR
The best way to find out about these free listings right away, when they occur, is to subscribe to the Kindle edition of Kindle Nation Daily, which pushes Kindle Nation Daily Free Book Alerts directly to your Kindle Home screen 24/7. And in the case of many free listings that disappear within a matter of hours or days, “right away” is often just in time.
No Kindle Required: Whether you are a long-time Kindle owner or you’ve just acquired an iPad and are filling it with ebooks for the first time or you are reading Kindle books on a PC, Mac, BlackBerry, iPhone or iPad Touch, you can get any and all of these titles absolutely free on your Kindle-compatible device of choice! Click here to download a free Kindle App for your device.
Carson Scott is the king of one-night stands, so a naughty encounter with a sexy brunette in a nightclub supply closet is right up his alley. When his mysterious seductress disappears, he-s blindsided by an unfamiliar emotion-disappointment. One thing-s for sure-if he ever encounters his lady of the evening again, he won-t let her slip away so easily.
Between her catering business, family issues, and her broken heart, Holly Lawson has too much on her plate to think about committing to a serious relationship. Hot, sweaty, anonymous sex with a Navy SEAL-now that sounds like the perfect appetizer to take the edge off. With no plans to ever see him again, she indulges in a fling. Only to come face to face with him weeks later while working a wedding.
Worse, Carson is hell-bent on the one thing she doesn-t want. The R word. She has no intention of falling for him, but in the face of his seductive, mind-changing methods, her resistance is crumbling-
Warning: This title contains a ridiculously hot Navy SEAL, a sassy heroine, and sex in a supply closet. Read only if you have time to take a cold shower afterwards. Graphic sex, explicit language.
, Free!
, which pushes Kindle Nation Daily Free Book Alerts directly to your Kindle Home screen 24/7. And in the case of many free listings that disappear within a matter of hours or days, “right away” is often just in time. 
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(Kindle Edition)
. I don’t ordinarily include many “free samples” in the Kindle Nation Daily Free Book Alerts because many of them are just trying to game the bestseller lists through the redundancy of offering something that is already free as a Kindle Store free sample. But when a teaser like Konrath’s comes out while the full ebook is still in its unreleased pre-order state, as in this case, a worthwhile purpose is served.
(Kindle Edition)
by Jerry Weissman
by Terry J. Fadem 
by Leigh L. Thompson
and 
(Gallery, $25, 9781439182895/1439182892).
, and naturally those sales have brought even more profitable sales of the novel’s 2008 sequel, 
, at $6.39, which represents a logically 20% discount from the available mass market paperback edition. This isn’t rocket science, but it’s worth noting that Gerritsen’s royalties are soaring precisely because Random House has left the pricing or discounting of these Kindle editions to Amazon.
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