Free eBooks: 11/30/2011

In the first half of November, I picked up 14 free e-books from Amazon.com (for Kindle) and from Barnes & Noble (for Nook). After the 15th, the free offerings substantially increased, and I was able to score almost twice as many free books in the second half of the month. Read on to see the 21 freebies I've snagged since November 15, with book descriptions from the sites and links to purchase them.

Please Note: While all of these books were free at the time of my purchase, that does not guarantee that they are still free or that they will remain free. Make sure you check the price listed before purchasing any books.

Barnes & Noble / Amazon.com (nook & Kindle)

The Liberation of Alice Love
by Abby McDonald
BN.com | Amazon.com

Alice Love keeps her life (and boss, and family) running in perfect order, so when her bank card is declined, she thinks it's just a simple mistake. Sadly, someone has emptied her bank account, spending her savings on glamorous holidays, sexy lingerie, and a to-die-for wardrobe, and leaving Alice with lots of debt. But she soon wonders if perhaps her alter-ego's reckless, extravagant lifestyle is the one Alice should have been leading all along...

Mad Money
(#1 in the Madeline Carter mystery series)
by Linda L. Richards
BN.com | Amazon.com

When her best friend is killed in front of her at the New York City brokerage where they both work, Madeline Carter quits her job and aims for a safer life on the warm coast. But life has a way of interrupting the best laid plans and it isn’t long before Madeline’s quiet new life of day trading in the Malibu hills is interrupted by kidnapping, murder and a run-in with a corporate psychopath.


A Plunder by Pilgrims
(short prequel to the Garrison Gage mystery series)
by Jack Nolte
BN.com | Amazon.com

It starts with a knock at the door -- something reclusive ex-detective Garrison Gage hates. When it's his teenage neighbor, whose girlfriend has gone missing just before Thanksgiving, Gage gets reluctantly pulled back into his old line of work - and ends up facing some fears of his own in Oregon's dark woods.

A short story introducing Garrison Gage, who also appears in The Gray and Guilty Sea.

Clues to Christie
from HarperCollins Publishers
BN.com | Amazon.com

Dying to read Agatha Christie for the first time or to re-read one of her classic mysteries but don’t know where to start? This fully authorized and comprehensive guide to the Queen of Mystery includes an introduction by award-winning Agatha Christie expert John Curran with features on each of her classic detectives including Miss Marple, Hercule Poirot and Tommy & Tuppence; guides to reading each of her series and her stand-alone novels; and an A to Z of Agatha Christie. Interspersed throughout are quotes from Christie, a list of the Christie novels that were her personal favorites, and three of her classic short stories: The Affair at the Victory Ball, Greenshaw’s Folly and A Fairy in the Flat.

The Everything Potluck Cookbook
by Linda Larsen
BN.com | Amazon.com

Potlucks are a great way to get friends and relatives together without the pricey grocery or restaurant bill! In this cookbook, veteran cook Linda Larsen gives you an array of options for every meal and course. In addition, easy-to-understand icons indicate whether a recipe is easy, healthy, quick, or inexpensive. Everything you need to host, or attend, a successful potluck is here, including: 300 tasty and creative recipes; Tips for transporting food safely; Indications of whether a recipe can be made ahead of time; Menu suggestions for a variety of potluck parties. Guests can make the dishes on their own and bring them to the host's home, or they can all gather in the host's kitchen and make them together. With this book, cooking for the perfect potluck party has never been easier!


Slow Cooking Cookbook
(Gooseberry Patch cookbooklet #10)
by Gooseberry Patch
BN.com | Amazon.com

Slow Cooking Cookbook is brimming with all the latest & greatest tips and tricks for making the tastiest meals with your slow cooker. You'll find mouthwatering recipes like easy cheesy potatoes, Grandma's chili and smothered steak...delicious!


A Parchment Paper Thanksgiving
(a sampler from The Parchment Paper Cookbook, available at BN.com and Amazon.com)
by Brette Sember
BN.com | Amazon.com

Forget those dirty pots and pans this holiday season—getting a great turkey dinner on the table is as easy as pie with parchment paper! In A Parchment Paper Thanksgiving award-winning author and food writer Brette Sember shows you how parchment paper cooking can revolutionize the way you cook a holiday feast. Save time, money, and sanity!


Holiday Rush
(a short story from Holiday Flirts!, available at BN.com and Amazon.com)
by Lisa Scott
BN.com | Amazon.com

A Black Friday shopping-trip-gone-wrong loses Lindy her job, her guy, and her dignity. Then it gets worse—she has no choice but to take a job she loathes. But there’s one bonus in the deal: a seriously hot boss who might help her feel that holiday rush again.

This is story #2 from the Holiday Flirts! 5 Romantic Short Stories collection. The five stories are linked by a loose thread, that ties up in a fab happy ending, bringing together characters from all the stories. Each story is 8,000-12,000 words each. Buy individual stories for $0.99 each or the whole collection for $2.99. You might also like volume 1, Flirts! 5 Romantic Short Stories, and volume 2, Beach Flirts! Look for Fairy Tale Flirts! in late December 2011.


The French Maid
by Sabrina Jeffries
BN.com | Amazon.com

Lady Eleanor Langston has a problem: her husband Henry, prime-minister-in-the-making, is too caught up in his work to notice her. Despite her involvement in his various public appearances, she feels shut out of his life, especially with their one-year anniversary looming. When Henry hires a highly recommended French lady's maid without consulting her, Eleanor's anger can't be contained--until she meets the maid. With Babette's help, Eleanor arms herself with the one weapon that will make Henry notice her as a woman--her inner siren.

A Little Bit of Everything for Dummies
(a collection of chapters from books in the "For Dummies" series)
from For Dummies
BN.com | Amazon.com

Twenty years ago the very first For Dummies book, DOS For Dummies, was published. From that first printing of that first book came a series unlike anything in the publishing world, one that is global in both geography - we have been published worldwide in some 30 languages - and in coverage. No single volume can hope to summarize what thousands of titles have meant to millions of readers over the years, and we don't claim to do that in this e-book. Rather, this e-book celebrates the breadth and depth of the For Dummies series, offering 20 chapters - in honor of our 20 years - from a list of books compiled by our global colleagues. We are confident the chapters we've included give you a representative glimpse at why - no matter what the topic - our products have meant so much to so many by Making Everything Easier. We've grouped our chapters into five main parts: Part I, Dummies Classics; Part II, Daily Dose of Dummies; Part III, Fun with Dummies; Part IV, Get Social; and Part V, Going Global.

Amazon.com: Kindle

Lie Down in Green Pastures
(#3 in the Psalm 23 mystery series)
by Debbie Viguie

Even though they work right next door to each other, Cindy and Jeremiah come from two different worlds. Cindy is a church secretary; Jeremiah is a Reformed rabbi with a mysterious past full of danger and excitement. Together they have faced down a serial killer at Easter and a murderer of homeless people. The two unlikely companions continue to forge a strong friendship as they explore personal history and faith with each passing adventure.

This third volume in the Psalm 23 Mysteries series finds Jeremiah and Cindy matching wits with an unscrupulous land developer. In a fast-paced story set around St. Patrick's Day, murder invades an idyllic landscape, challenging them to save hundreds of teens even as they try to discover the source of their unexpected danger.

(I got this book for nook in May 2011 when it was free from Barnes & Noble.)


Deadly Gamble
(#1 in the Charlie Parker mystery series)
by Connie Shelton

Albuquerque CPA Charlotte "Charlie" Parker handles the business side of RJP Investigations while her brother, Ron, does the detecting. When Ron is out of town, however, Stacy North, who eloped with Charlie's fiance, Brad, 10 years earlier, comes calling, hoping to hire someone to find her missing Rolex watch. Charlie reluctantly takes the case and soon locates the watch. Stacy, it turns out, had been having an affair. Soon the lover is dead, and Stacy is an obvious suspect. Charlie sticks with the case and finds herself involved with still more murder.

Eye of the God
by Ariel Allison

eye of the god takes the fascinating history surrounding the Hope Diamond and weaves it together with a present-day plot to steal the jewel from the Smithsonian Institute.

We follow Alex and Isaac Weld, the most lucrative jewel thieves in the world, in their quest to steal the gem, which according to legend was once the eye of a Hindu idol named Rama Sita. When it was stolen in the 17th century, it is said that the idol cursed all those who would possess it. That won’t stop the brilliant and ruthless Weld brothers.

However, they are not prepared for Dr. Abigail Mitchell, the beautiful Smithsonian Director, who has her own connection to the Hope Diamond and a deadly secret to keep. Abby committed long ago that she would not serve a god made with human hands, and the “eye of the god” is no exception. Her desire is not for wealth, but for wisdom. She seeks not power, but restoration.

When the dust settles over the last great adventure of the Hope Diamond, readers will understand the “curse” that has haunted its legacy is nothing more than the greed of evil men who bring destruction upon themselves. No god chiseled from stone can direct the fates of humankind, nor can it change the course of God’s story.

Julius Katz Mysteries
(stories #1 & #2 in the Julius Katz mystery series)
by Dave Zeltserman

These award-winning Julius Katz mysteries have delighted thousands of fans since first appearing on the pages of Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine in 2009. Julius Katz introduced readers to Boston's most brilliant, eccentric and possibly laziest detective, Julius Katz, as well as his sidekick, Archie, a tiny marvel of whizbang computer technology with the heart and soul of a hard-boiled PI. In Julius and Archie's second adventure, Archie's Been Framed, the little guy is framed for murder and Julius needs to use all his wits to keep his inimitable assistant out of the slammer.

Julius Katz attracted a devoted following when it first came out, and has since won the Shamus Award for best story from the Private Eye Writers of America, as well as the Derringer Award for best novelette from the Short Mystery Fiction Society. Archie's Been Framed won 1st place in Ellery Queen's Readers Choice Award, with their readers choosing it as their favorite story published by the magazine in 2010. If you haven't had a chance to meet Julius and Archie yet, now's your chance to get caught up in these charming, delightful and very unusual mystery stories.

Look for the first full-length Julius Katz mystery novel, Julius Katz and Archie, available now as a Kindle download.

'Twas the Night
by Sandra Hill, Kate Holmes, & Trish Jensen

Christmas or Bust!

What do a Blue Angels pilot, a bounty hunter and an ex-NFL football player have in common? The three bad-boy bachelors of Snowdon, Maine, have to make a friend’s Christmas Eve wedding on time... or die trying! They’re willing to risk anything to make that happen—even dashing through the snow in the goofiest bus on Earth, bright red and filled with a bunch of merry, meddling senior citizens known as the Santa Brigade. All too soon, these men will have met their matches in three special women: a woman from their past, a forest ranger so hot she ought to be declared a fire hazard, and a woman on the run. Ho, ho, OH! While serving up holiday cheer with the Santa Brigade, the guys will discover 'tis the season for good will and folly. Wise men or not, they are well and truly caught, which means these roguish St. Nicks are willing to jingle a few bells along the way if that’s what it takes to find what they truly want for Christmas nestled in their beds after the stockings are stuffed and the gifts placed under the tree.


The Best of Polish Cooking
by Karen West

Now updated with a new chapter on Lighter Polish Fare! First published in 1983, this classic resource for Polish cuisine has been a favorite with home chefs for many years. This new edition includes a chapter on Light Polish Fare with ingenious tips for reducing fat, calories and cholesterol, without compromising the flavor of fine Polish cuisine. Fragrant herbal rubs and vinegars add panache without calories. Alternatives and conversion tables for butter, sour cream and milk will help readers lighten other recipes as well.

In an easy-to-use menu format, the author arranges complementary and harmonious foods together--all organized in seasonal cycles. Spring menus include "Braised Spring Lamb with Cabbage," "Baby Carrots Polonaise," and "Wild Strawberries with Sour Cream." Cool and light summer menus make the most of fresh fruits and vegetables: "Frosty Artichoke Salad," "Fresh Peas with Dill Butter," and "Chilled Blueberry Soup." Autumn recipes include "Polish Sausage simmered in Wine," "Apple Raisin Cake," and "Hunter's Stew." The winter chapter highlights plentiful offerings such as "Roast Duck Served with Red Cabbage," "Smoked Salmon Omelets" and "Christmas Eve Bread."

All Along the Rhine: Recipes, Wines, and Lore
by Kay Shaw Nelson

Each chapter of this brilliant collection of over 130 recipes covers the culinary history and winemaking tradition of a different Rhine country. The literary excerpts, legends, and lore throughout the book accompany the reader-chef on a culinary cruise down one of the world's most famous rivers. Complete with b/w illustrations.


Teacher Cartoon-a-Day 2012 Calendar
by Johnny Hawkins

Start the school day with a smile. Gleeful classroom adventures and amusing student antics greet teachers as they reference these daily depictions of entertaining playground escapades, homework snafus, and comical coursework mishaps. Each day, humorist Jonny Hawkins turns in a cleverly cartooned lesson in schoolroom humor. For its year's worth of chuckles and grins, the Teacher Cartoon-A-Day 2012 Day-to-Day Calendar more than makes the grade.

Barnes & Noble: nook

Hire Me, Hollywood!
by Mark Scherzer and Keith Fenimore

The secret to Stan Lee's writing process... The story behind Elmo's giggle... What's for lunch on the set of The Walking Dead... Squirrel training with Johnny Depp....

Think you know what it takes to get your favorite TV show on the air every week? (You'd be surprised.) Or what all those people whose names in the credits of the latest blockbuster actually do? (Including the Supervising Digital Colorist?) What better way to find out than from the who's who of Hire Me, Hollywood!

Entertainment insiders Mark Scherzer and Keith Fenimore are here to give you a crash course in all things Hollywood through thirty sometimes funny, occasionally racy, and always revealing interviews with industry experts. Whether you've always dreamed of yelling "Action" on a major movie set or you'd be thrilled just to get George Clooney his morning coffee, this book will give you inside scoop from craft service to the director's chair--and every take in between.

(I got this book for Kindle earlier this month when it was free from Amazon.com.)

Lords of Kobol: Tales from Ancient Days
(#4 in the Lords of Kobol series)
by Edward T. Yeatts III

If you've read the "Lords of Kobol" trilogy, then you know the secret of the gods and what transpired millennia ago.

But what if the gods were really gods? What if there was more mysticism in the mythology? The Lords as "beings of light," demigods being born, dragons, a cyclops and petty jealousies all alongside Pythia, Cylons, the Tomb of Athena, a different Blaze and an escape from Kobol and the wrath of The One.

Lords of Kobol - Book Four: Tales From Ancient Days is a kind of alternate universe companion to the trilogy. Enjoy this different take on the history of Battlestar Galactica and Caprica.


The Holiday Collection
from The Indie Eclective

The Holiday Collection is the second anthology of short stories from the Indie Eclective, a group of nine authors crossing genres. These holiday-themed stories range from serious to humorous, and all express the sentiments of the season in their own "Eclective" way.

In many traditions, the cold of winter is perfect for curling up and spending time with family. We cordially invite you to spend some time with ours. (Curling up is optional.)