Around the Bookish World: News Week-in-Review

Filed in News , The Smutty Lover Posted on July 9, 2010 @ 2:00 pm 9 comments
This week there has been some really interesting developments in the world of ebooks and the following tidbits seem to highlight that things are really hotting up.
According to Hachette they have recently reported that James Patterson has sold over 1 million ebooks and is the first author to sell to break this barrier. It is another sign of that ebooks will be a growing medium that even other authors who have dismissed this may now have to take a serious look in e-publishing.

Sony has discounted their ereaders to match the price war with Kindle and the Nook. The Sony Pocket is now priced $150, while The Touch, $170 and the Daily Edition $300.
However there is rumours that both Amazon and B&N as well as Sony have newer models coming out soon along with other ereaders that will be released in the market, so things seem to be heating up. (source)

Karen Chance has announced the 5th cassie book will be released sometime in June 2011

Kelley Armstrong has posted the cover of her new YA book spinoff series The Gathering

All Things Urban Fantasy has also posted her cover for Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead which will be released this December. I can’t believe this will be the final book although I am really looking forward to the spinoff series!

Mercy Thompson Moon Called comic is available for preorder. Its slated to be out in September and you can now preorder the comic in most comic shops online as well as brick and mortar. The Alpha and Omega series is also being adapted and Cry Wolf issue one is out now! Both of these series will also be compiled in two volume omnibuses each and should be available for preorder later in the year after the single current issues are released.

Borders online ebookstore has gone live and they have stated they have over a million ebooks available although its only currently available to US readers only.

Exciting developments with Netgalley who have recently announced a partnership with HarperCollins Publisher – iArcs and sample chapters will be available to download and will include imprints from Eos, Avon and Thomas Morrow.

Bookshops are facing a tough time with competition from online vendors and bigger stores, but this is an interesting artlcle that examine these issues.

And finally! Nothing really book related but I love the Steampunk genre and I came across this little gem of a game that dresses up a Steampunk character. Warning though! It’s a huge time suck!

What do you say about the whole ebook development? Is it time to buy and ereader or better to wait a bit for the new ones?

About Susi


Susi is a geeky vegetarian from Gemany. She just finished university and now works as a civil engineer in steel construction. Besides her reading addiction she also knits like a maniac while listening to audiobooks. Susi also blogs at the Secret HEA Society.

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9 Comments

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  • s7anna July 9, 2010 at 2:13 pm

    Well I'm all for ebooks…I've been reading them for the last couple of years and it's opened up a whole new window of authors. There are just so many great epublishers that I love and I love the variety of stories out there. I already have a reader…it's an eBookwise reader so it's not exactly all fancy like the more current ones. I do have another reader on my wishlist – one that can handle .pdf files so I'm on the hunt for a new addition but my major prob now is that I dislike e-ink technology – I don't like how the page loads (you know it flashes before going to the next page *not impressed with that*). I'm thinking more along the lines of an Aluretek reader – it has a LCD screen and doesn't load like e-ink pages – plus it can handle secure .pdf which is a bonus for those odd ebooks that I do have in restricted format and it also handles regular .pdf files.

    *hugs*
    Anna

  • Beth July 9, 2010 at 8:43 pm

    I agree with Anna about the Aluratek ereader. At this point that's the one I want. I'll probably be able to afford that one by the end of summer. Borders.com is going to have it for only $120 later this month.
    It will be great to have something other than the laptop to read my ebooks on.

  • Scorpio M. July 9, 2010 at 9:11 pm

    I am still confounded by the idea that some publishers and authors think that e-books will die or never gain ground over paper. Technology rules, hasn't history already shown this? Are we still traveling by horse & carriage?

  • Jenny N. July 9, 2010 at 9:12 pm

    I don't have an e-reader but I know I will eventually get one. Everytime I go into Chapters I see and always end up fiddling around with the Kobo ereader. Thats the one I'm most likely to get. But on the other hand companies are probably going to realease newer models of ereaders so I'm holding off getting one just yet.

  • JenM July 9, 2010 at 11:13 pm

    I've had an ebook reader for years. Currently I have a Kindle. It's so much easier to read on that I absolutely hate it when I have to read paper books. The big NY publishers are truly clueless on this subject. I actively try to buy books from other sources because I'm so disgusted by their tactics in trying to delay the spread of ebooks.

  • Sullivan McPig July 10, 2010 at 2:42 am

    I'm not a fan of e-books, I love the feel, smell and look of a normal, book, but there's so many cool sounding stories only released as e-book, that I'm very grudgingly starting to read e-books.

  • cories July 12, 2010 at 3:45 am

    I read ebooks on my laptop and since it's not that comfortable for me to read for any length of time on the laptop, I still prefer paper books. Plus, I'd freak if I dropped my laptop while reading in the bath!

    cories119[at]yahoo.com

  • Has July 12, 2010 at 6:42 am

    @Anna and @Beth
    I have heard of that reader although I would love to try out the Nook although that is not available here. But I do think that better models will be out over the next few years.
    My concern about the LCD screen is the battery. I have a Sony 505 and I love the fact that I dont have to charge it every 5 hours or so especially if I really get into a book.

    @Scorpio M
    I agree! And I think the whole issue with Agency pricing and even DRM is just temporary obstacles to publishers trying to stall the adoption of e-books. I think with the arrival of cheaper ereaders and multiformat devices like Iphone/Itouch its a matter of sooner than later where ebooks will hold a substantial slice of the market. What I don't get is that this could be an opportunity to attract wider audiences to reading.

    @Jenny N
    I have heard that although the Kobo is the cheapest reader out at the moment there has been teething problems espeically with the refresh rate. Although I do like the look of it- I think its actually wise to wait. There is a slew of ereaders out later this year and I think next year will have even more with tablets and multiformat devices as well.

    @JenM
    I agree – it really feels like they are just stalling the unevitable and they are making the same mistakes the music industry is making. Although its interesting to note that Apple may not adopt the Agency pricing once their current contract ends with publishers. I heard it was only for a year so things may be very very interesting in the New Year.

    @Sullivan McPig
    I felt the same way but once I had my Sony I actually bought more books than I did before and it has not stopped me from buying print books. I have picked up more new to me authors in ebook format and bought mainly print books for my autobuy/fave authors.

    @Cories
    😀 I heard a few people wrapped their ereaders in plastic bags and it worked whilst reading but I don't think I could handle that – I would be too paranoid LOL

    Has

  • Dovile July 12, 2010 at 9:09 am

    I personally prefer the usual books, and will read an e-book only when it's not available in a printed form. And even then, if it's a short story or a novella, I prefer to print it out and read it then.

    As for buying an e-reader, I'd say I would wait a bit (if I were to purchase one): they're bound to become cheaper, especially when the next generation of e-readers will come out. Or if I couldn't wait, I'd look for a used one. The current prices for e-readers are way too much, I think.

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