Welcome to this week’s news post! It has been a bit quiet this week but there is news of the long awaited launch of Barnes and Nobel in the UK and the growth of self publishing is making waves in the world of publishing as well as our usual books to look out for!

It has been a long while but the much promised and delayed presence of the Nook  has arrived in Blighty – Barnes and Nobel have officially launched their UK online site this week along with their devices, the Nook Touch (£79) and the Nook Glow (£109) are now available to order. The HD  tablets will follow suit soon and are available for preoder right now with a release date of 22nd of November. Whether this is too late for Barnes and Nobel to enter the UK market and elsewhere remains to be seen. But they face very tough competition with Kobo, Amazon and others who have already made their entry in the market.

The growth of Self Publishing has literally exploded in the last five years and a recent report states that there is a huge rise in this market which has grown 287%. There is also around 200,000 self published books released which shows that self published titles have become more mainstream and this is in part to successes of recent bestsellers like On Dublin Street, Easy and Slammed although ironically enough those books were soon picked up by big 6 publishers due to their popularity. But it does show that ebooks have opened up a huge market for self publishing and it has become easier for some authors to break out via this route although not all self published books are successful and sell huge amounts. And there is also issues of quality such as editing, and formatting issues which has affected a few self published titles but self published titles has opened up the market and in some ways is leading it because those successful titles at the moment has opened up the NA (New Adult) sub-genre to a new audience.

From rumours of Random House and Penguin having talks of merging to confirming that they are combining forces this week. I am quite surprised on how quick this has emerged but despite rumours over the weekend of News Corp bidding for Penguin – both Random House and Penguin have agreed to join ventures. They have to undergo the formality with the FCC and the EU to agree with this merger but from the latter of half of next year they will be known as Penguin Random House. This will allow them to become one of the biggest English language publishing group in the world. But I suspect that there might be other mergers in the offering to compete in this ever-changing world of publishing.

News in Brief:

Lionsgate who is the studio behind The Hunger Games movies, will be sticking with Catching Fire director Frances Lawrence for the Mockingjay films which will be split into two parts.

 Nalini Singh has released the cover for her e-release of Angel’s Dance  – which is the novella that featured Gaelen and Jessamy story from Angel’s Flight. If you have this book there is no need to get Angel’s dance but there is no need to get this ebook. This is slated for December 31st.  There is also plans for a re-release of Angel’s Flight in the UK.

And now for books to watch out for!

And talking about Nalini Singh – she has also released the cover and blurb of upcoming Psy and Changeling anthology book – Wild Invitation which is slated for release next March – it features novellas from previously published anthologies as well as two original stories and just  look at the glorious mantitty!

 

In Beat of Temptation , innocent Tamsyn has always had a place in her heart for Nathan, a blooded DarkRiver sentinel. But is she ready for the fierce demands of the mating bond?

In Stroke of Enticement , a wary young teacher, skeptical about love, arouses the man—and the animal—in an aggressive leopard changeling who must prove his affections are true.

Plus 2 NEVER BEFORE PUBLISHED NOVELLAS

In Declaration of Courtship , Grace, a shy submissive wolf, finds herself pursued by the last man she ever would have imagined: a SnowDancer lieutenant said to be “mad, bad, and dangerous to know.”

In Texture of Intimacy , SnowDancer healer Lara discovers the searing joys—and unexpected challenges—of being mated to quiet, powerful Walker, a man used to keeping his silence.

 

Shelly Laurenston, New York Times bestselling author and a star in the paranormal romance genre, comes the eighth book is the successful Pride series, that blends outrageous humor and sexy shapeshifters to create irresistible heroes that readers fall in love with.

Ricky Lee has no plans of getting serious about anyone, but he will protect Toni Jean-Louis Parker. Not just because he’s been hired to do so, but because it’s the right thing to do. And if that means traveling around the country with one complicated She-jackal, dealing with chocolate-eating wild dogs, instigating trouble between his brothers, and having the most amazing sex he’s ever had…well, who said his job didn’t have perks?

Toni doesn’t know how she keeps getting herself into these situations. But even she has to admit there’s something about Ricky Lee Reed that she finds kind of interesting…and downright sexy. Now they just have to survive long enough to figure out if what they have is worth fighting for…

This looks like the start of a promising new series –  Sealed with a Curse by Cecy Robson.

 

 

Celia Wird and her three sisters are just like other 20-something girls—with one tiny exception: they’re products of a backfired curse that has given each of them unique powers that make them, well, weird…

The Wird sisters are content to avoid the local vampires, werebeasts, and witches of the Lake Tahoe region—until one of them blows up a vampire in self-defense. Everyone knows vampires aren’t aggressive, and killing one is punishable by death. But soon more bloodlust-fueled attacks occur, and the community wonders: are the vampires of Tahoe cursed with a plague?

Celia reluctantly agrees to help Misha, the handsome leader of an infected vampire family. But Aric, the head of the werewolf pack determined to destroy Misha’s family to keep the region safe, warns Celia to stay out of the fight. Caught between two hot alphas, Celia must find a way to please everyone, save everyone, and oh yeah, not lose her heart to the wrong guy—or die a miserable death. Because now that the evil behind the plague knows who Celia is, it’s coming for her and her sisters. This Wird girl has never had it so tough

So what do you think of the confirmed merger with Penguin Random House? Do you think other publishers will follow suit? And do you think Barnes and Noble have entered the international market too late? 

About Has

Has is a bookaholic and feeds her addiction whenever she can. She usually can be found lost in a Romance or an Urban Fantasy novel. Her favourite sub genres are Paranormal, Fantasy and some Scifi. Her most treasured authors are, Patricia Briggs, Ilona Andrews, Ann Aguirre, Lisa Kleypas and Tamora Pierce. She loves that discovery of finding a brand new author and falling in love with their books. Has also blogs a The Book Pushers - Book chatter and reviews

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