Welcome to this week’s news post and we have a bumper packed edition with breaking news of Macmillan’s settlement with the DOJ, crazy author scam alert and more YA movie casting news as well as books and covers to watch out for in the coming year.

In the midst of finishing this post, news broke on twitter that Macmillan has settled with the DOJ over Agency pricing. This leaves Apple as the lone standing defendant against the collusion over Agency pricing. John Sargent has posted a statement that says – 

Our company is not large enough to risk a worst case judgment. In this action the government accused five publishers and Apple of conspiring to raise prices.  As each publisher settled, the remaining defendants became responsible not only for their own treble damages, but also possibly for the treble damages of the settling publishers (minus what they settled for).  A few weeks ago I got an estimate of the maximum possible damage figure. I cannot share the breathtaking amount with you, but it was much more than the entire equity of our company. 

 I like to believe that we would win at trial. But outcomes are hard to predict with certainty, particularly in a civil case with a low burden of proof.  And so we agreed to settle with no admission of guilt. As with the other settling publishers, retailers will now be able to discount Macmillan e-books for a limited time. This change will take effect quickly.

 

So from Monday some of Macmillan books will be available for discount and agency pricing will be removed. There was no comment from Apple which is currently the only company facing trial later this year but for now Agency pricing is at an end.

Earlier this week, Ceilidh from The Book Lantern and Rhiannon a Goodreads blogger came across this interesting case of self published author Kailin Gow who claims via a PR post that Malia Obama has read and recommended one of her books which is not the case – because the book in question was by another author. Gow has also managed to write 114 books in under five years, which most sound like direct ripoffs of popular books and series from authors like Cassandra Clare and Julie Kagawa. And if that doesn’t send out warning signals She has also claimed that her books have been optioned and adapted to become movies and an MMORPG although there is no sign of these projects existing as well as awards.  For more info on the exaggerated claims and the epic tweetfest drama – check out Ceilidh’s great post here.

Yesterday, twitter was all a tizzy on the news that Amazon has been awarded the patent to resell digital content. This looks like it will follow Redigi’s business model which will scan people’s hard-drives for the files they want to sell and remove them and then offering it to the new buyer. There is not much details on why Amazon has patented this but it does seem to suggest they are looking into reselling ebooks via their marketplace but I suspect publishers and authors will be against this – if this is the case.

News in Brief:

YA adaptions updates. Casting info released this week on the upcoming Delirium tv series, Fox has cast Emma Roberts as the lead for the pilot episode which will commence filming soon.

While – The Vampire Academy movie is going full steam ahead, with a script written by Mean Girls and Heathers writers (*Muppetflail*) and casting of Danily Kozlovsky as Dimitri and Zoey Deutch as Rose. I personally think this is the best casting choices as well as scriptwriters for a YA movie adaption yet. And I have a strong feeling this will be a great adaption.

I seriously cannot wait for Perdition the first book in the spinnoff Grimspace series. Ann Aguirre has posted the blurb at her site and it sounds great! 

Sylvia Day has posted another snippet for Entwined with You – which is slated for June.

Now for books to look out for!

I really enjoyed the first book in this series and definitely looking forward to Down London Road by Samantha Youn!

 

 

 

 

 

It has always been up to Johanna to care for her family, particularly her younger brother, Cole. With an absent father and a useless mother, she’s been making decisions based on what’s best for Cole for as long as she can remember. She even determines what men to date by how much they can provide for her brother and her, not on whatever sparks may—or may not—fly.

But with Cameron MacCabe, the attraction is undeniable. The sexy new bartender at work gives her butterflies every time she looks at him. And for once, Jo is tempted to put her needs first. Cam is just as obsessed with getting to know Jo, but her walls are too solid to let him get close enough to even try.

Then Cam moves into the flat below Jo’s, and their blistering connection becomes impossible to ignore. Especially since Cam is determined to uncover all of Jo’s secrets…even if it means taking apart her defenses piece by piece.

 

I love the cover for Diana Rowland’s White Trash Zombie Apocalypse!

 

Lights, cameras… zombies!

When a zombie movie starts filming in town, things get crazy, and white trash zombie Angel Crawford suspects it’s not just the plot of the movie that’s rotten. With zombies both real and fake roaming the streets, it’s up to Angel to fit all the pieces — and body parts — together to save herself, her town, and quite possibly the human race.

 

And finally the cover and blurb for the 3rd Arcadia Bell book – Binding the Shadows which is fast becoming one of my favourite UF series.

 

In the third book in this beloved and “riveting” (Romantic Times) urban fantasy series, demon-friendly tiki bar owner Arcadia Bell discovers more about her own evolving, and possibly destructive, magical abilities when her bar is the target of a demonic crime wave.

Renegade mage and bartender Cady Bell has had a rough year, but now the door to her already unstable world is coming completely unhinged. When a citywide crime wave erupts, Cady’s demon-friendly tiki bar is robbed by Earthbounds wielding surreal demonic abilities that shouldn’t exist. With the help of her devilishly delicious boyfriend, Lon Butler, Cady sets out to find the people who wronged her. But the criminals aren’t the only ones experiencing unnatural metamorphoses—Cady’s own Moon Child abilities are evolving beyond her control. Can Cady track down the monsters responsible before the monster inside destroys everything—and everyone—she loves?

 

So what do you think of the idea of reselling digital content like ebooks and apps? A good or a bad idea? And would you trust an author who boast or lies to try to help their sales and boost their profiles?

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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