Welcome to this week’s news post and once again we have another author meltdown but this time over their struggles for their art and selling out, Amazon moving into their own currency and more publishing and book updates.

Amazon is back in the news with their recent announcement that they will be launching a digital currency to purchase apps in the Kindle Fire platform.  The more customers purchase and use Amazon Coins for buying apps the more discounts they will get and Amazon is enticing their customers with a free 500 coins offer for all customers in the US which comes up to $5 for those who buy games, movies or apps.

And talking about Amazon, I reported a few months ago that there was problems with their warehouses due to a security firm who were bullying  and throwing racist abuse at workers in Germany. Well it looks like there is more strife to come as workers now are calling for a strike and is organised by the union Verdi who is calling for better working conditions and pay.

Author Kendall Grey wrote a post this week proclaiming that she has sold out writing by erotic romance which is more successful than her Urban Fantasy series which slaved for over four years. This caused a real stir on twitter especially since the majority of authors do not sell ten thousand dollar’s worth of sales in under a month and considering she is a self published writer  which is a very difficult market to break out – it is not something to be ashamed of. But Grey didn’t see this as a success story and has commented that ‘I know it’s depressing to hear that in order to find success, you may have to compromise your principles. I’ve come to grips with the fact that in the current market, trashy smut sells, and urban fantasy does not. Tough shit for me. If you want to sell books, you have to feed the market what it craves.’ – I don’t think it is that smart to trash your reader who are also your customers and a genre which has sold very well very for decades and was popular way before 50 Shades is something to be ashamed of. Lauren Dane and Jenny Trout both wrote fantastic posts in response to Grey’s comments. But I do find it very sad and disappointing that an author has chosen to lash out and blame a genre that sees it is sub-par because Urban Fantasy doesn’t sell well (which is totally wrong as UF authors Patricia Briggs, Kim Harrison etc.. can attest to) – as well assuming that any book she may write will sell well because there are no guarantees it will be successful.

It looks like the Department of Justice is gearing up for a prosecution that Apple is the mastermind behind the alleged collusion for Agency Pricing. Now that Penguin has dropped out of the defence and is settling with the other major publishers, Apple is the lone company who will be facing trial this June. The DOJ also released an interesting graph highlighting the jump in prices in ebook pricing with the introduction of Agency prices – which is a part of their evidence for their prosecution.

News in Brief:

Nalini Singh has posted a signing tour for the US and UK – for details on the dates and times click here!

Ilona and Gordon Andrews have  posted the last chapter for their online serial Clean Sweep – There is plans for this to be published very soon and with an epilogue and hopefully there will be more later in the year.

And finally Z For Zachariah by Robert C. O’Brian is being adapted for the big screen, and will star,  Chiwetel Ejiofor, Chris Pine and Amanda Seyfried. Filming is scheduled soon and a release planned for next year.

Now for books to watch out for!

Ver0nica Roth’s long awaited conclusion to her Divergent trilogy – Allegiant  had its cover unveiled last week.

 

One choice will define you.

What if your whole world was a lie?
What if a single revelation—like a single choice—changed everything?
What if love and loyalty made you do things you never expected?

The explosive conclusion to Veronica Roth’s #1 New York Times bestselling Divergent trilogy reveals the secrets of the dystopian world that has captivated millions of readers in Divergent and Insurgent.

I enjoyed the first book in this series and cover for Crown of Midnight the second book in the trilogy by Sarah J. Maas looks even better.

 

An assassin’s loyalties are always in doubt.
But her heart never wavers.

After a year of hard labor in the Salt Mines of Endovier, eighteen-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien has won the king’s contest to become the new royal assassin. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown – a secret she hides from even her most intimate confidantes.

Keeping up the deadly charade—while pretending to do the king’s bidding—will test her in frightening new ways, especially when she’s given a task that could jeopardize everything she’s come to care for. And there are far more dangerous forces gathering on the horizon — forces that threaten to destroy her entire world, and will surely force Celaena to make a choice.

Where do the assassin’s loyalties lie, and who is she most willing to fight for?

And finally we have the cover of Lauren Dane’s Wild Darkness has me at grrrr hello there Mr gorgeous arm porn.

 

 

Lauren Dane’s “fresh, fun, fast-paced”* series comes to a thrilling conclusion as the heat of all out war fans the fires of an otherworldly romance… 

The bombing that almost killed Owen witch Molly Ryan has worsened the tensions between the humans and the Others. While the Others desperately campaign to prevent the passage of a law that would strip their people of all rights, the human separatists develop an agenda far worse than anyone imagined. With her position more precarious than ever, security head Helena Jaansen finds herself relying more and more heavily on
her personal guard, Faine Leviathan, and, despite her better instincts, falling more deeply into the intimate connection that they share.

As Helena and Faine’s explosive passion grows, a deadly separatist plot is discovered, one which could bring ultimate destruction for the Others, and war breaks out between the two opposing factions. With the Others forced into hiding, Helena must overcome her fear of repeating past failures to save her people—and her heart—before it’s too late…

 

So do what do you think of Kendall Grey’s post? Do you think she has a point that writing for a genre she dislikes is selling out? And what about the other news items and books I highlighted this week? 

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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