Pottermore Halloween Surprise!

We're pleased to officially announce that from tomorrow, 31st October, 12 noon GMT, the final chapters of
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
will be available on Pottermore for you to explore.

Help us spread the word by telling your fellow Harry Potter and Pottermore fans about the great news.

El Pottermore Insider está orgulloso de poder anunciar, oficialmente, que los últimos capítulos de “Harry Potter la Cámara Secreta” estarán listos para ser explorados a partir de mañana, 31 de Octubre, a las 12 de mediodía GMT.
Ayúdanos a pasar la noticia comentándolo a tus compañeros aficionados de Harry Potter y los Pottermore fans.

Pottermore Insider est heureux d'annoncer officiellement qu'à partir de demain, 31 Octobre, 12h, vous pourrez explorer le derniers chapitres de Harry Potter et la Chambre des Secrets sur Pottermore.
Aidez-nous à passer le message, parler en à vos collègues fans d’Harry Potter et de Pottermore.

Der Pottermore Insider blog freut sich offiziell verkünden zu können, dass ab morgen, dem 31. Oktober, 12 Uhr GMT, die letzten Kapitel von Harry Potter und die Kammer des Schreckens auf Pottermore für dich zu erkunden sind.
Helfe uns diese gute Nachricht zu verbreiten, indem du anderen Harry Potter Fans und deinen Pottermore Freunden davon erzählst.

Il Pottermore Insider è lieto di annunciare ufficialmente che da domani, 31 Ottobre, alle 12 pomeridiane GMT, verrà aperto l’ultimo capitolo di Harry Potter e la Camera dei Segreti per te da esplorare.
Aiutaci a passare parola annunciando la grande notizia ai tuoi amici fan di Harry Potter e di Pottermore.

O Pottermore Insider tem o prazer deanunciar oficialmente que a partir de amanhã, 31 de outubro, às 12 horas GMT, os capítulos finais de Harry Potter ea Câmara dos Segredos será lançado no Pottermore para você explorar.
Ajude-nos aespalhar a palavra, contando ao seus colegas fãs de Harry Potter e Pottermore sobre a grande notícia.

That means that we are a mere few hours away from completing the second book! I know I'll be (gently) cracking open my copy to read along with the site. What about you? Will you peruse the pages by yourselves, or will you follow along with your e-, print-, or audio- books? And regardless of your practice, are you stoked for more content? Or have you, like my sister, given up on Pottermore?

Let me hear you howl!

An Awesome Announcement for Audiophiles

Do you love classics?
Do you love audiobooks?
Do you love getting free stuff???

Then Amazon's latest offer is perfect for you!

Basically, Amazon is trying to get the news out about their newest line of tablets (Kindle Fire HD) having whispersync technology, which syncs the e-book you're reading with the audiobook you're listening to. So if you want to continue listening to a book, but forgot your headphones at home, you can go ahead and keep reading and then the audiobook picks up your progress the next time you read. Pretty neat, no?

To spread the word, Amazon is offering 22 e-books for free download, PLUS the 22 corresponding audiobooks through combined Audible accounts. So if you have a Kindle reader, tablet, or free app and an Audible account (and free app), you can take advantage of this offer!

Simply click any of the links below, purchase (for FREE) the e-book and you will be directed to a confirmation screen. On that confirmation screen will be a link to Audible to purchase (once again, for FREE) the audiobook. If you're interested in multiple audiobooks, I'd suggest holding off on the actual checkout since you'll get a confirmation e-mail each time you check out.

A Word Of Caution:
Be sure that you are logged in to your Amazon-linked Audible account prior to clicking any links to purchase the Audible audiobooks. I made an account with a different e-mail than my Amazon account, and thus now have two separate accounts. I was logged into my other account when I clicked my first Audible link and now can't get the free download promotion applied to that one book. Luckily I don't think I'll be reading A Tale of Two Cities in the near future, so it's not a complete loss...

So without further adieu, here are the books available:

Complete List of 22 Titles

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
       Read by Anne Hathaway ; 3 hrs and 52 mins
Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
       Read by Anne Flosnik ; 12 hrs and 19 mins
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
       Read by David Suchet ; 6 hrs and 8 mins
The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins
       Read by James Langton ; 18 hrs and 49 mins
The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe
       Read by Davina Porter ; 13 hrs and 15 mins
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
       Read by Simon Vance ; 33 hrs and 53 mins
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
       Read by Jon Smith ; 13 hrs and 15 mins
The Sign of the Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
       Read by Patrick Tull ; 4 hrs and 6 mins
The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
       Read by John Lee ; 23 hrs and 38 mins
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
       Read by Shelly Frasier ; 6 hrs and 34 mins
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce
       Read by John Lee ; 8 hrs and 35 mins
White Fang by Jack London
       Read by Bob Thomley ; 8 hrs and 8 mins
Moby Dick by Herman Melville
       Read by Frank Muller ; 21 hrs and 20 mins
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
       Read by Nathaniel Parker ; 5 hrs and 21 mins
Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
       Read by Simon Vance ; 8 hrs and 21 mins
Dracula by Bram Stoker
       Read by a Full Cast including Alan Cumming & Tim Curry ; 15 hrs and 28 mins
Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift
       Read by David Hyde Pierce ; 9 hrs and 52 mins
Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray
       Read by John Castle ; 31 hrs and 6 mins
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
       Read by Elijah Wood ; 10 hrs and 12 mins
Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton
       Read by Scott Brick ; 3 hrs and 47 mins
The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
       Read by Wanda McCaddon ; 12 hrs and 11 mins
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
       Read by Simon Prebble ; 8 hrs and 6 mins

Yeah, that's right. You can enjoy the voices of Anne Hathaway, Elijah Wood, and Tim Curry in your ear FOR FREE!!!

So if you're like me and love listening to your books (whether you're reading along or not) I hope you take advantage of this promotion for some free lit and audiobooks.

Disclaimer - I first read about this announcement a couple days ago from one of my favorite blogs, The eBook Reader, but figured I should also do my part in spreading the news. Go check him out for great eReader & tablet reviews, tips, tricks, and news. Or just go read his article covering this announcement. You'll be glad you did.

Disclaimer Part Deux - I have no clue when this promotion will end. It stands to reason that Amazon will want all the hype they can get, but do be sure to check the Bold Red Kindle Price before you purchase.

Smashwords' E-Book Bonanza!

From Smashwords:

Our annual Read an Ebook Week sale is now underway. The sale ends Saturday. Access over 20,000 free and deep-discounted ebooks. Simply click to http://www.smashwords.com then click to the Read an Ebook promotion catalog. Here’s the direct link: https://www.smashwords.com/books/category/1/newest/1

There are four coupon codes you can use for participating books:

25% off: REW25 – 2,300+ ebooks
50% off: REW50 – 5,700+ ebooks
75% off: REW75 – 900+ ebooks
100% off: RE100 – 2,800+ ebooks

In addition to the limited-time deals above, Smashwords offers over 100,000 original ebooks at everyday low prices. Over 13,000 Smashwords ebooks are regularly priced at FREE. The average price of a Smashwords ebook is under $5.00.

Why are our prices so low? It’s because you’re purchasing direct from the author. When you purchase a Smashwords book, the author earns 85% of the net proceeds from the sale. Thank you for supporting our authors!

Smashwords ebooks are multi-format and DRM-free, so you can read them on virtually an e-reading device, including the Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook, Apple iPad/iPhone/Touch, Sony Reader, Kobo Reader, personal computers and most smart phones and tablets.

You can also purchase most Smashwords ebooks at your favorite ebook retailers, including the Apple iBookstore, Barnes and Noble, Sony, Kobo and the Diesel eBook Store. The codes above are only available for books purchased at the Smashwords store. In the future, we hope to expand this annual promotion to our retail partners.

Well, I've already helped myself to a bunch of new books (pictured & linked below), and I'm planning on making another pass through the lists later in the week. So what are you waiting for? Spread the word and get shopping!!!

Welcome to the Family

After much deliberation, I've gone ahead and signed up this blog as an Associate of Amazon, Borders, and Powell's Books.

Pretty much this means is any time someone clicks on an Amazon, Borders (coming soon), or Powell's link, and then makes a purchase, I will be credited with a small percentage (6-8.5%) of their purchase. It doesn't even have to be the item at that specific link - so long as the browser window/tab remains the same, I get credited for 'directing' you to the site.

I want to stress that this doesn't mean I expect you to immediately click these links and buy thousands of dollars worth of stuff. There's no obligation on your part whatsoever. However, if while browsing my site you see something you're interested in buying, or perhaps you're reminded of something you've been meaning to buy, if you wouldn't mind locating one of my links (either in-post or on the sidebar) and using it to get where you want to go...I'd really appreciate your support.

I promise not to overwhelm you with ads, and keep the links discreet. I'm currently going through all my past reviews to edit the format and links. Pretty much what you'll see in each review is this:

~Title of Book Linked to Goodreads~
Series Name
Book #
By Author Name
Amazon ~ Borders ~ Powell's

And that'll be the end of it. Nothing too pushy, I hope. And nothing completely off-target, like random posts about plungers or baby bottles with tons of links throughout. Unless you guys want that type of thing...

Funds received from these Associations will be used primarily for future contests (especially shipping), purchasing books for review, and keeping bills (internet) paid.

Oh, and while I'm thinking about it, I'd like to point you to the left-hand side of the screen where you may have noticed a new Facebook widget where you can "Like" this blog.

That's right, The Wolf's Den has it's own Facebook account! There you will find pictures of books in-progress, reading updates, and discussion boards where you're welcome to talk about what you're reading, what you thought about books reviewed here, and make suggestions for the site. Who knows, maybe I'll even start a book club there. So head on over and check it out!

As always, thank you for your continued support. I couldn't do this without you.

One Good Deed

Okay, call me crazy.

I stayed up all night (finally caught up on Sanctuary and Glee!) in order to go to a 4am opening.

Our family hasn't gone to Black Friday sales in years, and I decided I needed to remind myself how horrible it is. I was pleasantly surprised at how not-horrible it was.

Sure, I had to park in the parking lot of the store next door. Yes, I had a hard time finding what I went for. And okay, I spent most of my time waiting in line as the computers were overloaded... But everyone was very polite, there were no screams or pushing and shoving, and I was in and out in under 40 minutes with exactly what I went for.

I was even helped out by a courteous fellow customer (an older gentleman [perhaps late 30's/early 40's] wearing [yes] a Santa hat) who was browsing in the aisle next to me. I realized that I had forgotten to grab a SD camera card and was already in line and asked if he could pass me one. After a moment's confusion, he kindly picked one and passed it over. Thank you, kind, tall stranger in the Santa hat!

Now that my mood had lightened, I decided to try and pass along the good wishes by making friendly conversation with the cashiers. I asked jokingly if they were keeping tally. A confused look, then, "Um, of what?" Of the sales you've rung up! "Oh... No. Too busy for that." But he did smile all the same. And a minute later (as the computers were still having issues) he turned to those waiting in line and explained the situation, assuring them that he would get them through shortly. And I think he was still smiling.

Then, as I was walking back through the parking lot to my car, I noticed a shiny something on the ground. As I walked past, I realized it was an American Express card. About 10 steps later I turned and went back for it. Though I had no intention whatsoever of going into the store, I walked up to the greeter and handed them the card, saying I'd found it in the parking lot. "Oh, yes, I bet someone'll be looking for that." And while he was still examining the card, I went ahead and proceeded to my car.

So, it's Black Friday. Things can get crazy out there. That doesn't mean it's not worth showing a little civility, or even gratefulness. Thank your cashier, wish them a happy/sane rest of their day. If you see someone having trouble, trying to reach something, or find something you just saw, help them out. One good deed can brighten someone's day.

Now I just have to wait for the other stores to open so I can go out again... Happy Holidays!

In My Mailbox (2)

In My Mailbox is a meme hosted by The Story Siren

This week I...

Bought

Confessions of a Demon ~ S. L. Wright
Poison Study ~ Maria V Snyder
From Powell's New & Used Books


Won

Out of the Blue (PDF) ~ Caroline Clemmons
From Caroline at A Writer's Life
Paranormalcy (ARC) ~ Kiersten White
From Alexandra at The Publication Follies of Alexandra Shostak


And Received
As An Early Birthday Present

Western Digital 2TB My Book Essential
+ AMAZING Tech Support
From Kevin aka Dad