# What I would like to see on this board



## Barbara M (Nov 21, 2008)

I would like to see a permanent list of the purchases readers have made after reading a free kindle book.  And I don't mean a free book by a favorite author, but a free book you would never have read if it weren't free. I would like it to be permanent, because I would like publishers to be able to look at the list and see that the free book promotion really works.

I get all the free books Amazon offeres weather or not I think I'll like them and give each of them a couple of pages. Most, I just delete from my Kindle. The publisher loses nothing, because it wasn't anything I would have bought anyway. But sometimes I love the book.

For example--I just finished Dark Fever. After reading the "cover" synopsis I would never have wasted the strength to lug it home from the library much less bought it--just nothing I would be interested in. But after just a couple of pages I was hooked and the few seconds it took for the second book to download were too long!!

Another  was Paranoia. I never read any book that has espionage in the description, but this was wonderful, and I will buy others by this author.

I love military SF, but that genre can be so bad that  I never buy a book from an unknown author. My library has such a miserable SF collection, I miss out on a lot. The axis of time books were awesome, and the first was a freebie. Two books sold that would never have boen sold

What about it. Can we get a list going?


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## ElaineOK (Jun 5, 2009)

I don't think I would have read Assassin's Apprentice.  I finished it, and then paid for the next two in the series; and I have a sample from the next series by that author in my to-read pile.  Same with Harry Turtledove's Settling Accounts.  The first one was free.  I paid for the next 3, and I have a sample for a different book by Turtledove in line.

Elaine
Norman, Oklahoma


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## modkindle (Feb 17, 2009)

I took the free Lara Adrian - Ashes of Midnight and I then bought the next 6 books in the series. A friend lent me her DTB version of the JR Ward Black Dagger Brotherhood series and I have now bought all 7 on Kindle. I had never read any of the vampire romance genre before


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## Tippy (Dec 8, 2008)

I have been pleasantly surprised to enjoy most of the free books.  In some instances I have purchased successive books by some of the authors.  The old adage, "you get what you pay for" certainly has not applied in this circumstance.


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## L.Canton (Jan 21, 2009)

I've thoroughly enjoyed quite a few of the free books, and they've taken me in directions I wouldn't have expected. I'll definitely be reading more in future.


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## ~joanna~ (Feb 1, 2009)

I second the Lara Adrian book.  I have bought all of the books in the series after reading the first one.  I never would have found them without the free book.


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## koolmnbv (Mar 25, 2009)

I got elfhunter for free then after that I bought the 2nd book.


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## CS (Nov 3, 2008)

Paranoia by Joseph Finder is not only the best freebie I've ever read, it's one of the best books I've ever read on the Kindle, period. 

I will definitely be buying more of his books now. 

Granted, I was interested in Paranoia before it became free, but who knows if I ever would've actually taken the plunge and paid for it. So, getting it for free got the book in my hands, and now I'll be sure to follow the rest of this author's work. 

Serial by J.A. Konrath is another one that worked very well for me. 

I bought Truck Stop because I liked the previous story so much, and I'll be sure to read and buy more from this author. 

He has more freebies on his website, which in turn will motivate me to buy more of his published work or even some of the website freebies that don't convert well via PDF.


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## koolmnbv (Mar 25, 2009)

CS said:


> Paranoia by Joseph Finder is not only the best freebie I've ever read, it's one of the best books I've ever read on the Kindle, period.
> 
> I will definitely be buying more of his books now.
> 
> Granted, I was interested in Paranoia before it became free, but who knows if I ever would've actually taken the plunge and paid for it. So, getting it for free got the book in my hands, and now I'll be sure to follow the rest of this author's work.


I got Paranoia as a freebie also. It is still on my TBR list and I am glad to hear it was a good one. I will have to get to it soon, which in turn will make me buy more books I am certain


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## MamaProfCrash (Dec 16, 2008)

ElaineOK said:


> I don't think I would have read Assassin's Apprentice. I finished it, and then paid for the next two in the series; and I have a sample from the next series by that author in my to-read pile. Same with Harry Turtledove's Settling Accounts. The first one was free. I paid for the next 3, and I have a sample for a different book by Turtledove in line.
> 
> Elaine
> Norman, Oklahoma


The Assassins Apprentice is but one trilogy in a series of trilogies.

The Tawny Man Trilogy







And the Seafarers Trilogy







The three trilogies tie together pretty nicely.


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## Geoffrey (Jun 20, 2009)

Assassin's Apprentice has so far gotten me to buy the other 2 in the series and I eventually plan to go through her other books .... Now, Settling Accounts was just a bonus download as I buy Harry Turtledove novels as first editions as they come out and read through all 3 trilogies in that series as they published .... 

.... many free books I don't download if they don't float my boat or are Romances or somesuch ... But, to be honest, I don't always remember which ones I bought for little money - which were free - and which I paid more regular prices ...


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## Malibama (Jan 29, 2009)

CHARLIE HUSTON - I got the trilogy of Caught Stealing, Six Bad Things, and A Dangerous Man all for free.

and will read everything Charlie Huston writes from now on.  So far I've bought two of his other works.

I'm not sure what genre these books are considered, but I promise I'd never read anything like them before -- I'm usually a non-fiction/memoir reader!


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## LindaW (Jan 14, 2009)

Barbara M said:


> For example--I just finished Dark Fever. After reading the "cover" synopsis I would never have wasted the strength to lug it home from the library much less bought it--just nothing I would be interested in. But after just a couple of pages I was hooked and the few seconds it took for the second book to download were too long!!
> 
> Another was Paranoia. I never read any book that has espionage in the description, but this was wonderful, and I will buy others by this author.


Ditto on Dark Fever - I loved it, and bought the rest of the series; and now have to patiently wait for the next one, which is due in August. I also have Paranoia, but haven't gotten to it so far - but I've just pushed it to the front of the list.

I also get all of the freebies, and although some are really not that good, it does give me the opportunity to find those rare gems!


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## LindaW (Jan 14, 2009)

ElaineOK said:


> I don't think I would have read Assassin's Apprentice. I finished it, and then paid for the next two in the series; and I have a sample from the next series by that author in my to-read pile. Same with Harry Turtledove's Settling Accounts. The first one was free. I paid for the next 3, and I have a sample for a different book by Turtledove in line.
> 
> Elaine
> Norman, Oklahoma


I love that good authors are doing this! Offering the first one for free allows us to get a taste - if we love it, then we'll be loyal fans!


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## EllenR (Mar 31, 2009)

Me too on Lara Adrian. There have been a number of books/series/authors I have purchased that I would never have even tried without freebies or major bargain pricing. I've spent a fortune after discovering new authors and genres I now love. 

I used to keep track of what I was paying or free for the books but there are just too many, so I stopped. Now if it's free I usually just get it. 

EllenR


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## Neekeebee (Jan 10, 2009)

I bought the _Lady Julia Grey bundle_ by Deanna Raybourn after I read the second book in the series, which was free. It's the type of book I like to read, but without the free promotion, I might never have come across it.

N


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## Andra (Nov 19, 2008)

This is something I would not have purchased - history is not really my thing. But I was hooked from the beginning and have purchased the next few books in the series.


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## Steph H (Oct 28, 2008)

What I like even better is when a freebie comes up for a book I already have a sample of and just hadn't gotten around to yet. I already know I had at least a vague interest, or I wouldn't have gotten the sample to begin with, so it's almost like I'm risking even less than I would if it was a brand-new-to-me, never-heard-of-before book. There's been quite a few of those in the last few months, many of which I've then gone on to read their full series. But without the freebie, that may have happened at some far distant time rather than when it did.  Such as with the Naomi Novik series. Or the 7th book in the Lee Child "Jack Reacher" series was available free (a bit annoying, not offering the first), but I had also bought the first one months ago in advance of a trip and still not yet gotten around to reading it; I'm finally plowing through that series right now.

And some I've enjoyed the freebie just fine but not felt the need to continue on, for whatever undefinable reason. I liked the Lara Adrian book okay and it's one I'd had a sample of but not gotten to, but I think I read it at a point when I've gotten a little tired of the "more about the sex than the story" feel of some urban/paranormal storylines, and so felt no need to read any further in the series. I may go back some day and pick it up. And some may disagree with my interpretation.


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## VictoriaP (Mar 1, 2009)

I'm relatively selective on picking up the freebies as I've already got too much on my Kindle.  Sending them back to Amazon wouldn't help because I'd forget they were there.  LOL

So when I do pick one up, I've already read the sample and have at least a decent idea of whether or not I'll like the series.  Since the end of February, I've ended up with:

Novik's Temeraire series (five books, starting with His Majesty's Dragon)
Hobb's Apprentice series (first trilogy, others will get to eventually)
Michael Scott's Nicholas Flamel series (three so far starting with the Alchemyst)
Kate Johnson's Sophie Green books (four currently available, freebie was Still Waters)
Richelle Mead's Dark Swan series (two books, second book is free for this week only)
Karen Moning's Fever series (3 so far starting with Darkfever--currently free)

So that's 20 books as of today, 6 of which were free.  I'd say the publishers did pretty well off of that.  Moreover, there's at least 4 series I've read due solely to recommendations on this forum from people who were lucky enough to catch a freebie or sale price prior to me starting with a Kindle.

And I would have found none of these on my own.  Hope the publishers are paying attention!


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

...resulted in me buying...


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

Note to moderator:

Perhaps this thread should be retitled to something more descriptive of its purpose? That way it might get more traffic and hits by web searches (hopefully done by book publishers  ).


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## OliviaD (Jul 21, 2009)

VictoriaP said:


> I'm relatively selective on picking up the freebies as I've already got too much on my Kindle. Sending them back to Amazon wouldn't help because I'd forget they were there. LOL
> 
> Michael Scott's Nicholas Flamel series (three so far starting with the Alchemyst)
> 
> And I would have found none of these on my own. Hope the publishers are paying attention!


Hello Victoria. I was wondering if you have the link handy for the Michael Schoot Nicholas Flamel serie. That sounds very interesting.


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## liannallama (May 29, 2009)

I bought  and immediately read book 2. I would have gotten #3 but it costs 2x as much as the DTB volume so I skipped until it goes down in price (if I notice it goes down.)

I got this for $1 and wanted the rest but they are all $9.99 and I think $6 is my limit to pay for pulp unless it's a series I'm heavily invested in.


I'm already a huge fan of Robin Hobbs and I had her series in DTB so I will be re-buying them for Kindle eventually. The free book may help me do that sooner because I know once I read that one I will want to read them all again.


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## VictoriaP (Mar 1, 2009)

Beryl said:


> Hello Victoria. I was wondering if you have the link handy for the Michael Schoot Nicholas Flamel serie. That sounds very interesting. Thanks, Beryl


Here's the first book:

 It was free during April, now $7.19.

FYI--These are basically young adult books based around a pair of teenage twins.



liannallama said:


> I bought  and immediately read book 2. I would have gotten #3 but it costs 2x as much as the DTB volume so I skipped until it goes down in price (if I notice it goes down.)


I know what you mean on the pricing (though I couldn't resist it). However, the paperback isn't actually released yet; that comes next week and the current Kindle price is based on the hardcover price still. I'd bet on a price drop around August 1st, and the 4th book will be out in DTB on August 18th. Hopefully the Kindle version is released the same day!


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## KindleKay (aka #1652) (Jan 20, 2009)

You know?  I just clicked on several of these books (Dark Fever, The Alchemyst) and found out that I have already gotten them!!

I really need to work on my TBR pile!!  After getting a new Kindle, I don't have too many novels on it like I did my beloved K1....


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## LindaW (Jan 14, 2009)

KindleKay (aka #1652) said:


> You know? I just clicked on several of these books (Dark Fever, The Alchemyst) and found out that I have already gotten them!!
> 
> I really need to work on my TBR pile!! After getting a new Kindle, I don't have too many novels on it like I did my beloved K1....


I noticed the same thing. All these good recs, and I didn't even know I already had them. I must be a free book click-aholic!


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## Steph H (Oct 28, 2008)

liannallama said:


> I'm already a huge fan of Robin Hobbs and I had her series in DTB so I will be re-buying them for Kindle eventually. The free book may help me do that sooner because I know once I read that one I will want to read them all again.


LOL - I'm the same way, I got the freebie but haven't re-read it yet even though I've been tempted a few times when I was in that "okay, what do I read next now that I've finished X series" between-time, 'cause I knew I'd be locking myself into having to automatically buy the other 8 immediately to keep it going. Not that it's a bad thing, I liked them that much that I'll definitely do it eventually, but I just read them in 2008 spring pre-Kindle so I can wait a little longer before I re-read them.

But the more times I see it posted again, the more I itch to start re-reading...


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## liannallama (May 29, 2009)

> I know what you mean on the pricing (though I couldn't resist it). However, the paperback isn't actually released yet; that comes next week and the current Kindle price is based on the hardcover price still. I'd bet on a price drop around August 1st, and the 4th book will be out in DTB on August 18th. Hopefully the Kindle version is released the same day!


Thanks for the tip, Victoria! That's great news!
:>


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## OliviaD (Jul 21, 2009)

VictoriaP said:


> Here's the first book:
> 
> It was free during April, now $7.19.
> 
> ...


Thanks for the link, Victoria, but I didn't know it was a younger audience book. Is that your Kindle in your avatar? I'm thinking of getting a 'skin' for mine. Is Decal Girl the best place to buy? Beryl


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## Mom of 4 (Oct 27, 2008)

Another "fever" addict here!  Read the first one on Friday, bought the 2nd one Saturday, the 3rd today, and it is going to kill me to wait the week for number 4 to be released.  I really hope we don't have to wait too long for it to drop to 9.99!

As for Assassin's Apprentice...I LOVED all 9 of these books.  If you haven't tried it you should!

The first freebie I got on the Kindle was by Julie Spencer Fleming, and bought all the rest of that series.

The Sophie Waters book, I bought one more.

I would say that the freebies suck me in pretty well and cause more sales from me!


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