New Books and the Best B Movies

Today I have the honor of providing my top ten list of great B-movies at TS’s site - The Non Review Great way to warm up for the Worst Movies Ever Blogfest, right? Now remember, these are B-movies, so I give B-comments…

But before you go!

My awesome buddy and critique partner, Rusty Webb, just released a novelette eBook:

A Dead God’s Wrath

In 1895, deep in the Southeastern U.S., a sleepy little town is home to one of the most violent criminal families in the country. When Thomas O’Brien witnesses the brutal murder of his best friend and the kidnapping of his beloved Mary at the hands of the O’Malley brothers he thinks things can’t possibly get any worse.

But when a mysterious stranger shows up to help, Thomas begins to suspect this man is more than he seems. This stranger pledges to help bring Mary safely back from the O’Malley brothers, no matter the cost.

Tom’s real nightmare is about to begin.

I read it this weekend and thoroughly enjoyed it! It’s a little bit western, horror, science fiction… all with a surprising twist. Rusty has a great writing style and voice, even if he doesn’t believe it. (Dude, I read the book you have out on submission, and it was awesome – now hurry up and write the sequel.)

A Dead God’s Wrath - 99 cents on Amazon


Damyanti also put together an eBook!

A to Z Stories of Life and Death
by D. Biswas
Damyanti's Collection of Bite-sized Stories

This is her collection of short stories from the A to Z Challenge. I was honored to be listed this weekend as one of her encouraging influences and will soon get to read this collection. Thanks so much, Damyaunti!

A to Z Stories of Life and Death - $1.99 at Smashwords


And other eBook gems you’ve discovered lately?

See any good movies this weekend? (Like Rise of the Planet of the Apes?)

All right, you may now visit TS at The Non Review for my guest post!

iPhones, iPads, and eBooks

Unless you've been living in a cave, you know that the new iPhone comes out on June 25th. The iPhone 4 runs $199-299, is thinner, and boasts a camera, plus it features the iOS 4 operating system which adds multitasking.

Apple is also releasing new apps that will enable those with iPhones and iTouches to download books from the iBookstore. Apple's eBook store will also feature books in pdf format. Helen Ginger had a great article about this yesterday, so visit her site for more details.

The iPad has had an impact on the eBook market, too. Apple's devices now rank third, just behind the Kindle and computers, as the eReader of choice. Online reading of newspapers and magazines has increased as well. And a third of all eReader owners purchased their device within the last six months.

And to give you an idea how many iPads are out there - two million have been sold worldwide since its debut on April 3, barely two months ago. One market research company says it will hit sixteen million units sold in the first year. And it's taken a bite out of the computer notebook industry, which has dropped 45% this year.

So what does everyone else think about all of this? Do you plan to purchase the new iPhone or the iPad?

EBooks vs. Physical Books

I just found out it was eBook week, so thought this would be a timely subject to discuss.

What is your preference?

There's no doubt eBooks are on the rise. Publisher's Weekly states that eBook sales rose 176.6% last year. Now that's only a handful of publishers reporting, but that's still an impressive figure. But will eBooks replace print copy?

I like the idea of eBooks. I have the eBook app for my iTouch and I can take them with me. (I also have a laptop that tends to travel with me as well.) I'm a gadget kind of guy, so I like the technology. Not ready to buy an eReader yet, but when they upgrade the iPad next year, I'm sure I will buy one.

I like print books, too. I have quite a collection of dog-eared paperbacks and pristine hard covers. At home, I'd rather grab a physical book and give my eyes a break from the computer screen. I for one hope physical books never vanish.

What about you, my blogger friends? Which do you prefer and why? Have you made the switch, refuse to change, or rest somewhere in between?

The iPad eReader Feature

The new iPad launched this week and it's been all over the news. It's 1.5 pounds, half an inch thick, and boasts a 9.7-inch display. The base model with 16GB is $499.

While some features are lacking (no camera or Flash capability) it does do everything that the iTouch does and more - video, music, games, Internet, a word processing program... and an eReader!

Apple has launched the iBook store and it is similar to iTunes. The iBook program uses the ePub format, which is the most popular in the world. Pages can be changed with the press of a button or by touching the screen and turning pages naturally. One can also adjust the font size. Of the big publishing houses, only Random House has yet to sign a deal, and they are currently in talks with Apple.

For those of us with an iPhone or iTouch, unless we just gotta have one, it presents nothing revolutionary. However, for anyone who is debating whether to buy a Kindle (the eBook store's prime competition), a Sony, or a Nook, this deal is a no-brainer. For only $200 more, you not only get a really awesome eReader - you get to watch movies, play games, listen to music, and surf the web. How cool is that?