I know, I know. Rule #1 of blogging is to update often, and I am the chief of sinners in that regard. More is in the pipeline, including my latest thoughts on the Cambridge Clarion, which I've been using for awhile. (See the end of the post for a teaser.)
When I'm not blogging about Bibles, I'm writing novels, and over the weekend my publisher decided to do something cool: they're giving the first one away. If you love my Roland March series and wish you could introduce more people to the dogged and depressed Houston homicide cop, here's a perfect opportunity. Since Friday, the first book in the series, Back on Murder, has been available as a free e-book on a variety of platforms -- Kindle, Nook, and more. The goal in sharing the book this way is to hook more readers on the series. Over the weekend, Back on Murder became the #1 free title in Amazon's Kindle Store. Those numbers fluctate all the time, but it's good to know more readers are discovering Roland March for the first time.
Publishers Weekly called the world of Roland March "gritty and chilling," and Books & Culture editor John Wilson declared this "a series worth getting attached to." Friend of the blog Alan Cornett, writing today at Pinstripe Pulpit, calls this "'Christian fiction' the right way: good fiction intelligently informed by a Christian worldview."
The three novels in the Roland March series are, in order of publication:
Back on Murder (2010)
Pattern of Wounds (2011)
Nothing to Hide (2012)
The stories focus on March's life and career as he investigates a gang-related murder somehow connected to a missing teenage girl, a knife-wielding serial killer stalking Houston's affluent West University neighborhood, and a deadly conspiracy involving the FBI and the Mexican cartels. The novels have been praised for their realism, for their writing, and for engaging thoughtfully with serious themes.
If you haven't read Back on Murder yet, download the free e-book and give it a try. If you like it, both of the follow-up volumes are available as specially priced e-books, too. If you're already a fan, share the news with your friends. You'll make this crime novelist very happy indeed.
And now, because you've waited patiently, I'd like to share a couple of recent photos of my Cambridge Clarion ESV, as rebound last summer in brown English calf by the good folks at Leonard's Book Restoration. Enjoy!
I was happy to see the update about your book. But I'll be honest...I was REALLY happy to see those pictures of your Clarion! You never dissapoint us,even when you're gone for awhile! That's why you have such a large community of people who look at this blog. I'm sure your books are just as good! If you are a little backed up on reviewing Bibles, I'd be glad to share some of that load with you!
Posted by: terrence gooden | February 04, 2013 at 01:26 PM
No Google Play Books giveaway? Or a plain ePub somewhere?
Posted by: D | February 04, 2013 at 01:32 PM
http://bakerpublishinggroup.com/bethanyhouse/ebook-specials-from-bethany-house
Follow the link above, scroll down, and you'll find a drop-down menu listing all the participating vendors. I'm not sure which formats each of them offer, but you may find what you're looking for.
Posted by: J. Mark Bertrand | February 04, 2013 at 01:43 PM
Thank you very much.
I found an ePub with Adobe DRM, will see if it works at my iRiver Story HD. No Google Play for me.
I started reading in a borrowed iPad anyway.
I noticed a few of the listed vendors are not actually offering the book for free.
Posted by: Leandrod | February 04, 2013 at 03:41 PM
Excellent endpaper.
Posted by: Mark S | February 05, 2013 at 01:14 PM
I noticed quite a few typos: “its” for “it’s”, several lower case acronyms such as dna or hpd, an n-dash instead of an hyphen… guess there were ebook conversion issues? I hope you get a revised edition!
Posted by: Leandrod | February 05, 2013 at 02:55 PM
£3.42 on Amazon UK, not free :(
Posted by: Murray | February 05, 2013 at 10:20 PM
What a great looking rebind. I absolutely love my Clarion. I have both the pebbled grain and the goatskin. Incredibly, I much prefer the pebbled grain. I guess tastes change with time and I find myself less and less about the yoga-istic feature. Is your rebind a hardback or simply a firmer binding?
Glad to have some new blog entries. I am a bit tired of getting all of my work done in a timely fashion.
Posted by: kyle | February 06, 2013 at 10:37 AM
I loved the first two crime novels, and am looking forward to the next in the series. I am glad to spread the word to my Facebook friends.
The pictures of the rebound Clarion are really beautiful. Thanks for posting them.
Posted by: Dewey Squyres | February 06, 2013 at 04:00 PM
Thanks for sharing the rebind pictures. It looks great! Are you using it? Incidentally, I love my Franklin desk.
Posted by: Rod Summers | February 09, 2013 at 03:43 AM
Thank you for sharing about your book. Excellent idea on having the first book free to download. Aside from reading reviews from other, it's best to experience the book yourself. I'll definitely check it out. Will give give updates to my friends later on.
Posted by: Gretchen Eula del Socorro | February 10, 2013 at 10:08 PM
Editing standards on e-books are always inferior. I asume they're that way on physical books these days too although I don't read those any more save bibles of course.
Posted by: Duncan Frissell | February 13, 2013 at 06:02 PM
JMB - What was the original binding of this bible?
Posted by: Duncan Frissell | February 13, 2013 at 06:06 PM
One more reason for me to get a paper book. Just love them. But the ebook was a nice (and free) introduction.
Posted by: Leandrod | February 16, 2013 at 09:13 PM
I like the look of the Clarion. The calfskin looks like a hard cover. I'm starting to like hard covers. I especially like hard covers in small Bibles (which I'm also starting to like a lot more). The Clarion looks amazing!
Posted by: Randy Brown | February 26, 2013 at 08:30 PM
So, I guess Mark has stopped blogging.
Posted by: TJH2010 | May 16, 2013 at 04:49 PM