E-Reads™ is
...a trail-blazing reprinter of out-of-print genre and general fiction and nonfiction by leading authors. Our books are available in all e-book formats and paperback. Read the latest publishing news and provocative blogs by top commentators in the traditional and digital publishing fields.

Thin Air
George E. Simpson
It's a mystery that dates back to World War II--what happened to the USS Sturman and its crew. For Naval Investigator Nicholas Hammond, the search will challenge him…and the answers will, like bodies floa...


Shadow of Ashland
Terence M. Green
“THE BOOK YOU HAVE TO READ”–Entertainment Weekly
"Things have to be settled, or they never go away."
Only weeks before she dies in March, 1984, Leo Nolan’s mother shows her son a rose she says w...

The Longest Way Home
Robert Silverberg
"What wonders and adventures he has to tell us," is how Ursula K. LeGuin characterized the world of Robert Silverberg, and in The Longest Way Home, he takes readers on another dazzling odyssey.
Joseph, ju...


Marriage Is a Bad Habit
Ruth Dickson
When Ruth Dickson released her 1967 book MARRIED MEN MAKE THE BEST LOVERS, it went off like a bombshell. Defenders of the “sanctity” of marriage rose up to dismiss her frank, innovative, thoroughly resear...

Orion's Dagger
Paula Downing King
With ORION’S DAGGER, Paula E. Downing presents the thrilling final installment of THE CLOUDSHIPS OF ORION trilogy, which Starlog magazine called “special...a thoroughly engrossing story.” The trio wa...


Fair Warning
George E. Simpson
America is set to finally end World War II with a devastating act--dropping the atomic bomb over Japan. But what if a secret mission was set in place to alter the course of history? In this fast-paced, and i...

Rogues of the Black Fury
Travis Heermann
When a band of shadowy fanatics abducts Javin Wollstone’s little sister, Bella, from his care, his only hope to bring her home is turning to a hard-bitten band of special warriors, the Black Furies, led by C...


The Sudden Star
Pamela Sargent
The appearance of a white star bathing the world in a deadly glare turns Earth into a nightmare of fear and death. Rape and murder are as common as suicide. Medical help is allowed only for certain diseases, a...

Philosophy and the Challenge of the Future
John Lange
The sciences, as opposed to politics and religion, have their roots in philosophy. Philosophy has been spoken of as the mother of the sciences, although she is, in many cases, more of a grandmother or grea...


The Man in the Moon Must Die
Jeff Bredenberg
What do a cunning old man, a code-slopper gone rogue, a pair of lowlife tech-runners, a sexually frustrated AI, and a hermaphrodite underworld boss have in common? They're all out to get Benito Funcitti, ow...
FEATURED TITLES

Colorado - After the Storm
Janet Dailey
Lainie MacLeod's mother wants only the best things in life for her beautiful daughter. And for a while, Lainie has it all, including the perfect husband. Rad MacLeod was the most handsome, nicest guy in Denver...

The Dream Compass
Jeff Bredenberg
Rulers of old nearly destroyed the planet. And the new "boss" may finish the job.Any day now, The Monitor will unleash his deadly secret upon a war-addled planet. What brutal dictator worth his salt would pa...


Stage Door Canteen
Maggie Davis
New York City, the capital of the free world, is dark, its lights turned off as enemy submarines lurk offshore, as close as Coney Island. Three men--a gunner from a B-17 bomber who‘s a national hero, a magaz...

Mistress of the Morning Star
Elizabeth Lane
Born to an Indian chieftain and then sold as a slave by her mother, the pagan princess Marina becomes the fierce Conqueror Cortes' concubine. Of course this is to the displeasure of the jealous yet gentle sol...


Song of Kali
Dan Simmons
Blood will curdle in Calcutta! In the most crime-ridden city, nightmares become real and evil is defined by frightening occurrences. When an American family finds themselves encircled by the terrors of this ...

Sounding
Hank Searls
"He had a brain biologically identical to man’s but seven times its weight and volume," writes Hank Searls of a massive, aging sperm whale whose compassion, fear, and anger at man’s attacks on his kind dri...


People of the Sky
Clare Bell
Old technology survives and even thrives on the challenges of a new planet populated by ancient human spirits.
Kesbe Temiya, a freelance flyer, accepts a commission to deliver an ancient-but-restored C-47 ...

Murder by Manicure
Nancy J. Cohen
Both Nancy J. Cohen's debut title PERMED TO DEATH, and her follow-up, HAIR RAISER, have wowed fans and critics alike. Now, in this eagerly anticipated third entry in the Bad Hair Day Mystery series, styl...


Highland Conqueror
Hannah Howell
Lady Jolene Gerard is running out of time--each moment she remains within the walls of Drumwich Castle she is in jeopardy. Her only chance lies with a prisoner chained to the dungeon walls, a Scotsman who, in ...

This Kind of War
T.R. Fehrenbach
THIS KIND OF WAR is the most comprehensive single-volume history of the Korean-American conflict that began in 1950 and is still affecting United States' foreign policy. Fifty years later, not only does this e...


Lot Lizards
Ray Garton
A “lot lizard” is a female hooker who works a highway truck stop as her territory. When trucker Bill Ketter looks for a little relaxation and release, he discovers, too late, that he has bitten off more...
After taking a year to consider its options and observe how e-book retailers were faring with the agency model, Random House today announced it was committing itself to that model, the last of the Big Six publishers to do so. The most significant aspect of this move is that Amazon is aboard. Last year when the pricing standard was adopted by the other five major houses, a bitter war broke out between Amazon and Macmillan. There will be no such event in this instance, as Random and Amazon have worked out an agreement.
To place this news in context, last year we wrote the following story, Random Goes Rogue:
Random House will go against the recent rush by its Big Six buddies to the “agency” e-book retail model recently introduced by Apple.
Apple’s approach is for publishers to retain control over the list price, rather than allowing the list price to be pegged by the e-tailer, as is currently employed by Amazon. It also allows publishers flexibility in timing release of e-books – delaying them rather than releasing them simultaneously with publication of hardcover editions.
The move to the Apple model by three major houses spearheaded by Macmillan was the cause of a controversy that triggered removal of Macmillan’s buy buttons by Amazon for a week, at the end of which the e-book retailing landscape was altered, possibly forever. (For background see Apple Promoting a New (and Radical!) Model for Selling E-Books? and Publishing’s Weekend War: 48 Hours that Changed an Industry.)
Random’s decision is based on two approaches to e-book publishing that are at odds with the philosophy of at least three of its fellow publishers. A RH spokesperson voiced the opinion that publishers “have no real experience at setting retail prices.” That explains why Random held back from embracing Apple’s iPad tablet. The other reason is timing of e-book releases. “Our current policy is we release e-books at the same time as physical books,” she said. “I haven’t been convinced that it’s good for the author or consumer to delay the release.”
You can read details here: Random House sides with Amazon, e-book readers on pricing
Random’s press release is reprinted in full below.
STATEMENT FROM RANDOM HOUSE, INC. REGARDING ITS U.S. E-BOOK SALES MODEL
“Random House, Inc. is adopting the agency model for e-book sales in the United States effective March 1, 2011. Going forward, Random House will set consumer prices for the e-books we publish, and we will provide retailers with a commission for each sale. There are no changes to our terms of sale for physical books.
“The agency model guarantees a higher margin for retailers than did our previous sales terms. We are making this change both as an investment in the successful digital transition of our existing partners and in order to give us the opportunity to forge new retail relationships.
“We are looking forward to continuing to work with all our retail partners – both digital and physical — on our joint mission to connect our authors with as many readers as possible, in whatever format they prefer.”
Richard Curtis