Quick reviews

I've been writing a number of quick Amazon reviews over the past couple of evenings, and the first was a five-star review of Linda Collison's short space romp. Holiday on Planet Jolieterre

This novella has everything - humor, pace, action, and imagination, great characters, too. 

Highly recommended for a swift, engrossing, original read.

The next was a free digital short story from Simon Kernick, called The Debt.  I "bought" it (a) because it was free and (b) because the premise amused me.  As I say in my four-star review, This short story was written to promote a BMW series 7, and has been resuscitated for Kernick's adoring public. A quick read, and an amusing one.  I enjoyed it.

The reason it was free, I found, was that it included a teaser from his book The Final Minute. As a marketing ploy, it certainly worked.  As I say in the review, which I headed "Non-stop action and a gripping mystery," What more can you want? This book has you hooked from the first page, which is why I bought it. I read Kernick's freebie, the short story The Debt, and the first chapter of this was tacked onto the end.  Had to read the rest and one-click did the trick.  Certainly don't regret the purchase, and will be reading more.

Even more amusingly, I find that the current free offer of The Debt carries a teaser for a different book, The Ultimatum.

As I said, a great marketing ploy.  But how does one make a book free on Amazon, if not on the five-day Kindle Select plan?  Kernick's publishers certainly managed it, with obviously pleasing results.