Down on eBooks? Love dead trees? Maybe this will change your mind (just a little.)
Orbit Books is running a promotion that should get everyone excited. If you buy the eBook edition of either The Dragon’s Path (REVIEW) or Leviathan Wakes, Orbit will give you the other eBook for free. No strings attached.
Orbit (US), the Science Fiction and Fantasy imprint of Hachette Book Group, announced an eBook promotion for THE DRAGON’S PATH by Daniel Abraham and LEVIATHAN WAKES by James S.A. Corey. The bonus eBook edition of THE DRAGON’S PATH (April 11, 2011; ISBN: 9780316175074) will feature a complimentary edition of LEVIATHAN WAKES in the same eBook package; while the bonus eBook edition of LEVIATHAN WAKES (June 15, 2011; ISBN: 9780316134675) will include THE DRAGON’S PATH.
Obviously this is a great deal for readers. Buy a wonderful book, get another wonderful book for free. More interesting, though, is Orbit’s clever trojan horse tactics to expose readers to a genre they’re perhaps not familiar with. There’s obvious crossover in Fantasy and Science Fiction readers, but if the blogosphere is any indication, there are also a lot of readers who fall solely into one genre or the other. By offering SF readers a Fantasy novel (that is no doubt going to garner some mention during the end-of-the-year ‘best of’ lists) and Fantasy readers a SF novel, Orbit is opening the doors and inviting such readers across to the other side with wide open arms. What better way to try out a new genre than with a free eBook from an author you already enjoy?
Tim Holman, Publisher and Vice President of Orbit Books, says as much:
Although the two genres are often categorized alongside each other, direct cross-promotion of new Science Fiction and Fantasy releases in this way is quite new. We’re very excited to be giving readers the chance to discover both these exciting new series at the same time.
The marketing and selling of eBooks has a lot of room to grow and evolve, but this is one sign that the publishing industry is finally catching on to the nature of digital content.
Sweet!! Deals like this are exactly why I bought an eReader. It’s paid for itself many times over already.
@Doug — Also, from what I can gather (and I’m awaiting confirmation from Alex at Orbit), it also means that readers will be able to get LEVIATHAN’S WAKE in April (when THE DRAGON’S PATH) releases, rather than having to wait until it’s official release a few months later.
The deal seems even better if this is true.
Ah if this were for real books I’d be all over this. I still prefer dead trees tbh
You can request (and get) ’em both over at NetGalley.com, if you sign-up and your bio indicates you’re someone in the book industry (reviewer/blogger, bookseller, agent, librarian, etc.). Each publisher has its own criteria, so you may strike out, but I was lucky enough to get both books. Unfortunately, the terms from Hachette/Orbit say I can’t post any sort of review until one month from the publication date, but I will say I plan to snap up Leviathan Wakes as soon as it hits the shelves (haven’t finished The Dragon’s Path yet).