In addition to today’s New Release Tuesdays news, we’re also excited to announce the re-launch of our B&N Recommends program. Titles selected for the B&N Recommends program are the books our booksellers can’t stop talking about. Thought-provoking and uniquely engaging, B&N Recommends selections are chosen for sheer reading pleasure and their perfect fit as book club picks. Past B&N Recommends titles include The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls, and  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson among many other reader favorites.

The newest B&N Recommends title is one of our best yet—William Landay’s outstanding, genre-busting, page-turning, conversation-starting novel, Defending Jacob. Family loyalties go on trial in Landay’s gripping new novel, our first B&N Recommends selection for the new year. What would you do if your child was accused of murder?

You can learn more about Defending Jacob and explore the full list of past BN Recommends titles here.

A free sample excerpt from this book is available for download on the product page now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search for “William Landay” to download the newest B&N Recommends selection.

Could it possibly be time for New Release Tuesdays again? 2012 is flying by! This week’s crop brings us a highly-anticipated novella for House of Night fanatics, a powerful story from bestselling novelist Kristin Hannah and a high-speed, internationally-bestselling techno thriller.

Fans of Kristin & PC Cast’s mega-bestselling House of Night series have been awaiting their latest novella, Lenobia's Vow, with barely-concealed glee. Travel back to Evreux, France, 1788, and learn the fascinating history behind House of Night protagonist Zoey’s favorite professor: the mysterious Lenobia.

In her bestselling novels Kristin Hannah has plumbed the depths of friendship, the loyalty of sisters, and the secrets mothers keep. Now, in her most emotionally powerful story yet, Home Front, she explores the intimate landscape of a troubled marriage with this provocative and timely portrait of a husband and wife, in love and at war. 

At the nexus of high finance and sophisticated computer programming, a terrifying future may be unfolding even now in Robert Harris’s The Fear Index.

 
Dr. Alex Hoffmann’s name is carefully guarded from the general public, but within the secretive inner circles of the ultra-rich he is a legend. He has developed a revolutionary form of artificial intelligence that predicts movements in the financial markets with uncanny accuracy. His hedge fund, based in Geneva, makes billions. But one morning before dawn, a sinister intruder breaches the elaborate security of his lakeside mansion, and so begins a waking nightmare of paranoia and violence as Hoffmann attempts, with increasing desperation, to discover who is trying to destroy him.

For a full list of today’s new releases, visit the New Release Tuesdays page here.

Free sample excerpts from these books are available for download on their product pages now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search by author name to download these highly-anticipated new releases.

Word games are one my favorite genres of mobile app. They are quick, satisfying and when done well stretch my brain in odd directions. This week, our friends at Concrete Software published a game that is fun, innovative and deceptively simple enough to steal entire afternoons of my time. Wordsplosion for the Barnes & Noble NOOK family of devices combines the strategy and thoughtfulness of hangman with the ticking clock and sense of urgency of the best action games. Guessing the words is simple enough until the game moves a little bit faster and the words get a little more challenging. Thankfully, skilled gameplay will let you earn letters that will help you through the tightest spots. This game is beautiful and expertly crafted – from the audio to the smooth controls and maddening word choices, it will keep you challenged for a few minutes or as long as you and your word recognition skills let you survive. Avoiding the explosion will take all the dedication, recall and vocabulary skills you can muster. For one of the single best mobile word games available today, grab Wordsplosion now! But you have to have a NOOK Color™ or NOOK Tablet™ - for now, this gem is only available as a NOOK App!

“Fischer provides readers with some laugh-out-loud moments and an interesting twist on zombie mythology.” – Kirkus Reviews

High School is hard enough for your average kid, but for newly-zombified Maddy Swift, the challenges are a little...stiffer. In today’s Free Fridays selection, Zombies Don't Cry, author Rusty Fischer offers a fun, fresh take on the popular zombie fiction trope.

Unlike the brainless (and brain-hungry) zombies of popular imagination, Maddy is a compassionate (but still brain-hungry) member of the living dead. In an interesting twist, Fischer’s zombies fall into two camps—good zombies like Maddy and her friends, and bad “Zerker” zombies. When Maddy finds that two of her classmates fall into the latter group, the usual challenges of teenage life fall by the wayside. Now she and her friends must try to get through school passing as ‘normal,’ while saving her unsuspecting classmates from the lurking Zerkers.

Rusty Fischer's next paranormal adventure, Vamplayers, is available for pre-order now.

Free Fridays Recommends

Each week, we ask our featured author to recommend a book or author that you may want to check out. Since authors are such passionate readers themselves, we thought you might like to find out what they love to read, too! Here’s what Rusty recommends:

Johnny Gruesome by Gregory Lamberson has a little bit of everything: humor, gore, a strong anti-hero you hate to love, an ode to the classic car horror flick Christine and straight up, 200% revenge served cold. In short, for a horror-loving child of the 80s like me, it was the perfect combination!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search for “Rusty Fischer” to download today's Free Fridays selection.

Author Bernard Cornwell is revered for his impeccably researched and richly detailed historical novels. His Warlord Trilogy of King Arthur books are now available for NOOK, offering Cornwell fans a chance to explore yet another beloved series. In today's guest blog post, Cornwell explains why the character of King Arthur - a popular and elusive historical figure - inspired him to write this epic series, of which he says, "I have to confess that of all the books I have written these three are my favourites.”

There have been stories about ‘King’ Arthur for fifteen hundred years. In the earliest stories, curiously, he is depicted as a villain, a would-be rapist and a thief, but over the years he changed into the model king, the creator of the Round Table and leader of its chivalrous company. Did he even exist? I am convinced he was the leader of the British forces that defeated the Saxon invaders at the battle of Mount Badon in the early 6th Century AD. A churchman called Gildas wrote about the battle not long after it was fought, but he never named the British leader, though he does say that the battle was the last time that the native Britons defeated the hated invaders and that, for a generation afterwards, the British enjoyed a respite from Saxon attacks.

We would now call those native Britons the Welsh. Arthur was no English hero, indeed he was probably one of the fiercest enemies the English ever faced. The English, of course, being the descendants of the Angles and Saxons who were conquering Britain. So why did this victory make Arthur famous (if indeed he was the man who won it)? I think the story of Arthur is the tale of a golden age.  In later years, as the British lost their land to the English, they remembered that last great hero who had defeated the Saxons, and in the tale’s retelling those lost days became ever more golden and ever more perfect. In time a hundred other stories would be attached to that tale. Merlin, Guinevere and Lancelot arrived, and the warlord Arthur was turned into a saintly hero for all time. In the three Arthurian books I tried to recreate the cruel times in which Arthur lived and to suggest just how a savage dark-ages warlord became a universal symbol of hope.

Free sample excerpts from these books are available for download on the product pages now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search for “Bernard Cornwell” to download his fascinating historical novels.

Thanks to our Spotlight program, we recently introduced many new readers to the hilarious and talented Tim Dorsey—Florida Roadkill was a great entrée to Dorsey’s madcap Serge Storms series.

Now Dorsey is back with another one-of-a-kind Serge Storms adventure: Pineapple Grenade. The off-kilter vigilante Serge Storms has landed in Miami with a  new plan: become a spy. Sure, he’s not affiliated with any official organization, but Serge has never lacked in chutzpah, and when it comes to international intrigue, sometimes that’s all you need. As always, Dorsey includes a healthy helping of the absurd—from shark corpses in the middle of downtown Miami, to a mysterious mushroom cloud behind the airport—in this latest laugh-out-loud book from the “undisputed king of the comic crime novel” (Providence Journal).

A free sample excerpt from this book is available for download on the product page now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search for “Tim Dorsey” to download his hilarious series.

Today’s New Release Tuesdays features an incredibly exciting release for fans of Young Adult novels—Lauren Kate’s latest book, Fallen in Love—among many other great new titles for every type of reader.

Readers young and old have made the previous books in Lauren Kate’s Fallen series instant bestsellers. The fourth—Fallen in Love—features four short stories that trace the history of the many fascinating characters in Kate’s series. Fallen in Love gives fans the much-talked about but never-revealed stories of Fallen characters as they intertwine with the epic love story of Luce and Daniel. Plus this newly-released collection includes a sneak peek at Rapture, the next Fallen novel, available for pre-order now.

Lara Adrian’s New York Times bestselling Midnight Breed Series is one of the hottest vampire sagas on the market. The newest addition, Darker After Midnight, is her steamiest book yet. In the dark of night, a blood war escalates within the hidden world of the Breed. After existing in secret for many long centuries, maintaining a fragile peace with the humans who walk beside them unaware, a single act of retaliation has put the entire vampire nation at risk of discovery. It falls to the Order—a cadre of Breed warriors pledged to protect their own and humankind alike—to stop Dragos, the power-mad vampire at the center of the conflict, before his push for domination can explode into catastrophe.

Thanks to a dual background as a novelist and theoretical physicist, Alan Lightman brings a unique perspective to his thought-provoking fiction. In his playful new novel, Mr g , Lightman takes on the story of creation—imagining an all-powerful but not all-knowing creator who struggles with the existential questions of bringing about a whole new universe. With echoes of Calvino, Rushdie, and Saramago, combining science, theology, and moral philosophy, Mr g is a stunningly imaginative work that celebrates the tragic and joyous nature of existence on the grandest possible scale.

For a full list of today’s new releases, visit the New Release Tuesdays page here.

Free sample excerpts from these books are available for download on the product pages now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search by author name to download these highly-anticipated new releases.

Dear Reader,

For more than twenty years, the Discover Great New Writers program has introduced readers to extraordinary literary talents, many of whom have gone on to become perennial bestsellers as well as win Pulitzers and National Book Awards, among other prizes.

Jeffrey Eugenides, Elizabeth Gilbert, Andre Dubus III, Khaled Hosseini, Kathryn Stockett, Jhumpa Lahiri, Jonathan Franzen, Sherman Alexie, Junot Diaz, Haruki Murakami, Jennifer Egan, Jonah Lehrer, Mary Roach, Terry McMillan, Kazuo Ishiguro, Rebecca Skloot, Mary Karr, Cormac McCarthy, Chang-rae Lee, Geraldine Brooks, Michael Ondaatje, Dorothy Allison, and Colson Whitehead are but a few of our alums whose work continues to captivate readers.

Fiction and non, titles selected for this marquee program have one thing in common: Great writing, from authors at the start of their careers.  A select group of booksellers carefully review roughly 1,000 books a year—story collections and novels, as well as memoirs and narrative nonfiction that reads like fiction—and they then handpick 15 titles each quarter to present as a season of Discover Great New Writers selections.

To celebrate our legacy, and introduce ourselves to a new generation of avid readers, we’ve designed a Discover Great New Writers Facebook Sweepstakes:  Tell us who you’ve discovered lately, and enter for a chance to win a Nook Tablet with 10 of our greatest hits, plus two titles (A Good American and Behind the Beautiful Forevers) from the Spring 2012 list.  Five other winners will receive themed greatest hits packages of ten print books each. Click here for entry and details.

Our spring list features 15 unforgettable debuts that we’ve discovered, six of which are available now:

• American Dervish, a heartbreaking coming-of-age story about growing up Muslim in the Midwest from playwright/director Ayad Akhtar.
• From the Memoirs of a Non-enemy Combatant, the blistering, laugh-out-loud funny, political satire by Alex Gilvarry.
• Glaciers, a delicate examination of love and loss in the life of a young woman from Alexis M. Smith.
• Running the Rift, Naomi Benaron’s thought-provoking, and ultimately hopeful, novel about a young Rwandan runner.
• Francesca’s Kay’s The Translation of the Bones, in which the search for faith – in all its manifestations – quietly pulses.
• Wayward Saints, a charming and compassionate look at what happens when we try to go home again, from folk rock legend Suzzy Roche.

For more about the Discover Great New Writers program, please go to www.bn.com/discover or swing by one of our stores to check out the display, which updates monthly.  We’re also blogging about current Discover selections and alumni news here.

Who have you discovered lately?

Cheers,

Miwa Messer

Director, Discover Great New Writers

Stories told from the perspective of the villain are almost always engaging. One of my favorite stories put it best: “Heroes have morals. Villains have work ethic.” The constant scheming, the planning and preparation - it must be exhausting! This week we have a tale as told by one of the vilest villains in cartoon history – Plankton from SpongeBob SquarePants! In SpongeBob Frozen Face Off by Nickelodeon we hear the story from his point of view, and it is amazingly well done. My NOOK Tablet turned into a window to SpongeBob’s world and it was amazing. The narration was top notch, as it used the actual voice of Plankton from the show. The controls were well executed, as there are items to collect and the screen changes based on how the device is moved. Best of all the story changes based on how successful you are in locating the hidden jellybeans throughout the adventure. Let’s just say the ending gets happier based on how many jellybeans are found throughout. SpongeBob Frozen Face Off is fun, engaging and with the built-in replay value is one of the best buys we have for your favorite SpongeBob fan!

Fans of Indiana Jones, Brad Meltzer and the writing duo of Preston & Child will love this week's Free Fridays selection: From the Ashesby Jeremy Burns.

 

In addition to today's Free Fridays selection, the publisher of From the Ashes, Fiction Studio, is offering another great deal. To celebrate their 1st anniversary, they're offering 13 books for $1.99 or less each for a limited time. Their popular and eclectic books are a great place to find some of the best new fiction on the market. Go here to start saving now!

Free Fridays Recommends

Each week, we ask our featured author to recommend a book or author that you may want to check out. Since authors are such passionate readers themselves, we thought you might like to find out what they love to read, too! Here’s what Jeremy recommends:

Historical intrigue meets cutting-edge science in Spiral by Paul McEuen, a fascinating bioterrorism conspiracy thriller. McEuen, a Cornell professor and leading authority in the burgeoning field of nanotechnology, infuses his high-stakes tale with layers of insider details of setting and subject matter that not only engross readers deeper in the story, but also illuminate our understanding of hidden history and real-life scientific wonders. This book kept me guessing right up to the end and kept me thinking long afterwards.  Highly recommended.

NOOK owners: go to shop and search for “Jeremy Burns” to download this pulse-pounding thriller.

Our newest crop of NOOK First titles—a chance for NOOK readers to be the first to get access to some hot new books—features everything from a how-to guide for stay-at-home moms, to an action-packed SciFi collaboration between two fan-favorite authors!

In Leslie Davis Guccione’s The Chick Palace, the long friendship between Johanna Lawrence and Lilly Covington is tested when Johanna’s first love, the bad boy she used years ago to defy her parents, suddenly returns, embroiling Johanna and Lilly in a triangle, stealing hearts and turning summer upside-down—just as he did long-ago.

Visit exotic places. Meet strange new creatures. Do your best to kill them before they kill you. That's the motto of Captain Memphis Stone and the HELLstalkers, the armed response unit hastily assembled to combat hideous invaders loosed by a scientific experiment gone horribly awry. Follow their adventures in The Cerberus Protocol  – an epic collaboration between fan-favorite authors Joseph Nassise and Jon F. Merz.

When psychologist Shannon Hyland-Tassava transitioned from full-time working professional to full-time stay-at-home mom, she discovered that the path was far rockier than portrayed in parenting magazines and diaper commercials. In her indispensable guide—The Essential Stay-at-Home Mom Manual—she applies her expertise as a clinical psychologist to mothers’ challenges, combining expert advice with relatable anecdotes to make at-home motherhood easier and more fun.

There are emergencies in the world that defy logical explanation, events that could be defined as supernatural, extraterrestrial, or simply otherworldly. Standard laws do not allow for such instances, nor are most authorities trained to handle them. In recognition of these facts, an organization has been created that can, one whose mission is to deal with these situations using diplomacy, guile, force, and strategy. Incursion - an O.C.L.T. Novel is their story.

Shadow Bound, Erin Kellison's first book in the Shadow series, introduces readers to a world of demons, shadows, and wraiths. Talia, a seemingly normal girl with a peculiar gift teams up with Adam, the head of the a secretive supernatural institute called Segue. Together they must fight the malevolent forces and soul sucking wraiths lurking in the shadows in this suspenseful paranormal romance.

Save time and money by learning to prepare healthy, wholesome food in your own kitchen. Whether you're a cooking novice or a five-star chef, Eat In Not Out can help you achieve the healthier lifestyle you've always wanted.

Retired MI6 agent and contract killer, Rori Maitland, has decided to take on one last job, only this time things don't go as planned. Her target Ian Kinncaid, master of disguise, has just had his cover blown rescuing a small child from the seedy Czech underground. Now the two must work together to stay alive and protect the ones they love in Deadly Games.

The title of Christie Craig's Murder, Mayhem and Mama says it all.

Free sample excerpts from these books are available for download on their product pages now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search by author name to be one of the first to read these diverse books.

As promised, we’re now offering a new Spotlight selection every two weeks—giving you access to two great books at an irresistible price each month.

Tom Rob Smith’s blockbuster thriller Child 44 is just $0.99 for a limited time. When Smith broke onto the scene with this stunning debut, fans of classic thrillers were overjoyed. Child 44 tackles big themes—devotion to country , political oppression—and brings the dark days of the early Cold War back to life.

When a disgraced government agent Leo Demidov faces an unexpected demotion, he is determined to prove his loyalty and restore his good name. At the same time, a serial killer is on the loose, but the arrogant authorities refuse to acknowledge the possibility of this tragedy unfolding in their "ideal" society. Demidov sets out to find the killer and save countless innocent lives, and along the way uncovers truths that are far more dangerous than one rogue murderer. Named one of National Public Radio’s top 100 thrillers of all time, Child 44 is a must-read at an unbeatable price.

A free sample excerpt from this book is available for download on the product page now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search for “Tom Rob Smith” to download Child 44 and his other pulse-pounding thrillers.

This week’s New Release Tuesdays titles are a diverse lot—from Medieval warfare, to psychological suspense—with something new for every type of reader.

Since Eli Gottlieb’s critically-acclaimed literary suspense novel Now You See Him was called, “A triumph,” (Los Angeles Times) & “Jaw-dropping,” (New York Times Book Review), it’s no surprise that his latest effort, The Face Thief, is one of the season’s most highly-anticipated releases. Once again, the incredibly talented Gottlieb offers a dark and gripping tale, this time following two men obsessed with one very charismatic, very damaged woman. Another ideal work of psychological suspense.

Bernard Cornwell masterfully recreates the dramatic and captivating world of Medieval England in his latest historical thriller Death of Kings. In this sixth book in Cornwell’s bestselling epic Saxon Tales saga, Alfred the Great lies dying, and the future of the throne is uncertain as disparate forces fight for control over this valuable land. Cornwell’s knowledge of the 9th Century shines through on every page, and his deft hand at creating conflict and intrigue is again on full display.

A beautiful, heartbreaking debut, The Underside of Joy by Sere Prince Halverson delivers an emotional exploration of the meaning of motherhood. Ella Beene has been a loving and devoted stepmother to her husband Joe’s two young children, and when he unexpectedly dies, she vows to take care of them. When the children’s biological mother—whom Ella believed had willfully abandoned them—reappears and wants custody, a complex and difficult struggle for both women begins.

For a full list of today’s new releases, visit the New Release Tuesdays page here.

Free sample excerpts from these books are available for download on their product pages now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search by author name to download these highly-anticipated new releases.

Wheel of Fortune is practically an American institution. Generations of children have grown up entertained, puzzled and befuddled by the show and carry the torch forward all their lives. Wheel of Fortune HD by Sony Pictures Television is now available on the Barnes & Noble NOOK Tablet™. The reproduction is amazing – from the smooth animations through the feel of the game as you play, the experience will be at once familiar and engaging in a whole new way. The ability to create a customizable avatar draws you in, and the clever clues make the game just as challenging as any of the television episodes. Which is not surprising as the puzzles and clues were developed by the writers of the actual show! I have to admit to a little bit of a thrill at actually spinning the wheel, and playing it with friends is fun – passing the device around a table reminds me of the setup from the show. Grab your NOOK Tablet™, buy this app and spin the wheel!

“A massive overview of every myth under the sun. Davis shatters commonly held myths about myths.”

- New York Daily News

Without ancient mythology, modern storytelling would be a completely different beast. From plot structure to character development, authors are still looking back thousands of years for cultural touchstones.

That’s why every serious reader will love today’s Free Fridays selection: Don't Know Much About Mythology by Kenneth C. Davis. This bestselling author has written seven books in his popular Don’t Know Much About…series, covering everything from the Bible to the American Civil War. In this edition, Davis offers an engaging, layman-friendly lesson on ancient mythology—exploring cultures from around the world. While you probably have a vague idea of where everyday terms and concepts like “Pandora’s Box,” “Achilles’ Heel,” and “Wheel of Fortune,” come from, after reading DKMAM you’ll feel quite confident going into your next game of Trivial Pursuit on family game night.

Once you’ve binged on your mythology lessons, you can move on to Davis’s other equally enlightening Don’t Know Much About…books available for NOOK.

Free Fridays Recommends

Each week, we ask our featured author to recommend a book or author that you may want to check out. Since authors are such passionate readers themselves, we thought you might like to find out what they love to read, too! Here’s what Kenneth recommends:

As a lover of history, I always look for historians who are also great storytellers --who show us the real people behind extraordinary events. There are few better examples than Doris Kearns Goodwin's No Ordinary Time. Goodwin puts us in the Roosevelt White House corridors as FDR, Eleanor Roosevelt and Winston Churchill, among others, struggle for victory over Hitler's Germany. It is brilliant storytelling and great history.

Stay well-informed on a wide range of subjects by visiting Kenneth’s website here.

NOOK owners: go to shop and search for “Kenneth Davis” to download his many informative and fascinating books.

“All the stereotypical ‘dude’ geeky things I like are socially acceptable, and all the stereotypical ‘lady’ geeky things I like are frowned upon….” - Amanda Hocking

Amanda Hocking is an indie publishing sensation. Her paranormal romance Trylle series has sold millions of copies worldwide, and earned her a contract with a major publishing house. A new edition of Switched —the first Trylle Trilogy book—includes a brand new bonus short story and is available now for NOOK.

Just like many of her readers, Amanda is a proud fan of geek culture—from Twilight, to Harry Potter, to Star Trek. In this exclusive B&N interview, Amanda talks about the way that women ‘geeks’ are treated, and why guy geeks shouldn’t have all the fun.

What kinds of things do you stay up late at night thinking about?

Here's a struggle I've had my whole life, and maybe it is just a "me" thing, but I feel like it's something I'm seeing in the real world. All the stereotypical "dude" geeky things I like are socially acceptable, and all the stereotypical "lady" geeky things I like are frowned upon….

Why is it so much more respectable to geek out over spaceships and a made up religion than vampires with undertones of a real religion? Is it because of the romance? Is romance inherently uncool?...why is it cool and respectable to geek out over sci fi and JJ Abrams, but it's not cool to geek out over romance and Stephenie Meyer?

Or maybe it's all in my head, and it's not cool to geek out over anything.

For me Twilight is my Romeo and Juliet.  I never cared for Shakespeare so Twilight is a new adaptation to geek out on. But it also has to do with gender. I don't have very many girlfriends so my findings may be off, but the stuff I geek out to, Harry Potter, Star Trek, cheesy 80's movies, etc., are typically lame in the eyes of the girls. But the guys, a different story, they are usually stoked a girl is into that stuff. Ahh. So much to continue thinking about.

How did you get the idea to write Switched?

I decided that I really enjoyed writing paranormal romance. Really.  So I knew I wanted to stay in that genre, even if it wasn't popular. I looked up different books, seeing what was popular and wasn't. I came across a few lines on Wikipedia (everything on there is true) from a bit of Scandinavian folklore. It was two sentences, but that was it. That was the idea for Switched.

Did you ever think you were a changeling, like your character Wendy …or maybe just adopted?

Not really. My parents were always really honest with me, so I assumed that if I was, they would’ve told me. I was an only child most of my life, but I was really close to my gramma, and I never doubted for a second that we weren’t related.

Who or what inspires you?

I think I draw most inspiration from writers like Richelle Mead and filmmakers like John Hughes. They both really understand the experience of being a teenager and how insistent and intense everything feels, but they're also smart, savvy, and fun.  [Richelle Mead’s] characters are very strong and funny and real, and I definitely learn from her as much as I can.

[embed video from Malati]

A free sample excerpt from this book is available for download on the product page now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search for “Amanda Hocking” to download her bestselling paranormal romance now.

“Since my first novel was released over 20 years ago, I have been presented with many opportunities to endorse the works of other authors hoping to find a publisher. I have always declined, until now. Corban Addison has written a novel that is beautiful in its story and also important in its message. A Walk Across the Sun deserves a wide audience. And I strongly suspect that Mr. Addison will be heard from again and again.”

-John Grisham

Today is Human Trafficking Awareness Day—a chance to bring attention to this destructive worldwide phenomenon. While discussing human trafficking can be difficult and disturbing, author Corban Addison chose to use his debut novel, A Walk Across the Sun, to shed light on both the horrors and hope that this human rights struggle presents.

In this exclusive guest blog post, Addison shares why he’s so passionate about this cause, reflects on his experiences meeting human trafficking victims, and details how those relationships have changed his life.

Modern Slavery: The Underside of Civilization

At the pinnacle of Mumbai’s exclusive Malabar Hill neighborhood is a garden with a sweeping view of the city across Back Bay. From the lookout it is nearly impossible to imagine that only miles away in brothels and bars children are sold for sex every night of every year to men who pay a premium for their innocence.

At the tip of Isle de la Cite in Paris is a park overlooking the divided waters of the Seine. In the bright sunlight of a spring morning, it is hard to conceive that girls from Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia are imprisoned across the city, dreading the approach of night and the clients who will rape them.

In the vibrant heart of Portland, Oregon, one of America’s most progressive cities, is the world’s largest independent bookstore. Walking the stacks through a treasury of wisdom and learning, it is difficult to fathom that underage girls from across the U.S. are being marketed for sex on the city’s streets and through the Internet.

But disbelief cannot dispel the truth.

According to experts, there are 27 million slaves in the world today, more than ever before. Of those, at least 2 million are children exploited in the sex trade. Human trafficking touches just about everywhere and is as virulent in the West as in the developing world. Look at the skyline of any city and chances are that somewhere in the shadows are slaves.

I came to the trafficking subject slowly—first in law school through human rights groups and later through film and personal experience. I never anticipated that I would write a novel on the topic. As is often the case, my wife was wiser than I. When she gave me the idea, I saw the promise in it. And with her support I took a leap of faith, carving out time to research, travel, and write.

My journey was often lonely and routinely disturbing. I spent months immersing myself in the trafficking literature and interviewing authorities in the U.S. and Europe. Afterward, I went to India and saw the reality of slavery with my own eyes: in a brothel walled off to the world, girls lined up in front of me, thinking I was there to purchase them, not to tell their story.

When I returned home, I understood the challenge I faced. I knew that to bring human trafficking alive for a broad audience, I had to write a novel that would balance undeniable truth with unconquerable hope. After all, the eye can only stare so long into darkness before it turns away, desperate for the light.

There were naysayers along the way, people who told me that in times like these readers wouldn’t be interested in a novel on such a troubling subject. But far more numerous were the beautiful souls who exhorted me that the stories of the girls I met in Mumbai and their sisters around the globe needed to be told; that readers could not only handle such a story but would be compelled by it.

I chose to heed the voice of faith. Now as then, I am convinced that slavery is not an issue for activists alone; it is an issue that all of us must confront. For the serial rape of women and children for profit is not a phenomenon confined to dark alleys in the developing world. It is here, on our streets, all around us. And if there is a solution—and I am confident there is—we are the ones who must care enough to find it.

A free sample excerpt from this book is available for download on the product page now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search for “Corban Addison” to download this powerful debut novel.

This week, New Release Tuesdays features exciting releases from some really big names.

Elizabeth George’s 16^th installment in her New York Times bestselling Inspector Lynley series, Believing the Lie, is one of her most intriguing and complex novels yet. George is a master storyteller, and her atmospheric British police procedurals pull the reader in immediately. In the latest, Inspector Lynley investigates the tragic drowning of a powerful man’s nephew, and finds that the deeper he digs into the family’s past, the more likely it seems that foul play was to blame.

The writing team of Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child has mastered the art of the fast-paced thriller. The team's newest—Gideon's Corpse —finds the authorities facing down an impending disaster with unthinkable consequences: a nuclear detonation in New York City. Readers will be on the edge of their seats as the clock ticks down to doomsday, and the government makes every possible effort to avert an epic tragedy.

The latest Star Wars adventure by James Luceno explores the disturbing history of the infamous Sith Lord: Darth Plagueis. In Star Wars: Darth Plagueis, we learn more about the notorious and brilliant Sith Lord who mentored Darth Sidious and was said to possess the ultimate power: immortality. Fans will not want to miss this important chapter in the Star Wars saga—an inside look at a powerful evil force.

For a full list of today’s new releases, visit the New Release Tuesdays page here.

Free sample excerpts from these books are available for download on the product pages now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search by author name to download these highly-anticipated new releases.

When I was single, keeping track of my routine was pretty simple. Granted, I’m a geek and my social calendar was intentionally limited. Since marriage I now have to stay on top of shopping and events for my wife, her brother and his family as well as her parents. Being double-booked in my personal time has become something of the new normal, as we had no easy way to synchronize our schedules. I recently started using Cozi Family Organizer by Cozi on my NOOK Tablet and things have changed. Getting the family looped in was easy – they’re not all techies but the app is really easy to use and it sends text messages to the ones who aren’t constantly plugged into email. We’ve already encountered and resolved two conflicts – a mother-in-law birthday dinner and a piano recital for my niece. I recommend using Cozi Family Organizer to keep you and yours sane, happy and stress-free for the new year and thereafter.

New Year, Smarter You! Today’s Free Fridays pick—I Used to Know That: Stuff You Forgot From School by Caroline Taggart—is the perfect read for the New Year. Who doesn’t need a little refresher course on all of those important things we learned in school, but somehow escaped our memory over the years?

Taggart covers a plethora of subjects, from presidential trivia, to the periodic table, to the Pythagorean theorem. With this wide-ranging collection of facts and figures, even the most erudite reader will re-learn something new. And thanks to Taggart’s witty, colorful writing, these lessons are much more engaging than when you had to sit through them the first time.

Start 2012 by giving your brain a much-needed jolt, and have a lot of fun doing it. Once you’ve moved to the head of the class, make sure to check out Caroline Taggarts many other helpful compendiums.

Free Fridays Recommends

Each week, we ask our featured author to recommend a book or author that you may want to check out. Since authors are such passionate readers themselves, we thought you might like to find out what they love to read, too! Here’s what Caroline recommends:

“Thirty days hath September…” How many times have your relied on that old maxim to figure out a calendar?

Or how about “Every good Boy Does Fine” to remember the notes on the treble clef?

These ingenious, practical memory techniques abound in i before e (except after c) with its hundreds of curious sayings. In this clever—and often hilarious—collection, you’ll find engaging mnemonics, arranged in easy-to-find categories that include:

•           Geographically Speaking

•           Time and the Calendar

•           Think of a Number

•           The Sky at Night and by Day

Guaranteed to amuse and inform, this NOOK Book is the perfect companion to my book "I Used to Know That".

NOOK owners: go to shop and search for “Caroline Taggart” to download her fun and informative books.

NOOK Books are perfectly-suited for instant gratification—available immediately whenever the mood strikes. But that shouldn’t stop you from looking ahead at exciting upcoming titles. With books, like everything else, much of the fun is in the anticipation.

That’s why we want to bring your attention to some of the most hottest NOOK Books coming down the pipeline. Think about it this way, pre-ordering a NOOK Book is like giving a little present to your future self. He or she will be thankful when the on-sale date arrives.

NOOK Books Coming Soon

On February 7, bullets will fly as Vince Flynn’s latest thriller, Kill Shot, hits stores. Fact meets fiction when the young Mitch Rapp takes on a deadly mission to hunt down the men responsible for the Pan Am Lockerbie terrorist attack.

A different sort of drama can be found in Two Truths and a Lie, the third book in Sarah Shepard’s Lying Game series, also available starting February 7. Teen readers are entranced with this newest series from the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling Pretty Little Lies series. Shepard impeccably captures the social dynamic of a group of high school girls who are haunted by the disappearance of a former friend, in this Desperate Housewives meets Gossip Girl mash-up.

In late February, Jodi Picoult will release what is sure to be her newest bestselling novel, Lone Wolf. With each new book, Picoult’s evocative writing and adept plotting deservedly win her even more new fans. Picoult is known for tackling difficult issues head on, and in her latest, she explores the emotional family struggle that follows a devastating accident. A father lies on his deathbed, while his daughter and estranged son wrestle with the decision of whether to end his life, or hold on to a slim hope that he’ll survive. Picoult’s latest tour-de-force is bound to be worth the wait.

There are many more great NOOK Books coming soon. Click here to explore them all.

NOOK owners: go to shop and search by author name to pre-order these highly-anticipated books now.

I have some big Spotlight news to announce: We’ll now be featuring a new author every two weeks, delivering twice the opportunity to get a great book at an irresistible price.

For new NOOK readers who are unfamiliar with the program, Spotlight offers the first book in a popular series for just $0.99 for a limited time. Right now, Witch and Wizard by mega-bestselling writer James Patterson is available for less than a buck!

Patterson’s Witch & Wizard adventures, written with Gabrielle Charbonnet, are targeted at a young adult audience, but will appeal to fans of any age. If you’re familiar with Patterson’s long list of heart-pounding thrillers, you know what to expect from the engrossing Witch & Wizard. In a changing world, a corrupt and oppressive government is cracking down with sudden force. Panic ensues as children go missing without any explanation, and when Wisty and her older brother Whit are captured and thrown in a secret prison, it seems that they’ll become just another statistic.

But a great surprise awaits the children and their captors. Soon the siblings begin to develop special powers that they never knew they had. Under these adverse condition, Wisty and Wit learn that they’re actually a witch and wizard, and their powers may help them save themselves, their family, and possibly the world.

The Witch and Wizard series continues with The Gift, and the newly-released third entry, The Fire.

A free sample excerpt from this exciting adventure is available for download on the product page now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search by “James Patterson” to download his dozens of bestselling books.

One of the best things about NOOK is immediate access to the newest hit books. No waiting to get the latest title by your favorite author. Today’s New Release Tuesdays offers a wide range of books that are available for download right now.

Fans of Scandinavian thrillers helped make Three Seconds by Anders Roslund and Börge Hellström an instant bestseller.  Readers loved the authenticity of this Swedish duo’s writing—thanks to Hellström’s criminal past—and the twists-and-turns of the breakneck plot. Now the duo is back with the prequel to Three Seconds: Cell 8. Detective Superintendent Ewert Grens returns in a riveting mystery that centers on perhaps the most controversial subject in the modern criminal justice system: the death penalty.

Military history aficionados have been anticipating Chris Kyle’s American Sniper ever since it was first announced. Gripping, eye-opening, and powerful, this astonishing autobiography of SEAL Chief Chris Kyle— the record-holding sniper in U.S. military history—goes behind enemy lines to deliver a no-holds-barred look at life as a trained marksman. With more than 150 officially confirmed kills, and multiple tours of duty in Iraq and elsewhere, Kyle is the right man to reveal the true life of a Special Ops veteran.

Heading in a completely different direction, Char Margolis’s Love Karma teaches you how to use your intuition to find, create, and nurture love in your life. In her eye-opening book, this internationally renowned psychic medium explains that we have many soul mates who take different forms in our lives—lover, parent, best friend, even enemy—each teaching unique lessons. In this valuable book, you’ll learn how to be receptive to these many different types of love, and nurture them to their fullest.

These three new releases are must-reads, and you can follow this link to see our full offering of New Release Tuesdays titles.

Free sample excerpts from these books are available for download on the product pages now!

NOOK owners: go to shop and search by author name to download these highly-anticipated new releases.

Your trusty App Buzz blogger Tavares is taking a well-deserved few days off, so today I'll be bringing you the latest news from the world of NOOK Apps.

In fact, we're doing something a little bit different this week. Over the holidays, NOOK owners downloaded a whole lot of apps, and we've compiled a list of our recent top free and paid app downloads. Gamers love the Angry Birds fanchise, word nerds are wild for Words with Friends & NOOK Word of the Day, and movie buffs are huge Fandango fans. Hopefully these popular apps will strike your fancy, too.

 Top 10 Paid Apps

Angry Birds

Angry Birds Seasons

Words With Friends

Angry Birds Rio

Doodle Jump

Drawing Pad

Bejeweled 2

Ms PAC-MAN by Namco

The Game of Life

Scrabble

Top 10 Free Apps*

Bubble Birds

Hangman

Minesweeper

Skitch

Abbey's Free Decorative Wallpaper

#1 Tic Tac Toe Online

Animal Zoo Club

Fandango Movies

NOOK Word of the Day

Fliq Notes

*Note: App pricing is subject to change