Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Burners and Floaters

FLOATERS, starring Jack Daniels and Alex Chapa, is now free on Kindle for a limited time. BURNERS, the Daniels/Chapa follow-up, is now available for $2.99.

In 2009, KILLING RED by Henry Perez was published. It introduced Chicago reporter Alex Chapa, and was the best debut thriller I'd ever read. Henry followed it up with the equally-good Chapa novel MOURN THE LIVING, which reached the coveted #1 spot on the Kindle Top 100. In fact, Henry hit #1 before I did.

I love Chapa, so it was very cool when he teamed up with my hero, Jack Daniels, in our co-written story FLOATERS (currently free on Amazon.)

Now Chapa and Daniels have crossed paths again in the new short novel BURNERS. And as you can expect by the title, it's hot. Here's the premise:

Jury duty is not how newspaper reporter Alex Chapa (Killing Red, Mourn the Living) wants to spend his day. But when he learns Chicago Homicide cop Jacqueline Daniels (Whiskey Sour, Shaken) will play a key role in the trial, his curiosity gets the better of him—with potentially lethal results.

Part whodunnit mystery, part courtroom thriller, BURNERS is the second team-up between Chapa and Daniels (after FLOATERS). Loaded with suspense, humor, and twists, Burners is a perfect introduction to two #1 bestselling authors, while also a treat for longtime fans.

Burners clocks in at 30,000 words, about 150 pages. It was a lot of fun to write, and we believe that fun translates to the page. While it doesn't skimp on the thrills, this is a classic mystery. Can you figure out who the killer is before our heroes do? The clues are all there. 

To celebrate the release of BURNERS, we've decided to make the previous Chapa/Daniels team-up, FLOATERS, free for three days. (In the UK Kindle store, FLOATERS is free and BURNERS is £1.53.)

When the latest in a series of dead bodies turns up in the Chicago River, newspaper reporter Alex Chapa and Police Lieutenant Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels reluctantly join forces. But as the clues fall into place and the rivalry heats up, one of them winds up in way too deep...

Thriller writers J.A. Konrath (Whiskey Sour, Fuzzy Navel, Cherry Bomb) and Henry Perez (Killing Red) and their series characters have teamed up to create FLOATERS, a mystery tale that combines humor with thrills.

Included in this 30,000 word collection are J.A. Konrath's LAST REQUEST, a Phineas Trout story, and FAMILIAR PLACES, a story by Henry Perez about hit man who has seen better days. 

Both Floaters and Burners are good, old-fashioned mysteries. No serial killers or explicit violence. They have been released without DRM, so even if you don't own a Kindle, you can read them on any other ereader (instructions here.)

For those of you who don't own an ereader yet, the paper version of FLOATERS and BURNERS will be available in print very soon.

So snatch up these ebooks while they are cheap and free. While Alex Chapa will appear in an upcoming third novel, these may be the last appearances of Jack Daniels for quite some time...


44 comments:

Joe Moody said...

As a former journalist, I like when a reporter is including in the sleuthing, sounds interesting. thanks for sharing

Darlene Underdahl said...

Thanks... love Jack.

Unknown said...

Sounds like a great combo. Thanks for your free offer. I had never read thrillers until your Shot of Tequila-which I recently bought.Loving it btw.

Sharper13x said...

I would like to read the best debut thriller you've ever read. Checking these out. Thanks.

TK Kenyon said...

Woo-hoo! Freebies!

Thanks! I don't have these yet.

(I have almost all your other ones. Read most. Like everything I've read.)

TK Kenyon

Tweet with me on Twitter

Jitterbugging With The Bomb

American Stories

I.J.Parker said...

Now that's an excellent write-up!

Andrea Kirkby said...

I hate to sound ungrateful, but you aren't allowed to give a giveaway to me... I'm in the UK.

Sad.

JA Konrath said...

I hate to sound ungrateful, but you aren't allowed to give a giveaway to me... I'm in the UK.

Floaters is indeed free in the UK.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Floaters-Daniels-Chapa-Mystery-ebook/dp/B002BDT780/

Ellen Britt, PA, Ed.D. said...

Thanks Joe! I love the idea of collaborating with other authors to co-write a book using characters from each.

This way of working sounds like so much fun!

Sean McCartney said...

Where does this story fall in the Jack Daniels series? Just wondering.

JA Konrath said...

Where does this story fall in the Jack Daniels series? Just wondering.

Prior to Dirty Martini.

Cyn Bagley said...

Congrats - I just love it that you are writing so much now.

Take care - Cyn

Todd Trumpet said...

Joe, Inc.

Or is it Joe, Ink?

Todd
www.ToddTrumpet.com

Martin Blasick said...

The 30k word novel seems like a perfect match for e-readers. Hit it and quit it. Thanks for the freebie. I'm curious how the co write works. Hammer it out in the same room? Trade chapters via email?

Mark Edward Hall said...

Thanks for the freebie!

Anonymous said...

I just bought your Dracula book.

Tracy Sharp - Author of the Leah Ryan Series said...

Just downloaded both to my Kindle :) Stoked!

Btw, the word verification for this comment is "saprick".

I'm now amusing myself with forming sentences using that one *snort*

Katherine Owen said...

I just downloaded both to my Kindle as well. Are they naming stars after you, yet? Thank you, Joe, for so much!

Adrian said...

I understand that it's good business for authors to participate in these Kindle exclusives. But for readers, exclusives suck.

Imagine if you couldn't watch an NBC show because you had a TV from Fox. Or if you couldn't see the latest Universal blockbuster because the one theater in your little town showed Warner Bros. films exclusively. Or if you couldn't reach your favorite news websites because your ISP or computer manufacturer made exclusive deals with others.

Yeah, I know these exclusives are for a limited time, but I've now been blocked from loading up my ereader with books from a few authors I planned to enjoy during my upcoming vacation, simply because I prefer the service, the policies, and the devices offered by B&N over those of Amazon.

Walter Knight said...

swimming with the fishes?

JA Konrath said...

Yeah, I know these exclusives are for a limited time, but I've now been blocked from loading up my ereader with books from a few authors I planned to enjoy during my upcoming vacation, simply because I prefer the service, the policies, and the devices offered by B&N over those of Amazon.

All of my ebooks are DRM free. They work on Nook. Just follow the instructions here.

steve r. said...

Another free book from Mr. Konrath? It's a deal! Each time I get a free book, I feel a little guilty for such great entertainment at no cost that I go buy one of your other books just to balance out my Karma :)
A side question to all writers: I have a Mac, which writing software is recommended? I know most pre-Kindle books are written in MS word, but for us Mac users what is the norm? thx.

antares said...

@Joe

Thanks for the free Floaters. I've recovered enough from The List to read another of your books.

@steve r.

"A side question to all writers: I have a Mac, which writing software is recommended?"

Try Scrivener. I downloaded it for a 30-day trial and bought it within a week. Link: http://www.literatureandlatte.com/

steve r. said...

@antares

Thanks for the tip, I'll check it out! :)

Unknown said...

@ steve r.

I use OpenOffice. It's free and open-source, and it functions basically the same way MS Word does.

antares said...

I have Open Office, too. And Word97. No, I don't think the bells and whistles in more recent versions justify their price.

I partitioned my hard drive, and I run Windows XP and Ubuntu Linux. I get to choose which OpSys I want at start-up. After 10 seconds, the bios defaults to Linux.

Word is on the Windows side. OO and Scrivener is on the Linux side.

Linux is infinitely more stable than Windows.

Just so's you know, I have a daily choice between OO and Scrivener, and I choose Scrivener. And, no, I ain't making any money off this recommendation.

(Tip:
When I bought Scrivener, I googled 'scrivener coupon codes' before I completed the transaction. I found a code for 20% off. I bet you can, too.)

Laverdad said...

Thanks again Joe...one free, and one I paid for...still feels like I owe you money, but grateful that you're so prolific...please, please, please give us the sequels to Afraid, Endurance and Trapped soon..!! Also looking forward to Spree...YES, I'm hooked on Konrath...oh, and please keep the newbie advice blogs coming...love 'the Guide' ebook, btw...thanks.

Scott Gordon said...

Not a fan of these covers, Joe, but I'm sure you'll tell me I'm wrong.

Nancy Beck said...

I use OpenOffice. It's free and open-source, and it functions basically the same way MS Word does.

Speaking of Open Office, I just recently moved from OO to Libre Office (it's basically the same program from some of the same people who worked on OO).

Why? OO is no longer being supported, while LO is. (I set up my ebook templates using the exact same menu commands/whatever as in OO, so there's really no difference.)

And altho I liked the look of Scrivener (as it's finally been ported to the Dark Side ;-)), I decided it was too much of a learning curve to consider. I've already got to keep up with PS Elements and other software and tweaks that learning one more program is info overload for me. :-)

Demon Daughter

Nancy Beck said...

BTW, did anyone think of, um, the bathroom when they saw the title FLOATERS?

So sometimes my mind is in the gutter. Or something. ;-)

Sean Black said...

Not just you Nancy, I had a flash to Joe's beer diet blog and his daily stool report, which is like the weather report for Dublin - wet and windy every day.

Todd Trumpet said...

@Nancy Beck said: BTW, did anyone think of, um, the bathroom when they saw the title FLOATERS?

Yes, it reminded me of the tour I took of "Les Egouts de Paris".

Todd

J.R. Pearse Nelson said...

Joe, thanks! Exposed was really great, and I look forward to trying another of your co-writing projects. Another series to share with my husband, since your style tends to cross both our interests. Good luck with these books!

Anna Drake said...

Thank you for the free book. I love mysteries. I've downloaded the first book and will follow up with the second. Can't wait. As a former reporter, I loved covering trials.

smober said...

Both books are now on my Kindle. :)

I also purchased "Newbie's Guide to Publishing" off of Amazon, and hot damn I can't say enough good things about it! Well worth the low price. It seems like the more I learn, the less I know, but reading your book and your blog is sure a step in the right direction. Even though I've only been here for a short period of time, I can tell you that your words have already helped me to improve me work, so thank you for your posts and sharing your wisdom.

What inspired you to write mysteries/crime novels? It seems like it would be the most challenging genre to write well.

Unknown said...

@Steve R.

LIbreOffice and OpenOffice are the best free options. InDesign is my recommendation, if you can afford it.

Fred L. said...

Thanks for the free offer for Floaters. I got it and bought Burners too. And I appreciate no DRM! I don't want to wake up one day, and have lost all access to books I bought ;-) I want to be able to read on any device that handles ebooks, now or in the future. Great job! While I love my iPad, this is why I won't buy on the Apple iBooks store. Looking forward to reading the books ;-)

Archangel said...

Joe, can you just wave from your porch so we know you're ok, and hopefully just busy?

Kelly Robinson said...

I'm relieved to see that "Burners and Floaters" isn't another stool report.

Jude Hardin said...

I'm relieved to see that "Burners and Floaters" isn't another stool report.

LMAO!

Nancy Beck said...

@Sean Black - LOL! :-)

Unknown said...

I just bought Burners. It better be worth my $2.99. Lol. And I am really gonna splurge. I have been dying to read Crouch's Abandon and they have put it on sale on Amazon so I am going to snatch that one up too before it goes back to full price. 500+ novels on my goddamn kindles (3rd Gen & Fire) and yet you put out ANOTHER book I must read. ;-)

Congrats and keep that money pouring in. Thanks for accepting my friendship on Goodreads. I have been sick this whole week so that has definitely been the highlight but I'm sure your hallucinating by now so that acceptance was either a mistake or you're just catching up with everything you can catch up on now that food is missing from your diet. ;-)

Regardless, thanks anyway. You're a rock star, Konrath.

steve r. said...

@ J. Eathen Satterwhite

Thanks for the info, I'll look into those.

Thanks to everyone else who offered software info as well. I appreciate the helpful sharing! Having a community of authors who offer advice and tips to new writers is very encouraging. :)

Liz/moth said...

Sounds good. By the time I got to Amazon the free period was over but I bought both books anyway. Having loved Whiskey Sour I am now likely to buy anything you publish on Kindle. Thanks for keeping us informed!