Blatant Pluggery For Today
Posted on July 28, 2008 Posted by John Scalzi 30 Comments
Subterranean Press is running one of its occasional “Grab Bag” specials, in which you plunk down $99 and in return get a dozen hardcovers, some new, some classic, some signed and limited, which in aggregate are worth at least $400 retail. Which ones will you get? Well, see. That’s the fun of it.
Anyway, if this sort of thing makes that bibliophilic part of your brain go all a-tingle (and it should, since SubPress makes good books), now you know what to do. They’re only putting together 25 of these grab bags, so get on it.
Before anyone asks, no, this is not meant to be an open pimp thread. We’ll have one of those tomorrow, actually. So keep your pimpery in your pocket until then.
I picked up one of these last time and was quite please with the selection – mainly because it didn’t duplicate books I’d already purchased singly. I wouldn’t know how to react if one of your books showed up, John. Pleasantly surprised at the find or concerned that there were so many left lying around as to be quasi-remaindered in this fashion.
Did anybody else read that title as “Patent Buggery”?
I don’t care who holds that patent, I’m doing it my own way and not paying a royalty.
Heh, I picked one up the second it showed up on their RSS in google reader. After kicking myself for missing the last one, I figured I should jump on it.
It will be interesting, but I figure, no matter what, good quality hardbacks for $10 each doesn’t suck.
Seconded: I got the SubPress email, noted the ‘only 25’ clause at the bottom, pondered *briefly* the cost, noted how much I spend on books anyway… and jumped.
I would bet that the supply will not last past, say, 1 p.m…
I’m not at all certain they’ll make to 1pm. Got mine.
And I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s open pimp thread, as I finally have something to pimp. ;)
Thats at least four gone (including mine)- Can Scalzi sell out the grab bags just on his own…..??? Stay tuned to find out!
Mandatory economic correction:
“which in aggregate are worth at least $400 retail.”
should be:
“which in aggregate were worth at least $400 retail.”
Right now they are worth $99 retail.
Thanks, John. I love this kind of thing. I jumped on it and placed my order. This mimics the sense of finding those rare items in places younever suspect. I found a book called Ai! Perilito! or something like that written by Kevin Anderson based on a short story by L. Ron Hubbard at a Dollar Tree store for $1. It was signed! I have found similar things at thrift stores also. Thanks again.
I got the mail from Subterranean this morning and placed my order already. Then I was googling to see what people got in past grab bags and found the link to whatever. I figured I’d see what you had to say about it…which is basically that it’s available. So thanks for getting this out to readers who may not be on Subterranean’s list.
I have Old Man’s War and Questions for a Soldier from them and am hoping hoping maybe they’ll slip me a copy of Ghost Brigades, but kind of doubt that will happen. I do see someone got a copy of Mirror Mask and Missile Gap in a previous grab bag which I would not at all be disappointed by receiving similar selections this time around.
I read some time back Subterranean had purchased rights to Last Colony, but haven’t seen any news since. I don’t know if you know anything about the process, but if you do could you enlighten us to how far along that may be?
It lasted through at least 1:15 –I just ordered one.
Snaps, my wife was very clear in her stance of me spending $100 on books sight unseen. She blathered on and on about food, gas and a bunch of other crap that was allegedly more important than books. I’m very sad.
Did you try convincing your wife you could make a theoretical profit by immediately ebaying any of the books you don’t want?
I’ll probably end up keeping and reading mine. At worst I figure it’s a way to discover some authors I haven’t read before without the trouble of going to the library and going through the hassle of picking out new authors to read all on my own ;)
If there’s anything I decided is especially bad or unkeepable I’ll probably trek down to Powell’s and sell it which is one of the great advantages of living in Portland.
Placed my order before this came up in my feed reader.. so that’s what… 10 gone… at least?
Hmm. Enough people bought this here that I’m really curious what everyone’s going to get. I’ve bought 2 things recently from Subterranean other than this grab bag, Lew Shiner’s book, and Altered Carbon. I wouldn’t necessarily mind a second copy of AC, though, because then I could actually read the hardback, rather than leaving my current copy which is 1 of 500 in the protective plastic.
I read Latent Buggery, twice. Wow.
I am somewhat disappointed by the lack of buggery in the above post.
Altered Carbon…I’d like a copy of that one too. Speculation as to what I’ll find when the giant box o books arrives is half the fun.
Oh so happy to have gotten the email about this. The timing was excellent, since I’d just gotten back from a visit to the doctor and was more than ready to treat myself to a gift in celebration of much fat lost off my ass, much improved blood sugars and lipids, and so on. Books, the perfect treat!
I’ve ordered quite a lot of books from Subterranean recently, so might see some duplicates in this grab bag when it arrives, but that’s all to the good — I can use the extras as gifts this Christmas. Thus went my reasoning. Funny how I can always justify spending money on books. One might almost suspect it’s a pathological weakness of mine, similar to the way my dad was always able to justify his booze. Thank god my own addiction just wreaks havoc on my eyesight, not my liver. I can live with eyestrain.
planned on ordering mine after reading the newsletter this A.M. – thanks for the reminder – so at least 12 gone
:)
Sad thing: living in the “Rest of the World”, I’d have to pay almost as much for shipping as for the books. Still cheap, of course, if you have the money and, well, happen not to be for example a college student.
//JJ
It looks like that “Rest of the world” shipping is $80 but you still get stung for the standard shipping charges of $17 when you get to the checkout. Does that sound correct?
Living in little old Australia I pay $17 for shipping which seems pretty fair, but the $80 kicker for what, writing the name of another country? That seems a little excessive.
-still i bought one anyway so i’ll shut up now.
Ditto, ordered one too. Still works out to be $14.90 a book delivered so I can’t complain . With the Aussie shekel doing so well against the Yanque Peso now it is a bargain.
Yep, you just have to love those sub prime mortgages-pity about all the people losing there houses of course, but still, cheap books.
Well, its ended. So it seems to have lasted less than a day, but well past 1 pm. Good luck to everyone who got in on this.
I was able to get one last night at 11:48, shortly after I got home from work and saw the SubPress e-mail. I wasn’t really sure if I wanted to drop $124 on books I haven’t seen before… but its books. Nice books, from what I can tell. I love books! I’ve never ordered from them before, but I keep hearing good things about their quality, so I took the plunge. Who knows, maybe this will be the start of a new addiction for me. Maybe I’ll get a copy of Mr. Scalzi’s fine work. ;)
Daljit
-Maybe I’ll get a copy of Mr. Scalzi’s fine work. ;)
Seiously doubt it. Rumour has it they are only putting in good stuff.
Smile when you say that, buster.
I’m sure the correct way to interpret jeff ball’s comment in 28 is that they aren’t putting in anything excellent like your work, merely good stuff…
/end butt kissing.