Bad News on the Ace Reissues

[rolanni]

We have just heard from the Nice Editor Lady at Ace, who tells us that chain orders of Agent of Change and Conflict of Honors were so disappointing that Ace is canceling the program. The chains are declining to carry re-issues for the foreseeable future.

She also says, the Nice Editor Lady, that the economy sucks.

Remember! You -- yes, you! -- can get all of the Liaden Universe® novels from Baen Webscriptions. For those who prefer dead-tree, SRM Publisher does have some of the Ace mass market paperbacks in inventory. Before you spend $50+ for a tattered copy of an mmp edition of Plan B from ABEbooks, please check the SRM Publisher LJ: srmpublisher

Comments

[sleary.livejournal.com]

Well, %$#&. I was looking forward to replacing some tattered copies.

[orlacarey.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry to hear that. I know some people who were planning on buying copies. Luckily I do have both dead tree copies and websubscriptions.

[katmoonshaker.livejournal.com]

Murglefritz! I was planning on getting a set for my daughter and one for my son as soon as I had spare money. Poodleetunk!! Blaaaaarrrrrgh!

I'll definately hit SRM before anyone else once I've got cash in hand. ::sigh:: God only knows when that'll be though. I knew I should have started an evile and insidious plot to have everyone, their duck, and their mother's duck call up every single bookstore in the country asking about the books before release. damn.

Nice Editor Lady is right about the economy. When it perks up we'll have to start the evile and insidious plot of heartbreaking letters to Ace begging that they reissue because all of our copies are in tatters and we want to buy new ones and gifties and and and...

HUGs if you want 'em!

[lagilman]

well, bugger. :-(

I will point folk over to the Baen site.

[kalimeg.livejournal.com]

Chain stores purely bug the crap out of me, especially those with policies about yanking down backstock and ripping off the covers.

I still have my old Del Rey paperbacks in good condition, plus Merlins in paper and cloth.

But I can't loan them out! I need new copies to addict more people!

[jhetley.livejournal.com]

Oh, damn. And right at the start of January in Maine, too . . .

[jonquil.livejournal.com]

Damn it. I'm so very sorry. (I found my copy of I Dare hiding under the bed.)

[elbales]

Aww, crud. I'm so sorry.

[(Anonymous)]

Oh, man.
I'm a newish reader. I date from someone pointing out Hey, there's this thing called Fledgling you can read over there.
And I read. And I got the whole series through ILL. (My librarian loves me, yes, she does.)
I was looking forward to buying these. I guess I can still get the first two, right? Would it be better to ask the local independent for them, or to pester the chain? Or does it not matter at this point?
The problem with ebooks is that they're hard to lend.
Holly

[rolanni.livejournal.com]

Wow, that is new. Welcome!

Ace did publish the first two. My druthers, if it counts, is to ask your local indie, since you still have an indie store, apparently, to order them in for you. Win-win-win.

Thanks for asking!

noooooooooo

[maiaarts.livejournal.com]

Wait - does this mean no Fledgling and no Saltation?

And I have loaned all my books so many times they are falling apart.

I guess I will go to the UW and see what they have for me. Duane usually has your stuff thank gods.

Re: noooooooooo

[spiritdancer]

Fledgling and Saltation are coming out thru Baen (the reissues are, er, were thru Ace - different publisher altogether).

[groblek.livejournal.com]

Hmm, I should do this too although I've got a copy of the three-in-one Meisha Merlin edition, I got through SRM, lending copies would be good, and we should do something to show Ace there's still a demand, even if the chain stores are being obnoxious.

[groblek.livejournal.com]

Oh, and for those without a local indie bookstore (poor souls), Ace sells them direct here: http://us.penguingroup.com - do an advanced search by author.

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

Nuts, indeed.

Stupid business.

[laurajunderwood.livejournal.com]

Well Narklefrucks...

But in truth the business do stink. I'm sitting at a mere 45 willing prepayers for WANDERING LARK at this time. Need 55 more, but have a feeling until the economy stops sinking into a black hole and the businesses stop laying folks off (a couple of major companies around here just made the announcements they were shutting down and putting more people out of work), I suspect I am gonna have to remember what my granny used to say and stop holding out my hands...

Laura J. Underwood

Rats! and Darn!

[(Anonymous)]

Our daughter gave our son Agent of Change for Christmas, and we had placed a standing order for the rest with our LIB.

Rats!

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

That's disappointing! Frankly, I would think this would be a good time to grab those young readers looking for something after Harry Potter, but I suppose Ace has to look at this quarter results. And if the chains aren't going to play . . .

Grumble.

[pbray.livejournal.com]

Well this sucks. Commiserations.

[groblek.livejournal.com]

Well drat, I was looking forward to getting a copy of I Dare when it came out again.

[zola.livejournal.com]

:( And I was so excited about being able to send some of these to my friends who weren't acquainted with the Liaden universe

[jerusha.livejournal.com]

Well, that plain sucks.

[keristor.livejournal.com]

I wonder how many Amazon sold on pre-order? I have the first 4 on pre-order through them (AoC is no longer pre-, of course), because the chance of any of the UK stores getting the US copies without specific orders and ver y long waits is slim to fat (Duainfey took something like 3 months after I ordered it). The non-independent bookstores in the UK are few and far between, and even for the independents shipping and customs can often make getting stocks a lottery.

The people deciding these things at the publishers sound like the same sort who published a short run (a couple of thousand, from memory) of one of Jim White's books, all of which were sold by the booksellers before they were even published, and then refused to do a reprint or to do any more of his books because "they hadn't sold enough copies"...

[drammar.livejournal.com]

Well crud. I was looking forward to having the whole series. Again. In yet another format. Mainly I just hate what it means for you and Steve.

Is this why LiveJournal went belly up for a few hours yesterday evening?

[(Anonymous)]

I totally missed this announcement yesterday when LiveJournal decided to crash for a few hours. Barb
told me about it today. Well, pooh. I'm ordering a bunch for my bookshop, pronto-burgers.

Note - Agent of Change seems to be the only one Baker & Taylor refuse to admit to having.

You said Penguin's the distributor, though, right?
I have an account with Penguin...that'll do.

grumbling the bookseller's standard big publisher grumble,
Lauretta

[kerianth.livejournal.com]

Well, I am really disappointed as I was looking forwards to buying some of the later books in the series. I already have them as ebooks on my computer but I prefer dead tree (at least until I can afford a portable reader), but ... GAH!!

Commiserations to you too. I hope the re-issues might re-appear when the economy re-covers. One can only hope.

[kk1raven.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry to hear that. The chain bookstores (which are the only new bookstores here) are making me a bit crazy. How can I buy books if they decline to put anything I want on their shelves?

Someone hasn't told Amazon...

[keristor.livejournal.com]

I had an email from Amazon.com dated 11th January, saying:

The item(s) listed below will actually ship sooner than we originally expected:

Sharon Lee, Steve Miller "Local Custom" [Paperback]
Estimated arrival date: 02/06/2009 - 03/25/2009
Sharon Lee, Steve Miller "Scout's Progress" [Paperback]
Estimated arrival date: 02/03/2009 - 03/18/2009
Sharon Lee, Steve Miller "Plan B" [Paperback]
Estimated arrival date: 02/06/2009 - 03/25/2009

Hmm. AoC and CoH arrived today (shipped on the 2nd, to the UK, expected delivery Jan 24 to Feb 18). No sign yet of anything from Amazon that the others won't be coming. I wonder what they will do...

Re: Someone hasn't told Amazon...

[rolanni.livejournal.com]

They couldn't have fulfilled those delivery date, anyhow. Under the Proposed Reissue Plan, Scout's Progress wasn't due to be published until August.

If Amazon follows the same pattern they did with Web, they'll take orders and promise books for a while, then, sometime in the late quarter after the book was to have been published, send out a blanket email saying that "this title is not available and the publisher can't give us a good estimate of when it will be available, so we've canceled your order."