eReaderIQ Is a Complete Database of Free and Discounted eBooks on Amazon [Free]

eReaderIQ Is a Complete Database of Free and Discounted eBooks on Amazon [Free]: From Lifehacker: "

Just like with music, sometimes checking out free offerings is a great way to discover new stuff. If you want to see a complete listing of Amazon's free Kindle books, eReaderIQ will do that for you and more.

Amazon offers a lot of Kindle books for free on their site, even excluding the public domain ones. eReaderIQ is an easy-to-browse database of all of Amazon's free offerings at any given time, and it's update hourly—meaning you have a large, accurate list to browse for completely free reading material. You don't need to sign up or anything, you can just head over and start browsing. Clicking on a book will take you to its Amazon page, from which you can send it right to your Kindle (or other device running Kindle software).

eReaderIQ also has a neat alerts feature, where you can track other books on Amazon and get alerted to when their price drops. You can import your Amazon.com wish list, or just paste in its URL on the price tracker. Then, just give it your email and the price drop you'd like to be notified for (e.g. entering $1 would alert you when the book's price drops by $1). It's pretty handy when a book is a bit more expensive than you'd like, or when it's actually more expensive than the physical copy. Hit the link to check it out.

eReaderIQ | via Guiding Tech

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You can contact Whitson Gordon, the author of this post, at whitson@lifehacker.com. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.

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Avoid Tax Refund Fees

Avoid Tax Refund Fees: From USA.gov:
"With the tax filing deadline quickly approaching, you might hear ads persuading you that you can get your tax refund faster with a tax refund loan (also known as a refund anticipation loan).

A tax refund loan is a loan from a paid tax preparer, based on the amount of money you are expected to receive as a refund. It may seem like a great way to get your money within a couple of days, but the interest and fees on these loans can be very costly and take a huge chunk out of the money you actually receive.

However, there are ways you can avoid steep fees, keep all of your refund, and still get your refund relatively quickly:

• Find out if you are eligible for free tax preparation services at a VITA site
• File your taxes electronically
• Have your refund deposited directly into your bank account
• Avoid cashing your tax refund at check cashing locations that charge a fee for that service.

You can use the IRS’s “Where’s My Refund?” tool to determine the status of your refund.
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Night Road, by Kristin Hannah

Look Out for Phishing Scams

Look Out for Phishing Scams: From USA.gov:
"Over the weekend, thousands of people learned that their email addresses had been compromised as the result of an unauthorized entry into the systems of Epsilon Interactive, an email service provider.

If you received one of the alerts, you should be extra vigilent about the kind of emails you receive and which ones you chose to open or answer.

Because of this security breach, you may be at an increased risk of phishing scams, where you receive a message that tries to trick you into supplying personal or financial information.

The Federal Trade Commission provides the following tips to protect yourself from phishing scams:

• Don’t reply to email or pop-up messages that ask for personal or financial information, and don’t click on links in the message. Don’t cut and paste a link from the message into your Web browser — phishers can make links look like they go one place, but that actually send you to a different site.
• Some scammers send an email that appears to be from a legitimate business and ask you to call a phone number to update your account or access a “refund.” If you need to reach an organization you do business with, call the number on your financial statements or on the back of your credit card.
• Don’t email personal or financial information.
• Be cautious about opening any attachment or downloading any files from emails you receive, regardless of who sent them.
• Forward phishing emails to spam@uce.gov and to the company, bank, or organization impersonated in the phishing email.
• If you’ve been scammed, visit the Federal Trade Commission’s Identity Theft website at ftc.gov/idtheft.

Learn more about how to identify and protect yourself from phishing scams from the Federal Trade Commission.
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Donate A Book Day in April

Donate A Book Day in April: From the What I learned today blog:

"Later this month the first Donate-A-Book day will take place at libraries around the country.

On April 14, readers across the U.S. will be encouraged to donate new or gently used books to their local libraries. Books will be added to the library’s collections, with remaining books given to the Friends of the Library, for use at their annual booksale fundraisers.

For more info please read the press release and get those books ready for donation (I know I have a few I’ve been waiting to get over to the library … now I have an excuse )

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Best Sellers at HPL

Available to be checked out or placed on hold

Sing You Home By Picoult, Jodi 2011-03 - Atria Books 9781439102725 Check Our Catalog BookPage Notable Title Zoe Baxter has spent 10 years trying to get pregnant, and after multiple miscarriages and infertility issues, it looks like her dream is about to come true. But a terrible turn of events leads to a nightmare--one that takes away her unborn baby and breaks apart her marriage to Max. Includes a CD of original songs created especially for this novel. …More

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest By Larsson, Stieg 2010-05 - Knopf Publishing Group 9780307269997 Check Our Catalog BookPage Notable Title Once upon a time, she was a victim. Now Lisbeth Salander is ready to fight back. "[The trilogy] is intricately plotted, lavishly detailed but written with a breakneck pace and verve . . ["Hornet's Nest"] is a tantalizing double finale--first idyllic, then frenetic . . . Larsson has made the literary moods of saga and soap opera converge--with suspense as the adhesive."--"Independent." …More

A Discovery of Witches By Harkness, Deborah 2011-02 - Viking Books 9780670022410 Check Our Catalog BookPage Notable Title Debut novelist Harkness has crafted a mesmerizing and addictive read, equal parts history and magic, romance and suspense--a richly inventive novel about a centuries-old vampire, a spellbound witch, and the mysterious manuscript that draws them together. …More

Minding Frankie By Binchy, Maeve 2011-03 - Knopf Publishing Group 9780307273567 Check Our Catalog BookPage Notable Title Binchy is back with a tale of joy, heartbreak, and hope in a close-knit Dublin community. When Noel learns that his former flame is terminally ill and pregnant with a child she claims is his, he agrees to take care of the baby girl once she's born. But as a recovering alcoholic whose demons are barely under control, Noel can't do it alone. Luckily, he has an amazing network of family and friends who are ready to help. …More

River Marked By Briggs, Patricia 2011-03 - Ace Books 9780441019731 Check Our Catalog Car mechanic and shapeshifter Mercy Thompson senses that an evil is stirring in the depths of the Columbia River--one that her father's people may know something about. And to have any hope of surviving, Mercy and her mate, the Alpha werewolf Adam, will need their help. …More

Silent Mercy By Fairstein, Linda 2011-03 - Dutton Books 9780525952022 Check Our Catalog In the latest thriller in Fairstein's "New York Times"-bestselling series, prosecutor Alex Cooper dives deep into the Byzantine, sinister world of New York City's powerful religious institutions to find out why the body of a young woman has been decapitated, set on fire, and left on the steps of a church. …More

Live Wire By Coben, Harlan 2011-03 - Dutton Books 9780525952060 Check Our Catalog Myron Bolitar's family takes center stage in this new Coben thriller. Former tennis star Suzze T and her rock star husband, Lex, are both clients, and now Lex has disappeared and a very pregnant Suzze is in tears. Myron is forced to confront deep secrets in Suzze's past, his family's mortality, and before "Live Wire" is over, his own. …More

Toys By Patterson, James Author McMahon, Neil 2011-03 - Little Brown and Company 9780316097369 Check Our Catalog Hays Baker and his wife Lizbeth possess super-human strength, extraordinary intelligence, stunning looks, a sex life to die for, and two beautiful children. Of course they do--they're Elites, endowed at birth with the very best that the world can offer. The only problems in their perfect world: people, their toys, and the battle to save humanity. …More

A Lesson in Secrets: A Maisie Dobbs Novel By Winspear, Jacqueline 2011-03 - Harper 9780061727672 Check Our Catalog Maisie Dobbs' first assignment for the British Secret Service takes her undercover to Cambridge as a professor, and leads to the investigation of a murderous web of activities being conducted by the up-and-coming Nazi party. …More

The Tiger's Wife By Obreht, Tea 2011-03 - Random House 9780385343831 Check Our Catalog Weaving a brilliant latticework of family legend, loss, and love, Obreht, the youngest of "The New Yorker's" 20 best American fiction writers under 40, spins a timeless novel about a young doctor who confronts the inexplicable circumstances surrounding her beloved grandfather's recent death. …More

The Help By Stockett, Kathryn 2009-02 - Amy Einhorn Books 9780399155345 Check Our Catalog BookPage Notable Title In Jackson, Mississippi, in 1962, there are lines that are not crossed. With the civil rights movement exploding all around them, three women start a movement of their own, forever changing a town and the way women--black and white, mothers and daughters--view one another. …More

Tick Tock By Patterson, James Author Ledwidge, Michael 2011-01 - Little Brown and Company 9780316037914 Check Our Catalog A rash of horrifying crimes tears through New York City, throwing it into complete chaos and terrorizing everyone living there. Immediately, it becomes clear that these offenses are not the work of an amateur, but of a calculating, efficient, and deadly mastermind. All too soon, another appalling murder leads Detective Michael Bennett to a shocking discovery that exposes the killer's pattern and the earth-shattering enormity of his plan. …More

Treachery in Death By Robb, J. D. 2011-02 - G. P. Putnam's Sons 9780399157035 Check Our Catalog Detective Eve Dallas' partner, Peabody, overhears two fellow officers arguing. It doesn't take long to realize they're both crooked--guilty not just of corruption but of murder. Now Peabody, Eve, and Eve's husband, Roarke, are trying to get the hard evidence they need to bring the dirty cops down--knowing all the while that the two are willing to kill to keep their secret. …More

Room By Donoghue, Emma 2010-09 - Little Brown and Company 9780316098335 Check Our Catalog 2011 Alex Award Winner Told entirely in the language of the energetic, pragmatic five-year-old Jack, "Room" is a celebration of resilience and the limitless bond between parent and child, a brilliantly executed novel about what it means to journey from one world to another. …More

Silent Mercy By Fairstein, Linda 2011-03 - Dutton Books 9780525952022 Check Our Catalog In the latest thriller in Fairstein's "New York Times"-bestselling series, prosecutor Alex Cooper dives deep into the Byzantine, sinister world of New York City's powerful religious institutions to find out why the body of a young woman has been decapitated, set on fire, and left on the steps of a church. …More

The Land of Painted Caves By Auel, Jean M. 2011-03 - Crown Publishing Group (NY) 9780517580516 Check Our Catalog The highly anticipated sixth book of Auel's Earth's Children series, "The Land of the Painted Caves" is the culmination fans have been waiting for. Continuing the story of Ayla and Jondalar, Auel combines her brilliant narrative skills and appealing characters with a remarkable re-creation of the way life was lived more than 25,000 years ago. …More

Started Early, Took My Dog By Atkinson, Kate 2011-03 - Reagan Arthur Books 9780316066730 Check Our Catalog Retired police detective Tracy Waterhouse leads a quiet, ordered life--until she cares for a young child. Meanwhile, Jackson Brodie, the beloved detective from "Case Histories," rescues an abused dog. Jackson is about to learn, along with Tracy, that no good deed goes unpunished. …More

Coming Soon

Cold Wind By Box, C. J. 2011-03 - Putnam Adult 9780399157356 Check Our Catalog When Joe Picketts mother-in-law is accused of murdering her latest husband, there's a part of him that cant believe his good luck: the social-climbing harpy has had it in for him ever since he married his beloved Marybeth. Unfortunately, its hard for him to believe shes guilty. …More

The Paris Wife By McLain, Paula 2011-02 - Ballantine Books 9780345521309 Check Our Catalog BookPage Notable Title A deeply evocative story of ambition and betrayal, "The Paris Wife" captures a remarkable period of time and a love affair between two unforgettable people: Ernest Hemingway and his wife Hadley. …More

The Jungle By Cussler, Clive Author Du Brul, Jack B. 2011-03 - Putnam Adult 9780399157042 Check Our Catalog The extraordinary new adventure from the #1 "New York Times"-bestselling author. Juan Cabrillo and his crew face the greatest threat against U.S. security that the world has ever known. …More

What You Need to Know About Reverse Mortgages

What You Need to Know About Reverse Mortgages: From USA.Gov :
"If you are a senior and need to supplement your income, you might be considering a reverse mortgage. A “reverse” mortgage is a loan against your home that you don’t have to pay back for as long as you live there.

When the home is sold, the lenders recover the principal, plus interest, on the loan. The remaining value of the home goes to you or your heirs.

With a reverse mortgage, you can turn the value of your home into cash without having to move or to repay a loan each month.

The Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) is the only reverse mortgage insured by the federal government. The HECM is a safe alternative resource that can provide you with greater financial security and independence.

In order to qualify for the HECM, you must:

• Be 62 years of age or older
• Own the property outright or have a small mortgage balance
• Occupy the property as your principal residence
• Not be delinquent on any federal debt
• Participate in a consumer information session given by an approved HECM counselor

As with all mortgages, there are costs associated with getting a HECM, including:

• Loan Origination Fee
• Closing Costs (i.e., appraisal, inspection, title search and insurance, etc)
• FHA Mortgage Insurance Premiums
• Servicing Fee
• Interest

To learn more, check out Key Decisions About Reverse Mortgages offered by the AARP.
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