[Free Audiobooks UPDATE] On Cats by Charles Bukowski & Wanderlust, USA by Flula Borg [Literary Poet Pet Memoir & Humorous Travel Ethnography]

As a special treat to celebrate Independent Bookstore Day, two full-length audiobooks are being offered as a special promotion, free for a limited time courtesy of retailer Libro.fm and publisher HarperCollins’ HarperAudio imprint.

The two titles are available through Saturday, April 25th (UPDATE: the freebie period has been extended through Sunday April 26th, Pacific Daylight Time) as DRM-free MP3s (requires account signup with billing address but no payment info), and can also be gifted to your friends’ emails for them to claim later. You can find them by scrolling down Libro.fm’s special promotional page which includes their other charitable sale offers for the event or directly by clicking the titles below.

• On Cats by the acclaimed late German-American poet and novelist Charles Bukowski, read by Roger Wayne, unabridged. A compilation of the author’s literary and personal reflections as well as poetry, written about the various cats encountered throughout his life, as well as the species inspiring him in general

• Wanderlust, USA: An Über-Curious Guide to Sassy American Pastimes by German actor, comedian, and YouTube personality Flula Borg, read by the author himself, unabridged. A 6-episode audiobook-original humorous ethnographic travelogue adventure through the US in order to visit and experience the scenes of eccentric recurring cultural events including the Iditarod dog-sledding race in Alaska, Elvis Week in Mississippi, Revolutionary War-era historical reenactment in Lexington and more, and getting to know the history and communities behind them and their enduring popularity.

Offered worldwide through April 25th (at least until midnight Eastern Time, and possibly also Pacific Time), available DRM-free at Libro.fm.

[Free Audiobooks] The Canterville Ghost by Oscar Wilde & The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson [Young Adult Paranormal Suspense Thriller & Classic Gothic Satire]

AudioFile’s SYNC Summer of Listening 2019 promotion for young adults offers 2 free audiobooks per week—1 classic or non-fiction, 1 modern—as free MP3 downloads, usually available worldwide (some titles are subject to geo-restrictions, and you can see the planned release schedule here).

This week’s two selected titles, which have a theme of being haunted by ghosts, both real and of reputation, available until 7am Eastern Time on July 11th, are as follows:

• The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson, a YA contemporary paranormal suspense thriller with f/m romantic elements, starring a Louisiana girl transplanted to a London boarding school, just as an outbreak of murders mimicking the infamous Jack the Ripper case begins, leaving the baffled police without leads even as she begins to believe that she is the only one who has seen the suspected killer and has become his target in turn; read by Nicola Barber, from Brilliance Audio, available worldwide
• The Canterville Ghost by Oscar Wilde, a classic short story, originally published in 1887, which is a satirically comedic take on the conventional gothic ghost story trope, as the residents of a haunted castle do not seem to be particularly bothered by the antics of the ghost; read by Rupert Degas, from Naxos Audiobooks, available worldwide

Offered as DRM-free MP3s through 7am Eastern Time on July 11th, available in selected countries worldwide (requires installing Overdrive Media console software on your PC, Mac, Android, or iDevice, and you need to finish downloading before the time limit).

[Free Audiobooks] Heretics Anonymous by Katie Henry & Yaqui Delgado Wants To Kick Your Ass by Meg Medina [Young Adult High School Drama & Comedy Novels]

AudioFile’s SYNC Summer of Listening 2019 promotion for young adults offers 2 free audiobooks per week—1 classic or non-fiction, 1 modern—as free MP3 downloads, usually available worldwide (some titles are subject to geo-restrictions, and you can see the planned release schedule here).

This week’s two selected titles, which have a theme of outcasts in schools and life lessons learned there unofficially, available until 7am Eastern Time on July 4th, are as follows:

• Yaqui Delgado Wants To Kick Your Ass by Meg Medina, standalone YA contemporary Latin American teen drama novel, starring a girl inexplicably targeted for bullying by another girl and her gang, forced to discover who she truly is as her sense of self begins to erode under the pressure; read by Roxanne Hernandez, from Brilliance Audio, available worldwide
• Heretics Anonymous by Katie Henry, standalone YA contemporary teen comedy novel, centred around a club of misfit kids including an atheist in a strict Catholic school, who find themselves dealing with and challenging its authorities and the status quo in various humorous ways as they just try to live out their lives; read by Michael Crouch, from HarperAudio, available worldwide

Offered as DRM-free MP3s through 7am Eastern Time on July 4th, available in selected countries worldwide (requires installing Overdrive Media console software on your PC, Mac, Android, or iDevice, and you need to finish downloading before the time limit).

[Free eBook REPEAT] Evenfield by Rachel Ferguson [Vintage 1940s Literary Novel]

Evenfield by the late English author Rachel Ferguson, an early 20th century journalist and novelist whom Booker Prize-winning author A. S. Byatt cites as a literary influence, is her vintage literary fiction novel with comedic elements, free again for a limited time courtesy of publisher Dean Street Press.

This was originally published in 1942 by Jonathan Cape, and this new edition has a retrospective introductory foreword about the author’s works, by social historian Elizabeth Crawford, who has contributed to the official British government history blog.

This humorous literary fiction novel follows a woman’s quest to re-create the joys of her childhood past in the nostalgically remembered suburban home in which she grew up, by leasing the old house and undoing the changes made to it in the meantime. But in the process of whatever the opposite of renovating it is, she discovers various things about memory, experience, and change, and that in some ways, you can never really go home again.

Offered worldwide, available at Amazon.

[Free eBook] Damn Straight by Elizabeth Sims [Award-Winning LGBT Golfing Murder Mystery]

Damn Straight by Elizabeth Sims, a Lamdba Literary Award-winning author and regular contributor to Writer’s Digest, is the 2nd novel in the Lillian Byrd series of humorous murder mysteries with f/f romantic elements, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher the author herself.

This was originally published in 2003 by LGBT specialty publisher Alyon Books, and won a Lambda Literary Award in the mystery/thriller category.

The series stars a lesbian freelance writer turned amateur sleuth who gets mixed up with zany crime cases, often set among her fellow lesbians as she tries to find true love as well as whodunnit. This case sees her drawn to a women’s golfing tournament and going undercover as a reporter to flush out whichever of the increasingly unhinged possibilities is secretly terrorizing her love interest the star athlete.

Offered DRM-free worldwide, available at Amazon.

[Free eBook] I Heart New York by Lindsey Kelk [Chick Lit Expat Travel Comedy]

I Heart New York by British author Lindsey Kelk is the 1st novel in the I Heart series of chick lit journey of self-discovery novels with f/m romantic comedy elements, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher HarperCollins.

This is the featured Free Book of the Week in the iTunes UK store, and is apparently being made free to help promote the upcoming 8th book, I Heart Hawaii, due in May.

The series stars globe-trotting British expat Angela Clarke, having adventures and learning lessons about life and love as she temporarily settles down in various cities worldwide. This first installment sees her escaping a recent string of personal disasters in London for a change of scenery and career in New York, as she gets a makeover and a tour and begins blogging her way to her dream job at a trendy magazine.

Offered in the UK only, available at multiple retailers.

[Free eBook] McKay’s Bees: A Novel by Thomas McMahon [Magical Realism Historical Comedy]

McKay’s Bees: A Novel by the late Thomas McMahon, a former professor of applied mechanics and biology at Harvard University, as well as a Rosenthal Award-winning novelist, is a standalone historical literary fiction novel with comedy and speculative fiction elements, free for a limited time courtesy of the University of Chicago Press.

This is their featured Free Book of the Month for February, and was originally published in 1979 by Harper & Row, now reprinted as part of the University of Chicago Press’ “Phoenix Fiction” line for rediscovering forgotten literary gems.

The novel is a whimsical work of historical literary fiction with a sense of magical realism, exploring the US during the 1850s as a scientifically-inclined man with a plan to make a fortune raising bees migrates from Massachussetts to Kansas with his wife and a group of German carpenters, encountering tensions with border ruffians, an uneasy mingling of races as westward-moving settlers conflict with Native Americans and the impending political powderkeg of the upcoming Civil War, and the impact of Charles Darwin’s discoveries.

Offered worldwide through February, available directly from the university’s website.

[Free eBook] The February Doll Murders by Michael Avallone [Vintage Comedic Pulp Mystery]

The February Doll Murders by the late American author Michael Avallone is the 16th novel in the Ed Noon series of comedic pulp mystery/spy thrillers, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Story Merchant.

This was originally published in 1966 by Signet. The popular, long-running pulp mystery/crime series stars a P.I. in New York City, who often takes on cases with oddball clients, leading to zany adventures.

This installment features a plot to sabotage the UN, uncovered when a WWII Army buddy of Noon’s gets in touch with him to ask about the aftermath of an old war story, setting off a chain of events which inevitably snowballs into murder and conspiracy.

Offered worldwide, available at Amazon.

[Free eBook] The Voodoo Murders by Michael Avallone [Vintage Comedic Pulp Mystery]

The Voodoo Murders by the late American author Michael Avallone is the 9th in the Ed Noon series of comedic pulp mystery/spy thrillers, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Story Merchant.

This was originally published in 1957 by Fawcett Publications. The popular, long-running pulp mystery/crime series stars a P.I. in New York City, who often takes on cases with oddball clients, leading to zany adventures.

This installment is a globe-trotting case, as an investigation of a voodoo cult trying to take over the world, starting with Manhattan, turns personal when a friend is murdered and the trail leads to a showdown in Haiti.

Offered worldwide, available at Amazon.