# The New J.K. Rowling (Robert Galbraith) book is only available in audio books? WTH? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 14, 2014, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766 "2014-06-14T12:44:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/1 "2014-06-14T12:44:16Z")
I was excited to get started reading Silkworm. The second book in the Cormoran Strike series. All Amazon shows is the audio book? 😕 😕 😕 > **[Amazon.com: The Silkworm (Cormoran Strike): 9781478929659: Galbraith, Robert,...](https://www.amazon.com/Silkworm-Library-Cormoran-Strike/dp/1478929650)** > > Amazon.com: The Silkworm (Cormoran Strike): 9781478929659: Galbraith, Robert, Glenister, Robert: Books What in the world is a MP3 CD? $47? how is that different from the $25 audiobook? I can’t recall ever having the audiobook come out first. No hardback or kindle releases (yet)? Thats bizarre. I had my entire morning planned to get started reading. I got to switch gears and do something else. [Washington Post Book Review](http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/the-silkworm-by-robert-galbraith-aka-jk-rowling/2014/06/12/ee35d332-f276-11e3-9ebc-2ee6f81ed217_story.html) ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/2 "2014-06-14T12:46:56Z")
Amazon and Hachette are having a fight over e-book prices. If you want to pre-order a Hachette-published book, Amazon asks that you do it somewhere else until they resolve this issue. It’s really been all over the news. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/3 "2014-06-14T12:53:29Z")
ok, Barnes & Noble has it in Nook book for 11.99. But, will my kindle read a nook book? they are offering the hard back at $16.80 40% of the normal $28 price. I may preorder the hardback then and pick it up local on June 19. > **[The Silkworm (Cormoran Strike Series #2)|Hardcover](https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-silkworm-robert-galbraith/1118638304?ean=9780316206877&itm=1&usri=the%2Bsilkworm)** > > Private investigator Cormoran Strike must track down a missing writer and a sinister killer bent on destruction in this "wonderfully entertaining" mystery (Harlan Coben, New York Times Book Review) that inspired the acclaimed HBO Max... The heck with Amazon’s foolishness. I’m glad Barnes & Noble can get a jump on this book. It’ll be a #1 seller for awhile. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/4 "2014-06-14T13:03:51Z")
Found this LA Times article that explains the Amazon and Hachette publishing battle. Amazon will lose big. Fans like me can’t wait to get our eyes on the new Cormoran Strike book. We’ll go wherever needed to buy it. > **[Amazon and Hachette: The dispute in 13 easy steps](https://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-et-jc-amazon-and-hachette-explained-20140602-story.html#page=1)** > > An unusually public battle is being waged between Amazon and one of America's top five publishers, Hachette. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/5 "2014-06-14T17:56:10Z")
Yup. I had it preordered on Amazon, but now I’ll be reading it as an audiobook. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/6 "2014-06-14T21:04:08Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Found this LA Times article that explains the Amazon and Hachette publishing battle. Amazon will lose big. Fans like me can’t wait to get our eyes on the new Cormoran Strike book. We’ll go wherever needed to buy it. > > [Amazon and Hachette: The dispute in 13 easy steps](http://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-et-jc-amazon-and-hachette-explained-20140602-story.html#page=1) Amazon’s big thing is to try and get the lowest price for the customer. If you were an author or a publisher, you’d probably want Amazon to fail in their negotiations. But as a customer, I’d probably hope Amazon wins. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/7 "2014-06-14T21:14:42Z")
At least until Amazon massively raises prices once they’re the only game in town. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/8 "2014-06-14T21:32:26Z")
> [@Leaper](#): > > At least until Amazon massively raises prices once they’re the only game in town. Hence anti-monopoly laws and anti-collusion laws. In this case, collusion on the part of the publishers seems to have been the issue. One day, Amazon might go up for monopolistic practices, but that doesn’t seem to be today’s concern. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/9 "2014-06-14T21:36:51Z")
As point #4 , 11, and 13 in the linked article says, it’s about Amazon being able to succeed in practices that could become (or already are) monopolistic in the future. As for laws, well, the FCC seems to be on the verge of letting Comcast become the only provider of the Internet for half the country AND not enforcing net neutrality, so pardon if I don’t find a lot of confidence there. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/10 "2014-06-14T21:37:32Z")
Cracked just posted an article _4 Ways You Didn’t Realize Online Stores Are Screwing You_ The Amazon fight with Hachette is their first item on the list. > **[4 Ways You Didn't Realize Online Stores Are Screwing You](https://www.cracked.com/quick-fixes/4-ways-you-didnt-realize-online-stores-are-screwing-you)** > > If you had told us 20 years ago that there would come a day when we could buy stuff like movies, clothes, and shipping containers full of Kit Kat bars while sitting on our toilets and without having to talk to a single human being, we would have... I’ve never been a fan of huge retail stores. At least Walmart represents thousands of retail stores. Amazon is this single massive entity that has cornered a significant portion of the book market. Now they want to dictate terms with book publishers. That concerns me. What happens when Barnes & Noble finally goes under? Amazon will almost have a monopoly on the entire book market. They can inflate prices and get away with it. Thank goodness we still have a B& N in Little Rock. I’ll get my JK Rowling book there next week. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/11 "2014-06-14T22:13:40Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > Hence anti-monopoly laws and anti-collusion laws. Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!!! That’s a good one! > [@Leaper](#): > > …As for laws, well, the FCC seems to be on the verge of letting Comcast become the only provider of the Internet for half the country AND not enforcing net neutrality, so pardon if I don’t find a lot of confidence there. ^This. “Too big to fail” has become the new US motto. The bigger the business, the more elected officials the business can purchase, to make sure that “monopoly” and “collusion” and “barriers to entry” are enshrined as _positives_–positives that were the fundamental vision of our sacred Founders. (It helps if the giant corporations have a monopoly on the textbooks!\*^\_~) That’s the American Way. \*And indeed, “market concentration” in the school textbook industry has been proceeding apace. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/12 "2014-06-14T23:10:10Z")
> [@Leaper](#): > > As point #4 , 11, and 13 in the linked article says, it’s about Amazon being able to succeed in practices that could become (or already are) monopolistic in the future. As for laws, well, the FCC seems to be on the verge of letting Comcast become the only provider of the Internet for half the country AND not enforcing net neutrality, so pardon if I don’t find a lot of confidence there. Well [this linked article](http://www.economist.com/news/business/21603036-amazon-plays-tough-publishers-over-e-book-prices-burying-hachette) says that it’s about: > [@The Economist](#): > > The heart of the dispute is e-book pricing and the fees that suppliers pay to retailers. In the world of printed books, sellers may charge whatever they like and collect “co-op” fees for things like promotional displays. Amazon wants to retain a similar model for e-books so it can lower prices and offer features like a lending-library for customers of “Prime”, its quick-delivery service. It also demands large co-op fees based on a publisher’s sales on the site. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/13 "2014-06-14T23:48:58Z")
Here yo go. Discounted, independent bookseller: [http://www.powells.com/biblio/62-9780316206877-0](http://www.powells.com/biblio/62-9780316206877-0) ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2014, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/14 "2014-06-15T02:57:19Z")
Thanks susan! I prefer supporting the independent businesses whenever I can. Time to get my preorder in before they raise the prices. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2014, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/15 "2014-06-15T03:57:11Z")
I’ve had very good service from Powell’s. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2014, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/16 "2014-06-15T05:24:25Z")
> [@Leaper](#): > > At least until Amazon massively raises prices once they’re the only game in town. They never really will be. It isn’t Barnes and Nobles that is Amazon’s greatest competitor these days; it’s Walmart. And they aren’t going anywhere. With e-books, you have Kobo’s online store and the publishers can easily put up stores. FWIW, I’m on Amazon’s side. The Big 5 (which is basically a cartel) publishers tried to collude with Apple in order to raise prices on ebooks. They are fine with high “Publisher Prices” on physical books (Amazon gained huge growth by being one of the few places that offered massive discounts on physical books, without it being a used copy). I don’t see any reason why ebooks shouldn’t be treated like physical books - you sell to the retailer and then the retailer can set the price they want to sell at. Selling a product to a retailer and then mandating a minimum price is not good for the consumers. Besides, just because you can’t pre-order the book doesn’t mean you can’t buy it on the day of release. All this anger over the fact you can’t buy the book a few days in advance? ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2014, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/17 "2014-06-15T05:33:57Z")
What anger do you see in this thread? ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2014, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/18 "2014-06-15T06:22:59Z")
I was a bit disappointed because I’ve gotten spoiled by the instant gratification of kindle book purchases. I’m not angry. It’s just a book. One that I can pick up at my local book store anytime after June 19. Preordering it now will save me almost ten bucks. So, I will preorder. My mom’s arthritis bothers her more holding up a heavy hardback book. She’s quickly learned to love her light weight kindle. She’s 81 and her arthritis is mild for her age. So my mom will wait for however long for the kindle version of this book. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2014, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/19 "2014-06-15T06:46:59Z")
Amazon is the one renegotiating. They already have an agreement with Hachette that seems to be working fine at prices people are apparently willing to pay. It isn’t as if Hachette is the one asking for more money. Dropping preorders is stupid. The people who care about preorders are just going to go elsewhere. The people Hachette might actually lose are those who would be shopping on Amazon and happen upon their books. The hardcore customer who will preorder is not going to be persuaded to not by the book by Amazon’s tactics. It just creates ill will towards Amazon. Far smarter would be to either let the books go out of stock earlier (a legitimate choice for any store), or if they want to get devious, decrease the search rankings so that fewer people will find the books on Amazon. Perhaps exempt the books from associate links and free shipping (even for Amazon prime customers). Almost anything besides preorders would make more sense. ---
**Author:** ![Implicit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Implicit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Implicit)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2014, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766/20 "2014-06-15T14:35:46Z")
As already stated in this thread, Amazon is only blocking pre-orders, not access to already published paper or e-books. This is a bargaining tactic and there is a remote possibility Amazon won’t have access to Hachette’s future releases if the talks fall apart and Hachette pulls their catalog like Macmillan did a few years ago. No point taking your order if they can’t fill it. The Kindle e-book should be released the same time as the hard cover and unless Hachette pulls all their e-books from Amazon (which is unlikely) you’ll be able to buy it online at Amazon on June 19. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-j-k-rowling-robert-galbraith-book-is-only-available-in-audio-books-wth/690766.md?page=2)