There are a couple of questions raised by the claim that low prices means more sales, one of which is "whose books?" For unknown authors, a low price will stimulate sales. But for popular authors, buyers are willing to pay a higher price.
Another question is whether authors will get a bigger cut of the profits reaped by ebooks. So far, publishing houses are not willing to share, and while Amazon gives its authors up to 70% of retail, for most self-published authors, royalties are still negligible.
Note that on this top 25 list, all the ebooks represented have been published by major publishers. Also note that these publishers are either undercutting Amazon, or charging more than Amazon's recommended price.
Top 25 Ebook Best-Sellers
Week Ending 8/2/14Sponsored by:
| Rank* | Title | Author | Publisher | Price** | Change |
| 1 (10) | If I Stay | Gayle Forman | Penguin Random House | $ 4.99 | +9 |
| 2 (2) | The Fault in Our Stars | John Green | Penguin Random House | $ 4.99 | – |
| 3 (2) | The Goldfinch: A Novel (Pulitzer Prize for Fiction) | Donna Tartt | Hachette | $ 6.99 | -1 |
| 4 (6) | Gone Girl: A Novel | Gillian Flynn | Penguin Random House | $ 8.52 | +2 |
| 5 (n/a) | Big Little Lies | Liane Moriarty | Penguin Random House | $ 10.99 | New |
| 6 (n/a) | Not a Drill: A Jack Reacher Short Story (Kindle Single) | Lee Child | Penguin Random House | $ 1.99 | New |
| 7 (8) | Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption | Laura Hillenbrand | Penguin Random House | $ 4.99 | +1 |
| 8 (7) | Act of War: A Thriller | Brad Thor | Simon & Schuster | $ 12.74 | -1 |
| 9 (20) | Outlander: A Novel | Diana Gabaldon | Penguin Random House | $ 4.99 | +11 |
| 10 (3) | Invisible | James Patterson; David Ellis | Hachette | $ 8.99 | -7 |
| 11 (n/a) | Fifty Shades Freed: Book Three Of The Fifty Shades Trilogy | E L James | Penguin Random House | $ 7.99 | New |
| 12 (9) | Chill Factor: A Novel | Sandra Brown | Simon & Schuster | $ 1.99 | -3 |
| 13 (11) | Orphan Train: A Novel | Christina Baker Kline | HarperCollins | $ 6.99 | -2 |
| 14 (4) | The Heist: A Novel (Gabriel Allon Book 14) | Daniel Silva | HarperCollins | $ 13.99 | -10 |
| 15 (15) | Divergent | Veronica Roth | HarperCollins | $ 4.99 | – |
| 16 (13) | Insurgent (Divergent Book 2) | Veronica Roth | HarperCollins | $ 6.99 | -3 |
| 17 (5) | The Book of Life: A Novel (All Souls Trilogy) | Deborah Harkness | Penguin Random House | $ 11.99 | -12 |
| 18 (14) | Allegiant (Divergent Series) | Veronica Roth | HarperCollins | $ 6.99 | -4 |
| 19 (16) | The Husband’s Secret | Liane Moriarty | Penguin Random House | $ 9.99 | -3 |
| 20 (12) | Top Secret Twenty-One: A Stephanie Plum Novel | Janet Evanovich | Penguin Random House | $ 10.99 | -8 |
| 21(n/a) | Where She Went (If I Stay Book 2) | Gayle Forman | Penguin Random House | $ 4.99 | New |
| 22(n/a) | Fifty Shades Of Grey: Book One Of The Fifty Shades Trilogy | E L James | Penguin Random House | $ 4.99 | New |
| 23(n/a) | All the Light We Cannot See: A Novel | Anthony Doerr | Simon & Schuster | $ 10.99 | New |
| 24 (25) | A Perfect Life: A Novel | Danielle Steel | Penguin Random House | $ 11.84 | +1 |
| 25(n/a) | Death by Food Pyramid | Denise Minger | Primal Nutrition Inc. | $ 0.99 | New |
* Previous week’s list rank in parentheses.
With top notch books selling for $4.99 (or less) where does that leave room for new/unknowns? The water keeps getting more clouded and murky, instead of clearing up. I guess that let's the sharks roam freely, waiting to strike.
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