The Accidental Author - "Shades of Gray"

She didn't write "Fifty Shades of Grey."

The author of a book called "Shades of Gray" says her work is being confused with that of a chart-topping erotic fiction writer.

Susanne Jacoby Hale, an author based in Florida, says she has received emails, Facebook messages and phone calls from people thinking she wrote "Fifty Shades of Grey." "Fifty Shades of Grey," by British author E L James, has sold millions of copies and become a sensation among women drawn to the unbelieveable romance between a college student and a weathly businessman.

Do Ms. Hale a favor and order her book here.

New Book Dishes on Simon Cowell

We know he has a big ego and I can imagine he is hard to deal with, but a new unauthorized biography reveals more details about the man behind "American Idol" and X-Factor".

Sweet Revenge: The Intimate Life of Simon Cowell" is written by British journalist and biographer Tom Bower, whose previous works include books about former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, jailed media mogul Conrad Black and ex-Harrods owner Mohammad al-Fayed.

The book paints a picture of a man who struggled for years in the music business, spurred on to success out of a desire to prove his detractors wrong.

"He had 20 years — more than 20 years — of humiliation," Bower said. "At school he was a total failure and as a music producer he was a total failure.

Among the details Bower reveals: Cowell gets regular colonic irrigations because "it's so cleansing — and it makes my eyes shine brighter." He is put on a drip of vitamins and nutrients for a half hour each week.

He's not gay, despite long-standing rumors. The book reveals bedroom secrets including a brief affair with former "X Factor" judge Danii Minogue. But Bower says that Cowell isn't interested in serious relationships.

Cowell is, however, generous. Bower says Cowell gave his ex-fiance Mezhgan Hussainy, a makeup artist on "American Idol," a $5 million Beverly Hills house as a parting gift. Most of his former girlfriends have refrained from spilling the beans in the media.

Bower, though, thinks the book's portrait of Cowell is fairly positive.

While Bower has been openly hostile to some of his previous subjects — he called Gordon Brown a ruthless bully and Conrad Black a crook — he has a soft spot for Cowell.

"He's not a crook," Bower said. "So far he hasn't sued me. And it was good fun.

And this book looks like a lot of fun.

Here's where you can buy it:

Kindle Free Pick of the Week: Achieve Anything in Just One Year

The might be last self help book you will ever need!

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Kindle Free Pick of the Week: Moscow Sting

Alex Dryden follows up his superb debut, Red to Black (2009), with a riveting sequel. British spy Finn, who uncovered a Russian plan to control Europe's access to oil and natural gas, is dead, murdered by a KGB-trained Russian criminal. Anna, the beautiful KGB colonel assigned to seduce Finn, but who fell in love with him instead, is in hiding, raising her son, Little Finn. In the post-Bush era, both the U.S. and Britain have realized that Finn was right: Vladimir Putin is an enemy. Now they want Finn's source, a Kremlin insider known only as Mikhail. MI6 also wants revenge for Finn's murder. The Russians want Anna for her betrayal. Anna wants to shield Mikhail and keep herself and her son alive. Machinations by all the principals ensue, and Dryden, a longtime student of Russia and the world of intelligence, tosses a new player into the mix: Cougar, a private intelligence company run by Burt Miller, a former CIA spook extraordinaire. The larger-than-life Miller schemes against the CIA, MI6, the Russians, and Cougar's corporate competitors to hold on to Anna and reel in Mikhail. Red to Black reinvigorated the classic Cold War espionage genre. Moscow Sting—with its clever, devious, conflicted characters; its tension and verisimilitude; and its complex but fully plausible plot—is every bit as good.

A thriller for your pick this week.

Kindle Free Pick of the Week: Taken

A quick, but thrilling read from Debra Lee.

From The Author:

Years ago a small child was taken from his home not far from where I live. The child was never found. His disappearance haunted me over the years, and still does. Hopefully someday I will know what happened to that little boy.

It breaks my heart every time I hear a news report about a missing child. So I suppose the disappearance of that little boy long ago and those heart breaking news stories is what drove me to write TAKEN.