The Ankh-Morpork Archives: Volume Two

[RathDarkblade]

So ... about 6 weeks ago, my big sis ordered this from Book Depository for my birthday. (What a lucky guy I am to have such a generous big sis). The publication date was 29 October, which means -- according to BD's shipping policy -- that it should take between 15 and 25 days to arrive in Australia, so it should've arrived between the 13th and the 23rd of November.

Unfortunately, BD told my sis that the delivery was delayed because of some wrangling with the publishers. I'm not sure what happened, but the upshot is that my book hasn't been sent yet, even now, nearly 3 weeks after publication. BD told her they'll send the book as soon as they have it -- but it's available on their website, so they must have it.

Does anyone know what's happened?

 

[Who's Wee Dug]

So ... about 6 weeks ago, my big sis ordered this from Book Depository for my birthday. (What a lucky guy I am to have such a generous big sis). The publication date was 29 October, which means -- according to BD's shipping policy -- that it should take between 15 and 25 days to arrive in Australia, so it should've arrived between the 13th and the 23rd of November.

Unfortunately, BD told my sis that the delivery was delayed because of some wrangling with the publishers. I'm not sure what happened, but the upshot is that my book hasn't been sent yet, even now, nearly 3 weeks after publication. BD told her they'll send the book as soon as they have it -- but it's available on their website, so they must have it.

Does anyone know what's happened?

BD is owned by Amazon have you checked on there for price and delivery if its good cancel and reorder.

 

[RathDarkblade]

Haven't checked on Amazon, no. But my sis had already ordered from BD, so it's up to her.

I'm just wondering what's going on with BD -- I've never seen this sort of behaviour from them. *worried* Is what they're saying true? Was there a problem with the publisher (in this case, Orion Publishing Co.)? If so, what's the problem? I'm confused.

 

[=Tamar]

Technically, you still have until Nov 23rd. Today is only Nov 15th.

 

[Who's Wee Dug]

Get your sis to check ,they have stock in Amazon Au. if not dispatched yet she can still cancel.

 

[Molokov]

... as an aside, I always recommend sites like Booko (booko.com.au for the AU version) which allows you to compare prices across a number of online stores. Usually Book Depository is the cheapest, however. For Australia, I've also had good luck with Booktopia. Avoid Wordery - I had some items on pre-order. One got cancelled, the other didn't ship until weeks after the publication date... broken promises all round, I think.
Fishpond are another store which don't actually keep anything in stock, they just order it from overseas suppliers when you order it from them, which obviously means big delays at the moment.

 

[RathDarkblade]

Hmm. Thanks, all!

Molokov, I've ordered from Booktopia before but decided not to this time. The cost of the book there is cheaper than Book Depository, but they add on a P&H cost of $7.95, which makes the overall cost more expensive.

I haven't tried Wordery or Fishpond yet. Now I know where not to go. Thanks!

Never heard of Booko. Is it possible to order anything through there, or are they just a comparison website?

AbeBooks are also worth a shot. They are generally cheaper than Book Depository, but since you're ordering direct from a book shop (rather than through some big conglomerate like Amazon), it can take a little longer. But they're good for hard-to-find books, and it's possible to pick up some bargains.

 

[Molokov]

Booko are just a comparison website.

AbeBooks, like Book Depository, are owned by Amazon as well. They used to specialise in used/second-hand books, but I think they've branched out into new books too.

 

[RathDarkblade]

Hmm. If AbeBooks is owned by Amazon, why does it take so much longer to deliver than Book Depository (and cause extra headaches)? I ordered one book from there that took 7 months to arrive. (!!!)

Usually it's reasonable, but it's that one that made me look like this

 

[Molokov]

Amazon is a massive company and owns many sub-companies, as well as Amazon branded businesses (such as AWS - Amazon Web Services). I'm sure Book Depository and AbeBooks operate independently from Amazon.com and they may or may not share warehouses, so who knows how the stocking and shipping work?

I ended up reordering the Ankh-Morpork Archives Vol 2 from Book Depository (they got as cheap as they were before... and yeah, I know I should have picked a different supplier, but...) and this time it's actually shipped, so will hopefully arrive in the next six weeks...

 

[=Tamar]

As far as I know. abebooks is not a supplier but a sort of network hub.
Like an flea market or antiques warehouse that rents booth spaces to different people and gets a cut of the take.
Individual booksellers use their site and pay a percentage for the use of it, but books bought through them are sent by the individual booksellers. Hence, spotty service because different people for each book.

 

[RathDarkblade]

I ended up reordering the Ankh-Morpork Archives Vol 2 from Book Depository (they got as cheap as they were before... and yeah, I know I should have picked a different supplier, but...) and this time it's actually shipped, so will hopefully arrive in the next six weeks...

BD deliver to Australia within 15-25 business days. That usually equates to about 4 calendar weeks, so hopefully you should get it earlier than 6 weeks, Molokov.

 

[RathDarkblade]

Huzzah!! =D The book finally arrived today, about 2 months after I ordered it!

Can't wait to read it ...

 

[Molokov]

Wow, big delay... mine arrived last week, a little over 2 weeks after it had shipped (mind you, it was the *second* time I'd placed the order...)

 

[RathDarkblade]

Not sure about the delay. I ordered it just before my birthday (start of October), but it wasn't published until 29 October. Then there was a slight delay (a week, I think?) because they couldn't source it from the usual publisher and had to go somewhere else.

 

[HighlandRoy]

Has all the material from the diaries been collected now, or is there anything left for a potential Volume 3?

 

[Molokov]

The remaining diaries (Witches, Igors) were only published in 2015/2016 so I suspect they are considered too "new" to be archived just yet. Plus neither are really Ankh-Morpork (and it was a stretch for Lu-Tze's diary to be considered A-M too).

 

[RathDarkblade]

Let's see -- from wiki, the diaries are:

Unseen University Diary 1998
Ankh-Morpork City Watch Diary 1999
Assassins' Guild Yearbook and Diary 2000
Fools' Guild Yearbook and Diary 2001
Thieves' Guild Yearbook and Diary 2002
(Reformed) Vampyre's Diary 2003
Ankh-Morpork Post Office Handbook Diary 2007
Lu Tze's Yearbook of Enlightenment 2008
2015 Discworld Diary. First & Last Aid. We R Igors
2016 Discworld Diary: A Practical Manual for the Modern Witch (2015)
The Terry Pratchett Diary. Terry Pratchett & Friends (2016)

Now then:

1. Archives Vol. 1 featured UU, Assassins' Guild, Thieves' Guild and Post Office.
2. Archives Vol. 2 featured City Watch, Reformed Vampires, Lu Tze and Fools' Guild.

By process of elimination, the only things left are "We R Igors", "Manual for the Modern Witch", and "Terry Pratchett and Friends". I've read the first two and wasn't too impressed; not sure about the last one, sorry.

(Whoops! Didn't see your post there, Molokov).

 

[raisindot]

I ordered the AM Archives Volume 1 back in November from Amazon US. Shipping has been constantly delayed and now they're saying it probably won't arrive until April or later.

Conversely, I ordered the AM Archives Volume 2 two weeks ago and got it yesterday.

Dontgettit.

 

[RathDarkblade]

Did Amazon give any reason for the constant delays? That's bizarre, raisin.