There is a big difference between "submitted" ABE purchase and "accepted". Did the bookseller accept the order, then subsequently decide to cancel it? The only way to accept the order is manually, so that would be unethical to do so then withdraw the item due to "unprecedented response".

If however ABE took your web order, but the bookseller never confirmed it, they are well within the standard practice of selling through multiple channels, and having one beat out another before they could handle the response.

For example, I just went back to my email archive for my last ABE purchase a week or two ago:

First email (order submitted) subject is "AbeBooks.com - Your order has been received"

Second email (seller confirmed the order) subject is "Abebooks Order Processed: Sales Order #xxxxxxx" where it says that the bookseller confirmed and acknowledged the order.

Did you ever get the second email? If so, I would file a complaint with AbeBooks.

No, I did not receive an order acceptance from the bookseller, which is why 5 days later I was already fearing that some such move by the bookseller before I received today's email from him.

I am curious to know how a reservation came to be placed on the book. Since ABE doesn't support reservations (so far as I can see), it would have to have been done privately. I can see no record of "A Spring Harvest" being offered on the Internet by David Southwell or Strawberry Hill Books prior to or even in conjunction with its listing on ABE, nor does SHB have its own Internet storefront or, so far as I can tell, a public shop. And besides, who would bother with a _reservation_ on a £35 book?

In any event, I probably have no recourse through ABE, but I shall needless to say be very careful to watch for any subsequent resale of this book on ABE, or mention of it elsewhere....

Carl

That is a real bummer. I've had similar experiences (but with eBay) several times, but different circumstances. Once, I was quite excited when I nabbed a Lord of the Rings 2-2-1 with dust jackets for Buy-it-Now $100, only to be told shortly after I paid that the listing was in error.

Stuff like this is always frustrating and disappointing...

Most likely someone contacted the seller with a better offer, but you will probably never know. Unfortunately these things do happen sometimes. Better luck next time.

I don't think I've ever bought a second hand book from ABE without using the "ask question" function first (--this would be how anyone would get into contact with a seller privately.) I assume(d) this is the norm for most buyers who want to double check, or clarify, details. This being the case, it's not hard to see how this book may have been bought (or "reserved") privately in this manner.

I understand, Carl, why you'd wonder about reserving a £35 book --why not just buy it? Who knows. But there is a pretty obvious reason why a buyer would initially contact a seller through ABE, but continue communication privately. For a start you can ask the seller to discount 13.5% (or whatever ABE's commission now is) from their ABE price...

BH