'Our American Friend' Sweepstakes Rules

Official rules of the 'Our American Friend' giveaway.

Our American Friend, a political thriller book by Anna Pitoniak

 Giveaway Official Rules

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE DOES NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.

These Giveaway Official Rules consist of the Sweepstakes-Specific Terms applicable to the specific Sweepstakes you are entering, and the general terms, each as set forth below. Please read these Giveaway Official Rules (the “Rules”) before entering any giveaway (each, a “Sweepstakes”). You agree that, by submitting an entry, you will be bound by these Official Rules and you acknowledge that you satisfy all Sweepstakes eligibility requirements.

Sweepstakes-Specific Terms:

SWEEPSTAKES NAME: Murder & Mayhem and Simon and Schuster’s Giveaway of Anna Pitoniak’s New Political Thriller Our American Friend

SPONSOR: Open Road Integrated Media, Inc., 180 Maiden Lane, Suite 8A, New York, NY 10038; Simon & Schuster, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY, 10020

HOW TO ENTER: Enter your email address by February 21, 2022, at 11:59:59 pm ET.   Entrants who also sign up for The Reader newsletter will receive two entries in the sweepstakes

SELECTION AND NOTIFICATION OF WINNER: The potential winner will be selected by a random drawing from all the eligible entries received on or about February 22, 2022. Odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries received.

PRIZE: Ten (10) winners will receive one (1) each of:

  • Our American Friend by Anna Pitoniak

PRIZES SUPPLIED BY: Simon & Schuster

APPROXIMATE RETAIL VALUE OF GRAND PRIZE: $27.99

General Terms

By entering the Sweepstakes, each entrant fully and unconditionally agrees to be bound by these rules and by the decisions of the Sponsor, which will be final and binding in all matters relating to the Sweepstakes.  Entrants who do not comply with these Official Rules, or who attempt to interfere with this Sweepstakes in any way, shall be disqualified.

1.            ELIGIBILITY.

a.    The Sweepstakes is open to all legal residents of the 50 United States and Washington, DC, (together, the “Eligible Jurisdictions”) who are 18 years of age or older at the time of entry, except that if the total approximate retail value of all prizes in the Sweepstakes exceeds $500.00, individual legal residents of Rhode Island will not be eligible to enter. Employees, officers and directors of Sponsor and its parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, partners, advertising and promotion agencies, manufacturers or distributors of Sweepstakes materials and their immediate families (parents, children, siblings, spouse) or members of the same household (whether related or not) of such employees/officers/directors are not eligible to enter. Offer void outside the Eligible Jurisdictions and wherever prohibited, taxed or restricted by law. All federal, state, provincial and local laws and regulations apply.

b.    By submitting an entry via email, each entrant is automatically subscribed to Sponsor's email list, and may also be added to the email lists of Sponsor’s third party partners who are participating in the giveaway and with whom Sponsor has agreed to share email addresses. Entrant may unsubscribe from Sponsor’s email list at any time by clicking on the “Unsubscribe” button at the bottom of such emails or by emailing the sender and requesting to be removed from the list.

c.    Each entrant in the Sweepstakes must be the rightful owner or have authorized use of the email account indicated by the entrant’s email address. In the event of a dispute concerning the identity of entrant, entry will be declared made by the authorized account holder of the email address submitted at time of entry. “Authorized Account Holder” is defined as the natural person who is assigned an email address by an Internet access provider, online service provider, or other organization (e.g., business, educational, institution, etc.) responsible for assigning email addresses for the domain associated with the submitted email address. Any potential winner may be requested to provide Sponsor with proof that such winner is the authorized account holder of the email address associated with the winning entry.

d.    Limit two (2) entries per person/household and per email address, for each Sweepstakes. No automated entry devices and/or programs permitted. All entries become the sole and exclusive property of the Sponsor and receipt of entries will not be acknowledged or returned. Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, illegible, stolen, incomplete, invalid, unintelligible, misdirected, technically corrupted or garbled entries, which will be disqualified, or for problems of any kind whether mechanical, human or electronic. Only fully completed entry forms are eligible. Proof of submission will not be deemed to be proof of receipt by Sponsor.

2.    PRIZES.

a.    Unless specified otherwise in the Sweepstakes-Specific Terms, potential winner(s) will be selected by random drawing from among all eligible entries received. Odds of winning depend on the number eligible entries received.

b.    Each prize will be awarded "AS IS" and WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, express or implied (including, without limitation, any implied warranty of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose). By participating, each entrant agrees to be bound by these Official Rules and the results of the random selection of the winner(s), which shall be final, and waives any right to claim ambiguity in the Sweepstakes and/or these Official Rules. If winner cannot be contacted within three (3) calendar days of first notification attempt, if prize or prize notification is returned as undeliverable, if potential winner rejects his/her prize, or in the event of noncompliance with these Sweepstakes rules and requirements, such prize will be forfeited and an alternate winner will be selected from all remaining eligible entries. Upon prize forfeiture, no compensation will be given. Prize is non-transferrable and cannot be sold or redeemed for cash. In the case of unavailability of prize, Sponsor reserves the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater value.

c.    After the Sweepstakes end date, Sponsor will notify each potential winner via direct message to the social account associated with the potential winner’s entry, and the potential winner must claim the prize within seventy-two (72) hours. An alternative potential winner may be selected if any potential winner does not claim the prize within seventy-two (72) hours of notification.

d.    If due to a printing, production or other error, more prizes are claimed than are intended to be awarded, the intended prize will be awarded in a random drawing from among all verified and validated prize claims received. In no event will more than the stated number of prizes be awarded.

e.    All federal, state, provincial and local tax liabilities and unspecified expenses arising from this Sweepstakes will be the sole responsibility of the winner. Winners will be responsible for providing or confirming a valid U.S. shipping address prior to their prize being shipped. Each winner may be required to submit his/her social security number or tax payer ID to Sponsor in order to claim a prize. If a winner does not provide his/her social security number or tax payer ID as requested, the winner will no longer be eligible to receive the prize and the prize will be forfeited and returned to Sponsor.

f.      Acceptance of prize constitutes permission to use the winner’s name, likeness, picture, portrait, voice, biography, address (city and state/province), statements and prize won for purposes of advertising, promotion, and publicity without additional notice or compensation, except where prohibited and/or restricted by law.

3.            INDEMNIFICATION. Each entrant shall release, discharge, and hold harmless Sponsor and its parents, affiliates, subsidiaries, successors, assigns, attorneys, representatives and agents, including without limitation advertising, promotion and fulfillment agencies, prize providers, suppliers, employees, officers and directors (collectively, the “Sweepstakes Entities”) from any and all liabilities, loss, harm, injury, cost, expense, and damages arising from the administration of the Sweepstakes, entrant’s participation in the Sweepstakes (including without limitation travel to any Sweepstakes-related activity) and/or the use or misuse of any prize received in this Sweepstakes, including, without limitation, the following: (i) late, lost, incomplete, delayed, misdirected, technically corrupted or unintelligible entries, (ii) any printing, typographical, administrative or technological errors in any materials associated with the Sweepstakes, (iii) any damage to the entrant’s computer, related equipment, data files, or software resulting from the entrant’s downloading of information regarding the Sweepstakes or participation in the Sweepstakes, (iv) any problems or technical malfunction of any telephone network or lines, computer online systems, servers, or providers, computer equipment, software, failure of any e-mail or other electronic communication or entry to be received by Sponsor on account of technical problems or traffic congestion on the Internet or at any web site, any combination thereof, or otherwise, including any injury or damage to entrant’s or any other person’s computer, website, blog site, or other Internet or computer site related to or resulting from participation or downloading any materials in connection with the Sweepstakes; (v) unauthorized human intervention, traffic congestion, incomplete or inaccurate capture of entry information (regardless of cause) or failed, incomplete, garbled, jumbled or delayed computer transmissions which may limit one’s ability to enter the Sweepstakes; (vi) property damage, personal injury and/or death; and (vii) any claims based on publicity rights, defamation or invasion of privacy and merchandise delivery.

4.            SPONSOR RESPONSIBILITY. Sponsor is not responsible if Sweepstakes cannot take place or if the prize cannot be awarded due to cancellations, delays or interruptions due to acts of God, acts of war, natural disasters, weather or acts of terrorism. Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to modify, cancel, extend or suspend this Sweepstakes should a virus, bug, computer problem, non-authorized human intervention, fraud or other causes beyond Sponsor’s control corrupt the administration, security or proper operation of the Sweepstakes. In such case, Sponsor may select the winner(s) from all eligible entries received prior to and/or after (if appropriate) the action taken by Sponsor. Sponsor may prohibit an entrant from participating in the Sweepstakes or winning a prize if, in its sole discretion, it determines that entrant is attempting to undermine the legitimate operation of the Sweepstakes by cheating, hacking or employing other unfair practices or by abusing other entrants or the representatives of Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right to modify or cancel a Sweepstakes at any time.

5.            DISCLAIMER.

a.            ANY ATTEMPT BY AN ENTRANT TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE ANY WEBSITE ASSOCIATED WITH THE SWEEPSTAKES OR UNDERMINE THE OPERATION OF THE SWEEPSTAKES MAY BE IN VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS, AND, IN SUCH EVENT, SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO PURSUE ITS REMEDIES AND DAMAGES (INCLUDING COSTS AND ATTORNEY’S FEES) TO THE FULLEST EXTENT OF THE LAW.

b.            EACH SWEEPSTAKES IS GOVERNED BY THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES. BY ENTERING A SWEEPSTAKES, EACH ENTRANT AGREES (FOR ITSELF AND ITS HEIRS) THAT SPONSOR, ALONG WITH ITS AFFILIATES AND AGENTS, ANY ENTITY INVOLVED IN ANY ASPECT OF THE SWEEPSTAKES (COLLECTIVELY, THE "RELEASED PARTIES") WILL HAVE NO LIABILITY, AND WILL BE HELD HARMLESS FROM AND AGAINST LIABILITY, LOSS, INJURY OR DAMAGE TO PROPERTY OR PERSON, INCLUDING DEATH, AND REASONABLE ATTORNEY'S FEES AND COURT COSTS, DUE IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, BY REASON OF THE ACCEPTANCE, POSSESSION, USE OR MISUSE OF A PRIZE OR PARTICIPATION IN THE SWEEPSTAKES, EVEN IF CAUSED OR CONTRIBUTED TO BY THE NEGLIGENCE OF ANY OF THE RELEASED PARTIES.

c.            IN NO EVENT WILL THE SWEEPSTAKES ENTITIES OR RELEASED PARTIES BE RESPONSIBLE OR LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OR LOSSES OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF ENTRANT’S ACCESS TO AND USE OF SPONSOR’S WEBSITE AND/OR THE SWEEPSTAKES, OR DOWNLOADING FROM AND/OR PRINTING MATERIAL DOWNLOADED FROM ANY WEBSITES ASSOCIATED WITH THE SWEEPSTAKES. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, THIS SWEEPSTAKES AND ALL PRIZES ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGEMENT.

6.            CHOICE OF LAW AND VENUE. Any dispute arising from the Sweepstakes will be determined according to the laws of the State of New York, without reference to its conflict of laws principles, and the entrants consent to the personal jurisdiction of the State and Federal Courts located in the State and County of New York and agree that such courts have exclusive jurisdiction over all such dispute.

7.            USE OF DATA: 

Sponsor will be collecting personal data about entrants online, in accordance with its privacy policy. Please review the Sponsor’s privacy policy at http://www.openroadmedia.com/privacy-policy/. By participating in the Sweepstakes, entrants hereby agree to Sponsor’s collection and usage of their personal information and acknowledge that they have read and accepted Sponsor’s privacy policy.

8.            LIST OF WINNERS: To obtain the winner’s name, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Open Road Integrated Media, Inc., 180 Maiden Lane, Suite 8A, New York, NY 10038, within sixty (60) days of expiration of the relevant Sweepstakes entry period. For a copy of these Official Rules, send a legal-size, self-addressed, stamped envelope to the same address, prior to the end of the relevant Sweepstakes entry period. Include a letter specifying the nature of your request, including the Sweepstakes name for which the information is being requested.

If you have any problems entering this Sweepstakes or have questions about this Sweepstakes, please e-mail editors@murder-mayhem.com.

Last updated: [2/11/2022]