Amazon, Target and Wal-Mart are looking to lure readers in by slashing yet-to-be-released titles by about $20. This battle has intrigued local book store owners who are trying to stock up on the cheap items and re-sell them for a profit.

When book buyers at the Boulder Book Store heard about the deals, they knew they had to act quickly.

"It's never really happened like this before," Arsen Kashkashian, from The Boulder Book Store, said.

After all, it is not everyday you can buy expensive books ($25-$35) for less than half their original price.

"From the publishers, a $35 book is going to cost us $18 or $19. So if Target or Amazon wants to sell it for $9, then maybe I can buy 20-30-40 copies for the store," Kashkashian said.

The plan was to sell the books for a little more than the retailers' discounted prices, so local book stores could make a bigger profit and cut down on costs.

"It would have lowered our cost by $500," Kashkashian said.

The Boulder Book Store was hoping to pass the savings on to its customers but when retailers caught wind of the idea, they decided to place a limit on the number of purchases one can make.

"I don't think they wanted to be the wholesaler," Kashkashian added.

The retailers limited book sales to: three from Amazon, two from Wal-Mart and five from Target.

The retailers are not making a profit by slashing their prices and they felt local book stores should not be able to make one too.

"They're looking to capture that piece of the market. But they're not willing to stand behind the price," Kashkashian said.

Even though they're not making a profit by selling the books, retailers say their promotions helped boost sales of other products.