F+W Media bookstore FAILED ME

I ordered 4 books from the HOW bookstore on Nov. 25th, 2008 and paid a little extra for international first class shipping (4-8 business days) , having in mind that it could take a bit longer since it was an international order after all.

I checked the status of my order on the website and since it wasn't available I called customer service. They told me it was shipped later than it was supposed to(according to the website, up to 72 hours MAX) and they also told me to wait until friday December 19th to see if I get them.

Up until now I still haven't gotten my order and it's been almost a month. I called customer service again only to be told to keep waiting. They also told me they did not have any way of tracking my order!!! (Which I think it's weird since even EMS has a tracking method). Of course I get no refund and no books....

Even though F+W publication's customer service for their magazines (I read HOW design magazine) is superb, their bookstore service is a complete mess!!

Please have in mind my experience when visiting their bookstore site!!

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I am having almost a carbon copy experience except for the fact that I live in Oklahoma. 3 books were ordered 12/13, which was "guaranteed delivery in time for Christmas." The order never came. I called customer service who said they were upgrading their systems and the order had not been processed. She (Mary) assured me that she will process the order and fedex overnight to me. She asked me for my mailing address, which I found odd sine I included this in my order info. This conversation was about 3 days ago. Guess what? I call Mary today. The order was not shipped for some unknown reason. I asked for a refund. She said she will overnight the books to me at no charge and that the cost of the books would be free as well. Im not holding my breath but I am watching my bank account very closely. At this point I decide to check their BBB file and find (surprise!) an "Unsatisfactory" rating. Hindsight is definately 20/20.

***other pertanant info: The package had not arrived by 12/23 so I e-mailed them to request tracking info, but my e-mail was rejected because their e-mail address is invalid (mind you their e-mail was a clickable link).

Since their e-mail was invalid i used their "contact us" page, also on 12/23. I have yet to get a response.

When I gave "Mary" my order info she was unable to locate the order. After insisting she take the actual order number, she had to search on someones desk for a printout of the order.

****update*** yesterday I recieved the books. they were sent to the wrong address, and my account was charged the full price. I am now disputing the charge with the bank and escalating this to the BBB.