I found out HERE at Ripoff Report that it is because they are an international company and the fees are because banks charge for that.

On a separate note: I also found out after having all my AMEX charges declined that they use obscure international payment processors. Do you know what kind of security risks that exposes you to? Most banks now block these kind of international charges because of the outrageous amount of fraud liability. But Abebooks does this anyway and does not warn you that they do. On the surface they look like a domestic seller but they are not.

This is a scam company if there every was one. I feel sorry for the decent booksellers using Abebooks.

Do not shop here unless you like being overcharged and do not mind being exposed to identity theft and fraud charges on your credit cards.