If you act soon enough, that is.  Here's the dealio.  The four-part comic series Mass Effect: Redemption, is coming to the iPhone App Store for $0.99 a pop starting February 3 (that's Wednesday).  To commemorate the release of this comic that can be read and enjoyed on the iPhone and iPod Touch, Dark Horse and EA are giving away part one for free ON FEBRUARY 3 ONLY.  A day later and you'll have to pass a buck for it.  If you don't plan on getting it in physical form and are a Mass Effect lore junkie (and own one of the devices above), this is definitely an option.

Mass Effect: Redemption fills in some pieces of what happened between the two games, and provides a nice lead-in to Mass Effect 2, which I'm sure most people who are fans of the franchise are darn near done with by now.  The story in the comic follows Shepherd's exploits as s/he is separated from the Normandy crew, with only Liara T'Soni to help.  It takes place in the Terminus systems, the outer edge of known space, which is mostly where the events in Mass Effect 2 take place, as well.

If you're interested, definitely check out the iTunes App Store on Wednesday for your free copy of the first part of the comic.  Each subsequent part with cost you $0.99.