DECEPTION Selected as Romantic Times Magazine's Historical Hero of the Year!

I'm very, very honored that Kier, the hero of Deception, has been selected as RT Book Reviews Magazine's K.I.S.S. Hero of the Year award winner!

This is an award given to the "knight in shining silver" hero in an historical romance, and I'm not only honored, I'm also surprised.  I truly didn't expect it.

First of all, Kier is a con man to the marrow of his bones.  Since he's been thirteen years old he's been scamming and scheming, at first by necessity, then because he's so very good at it.  And he doesn't stop just because our story begins--he's working the long con in Deception (as are several others), and nothing will stop him, not even the woman he used to love.

He's not typical hero material.

But then, Deception isn't a typical medieval romance.  It's more suspense-y, or thriller-y.  Less about knights and chases across the countryside, more about dirty money and corruption.

And so, the RT Magazine nod is a highly rewarding one.  I'm very grateful.   I'm sure Kier is too.  Confused, but grateful.  Sophia, I know, will be shaking her head, lifting her eyebrows gently at Kier, as if to say, "You fooled even them, you fool."

And as if they wanted to help celebrate, Amazon has DECEPTION on sale right now!  Print copies are almost 20% off.

Enjoy!

PRINT: http://www.amazon.com/Deception-Kris-Kennedy/dp/1439195919/
KINDLE: http://www.amazon.com/Deception-ebook/dp/B0061O0XCO/

The Minstrel in Disguise trick

One of my favorite parts of writing big, plotty stories is figuring out how the characters are going to circumvent the system or beat the odds to accomplish their goals.  

Often that means luring in the bad guy, escaping from an attack, or gaining access to a guarded castle.   

If you wanted to break into a guarded fortress, how would you do it?  

Sure you could send some poor soul to crawl up the privy chute, but can we all agree that's a last resort for this romance-novel invasion?  

How about the usual methods?  You could bribe someone, or maybe even seduce a door warden or a gardener or some other castle personage.   

Oh, but the time it would take.  The bribing, the seducing, the kissing, the convincing . . . .  

It'll never work.  You need in now. 

How about the minstrel disguise method?  Now we're onto something.  You just saunter up with your lute and juggling balls and offer to tell some tales, play some music, and share some news from far off places in exchange for room and board and a few coins.

Voila, we're in.

 Tricky.   Effective.  Like the ancient Trojan horse, your desires become the vehicle for your own demise.

Is there anything more romantic than that?  In a sad, tragic way.

Once inside, you could do any number of dastardly things: kidnapping: poisoning: spying: making a nice, juicy treasonous offer to the lord, one he'd never have listened to otherwise (at least not in public).  

Or you could just wander casually over to sally port door and open it, letting your armed comrades, who've been waiting in the woods outside, pour into the darkened castle and take it over.

Or you could do what Aodh Mac Con does CLAIMING HER.  He's not masquerading as a minstrel per sé.  And the heroine definitely does not open the gates out of any desire or greed, but rather a sense of honor and a lack of options.  

Still, it all unravels pretty quickly.   Good fun ensues.  

How about you?  How would you gain access to an enemy castle?  What tricks are up your sleeve?

(The image above is from http://digitalkey.biz/projects/siege-at-carrickfergus-castle/.  The site says: "
Siege! is a mobile app that uses interactive role play to bring the the 1315-16 Bruce Siege of Carrickfergus Castle to life. Produced in collaboration with NIEA, and funded by the Arts Council’s Creative Industries Innovations Fund,  the game uses interactive role play to explore Anglo-Norman military strategy and defensive architecture (see gallery). The app will contain atmospheric audio and video medieval re-enactments, and will use GPS to embed the game’s narrative in the grounds of Carrickfergus Castle to create an engaging and immersive learning experience.")

The Making of Medieval Manuscripts

Found a terrific, short video on how they used to make medieval manuscripts.  It's so much more compelling to see the steps in action, rather than simply read about the process. 

I love how they create the stunning gold using thin sheets of real gold, "gold leaf".  When you see a newly made manuscripts, using these ancient techniques, you realize how colorful the world must have been in the middle ages.  We've grown accustomed to seeing grey stone walls and faded tapestries, but in reality, the world was busting with color, in clothes, buildings, and the pages of their manuscripts.

Enjoy!

March Madness Blog Hop!

[Edited to add: Winners have been announced!  Congrats to Z and Shelly Hammond!]

  
March Madness is upon us.  Well, almost.

Close enough for women to know they're about to lose their husbands, boyfriends, brothers, uncles, nephews, and sometimes even male cats and dogs to the craze of college basketball finals.  Money, power, athletic competition, championships, and men in shorts: excitement all around, yes?

I admit, we're not big on basketball around here.   For some reason, it doesn't light the household fire.   We're more about baseball.  And hockey.   We also cheer for football (American) and soccer (also American, 'cause no one else calls it that but us). 

And while we're on the subject of sports for which we'd abandon our families, I'd appreciate more equestrian events--or actually, any equestrian events--but I'm not in charge of ESPN.   Weirdly.

Superhero Scramble LLC

 <-- Also, I would like more of this man.










Anyhow...when I lose the male members of my household to a sport, it's usually baseball and hockey.  Which have extremely long seasons.  Extremely.  Long.

Did I mention they're long seasons?

Fortunately, we have one TV, it sits in our family room-which-segues-into-our-kitchen, so we're pretty much all together for all of it anyhow.  I sit on the couch, they sit on the couch, friends sit on the couch.  We all occasionally leap to our feet (on the ground or sometimes onto the table or kitchen counter, depending).  

The only difference is, I have a book in my hand.  All the time.   I'm either reading someone else's or writing my own, hammering away at a manuscript while they're cheering away.  And we're all together.

(Another very small, probably indetectable difference, is that I might complain about sports rules and the possibility of head injury more often that they do.  Possibly.  Or not.  It's hard to say.)

Oh, and some of them experience occasional bouts of fears that I'm writing them into a book as I sit there typing.

Who, me?  "What?" I respond affectionately. "I write medievals  And believe me, you're no knight."

Although...I am branching out into contemporaries.  And with that, I make no promises.

So, what's it like for you?? 

Do you lose anyone in your family to special interests, hobbies, loves or obsessions?  Or maybe you and your partner share an obsession that takes you away from the rest of the world, together?

Two commentors get their pick of a signed print copy of any of these books from my backlist: THE IRISH WARRIOR, DEFIANT, or DECEPTION!  

 Sign up for my Book Release newsletter and double your chances to here on my blog!

"Like" my Facebook page (KrisKennedyBooks) and TRIPLE your chances!! 

Follow me on Twitter (@KrisKennedy) and yep, you guessed it--QUADRUPLE chance for my prizes.

Don't think you like medievals?  Sure you will!  Come check out the excerpts & see what you think.

And then, go check out all these awesome authors who I'm blogging with!  They're waiting to charm you.  And they're giving away prizes.
(Rules are below)

a Rafflecopter giveaway





RULES: Simply hop from blog to blog—the links are below—and “follow”, “Like”, “Friend” etc. the authors sites then leave a comment on their blog post. Each author is running their own giveaway as well as participating in the Rafflecopter Grand-Prize Giveaway of a Kindle Fire OR Nook Color, A $50 Amazon/B&N Gift Card, A $25 Amazon/B&N Gift Card, and 6 - $10 Amazon/B&N Gift Cards, as well as a “basket” of books. The event is live from March 5 – March 31st, 2013 to give you plenty of time to tour all the sites.

Rules: You must be 18 years or older as of 12:01AM March 5, 2013. No purchase Necessary. Avoid where prohibited. This event is open to worldwide participation (basket of books limited to US/Canada shipping address only)You are limited to one tweet, follow, like etc per day, however you can follow one blog, tweet about another, and like a 3rd's facebook page all on the same day. Be sure to follow the rules laid out by the individual authors about their respective giveaways, as they will vary form site to site. Rules and Terms are listed in the Rafflecopter. Grand-prizes will be announced on or about April 5th, 2013 on SnSreviews.blogspot.com <http://snsreviews.blogspot.com/> . While we will make every effort to contact you, it is ultimately the winner's responsibility to check winning status and claim their prize. Posted winners will have 5 days, from the date of post to contact host and claim their respective prize. If the posted winner fails to contact host, prize may be forfeited and awarded to another randomly drawn entrant and distributed without further notice.   

Machiavelli's Arrest Warrant

Okay, so here's this:

A British professor researching the history of town criers in Florence stumbled across the 500 year old arrest warrant for Machiavelli.  The actual document, the proclamation calling for his arrest.

Wow-y wow wow.   

He also found records of the payments made to the four horsemen "who scoured the streets of the Tuscan city for Machiavelli."

 Damn, that makes it all feel so scary and real to me. 

Real, because an actual person received that payment.  


These were real people living and dying and hunting each other down and fleeing.  They're not static historical figures, analyzed & figured out & frozen in images, flattened between the pages of a textbook.  

These were men who saddled up their horses that morning, men who needed that money, men who went home that night & maybe talked to their wives about their day, "Yeah, Giuliano wanted that guy, so we found him.  But...he looked scared. It's not going to go well for him." 

Scary, because I picture finding out about the arrest warrant.  Maybe you suspected it was coming, and this just is the awful thud of the other shoe dropping. 

Or maybe you thought you'd escaped the wrath of the d'Medici's.  Maybe. . .  maybe. . . .  No.  They didn't miss you, they didn't forget.  And now you're being hunted down by four professionals hired to bring you in. 

You have to know what's coming, right?   They don't want to have a conversation with you.  You were a high-ranking diplomat for the family that helped oust them, and now you're about to be brought low for it. 

Oh, and one of them is about to become Pope.

For me, this discovery brought this moment in history alive in a way its never been before. 

What about you??  When has a story--fictional or news--or an event or a conversation suddenly brought history alive?

Here's a link to the Telegraph article: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/9871527/Briton-finds-500-year-old-arrest-warrant-for-Machiavelli.html

The Elizabethan Novella-That-Isn't-A-Novella-Anymore

2012 was been a busy year, with (sadly) less writing than expected, and (joyously) better outcomes than feared in several situations.  On the whole, I let last year go feeling blessed.  And . . . wanting more.  Specifically, more writing.  Which means more stories for you!

   

I'm at work on several, including the ever-present CLAIMING HER.  It was going to be a novella, remember?   A simple, sexually charged historical novella, set in Ireland, 1588.  

Maybe 80, 100 pages long, right?

Um, no.  This story doesn't want to be 80 or 100 pages.  It doesn't want to be a novella.  I know; I've tried.

Three times now I've written to page 100, realized it wasn't even close to being done, then spent weeks chopping it down to size (a painful experience for me and a startling one for anyone within a half mile radius of my house, which is about how far I expect my voice carries when I'm cursing.)

And each time, I realized it doesn't work 'down to size.'  Something important gets lost.  

So it looks like I'm going to have to be patient as this story gets written, maybe even set it aside for a little while until I have the time to devote to it.


Be assured, though, the important things will not change: the Irish hero is still the conqueror, dangerously disreputable, sinfully handsome, and utterly intent on Katarina.  And Katarina, well, it doesn't look like she's going to be able to resist for very long.

And the Queen of England is not happy.  Not happy at all.

I'll keep you updated when its ready to release, and I'll also post a little taste now and then, just to keep you interested.  :)

Heartbreakers Blog Hop

[UPDATE: The winners of a print copy of one of my backlist books are K. April Holgate and Mary @ SweepingMe.  I'll be emailing the winners with instructions, and thanks to all for stopping by!  Remember, you can sign up for the newsletter to get book release news.] 

Today I'm part of Carrie Ryan's Heartbreaker's blog hop, where literally hundreds of romance authors and bloggers are talking about heartbreakers in their favorite romances.  You can go to EACH blog and comment with your email address and be entered to win.  Yep, you can enter over 200 times. 

And there are THREE grand prizes, plus the one I'm offering here: your choice of a signed print copy of any of my backlist books, all of them hot, sexy medieval adventures!

So start hopping, and have some fun! (Grand prizes listed below)

The Anti-Resumé 

Why are so many heartthrobs also heartbreakers?  

I think it's because when you throw your lot in with a confident, powerful man on a mission, you'd better be ready for the ride of your life.  Prepared or not, you have no choice but to throw yourself, heart and head, right over the cliff.   Be ready for anything.

But that doesn't make it a fun ride, right?  (Well, for us readers, yes, but the characters must suffer.  A lot.  In other words, heartbreak.)

The heroes in my historicals can be truly brutal in their heartbreaking potential.  I don't think these guys could actually ever land a job as a hero, if there were, you know, an application process somewhere.

I mean, with resumés like this, who would be crazy enough to trust any of these guys to save a desperate woman, a breaking heart, a barren life, a war-torn country?  I mean, who?

Oh, right.  Readers do.  :)


THE CONQUEROR

Hero: Griffyn 'Pagan' Sauvage

•  Sneaks into England to foment rebellion against a king;
•  Leaves a bedraggled woman at a muddy hut with Saxon villagers so he doesn't have to take her with him on his Super Secret Spy Mission.  After kissing her silly (Note: she catches up with him later);
•  Lies to the daughter of the enemy he's vowed to destroy.  Then takes things further than either of them ever meant to go.  In an abandoned fortress.  Leaves her the next day.  Oh, sure, he promises to come back.   But first there's a stint in prison, then a country to reclaim and castles to conquer...including hers....

The Irish Warrior

Hero: Finian O'Melaghlin

•  Plans inventive ways to kill a member of the English peerage (okay, yes, he was being held in chains in the man's prison...);
•  Flees across the Irish countryside with the English woman who helped him escape from prison--some might say "kidnapped" her.  Wait. Some DO say that.
•  Hesitates barely a second before indulging in overt sensual advances from the woman who saved him;
•  Shows no compunctions about having hot, reckless sex on their flight across a war-torn countryside, teaching the heroine things no proper Englishwoman should know;
• When it comes to a choice between his people and his woman, he...well, you’ll have to read.

Defiant

Hero: Jamie Lost

•  Favored lieutenant of King John of England.  Yes that King John.  What more do you need more on an anti-resumé?  But just in case;
•  Ruthlessly determined;
• Capable of disabling people who get in his way with minimum fuss and maximum effectiveness, violently or otherwise, such as when he;
•  Binds a woman in ropes and throws her on the back of his horse (true, it's to prevent her from lying or tricking him again.  Also, since she knows a lot more than she’s saying, she poses a grave threat to his mission, but still, he tied her up, so it goes on the anti-resume.  I don’t make the rules, I just follow them.  Oh.  Wait... )

Deception

Hero: Kier

•   Irish con man;
•   Former ‘piper’ for a powerful criminal lord, drawing in rich new partners to engage in dirty deals;
•   Stole money as a youth to impersonate a knight (Note: did exceptionally well in tournaments);
•   Falls head-over-heels in love with daughter of a corrupt judge who's on the take;
•   Abandons her;
•   Returns five years later to wreck revenge on the men who betrayed him;
•   Takes her into his schemes  (Note: Bad idea.)

So, tell me: if you were on the search committee, which anti-resumé above would tempt you the most?  And how much would you pay him?  (Kidding!)  :)

Any other romance heroes with anti-resumés you just can't resist?  
Spill.

Two commentors win their choice of one of the above print books (Sorry--US/Canada only.)

Sign up for my Book Release Newsletter (sent 1-2 x's/yr) 

 and double your chances to win!

(Please, please remember to leave your email addy in your comment.)

Oh, and about those GRAND PRIZES, given to 3 randomly selected commenters across the entire Heartbreakers blog hop?

• 1st Grand Prize: A Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet
• 2nd Grand Prize: A $100 Amazon or B&N Gift Card
• 3rd Grand Prize: A Swag Pack that contains paperbacks, ebooks, 50+ bookmarks, cover flats, magnets, pens, coffee cozies, and more!  (Sorry, swag pack is for US/Canada only)

Have fun hopping! (click to see other participants)