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Monday, September 22, 2014

Damaged Goods & Giveaway!

I've got a special highlight for you from a very special blogging buddy! You've seen her here before, but today she's sharing a special message and idea with you. Give her a warm welcome and read along. 


Hey everybody, my name is Kai Strand. I was unpacking books at a signing and came across a copy of King of Bad with a torn cover. Bummer. I can’t sell that! But my loss is your gain. Because I can hold a giveaway instead!

Along with a slightly damaged copy of King of Bad, I’m also giving away several sets of character trading cards. These cards have been specially designed for book one in the series. There will be a separate set of cards designed for each book – so be among the first to own a set.

About the book:

Jeff Mean would rather set fires than follow rules or observe curfew. He wears his bad boy image like a favorite old hoodie; that is until he learns he has superpowers and is recruited by Super Villain Academy – where you learn to be good at being bad. In a school where one kid can evaporate all the water from your body and the girl you hang around with can perform psychic sex in your head, bad takes on a whole new meaning. Jeff wonders if he’s bad enough for SVA.

He may never find out. Classmates vilify him when he develops good manners. Then he’s kidnapped by those closest to him and left to wonder who is good and who is bad. His rescue is the climactic episode that balances good and evil in the super world. The catalyst – the girl he’s crushing on. A girlfriend and balancing the Supers is good, right? Or is it…bad?

Available in print or electronic: Whiskey Creek Press, Amazon, Barnes and Noble 

Excerpt:

[Pyro] swung the door open with a flourish and indicated for Jeff to go inside. Jeff stepped into the doorway and stopped. They were in some sort of gymnasium. Kids ranging from about 12 to 18 years old were hard at work testing their athleticism in a freak show sort of way. A girl did chin-ups at twice the speed of a top Olympian. A boy ran across a high wire. The most beautiful girl Jeff had ever laid eyes on leaned against the wall across the room. Jeff tore his eyes from her when an oddly shaped ball soared over the heads of the kids. Two boys enjoyed a game of catch. At least Jeff thought the sneers on their faces indicated enjoyment. Suddenly a head popped out of the ball.
“Come on, you wimps, get further apart.”
Jeff’s stomach lurched when he realized the ball was a contorted girl.
In the far corner of the gym a couple of kids were involved in extreme wresting. Jeff watched one kid leap six feet off the ground and pile drive the other kid into the thick stack of mats. He thought they’d have a future in WWE if the super villain thing didn’t pan out for them. Jeff’s gaze wandered back to the beautiful redhead. She smiled at him and his stomach fluttered.
Pyro nudged Jeff into the gym and let the door close. “Each S.V. has at least one prominent ability. Most of us are faster and stronger than the average human, but there are a few that are faster or stronger than the average S.V. There are also those of us who have fire as well as those who have ice. You can usually find an S.V. with a complementary ability to yours.” Pyro pointed at a dark haired girl standing in the center of the room.
The girl had a large bucket in front of her. Her face was contorted with concentration, but Jeff couldn’t see anything happening. Then all at once a geyser of water burst toward the ceiling and it fell back down on the assemblage in a misty rain. The girl’s face broke into an exultant smile as the dripping kids groaned and grumbled around her.
“Wow, that’s really hard to do,” Pyro said, “break an element into so many little particles. She’ll have a headache later.”

Reviews:

I found myself falling in love with all the characters in the book. I loved the different abilities each one of them have. Kai did an outstanding job writing this book. I could not put it down. It is filled with lots of action and even some romance. Everything you want in a book. Victoria for Page Turners Blog

Can't wait for the sequel! – Christopher White for Amazon

About the author:

When her children were young and the electricity winked out, Kai Strand gathered her family around the fireplace and they told stories, one sentence at a time. Her boys were rather fond of the ending, “And then everybody died. The end.” Now an award winning children’s author, Kai crafts fiction for kids and teens to provide an escape hatch from their reality. With a selection of novels for young adult and middle grade readers and short stories for the younger ones, Kai entertains children of all ages, and their adults. Learn more about Kai and her books on her website, www.kaistrand.com.


a Rafflecopter giveaway
 photo Sheri2.png

16 comments:

  1. Her lose is someone else's gain. Congrats to Kai on her accomplishments.

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  2. Sounds like a fun story! Love the snippet! :)

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  3. Congrats to Kai! It sounds like a really different book. Not too many books about characters who'd rather be bad and we need more male main characters.

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  4. I'll be featuring this giveaway as well. :)

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  5. A charismatic pyro. Interesting leading guy! Congrats to Kai.

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  6. Thanks everybody! I love to take advantage of any ole excuse for a giveaway. And thank you, Sheri for hosting a stop on the tour and helping me spread the word.

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  7. Congratulations, Kai! I think it's really neat that you created character trading cards. :)

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  8. Congrads, Kai! Great review. Character trading cards are SO COOL!

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  9. Such a clever way to deal with damaged books!

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  10. Nice excerpt! Those characters do seem quite interesting!

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  11. I'll be featuring this giveaway on my blog later in the week. : )

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  12. Good luck to Kai, and a great idea for slightly damaged good. The story is still intact and that's what counts.

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  13. Congrats to Kai. I've read several of her books and would like to get to this one.

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!SPLAT Your Awesomeness! I'd love to hear from you!