Spotlight Saturday: Guest Post and Giveaway with Larry Kahn, author of King of Paine

Hi, everyone!

Welcome to another edition of Spotlight Saturday at Darlene's Book Nook, where we feature authors and their books!

I am pleased to participate in Larry Kahn's King of Paine Virtual Book Publicity Tour. 

About Larry:

Larry Kahn, the author of The Jinx and King of Paine, successfully negotiated the fast-paced world of domestic and international mergers and acquisitions for twenty years, first at a major New York law firm and then at an Atlanta Fortune 500 company. He penned The Jinx while on sabbatical in 1999 and is now devoted to writing fiction full time. Many of his more cynical legal clients and associates have accused him of writing fiction full time for many years. He resides in Atlanta with his family.

Larry developed a keen interest in social issues while attending Yale Law School, an idealistic spirit that continues to spice his novels. The vision of a colorblind America in his political thriller The Jinx led to endorsements by leaders of the ACLU, National Urban League and Artists Against Racism. And as the Baby Boomer generation scatters about the country, King of Paine envisions a renewed emphasis on family and tradition in which Americans create for their venerable elders, and ultimately themselves, a peaceful place to die. 


Social Media Links:

 
Website and blog
Facebook fan page 
Goodreads author page
Twitter

Welcome to Darlene's Book Nook, Larry!

Larry has written a guest post, so I will now turn the floor over to him.

Guest Post by Larry Kahn:

 Rooting for a Flawed Protagonist

Readers love to root for their action heroes, so even when authors endow their main characters with flaws to add depth and realism, the "defects" are often designed to make you sympathize with the character more (like a job applicant who reluctantly admits to being a workaholic). The archetypes are familiar: the rogue cop whose street justice appeals to your inner vigilante; the down-on-his-luck drunk whose affliction masks a heart of gold; the naive rookie whose cute mistakes are endearing. But in my new suspense novel, King of Paine, Frank Paine did a bad, bad thing, making him a rarity in the thriller universe--a truly flawed protagonist. In today's post I'll discuss how I tried to meet the challenge of making him sympathetic.


Frank's about as far from the cliched law man as you can imagine, an ex-Hollywood stud with a kinky past, an irreverent jackass who failed the woman he loves. Your first instinct (and maybe the second, too) will be to dislike him. This early clip describes the newly-minted FBI agent's predicament: 

The thrill of imminent battle had kept Frank up most of the night, and the bedroom mirror reflected some puffiness under his baby blues as he knotted a red Hermés tie. His problem was clear. Millions of educated, respectable people dabbled in harmless kink, but no major entertainer, athlete, or politician had ever publicly admitted their sadomasochistic tendencies. And even if middle America and the Bureau brass could get past the kinky imagery, his exposure as the coward who let the woman he loved endure her public humiliation alone would be beyond redemption. He had spent three years, in therapy and out, trying to find a way to earn back his dignity, but if his shame became public, everything he cared about would be flushed down the crapper.

I didn't start out writing a book starring a cad. My original intent was to craft a sequel to my first novel, The Jinx, but my protagonist, a young lawyer (yes, a naive rookie who made endearing mistakes), fell flat as an FBI agent. I went for the Hollywood upgrade, and Frank Paine's history made the character motivations more authentic and freed me to explore more interesting (kinkier?) plot developments.


While Frank's history of womanizing and dabbling in BDSM is essential to the plot, I tried to paint him as a man in transition. Sometimes his instincts are consistent with his former lifestyle, but he's conscious of the better man he wants to be, drawing on his inner strength to quell those natural urges. Here's an example of how he reacts to an impure thought while interviewing an attractive victim:

Shaking his head to clear that vision, he carefully daubed the lipstick to conceal the graffiti. You’re possessed, Frankie Boy. If only he believed in a higher power, he could order up a goddamn exorcism. What was that, Step Seven, humbly ask God to remove our shortcomings? Unfortunately, the burden of rewiring his brain chemistry fell solely on him, not a miracle to be performed overnight but a process of playing it sweet until sweetness became his true nature. People could only judge his actions and spoken words, not the thoughts he kept locked in his head.

Hopefully, Frank will win you over not because he's a skilled actor who can conceal his flaws, but because he truly wants to change them. To him, the Bureau's motto--fidelity, bravery, integrity--represents ideals to which he aspires. He feels remorse for hurting the woman he loves, and you may find his perilous quest to earn back her love also redeems him in your heart, too. Here's a clip from one Goodreads reader who Frank won over:

Please don't let the sexual content of this novel scare you away because, for me, it only made up about 2% of the novel and only because it was necessary to provide a creative, unique plot with wonderful heroic, moral and ethical characters! Ultimately, the novel is about true love and what great lengths many GOOD MEN will go and how much they will risk to find and save their soul mates.

Who's your favorite flawed protagonist of all time, and how did he or she win you over? Leave a comment below and you can increase your chances of winning a new Kindle Touch 3G before the holidays! Click HERE to learn more.

Tomorrow the tour heads back to my website for "Getting Inside the Mind of a Madman," my interview with Frank Paine. We'll discuss how he outwitted the ruthless stalker who hunted him in King of Paine and other choice topics. I understand Frank is miffed about some of the literary choices I made, so the conversation may get heated. My Author of the Week Interview with Holly at Full Moon Bites on Monday promises to be more demure but no less interesting. I hope you'll join us.

Thanks so much for joining us today, Larry! 

Giveaway: 

Two lucky winners will receive a copy of King of Paine in your choice of either paperback or e-book format. 

This giveaway is open internationally!

TITLE: King of Paine

AUTHOR: Larry Kahn
PUBLISHER: North Atlanta Press
DATE OF PUBLICATION: July 21, 2011

FORMAT: Paperback, 364 pages

ISBN: 978-0983760122

SYNOPSIS:

A desperate patient. A rumored cure. How far would you go to find the fountain of youth?

King of Paine is a sexy, fast-paced suspense novel filled with characters who grapple with a range of intriguing end-of-life issues while everything they care about is at stake. The story follows two investigations, Special Agent Frank Paine's pursuit of a stalker committing a series of kinky Internet crimes and a reporter tracking the disappearance of wealthy senior citizens across the nation. Both paths lead to a hidden enclave where a brilliant biochemist harbors a deadly secret. Somebody is going to die there, and it may be Frank Paine's soulmate. Or him.

Buy Links:

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Smashwords

To enter the giveaway, you must complete the Rafflecopter entry form below.

This giveaway is open internationally, and it will close on Saturday, December 17th at 12:01 AM EST.

Thriller/suspense author Larry Kahn recently announced the King of Paine Kindle Giveaway Contest to celebrate the launch of his second novel. The contest will run through the end of the author's blog tour on December 21st.  No purchase is required, but you can improve your chances of winning a new Kindle Touch 3G and other prizes by helping Larry promote King of Paine as explained in the contest details on his website.


Eligibility: The drawing for the grand prize will be limited to residents of the US and Canada, but there are no restrictions on eligibility for other prizes. No Purchase Necessary.

Dates: All entries must be submitted on the official entry form by 11:59pm Eastern Time on December 21, 2011.

Selection of Winners: On December 22, 2011, the author will use an online random number generator to select  prize winners from among all valid entries. Prior to selection, each participant will be assigned one chance simply for entering the contest plus additional chances for helping to promote King of Paine as follows:

BUY a copy of King of Paine--25 chances for each copy.

REVIEW King of Paine and post it on any popular book website, your blog, or social media—10 chances for each site (up to 10 sites).

BLOG about King of Paine (including hosting a guest post or interview) and/or this contest and link to Larry's website—25 chances.

SHARE the contest announcement (or Larry's King of Paine post) on Facebook and Twitter--10 chances each.

ASK a question on Larry's Goodreads Q&A--10 chances.

COMMENT about King of Paine on Larry's website or a blog on the King of Paine Blog Tour—5 chances for each blog (one comment per blog).

JOIN Larry's website using Google Friend Connect--5 chances.

SUBSCRIBE to Larry's newsletter--5 chances.

LIKE/FOLLOW Larry on social media—5 chances each.

Tour Schedule

12/1   What Book Is That?: Review & Snowed in with Indie Authors December Giveaway Festival

12/2   From the TBR File: Book Giveaway & Review

12/3   Live To Read: Guest Post "Researching An FBI Story"

12/4   The Write To Make A Living: Review, Book Giveaway & Guest Post "Writing Thought-Provoking Suspense: Social Themes"

12/5   Thoughts In Progress: Guest Post "Who Are You Chatting With? The Dangers of Anonymous Internet Communications"

12/6   Boekie's Book Reviews: Review & Author Interview

              Owl Tell You About It: Review

12/7    Owl Tell You About It: Guest Post "Researching the Psychology of BDSM"

12/8    All the days of: Book Giveaway & Guest Post "Crafting Intricate Plots: My Writing Process"

12/9    The Top Shelf: Review & Author Interview

12/10  Darlene's Book Nook: Book Giveaway & Guest Post "Rooting for a Flawed Protagonist"

12/11  Larry Kahn: Interview with Frank Paine, "Getting Inside The Mind Of A Madman"

12/12  Full Moon Bites: Book Giveaway & Author of the Week Interview

12/13  The Book Diva's Reads: Review & Guest Post "Buried Treasures: Treats for the Watchful Reader"

12/14  Alive On The Shelves: Guest Post "When Eye Candy Fights Back: Adding Depth To a Love Interest"

12/15  The Enchanted Book: Review & Guest Post "What Can You Expect From A 99-Cent E-Book? "

12/16  Opinions of  a Wolf: Book Giveaway & Review

12/17  Black Diamond's Book Reviews: Book Giveaway & Review

12/18  Thoughts In Progress: Review

12/19  CMash Loves to Read: Book Giveaway & Guest Post "My Inspiration For King of Paine"

12/20  Goodreads: Live Q&A With Larry Kahn

12/21  Purple Jelly Bean Chair Reviews: Review, Author Interview & Book Giveaway