Photo Credit: Sasha Ledney Photography
Critically-acclaimed young adult author Kristen Simmons has worked with survivors of abuse and trauma as a mental health therapist, taught Jazzercise in five states, and is forever in search of the next best cupcake. Currently she lives in Cincinnati, Ohio with her husband, where she spends her days supporting the caffeine industry and chasing her son.
Publisher : Tor Teen (February 2, 2021)
Language: : English
Hardcover : 352 pages
ISBN-10 : 1250175879
ISBN-13 : 978-1250175878
Praise for THE DECEIVERS
"Brilliantly plotted, tightly paced, and intensely smart. The Deceivers is the perfect con, full of clever characters, untrustworthy romance, and lie after lie after lie, with just enough truth tossed in to make you question everything. Kristen Simmons is a deceptive genius. I could not devour this book fast enough." —Stephanie Garber, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Caraval
“Beneath its quick and clever dialogue, The Deceivers examines the moral grey area between good and evil. Lying has never seemed so much fun." —Katharine McGee, New York Times bestselling author of the Thousandth Floor Trilogy
"Masterful, suspenseful, and brilliantly executed, The Deceivers is the perfect con. Kristen Simmons is an outstanding storyteller, and this is her best yet." —Amie Kaufman, New York Times bestselling author of Illuminae and These Broken Stars
"Addictive and delicious, The Deceivers will keep you turning the pages well into the night!" —Katie McGarry, critically acclaimed author of Pushing the Limits
"Brynn is a sharp, analytical thinker with a soft heart - the exact kind of protagonist I love rooting for, especially as villains and heroes creep out from places I don't expect...Even the prerequisite romance was a pleasant surprise as Brynn and her love interest show complete respect for one another, giving enthusiastic consent the front seat it absolutely deserves and yet feels underrepresented in young adult literature. I devoured this book in one big gulp because I couldn't wait to see what twists and turns were ahead." —Kelly Morton, Joseph-Beth Booksellers
"Brilliantly plotted, tightly paced, and intensely smart. The Deceivers is the perfect con, full of clever characters, untrustworthy romance, and lie after lie after lie, with just enough truth tossed in to make you question everything. Kristen Simmons is a deceptive genius. I could not devour this book fast enough." —Stephanie Garber, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Caraval
“Beneath its quick and clever dialogue, The Deceivers examines the moral grey area between good and evil. Lying has never seemed so much fun." —Katharine McGee, New York Times bestselling author of the Thousandth Floor Trilogy
"Masterful, suspenseful, and brilliantly executed, The Deceivers is the perfect con. Kristen Simmons is an outstanding storyteller, and this is her best yet." —Amie Kaufman, New York Times bestselling author of Illuminae and These Broken Stars
"Addictive and delicious, The Deceivers will keep you turning the pages well into the night!" —Katie McGarry, critically acclaimed author of Pushing the Limits
"Brynn is a sharp, analytical thinker with a soft heart - the exact kind of protagonist I love rooting for, especially as villains and heroes creep out from places I don't expect...Even the prerequisite romance was a pleasant surprise as Brynn and her love interest show complete respect for one another, giving enthusiastic consent the front seat it absolutely deserves and yet feels underrepresented in young adult literature. I devoured this book in one big gulp because I couldn't wait to see what twists and turns were ahead." —Kelly Morton, Joseph-Beth Booksellers
“The Deceivers is a perfectly paced, high stakes read that is honestly super fun for the reader. Don't plan on putting it down in the middle to do other things, you'll want to keep reading. Simmons has outdone herself with this incredible new story about con artists and a girl trying to find her own path.” —Rachel Strolle, Teen Librarian, Glenside Public Library District
TEN WAYS YOU GET INSPIRED TO WRITE
- Reading!
- Reading what I wrote in the session before (this is always a good warm up for me).
- Exercise (walking, dancing, jazzercise!).
- Baking (when I’m stuck this is what I always end up doing).
- Calling my critique partner to discuss the scene in about to work on.
- Character work - getting to know who I’m writing better through worksheets, etc.
- Music - finding a theme for the book always gets me in the right frame of mind.
- Setting a timer - when I’m procrastinating it helps to do a writing sprint.
- Watching TV - so much inspiration is drawn from shows. You see what you like and what you don’t!
- Reminding myself I can do this! Sometimes the pep talk is necessary!
PAYBACK BY KRISTEN SIMMONS EXCERPT - CHAPER ONE PART THREE
In the center of the room below, two men, already shirtless and bloodied, face off with bare knuckles. One has a tattoo across his back of a coiled rattlesnake. The other is a head taller, with a forehead the size of a three- car garage. Their makeshift ring is marked by orange traf- fic cones and rope, and behind the rows of jeering fans, cardboard boxes marked with NightStar’s logo have been shoved against a conveyer belt. Snake Tattoo strikes, and Henry’s eyes widen as a spray of crimson erupts from Forehead’s nose “I’m positive there are at least five health code viola- tions happening right now,” he says.
My chin lifts toward the opposite side of the catwalk, where a group of guys hover near the railing. Two of them are muscle, meant only to guard the bookie—a bald bowling-ball of a man dressed in black, sucking on the end of a toothpick. The rest are pointing at the fight below. On the fringe, a guy in a red baseball cap chews his thumbnail.
“Hello, James,” I say under my breath.
James Rolo—at least that’s the name he gives the bookie when he places his bets—has been here three times in the last year. In between, he’s made a killing at the Brick Barrel in Amelia, and the Tulane Auto Parts Factory in Sycamore Township—big street-fighting venues on the south side.
James always wins. It was just a matter of time before someone figured out how.
Below, the fighter with the snake tattoo is pummeling Forehead into the dirty cement. It’s a knockout match. No fouls. No refs. The fans on the catwalk are cheering, fists in the air. They’ve got big money riding on this. Last I heard, the minimum bet was five large.
“Ready?” I ask.
Time’s ticking. I can feel the rush in my blood, urging us to hurry.
“I was born ready,” Henry says, then gives a small fist pump. “I’ve always wanted to say that.”
We make our way around the far side of the catwalk, pushing through the small clusters of people watching the fight below. As we approach James, I feel an old swag- ger fill my veins. My hips sway. My mouth curves into a grin.
A few feet away from James, we stop, and I lean over the railing.
“You’re right,” I shout to Henry over the noise. “You can see better over here!”
It’s not a lie. On this side, each bead of sweat on Fore- head’s brow is visible, and the crack and slap of skin on skin echoes off the floor.
I pull back, and do a double take when James’s gaze darts away.
In the center of the room below, two men, already shirtless and bloodied, face off with bare knuckles. One has a tattoo across his back of a coiled rattlesnake. The other is a head taller, with a forehead the size of a three- car garage. Their makeshift ring is marked by orange traf- fic cones and rope, and behind the rows of jeering fans, cardboard boxes marked with NightStar’s logo have been shoved against a conveyer belt. Snake Tattoo strikes, and Henry’s eyes widen as a spray of crimson erupts from Forehead’s nose “I’m positive there are at least five health code viola- tions happening right now,” he says.
My chin lifts toward the opposite side of the catwalk, where a group of guys hover near the railing. Two of them are muscle, meant only to guard the bookie—a bald bowling-ball of a man dressed in black, sucking on the end of a toothpick. The rest are pointing at the fight below. On the fringe, a guy in a red baseball cap chews his thumbnail.
“Hello, James,” I say under my breath.
James Rolo—at least that’s the name he gives the bookie when he places his bets—has been here three times in the last year. In between, he’s made a killing at the Brick Barrel in Amelia, and the Tulane Auto Parts Factory in Sycamore Township—big street-fighting venues on the south side.
James always wins. It was just a matter of time before someone figured out how.
Below, the fighter with the snake tattoo is pummeling Forehead into the dirty cement. It’s a knockout match. No fouls. No refs. The fans on the catwalk are cheering, fists in the air. They’ve got big money riding on this. Last I heard, the minimum bet was five large.
“Ready?” I ask.
Time’s ticking. I can feel the rush in my blood, urging us to hurry.
“I was born ready,” Henry says, then gives a small fist pump. “I’ve always wanted to say that.”
We make our way around the far side of the catwalk, pushing through the small clusters of people watching the fight below. As we approach James, I feel an old swag- ger fill my veins. My hips sway. My mouth curves into a grin.
A few feet away from James, we stop, and I lean over the railing.
“You’re right,” I shout to Henry over the noise. “You can see better over here!”
It’s not a lie. On this side, each bead of sweat on Fore- head’s brow is visible, and the crack and slap of skin on skin echoes off the floor.
I pull back, and do a double take when James’s gaze darts away.
Brynn Hilder has conned a lot of people. From the spoiled rich kids of Sikawa City to her mom's loser ex-boyfriend, from a motorcycle gang to a senator's son. If there was money to be gained, or a secret to uncover, she figured out how to get it done. And thanks to Vale Hall and its director, Dr. David Odin, she's found a family of hustlers just like her.
Together, Brynn and her friends have overcome doubt, deceit, and betrayal to unearth the truth--a truth even a group of professional scammers couldn't have predicted.
And now they must tackle the biggest con artist of them all: the man who brought them all together.
You can purchase Payback (Vale Hall #3) at the following Retailers:
And now, The Giveaways.
Thank you KRISTEN SIMMONS for making this giveaway possible.
3 Winners will receive the Vale Hall Series (all three books in the series) by Kristen Simmons.
WEEK ONE
FEBRUARY 1st MONDAY JeanBookNerd GUEST POST
FEBRUARY 2nd TUESDAY Kait Plus Books EXCERPT
FEBRUARY 3rd WEDNESDAY Book Briefs REVIEW
FEBRUARY 4th THURSDAY BookHounds YA EXCERPT
FEBRUARY 5th Wishful Endings REVIEW
WEEK TWO
FEBRUARY 9th TUESDAY A Bella Fairy Tale REVIEW
FEBRUARY 10th WEDNESDAY Reading Adventures of a Book Dragon EXCERPT
FEBRUARY 10th WEDNESDAY Nay's Pink Bookshelf REVIEW
FEBRUARY 11th THURSDAY J.R.'s Book Reviews REVIEW
FEBRUARY 12th FRIDAY Pages and Pugs REVIEW
jbnpastinterviews
I get inspiration from reading and watching TV too. So excited for Kristen's new book and to see how her career has grown since she was a debut author.
ReplyDeletesounds so good.
ReplyDelete