I was reading fantasy rather heavily back in the *coughcough* 80s and back then nearly every fantasy novel had ley lines in them, because for some reason, ley lines screamed fantasy. The problem was, they were mentioned, but never actually used, basically just part of the background of the world. The characters would randomly run across a stone monument like Stonehenge or something like that, with ley lines connected to it, but the lines themselves … not really touched upon. Maybe it was harnessed for the working of some spell, or to transport people to another world, or something like that, but that was it. It was such a cliché that I vowed … VOWED! … I would never use ley lines in ANY of MY books.
Ha ha! Fast forward 20 years. After long thought, I realized that what bothered me about the “use” of the ley in all of those books back then wasn’t that it was a trope, but that the authors never really USED the ley. It was there, it sounded cool, but it wasn’t significant, really. So I started asking myself, how could the ley be used more effectively in a book? Instead of it being just background, or used for one part of one chapter, what if it was the focus of the world? What if the people in the fantasy world used it in their everyday lives, tapping into it for things like light and heat and all of the things that we use electricity for? How would this change the society? What would this world be like?
This vague little idea combined with a few others floating around in my head—most notably the idea that fantasy doesn’t have to be set in a medieval setting—and I suddenly felt like I might have an interesting story to tell, one that really and truly used the ley. So, if we tapped into the ley, what kind of city could be built with it? What kind of structures would we create? How would this magic be used in a “technological” sense? Thus the city of Erenthrall was born, where everything is powered by the ley (for those that can afford it) and the ley is, of course, controlled by the Baron, his Wielders, and his Dogs. Because it can’t be a utopia. That wouldn’t be realistic.
So why ley lines? Because the 80s had it right: they ARE cool! And they do scream fantasy. And they can be used to do so much more than simply power a magic spell as only one part of a larger plot. They can be harnessed and used to power entire cities! In the first book, SHATTERING THE LEY, readers can delve into the depths of such a city, called Erenthrall, and see how the Wielders use the ley to advance their society even further . . . and also how such power can damage a society as well as help it, if it falls into the wrong hands. And in the sequel, THREADING THE NEEDLE, readers will see what such abuse of a natural resource can lead to. Because every action has consequences and sometimes those consequences are completely unpredictable.
Joshua Palmatier is a writer and a mathematician. He was born in Pennsylvania, but has lived in numerous states over his life and currently resides in Binghamton, New York, and is a tenured professor of mathematics at Oneonta. He can be found at jpsorrow.livejournal.com.
THREADING THE NEEDLE
On Sale: July 5, 2016
Sequel to Shattering the Ley, Joshua Palmatier’s epic fantasy Ley series!
The Nexus—the hub created by the Prime Wielders to harness the magical power of the ley lines for the city of Erenthrall, the Baronial Plains, and the world beyond—has Shattered, the resultant pulse cascading through the system and leaving Erenthrall decimated, partially encased in a massive distortion.
The world has fared no better: auroral storms plague the land, transforming people into creatures beyond nightmare; silver-white lights hover over all of the major cities, the harbinger of distortions that could quicken at any moment; and quakes brought on by the unstable ley network threaten to tear the earth apart. The survivors of this apocalypse have banded together in desperate groups, both in the remains of Erenthall and in small enclaves beyond the city, scrounging for food and resources in an ever more dangerous world.
Having survived the initial Shattering, Wielder Kara Tremain and ex-Dog Allan Garrett have led their small group of refugees to the Hollow, a safe haven in the hills on the edge of the plains. But the ley system is not healing itself. Their only option is to repair the distortion that engulfs Erenthrall and to fix the damaged ley lines themselves. To do that, they’ll have to enter a city controlled by vicious bands of humans and non-humans alike, intent on keeping what little they’ve managed to scavenge together.
But as soon as they enter the streets of Erenthrall, they find themselves caught up in the maelstrom of violence, deception, and betrayal that the city has descended into—including the emergence of a mysterious and powerful cult calling themselves the White Cloaks, whose leader is known as Father….
He is the same man who once led the terrorist group called the Kormanley and brought about the Shattering that destroyed the world!
