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jpskewedthroneToday is the release day for Shattering the Ley in paperback, commonly called BOOK DAY! If you happen to see Shattering the Ley on the shelf at your local bookstore, snap a pic of it and post it on social media (tag "Joshua B. Palmatier" on Facebook or use @bentateauthor on Twitter). Or, if you've already got a copy of the book at home in hardcover or paperback, snap a pic of it to show it's been adopted already. *grin* And if you've already read it, PLEASE stop by your favorite online resource (Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, etc.) and take a moment to write a review. All of these things help spread the word about the book and encourage people to pick up a copy, which of course helps your author keep authoring.
If you haven't heard of the book, well, here's the back cover copy, cover art, handy links for ordering, and some blurbs that might convince you to take a much closer and more personal look. Feel free to ask questions in the comments. And please share a link to this post on your social media as well!
Shattering the Ley
Erenthrall--sprawling city of light and magic, whose streets are packed with traders from a dozen lands and whose buildings and towers are grown and shaped in the space of a day. At the heart of the city is the Nexus, the hub of the ley line system that powers Erenthrall and links the city and the Baronial plains to the rest of the continent and the world beyond. The Prime Wielders control the Nexus with secrecy and lies, but it is the Baron who controls the Wielders and the rest of the Baronies through a web of brutal intimidation enforced by his bloodthirsty guardsmen and unnatural assassins.
When the rebel Kormanley seek to destroy the ley system and the Baron’s chokehold on the continent, two people find themselves caught in the chaos that sweeps through Erenthrall and threatens the entire world: Kara Tremain, a young Wielder coming into her power, who discovers the forbidden truth behind the magic that powers the ley lines, and Allan Garrett, a recruit in the Baron’s guard, who learns that the city holds more mysteries and more danger than he could possibly have imagined . . . and who holds a secret within himself that could mean Erenthrall’s destruction . . . or its salvation.
Buy Shattering the Ley at these fine online stores: Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Kindle, Nook, and Zombies Need Brains' Online Store.
Blurbs:
"Shattering the Ley, the terrific new fantasy from Joshua Palmatier, is built of equal parts innocence, politics, and treachery. It features a highly original magic system, and may well be the only fantasy ever written where some of the most exciting scenes take place in a power plant. I couldn’t put it down." --S.C. Butler, author of Reiffen’s Choice from Tor
“Intricate world-building, engaging and complex characters and a fresh sharp take on magic and politics, Shattering The Ley proves that Joshua Palmatier is definitely a key new voice in original fantasy.” --Kari Sperring, author of The Grass King’s Concubine from DAW
“Palmatier at his best! Not only does he deliver the fascinating world and compelling characters readers have come to expect from him, but a taut thriller about the apocalyptic consequences of tampering with the natural world that elevates this fantasy into a cautionary tale for our age.” --Barbara Ashford, author of Spells at the Crossroads from DAW
Reviews:
Palmatier (the Throne of Amenkor trilogy) kicks off an epic fantasy series with this complex tale set in a world where wonders are accomplished by manipulating the magical energy of ley lines. Over several years, the city of Erenthrall--home to the miraculous Nexus at the heart of the ley system--is imperiled by the abuse of ley power and the dissident priests of the Kormanley. Caught up in the growing conflict are Kara, whose ability to manipulate the ley earns her a swift promotion through the ranks of the Wielders, and Allan, one of the ruthless Baron Arent's enforcers. As Erenthrall endures disruptions, blackouts, rebel uprisings, and political infighting, tension rises until catastrophe seems imminent. Palmatier lets the story build slowly, introducing a sprawling cast and fascinating setting, before explosively upsetting the status quo. This initial installment feels like build up for the rest of the story, but still delivers a compelling adventure. –-Publisher’s Weekly
*********
The kickoff of a new fantasy series from the author of The Vacant Throne (2008, etc.). Erenthrall is a city powered by magic channeled through a web of ley lines whose focus is the Nexus. Baron Arent Pallentor rules the city and controls the surrounding baronies by intimidation and his mastery of the ley system via the Wielders and the elite Primes, among whom Prime Wielder Augustus, like the baron himself, achieves near-immortality by bathing in the magic of the ley. The Baron orders the creation of extensions to his power at whim--new buildings, flying machines and other devices brought about by means of the ley’s magic. But a rebel group calling itself the Kormanley considers this a perversion of the natural order and seeks to oppose him. One faction of the Kormanley, losing patience with slow persuasion, turns to violence, becoming in effect a terrorist group. Allan Garrett, an ambitious member of the Baron’s SS-like Dogs, cannot prevent his wife’s death by one of the Kormanley’s bombs, and he deserts--but not before discovering he has the unconscious ability to suppress the effects of the ley’s magic. Kara Tremain, a young Wielder fast tracked as a future Prime, witnesses her parents’ deaths in another terrorist incident and becomes determined to help stamp the perpetrators out. What nobody yet grasps is that the appearance of “distortions,” weird and deadly space-time warps that appear at random to shred people and swallow buildings, has its direct cause in the stresses imposed on the ley. Magic operating along scientifically testable principles: Palmatier exploits an active imagination to good effect, with characters who develop along with the story--the first 200 pages, however, could have been condensed into 20--with plenty of tension and excitement. Fantasy regulars looking for a fresh series with real bite should find it worth a try. --Kirkus Review
***********
Critics of fantasy say the genre is simple escapism. How can novels about magic and swordplay say anything meaningful to our age of concerns about terrorism and the environment? Such detractors clearly have not read Shattering The Ley by Joshua Palmatier which deals with both these subjects in the framework of an imagined world fantasy novel that manages to subvert several of the usual fantasy clichés.
In this book, the city of Erenthrall uses the magic of the earth's ley lines to run everything from street lights to floating carts to the construction of new towers. The Prime Wielders who control this magic have fashioned the ley into the Nexus, essentially a magical equivalent of a country's electrical grid. The book opens with schoolgirl Kara Tremain learning that she has a strange affinity for ley powered objects as globes brighten when she draws near them and, when her father takes her to see the magical creation of the first new tower in 20 years, she feels the energy and faints.
Meanwhile, Allan Garrett, a new Dog (one of the cruel city guardsmen), witnesses the self-immolation of a Kormanley priest who accuses the Baron and Wielders of perverting nature in creating the Nexus system before lighting himself on fire. Allan himself has a somewhat inconvenient tendency to disrupt ley workings.
Then, shortly after a gardener Wielder, Ischua, tells Kara she has a strong ability to wield the power of the ley at an unusually young age, her younger friend Justin disappears despite a careful search by Kara and their other friend Cory. Justin is tortured into becoming a Hound, one of the Baron's secret trackers and spies. The Wielder, Ischua, is secretly a member of the Kormanley and hatches a plot to influence Kara to favor their cause since she is strong enough to become a Prime Wielder. While the Dogs search for the Kormanley, a splinter group launches exploding carts at the crowd gathered to watch the activation of the new tower, killing Kara's parents.
In virtually any other fantasy, Kara would turn out to be a chosen one, who would gather the various characters into a team to defeat the Baron and/or the Kormanley. Instead, Palmatier brilliantly shatters genre conventions. Kara and Allan do not meet for most of the book and I do not think there is a single scene with Justin, Cory, Kara, and Allan all together. And the main conflict is environmental, a breakdown in the ley system is creating distortions in the air, like a tear into another dimension that can trap people partway through them and then cut anything that is halfway through when it vanishes. The Kormanley claim this is a further manifestation of the need to stop misusing the ley and allow it to return to its natural patterns.
Altogether, this is an innovative fantasy novel with a very modern feel. Today's readers can certainly relate to the concerns of these characters and the more sophisticated morality than the conventional good versus evil struggle of too many fantasies. When the Dogs are chasing the Kormanley, it is hard to see which is the lesser of two evils. For readers who are willing to tackle a more challenging fantasy, without clear heroes and obvious conflicts, Shattering the Ley is an excellent read. –Sam Lubell, SFRevu
***************
Palmatier (The Vacant Throne) takes familiar ideas of ley lines and magic wielders but gives them fresh life in this rich fantasy world. --Library Journal, 6/15/2014
If you haven't heard of the book, well, here's the back cover copy, cover art, handy links for ordering, and some blurbs that might convince you to take a much closer and more personal look. Feel free to ask questions in the comments. And please share a link to this post on your social media as well!
Shattering the Ley
Erenthrall--sprawling city of light and magic, whose streets are packed with traders from a dozen lands and whose buildings and towers are grown and shaped in the space of a day. At the heart of the city is the Nexus, the hub of the ley line system that powers Erenthrall and links the city and the Baronial plains to the rest of the continent and the world beyond. The Prime Wielders control the Nexus with secrecy and lies, but it is the Baron who controls the Wielders and the rest of the Baronies through a web of brutal intimidation enforced by his bloodthirsty guardsmen and unnatural assassins.
When the rebel Kormanley seek to destroy the ley system and the Baron’s chokehold on the continent, two people find themselves caught in the chaos that sweeps through Erenthrall and threatens the entire world: Kara Tremain, a young Wielder coming into her power, who discovers the forbidden truth behind the magic that powers the ley lines, and Allan Garrett, a recruit in the Baron’s guard, who learns that the city holds more mysteries and more danger than he could possibly have imagined . . . and who holds a secret within himself that could mean Erenthrall’s destruction . . . or its salvation.
Buy Shattering the Ley at these fine online stores: Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Kindle, Nook, and Zombies Need Brains' Online Store.
Blurbs:
"Shattering the Ley, the terrific new fantasy from Joshua Palmatier, is built of equal parts innocence, politics, and treachery. It features a highly original magic system, and may well be the only fantasy ever written where some of the most exciting scenes take place in a power plant. I couldn’t put it down." --S.C. Butler, author of Reiffen’s Choice from Tor
“Intricate world-building, engaging and complex characters and a fresh sharp take on magic and politics, Shattering The Ley proves that Joshua Palmatier is definitely a key new voice in original fantasy.” --Kari Sperring, author of The Grass King’s Concubine from DAW
“Palmatier at his best! Not only does he deliver the fascinating world and compelling characters readers have come to expect from him, but a taut thriller about the apocalyptic consequences of tampering with the natural world that elevates this fantasy into a cautionary tale for our age.” --Barbara Ashford, author of Spells at the Crossroads from DAW
Reviews:
Palmatier (the Throne of Amenkor trilogy) kicks off an epic fantasy series with this complex tale set in a world where wonders are accomplished by manipulating the magical energy of ley lines. Over several years, the city of Erenthrall--home to the miraculous Nexus at the heart of the ley system--is imperiled by the abuse of ley power and the dissident priests of the Kormanley. Caught up in the growing conflict are Kara, whose ability to manipulate the ley earns her a swift promotion through the ranks of the Wielders, and Allan, one of the ruthless Baron Arent's enforcers. As Erenthrall endures disruptions, blackouts, rebel uprisings, and political infighting, tension rises until catastrophe seems imminent. Palmatier lets the story build slowly, introducing a sprawling cast and fascinating setting, before explosively upsetting the status quo. This initial installment feels like build up for the rest of the story, but still delivers a compelling adventure. –-Publisher’s Weekly
*********
The kickoff of a new fantasy series from the author of The Vacant Throne (2008, etc.). Erenthrall is a city powered by magic channeled through a web of ley lines whose focus is the Nexus. Baron Arent Pallentor rules the city and controls the surrounding baronies by intimidation and his mastery of the ley system via the Wielders and the elite Primes, among whom Prime Wielder Augustus, like the baron himself, achieves near-immortality by bathing in the magic of the ley. The Baron orders the creation of extensions to his power at whim--new buildings, flying machines and other devices brought about by means of the ley’s magic. But a rebel group calling itself the Kormanley considers this a perversion of the natural order and seeks to oppose him. One faction of the Kormanley, losing patience with slow persuasion, turns to violence, becoming in effect a terrorist group. Allan Garrett, an ambitious member of the Baron’s SS-like Dogs, cannot prevent his wife’s death by one of the Kormanley’s bombs, and he deserts--but not before discovering he has the unconscious ability to suppress the effects of the ley’s magic. Kara Tremain, a young Wielder fast tracked as a future Prime, witnesses her parents’ deaths in another terrorist incident and becomes determined to help stamp the perpetrators out. What nobody yet grasps is that the appearance of “distortions,” weird and deadly space-time warps that appear at random to shred people and swallow buildings, has its direct cause in the stresses imposed on the ley. Magic operating along scientifically testable principles: Palmatier exploits an active imagination to good effect, with characters who develop along with the story--the first 200 pages, however, could have been condensed into 20--with plenty of tension and excitement. Fantasy regulars looking for a fresh series with real bite should find it worth a try. --Kirkus Review
***********
Critics of fantasy say the genre is simple escapism. How can novels about magic and swordplay say anything meaningful to our age of concerns about terrorism and the environment? Such detractors clearly have not read Shattering The Ley by Joshua Palmatier which deals with both these subjects in the framework of an imagined world fantasy novel that manages to subvert several of the usual fantasy clichés.
In this book, the city of Erenthrall uses the magic of the earth's ley lines to run everything from street lights to floating carts to the construction of new towers. The Prime Wielders who control this magic have fashioned the ley into the Nexus, essentially a magical equivalent of a country's electrical grid. The book opens with schoolgirl Kara Tremain learning that she has a strange affinity for ley powered objects as globes brighten when she draws near them and, when her father takes her to see the magical creation of the first new tower in 20 years, she feels the energy and faints.
Meanwhile, Allan Garrett, a new Dog (one of the cruel city guardsmen), witnesses the self-immolation of a Kormanley priest who accuses the Baron and Wielders of perverting nature in creating the Nexus system before lighting himself on fire. Allan himself has a somewhat inconvenient tendency to disrupt ley workings.
Then, shortly after a gardener Wielder, Ischua, tells Kara she has a strong ability to wield the power of the ley at an unusually young age, her younger friend Justin disappears despite a careful search by Kara and their other friend Cory. Justin is tortured into becoming a Hound, one of the Baron's secret trackers and spies. The Wielder, Ischua, is secretly a member of the Kormanley and hatches a plot to influence Kara to favor their cause since she is strong enough to become a Prime Wielder. While the Dogs search for the Kormanley, a splinter group launches exploding carts at the crowd gathered to watch the activation of the new tower, killing Kara's parents.
In virtually any other fantasy, Kara would turn out to be a chosen one, who would gather the various characters into a team to defeat the Baron and/or the Kormanley. Instead, Palmatier brilliantly shatters genre conventions. Kara and Allan do not meet for most of the book and I do not think there is a single scene with Justin, Cory, Kara, and Allan all together. And the main conflict is environmental, a breakdown in the ley system is creating distortions in the air, like a tear into another dimension that can trap people partway through them and then cut anything that is halfway through when it vanishes. The Kormanley claim this is a further manifestation of the need to stop misusing the ley and allow it to return to its natural patterns.
Altogether, this is an innovative fantasy novel with a very modern feel. Today's readers can certainly relate to the concerns of these characters and the more sophisticated morality than the conventional good versus evil struggle of too many fantasies. When the Dogs are chasing the Kormanley, it is hard to see which is the lesser of two evils. For readers who are willing to tackle a more challenging fantasy, without clear heroes and obvious conflicts, Shattering the Ley is an excellent read. –Sam Lubell, SFRevu
***************
Palmatier (The Vacant Throne) takes familiar ideas of ley lines and magic wielders but gives them fresh life in this rich fantasy world. --Library Journal, 6/15/2014
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Date: 2015-07-07 03:11 pm (UTC)Dave
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Date: 2015-07-08 12:07 am (UTC)Dave
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