The Nightland Express Hardcover – October 11, 2022 by J. M. Lee

Description

Author: Lee J. M.

Brand: Erewhon

Package Dimensions: 0x216x788

Number Of Pages: 368

Release Date: 11-10-2022

Details: Product Description
In antebellum America, two teens bury their secrets and join the historic Pony Express, and soon discover the mortal world is not the only one on the brink of war.

Young, poor, and orphaned in rural Missouri, Jessamine Murphy frets over her very pregnant sister, not at all sure how to feed their family until the baby is born, let alone after. When Jessamine comes across a recruitment poster reading “Pony Express Special Assignment: St. Joseph, Missouri to California. Two riders wanted. Orphans preferred,” her tomboy heart skips a beat: not only for the ample risk wage, but for the adventure and the chance to track down their wayward father in California. Jessamine cuts her hair, dons a pair of pants, and steps into the world as Jesse.

At the Pony Express station, Jesse meets Ben Foley, a quiet but determined boy, so secretive about his origin story there is little doubt it must be turbulent, and they become partners. They are an odd pair—one excitedly navigating the world as a boy for the first time, the other a mixed-race young man trying to defend his freedom—yet their esteem for each other grows as they head west across the United States.

As they encounter mysterious portals that carry them miles in an eyeblink and unusual creatures with uncanny glowing eyes, it becomes clear that this is no normal mission. A second, magical realm exists just below the surface of the mortal one, intertwined since the beginning of time—but the divisive violence of colonization and war are tearing the two worlds apart.

As Ben and Jesse struggle to find themselves, they discover their unlikely alliance may be the only thing that will save them . . . and the creatures and environment of two struggling worlds.
Review
Praise for
Shadows of the Dark Crystal:
“With deft nods to the original Dark Crystal movie and a passionate attention to detail, the author has fashioned an impressive prequel… Readers who crave otherworld fantasy…will enjoy discovering this new series.”
—School Library Journal

“Characters and situations are compelling, and this first of a planned four-volume series aptly sets the stage and the conflict and tugs strongly on the heartstrings, setting readers up for more great adventures” —
Booklist
About the Author

J.M. (Joe) Lee is a Minneapolis author, illustrator and writing mentor with a background in linguistics and film. He was the winner of the prestigious Jim Henson’s the Dark Crystal Author Quest and author of
Shadows of the Dark Crystal, the official prequel fantasy novel to the 1982 classic fantasy film. http://www.joeyverse.com/