This week is special. It marks two important events. First, we celebrate 6 years since I published The Faintly Beating Heart, the book that launched the Camilla Crim series and also my writing career. And second, this week is my birthday! That was a special birthday in 2015 when I launched my first book into the world.
I remember that year, pushing and pushing to get that book done by May. Ultimately, I had to be realistic and realize that it wasn’t quite ready. That was a hard pill to swallow. But it was so cool when I noticed, “Hey, this means I can publish this book on my birthday!”.
The Land of Secrets
I’ve delayed it long enough. I must address the title of this post and explain what it’s all about. The last few months I’ve talked a lot about Catahli (the mysterious mineral), Portia (Camilla’s witch of a mother), and even poison rings (as featured in The Dark Ruler). Today I want to talk location.
Location, location, location…
Well, setting to be more precise. Camilla’s world is vast and complex and since I’m still writing this series, her world is technically unfinished. But I’m going to tell you just a little bit about this land that I’ve created for Camilla.
The land of Elmyra is divided up into territories. So far in the series we’ve only been introduced to 4 territories: Bear Gap, LilyAye, Siourious (the territory where the Catahli mines are), and the fabled “Free Territory” (which is yet to be confirmed to be real or not). Although only 4 territories have technically been spoken of, we know there are others.
Elmyra is mostly a primitive, medieval world. The highest technological advancements exist in the capital city of LilyAye. In LilyAye they have things like a printing press that puts out a newspaper every day. But Bear Gap and the other territories in general aren’t that sophisticated. In fact, it’s safe to say that most of Elmyra is rural.
Elmyra has a rich history with record books going back centuries. The political landscape changed a lot when Quinten Warwick came to power. He implemented a higher dependence on slavery which created a wider gap between the wealthy and the poor in Elmyra.
But enough about politics and geography, what about the mystery surrounding this land of dark secrets? We know that Elmyra is home to the magical mineral known as Catahli, but there are other suspicions.
By the end of book #3, The Dark Ruler, doubt is cast on who truly holds the power in Elmyra. The man who sits on the throne, Quinten Warwick, may not be the one pulling the strings. It seems more likely that the ones who harness the magic are the ones with the real control.
So, the question becomes, what are they doing with their power?
Camilla’s been caught up in all of this unawares but in the next book in the series, she’s going to learn a lot of things that she’s going to wish she never knew about.
Join Camilla as she pulls back the curtain on the power behind Elmyra’s ruler. Very soon I’ll be sharing with you updates about the next book in the Camilla series. In the mean time, make sure you grab your FREE copy of book #1 in the series, The Sacrifice of One. You can download it instantly HERE.
And if you’ve already read The Sacrifice of One, grab your copy of book #2, The Bear Gap Rebels, OR might I suggest you go back in time and read the prequel, The Faintly Beating Heart? After all, it is this book’s birthday!
Have a fabulous rest of your summer!
Emily
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