Rainbow's Lodestone

On a whim, the rainbow's child falls to earth, where a cruel adversary takes advantage of her innocence. Bereft of her thunder-swept heavens, she dwindles. The sky calls to her, but she cannot answer. This transcendent short story of J.M. Ney-Grimm's troll-ridden North-lands explores how inner freedom creates outer opportunities.

Earth trumps heaven until ancient music plays.

(This edition of Rainbow's Lodestone includes its sequel story Star-drake.)

The Lodestone Tales 

In the years that came before the ancient days of the North-lands, a brilliant inventor fabricated the lodestones – powerful artifacts that concentrate magical force.

And while men and women walk the earth but a short while, the lodestones persist through centuries and millennia. When they fall into the hands of mortals, history changes.

Follow the lodestones down through the ages as adventure follows adventure, and ordinary folk rise to meet extraordinary challenges.

Skies of Navarys (1) 
Resonant Bronze (2) 
Rainbow's Lodestone (3) 
Star-drake (4) 

Although the Lodestone Tales form a rough history, each story stands alone. You need not read them in order.

Praise for Rainbow's Lodestone and Star-drake

"...almost "Tolkienesque"...the stories feel like they're happening on the Earth we know, but long before our recorded history... Despite the fact that it deals with a grim act of mischief, [Rainbow's Lodestone is] a delightful read. The enchanting thing about it is the personification of the Rainbow, and the general attitude she has towards her fate... All in all, these are wonderful stories...Ney-Grimm's unique blend of Nordic fantasy and fairy tale mentality is a refreshing take on the genre, and [her] poetic style of writing (whichever tone she uses) adds a special sheen to the work. I read a lot of fiction, and I can honestly say I've not come across anything quite like this." —James J. Parsons, Speaking to the Eyes

Excerpt from Rainbow's Lodestone

She did not see him, but a rainbow's child might not. The sky was her realm—air and light and wind—with brief visits to earth and the creatures of earth. She pranced and leapt and whirled. She tossed back her head, tresses swirling, and flung her arms skyward. She bent and bowed. She rejoiced in this highland dell.

He threw the lodestone.

It caught the hem of her gauzy gown of light, pinning a sapphire panel to the ground.

Pain. Terror. Shock. Her face registered all these and more.

She tried to straighten, tugging at her dress. It dragged her downward, trapping her against the ground.

She looked up, eyes dilating, pleading in the gesture of one hand.

Now she was seeing him.

About the Author 

J.M. Ney-Grimm lives with her husband and children in Virginia, just east of the Blue Ridge Mountains. She's learning about zero-carb eating, gardening with native plants, and the benefits of getting vitamin D from exposure to sunlight. The rest of the time she reads Robin McKinley, Diana Wynne Jones, and Lois McMaster Bujold, plays boardgames like Settlers of Catan, rears her twins, and writes stories set in the magical realms of myth, fantasy, and the far future.

Look for her novels and novellas at your favorite bookstore—online or on Main Street.

J.M. Ney-Grimm maintains a blog featuring lore from her story worlds and other tidbits unearthed by her ever-active curiosity.