On most days, Brownstown Twp. resident Jess Lienhardt is thinking about policy, not prophecy. As a professional who works on environmental policy focused on the Great Lakes for a nonprofit, she also channels her passion for complex systems into an intricate fantasy world of mortal kingdoms, immortal rulers, and a mother whose magic is as volatile as her past.
That world came to life Jan. 20 with the publication of Lienhardt’s debut novel, “A Realm Undone,” from Rising Action Publishing, which is distributed by Simon & Schuster. She writes as J.L. Lienhardt.
“I’ve been writing as a hobby since I was a teenager,” Lienhardt said. “It was always something I did for myself, for fun. I never saw it as something I would share or anything that would lead to publication. But when I wrote this book, I connected with it so strongly that I started to head in that direction of what it would take to publish.”
A mother, her magic, and a realm on the brink
Billed as an adult, women-led fantasy perfect for fans of “The City of Brass” and “The Sword of Kaigen,” “Realm Undone” blends an engaging magic system with high court drama and themes of betrayal and sacrifice.
Centuries before the novel begins, mortals split the realm in two, severing their ties to their immortal rulers, the Tiarcons, and erecting a magical veil between worlds. Fueled by stolen magic, the mortal kingdoms flourished—until the veil begins to tear. Immortal monsters now slip through the rift, ravaging the nations and threatening everything mortals have built.
At the center of the story is Alia Meador, an exiled mage cast out of her kingdom of Mandal for her dangerous, trauma-triggered magic. For decades, she has wandered remote villages, caring only about keeping herself and her teenage daughter, Lena, alive.
Alia would be content to watch the mortal kingdoms crumble until the cure for Lena’s illness is offered in exchange for her service. Summoned back to Mandal under royal orders to defend the very realm that rejected her, Alia is drawn into a tangle of ruthless family members, a traitorous mage obsessed with her power, and the prince she once loved. With each confrontation, her magic threatens to consume her.
As the balance between mortal and immortal realms shifts, Alia must decide whether her world is worth saving at all—or whether, as the title suggests, it all needs to be undone.
Born from new-mom anxieties
For Lienhardt, the story began closer to home than magical veils and immortal rulers might suggest.
“I started thinking about the main character in this book when I was pregnant for the first time,” she said. “I started writing in the months after having my first child. This character is really what started everything off.”
In those early postpartum months, Lienhardt found herself wrestling with all the fears and self-doubt that come with new motherhood.
“I had a lot of anxieties and a lot of different things I was experiencing,” she said. “So I thought about a character who reacted to everything differently, of course, but who made just about every mistake you can as a mother and struggled in that role, but never stopped showing up for her daughter and never stopped trying.”
Writing Alia became a way to work through those feelings.
“In that way, it was a cathartic experience for me,” Lienhardt said. “To think those things through; that even if I mess everything up, but keep trying, maybe there’s still something salvageable there.”
Alia’s unstable, trauma-triggered magic is part of that exploration. Lienhardt wanted her heroine to be powerful yet deeply vulnerable.Brownstown resident debuts women-led fantasy novel ‘A Realm Undone’
On most days, Brownstown Township resident Jess Lienhardt is thinking about policy, not prophecy. As a professional who works on environmental policy focused on the Great Lakes for a nonprofit, she also channels her passion for complex systems into an intricate fantasy world of mortal kingdoms, immortal rulers, and a mother whose magic is as volatile as her past.
That world came to life Jan. 20 with the publication of Lienhardt’s debut novel, “Realm Undone,” from Rising Action Publishing, which is distributed by Simon & Schuster. She writes as J.L. Lienhardt.
“I’ve been writing as a hobby since I was a teenager,” Lienhardt said. “It was always something I did for myself, for fun. I never saw it as something I would share or anything
“I thought it was important for this character to be dealing with vulnerabilities as she moves through this process,” she said. “That’s where her magic comes in.”
From Alia, the rest of the story unfolded: the divided realms, the immortal-mortal tension, the power struggles in Mandal’s high court.
Power, betrayal, and imperfect mothers
Although “Realm Undone” is set in an invented world, Lienhardt is clear about the real-world themes she wanted to wrestle with.
“The main things I was thinking about were embracing darkness—or embracing the things one might not like about themselves in order to survive—the imperfection of motherhood, challenging abuses of power, and seeking balance as a society or a larger world,” she said.
The high court intrigue, betrayals, and sacrifices in the book became a way to examine how power operates.
“When you get to that high court drama, betrayal and sacrifice, that’s getting into how power is divvied up among members of society and how people are moving to increase their relative influence,” she said.
She hopes readers will recognize uncomfortable truths from our own world, especially when those in authority cause harm.
“We tend to see a circling of the wagons around the person who did the harm rather than protecting and supporting the person who was harmed,” she said. “That’s something I hope comes out in this book.”
At its heart, though, “Realm Undone” is about relationships: complicated daughters, imperfect mothers, and the messy, non-linear path of healing.
“It’s a story about complicated daughters, imperfect mothers, non-linear healing, and owning your own strength,” Lienhardt said. “I hope readers can find community and belonging in those themes.”
Five years, one book deal, and a small press
From those first pages written with a newborn nearby to holding the finished book has been a five-year journey.
“It took about two years of writing and editing, a year of seeking publication and representation, and then two years going through the process with my publisher,” Lienhardt said. “I actually signed my book deal more than two years ago. It’s been a long time, but it flew by.”
Rather than going through a literary agent, Lienhardt sold the book directly to Rising Action Publishing, a small press that accepts unagented submissions and is distributed by Simon & Schuster.
“A friend of mine who was familiar with Rising Action recommended reaching out to them,” she said. “So I sent a query, that standard package, directly to Alex Brown, who’s the head of Rising Action. She requested pages and then made me an offer. It was kind of the old-fashioned route of sending in that stuff and getting that deal to come through.”
Lienhardt is quick to clarify that, in a rapidly changing publishing landscape, “Realm Undone” is a traditionally published book.
“Rising Action is a fully functioning press,” she said. “It’s not a hybrid press, it’s not a vanity press or anything. It is traditional publishing through a non–Big Five company.”
Influences and a family saga to come
Lienhardt cites Australian author Juliet Marillier, known for her Celtic-influenced historical fantasies, as her biggest literary influence.
“My favorite author is Juliet Marillier,” she said. “One part of her work that was particularly influential was that her series follows a different female character within the same family in each book. That aspect of a family saga with very strong female voices was inspiring to me.”
She also loved how Marillier draws on mythology that features “that second world, the immortal–mortal tension,” something readers will find in “Realm Undone” as well.
While this first book focuses on Alia and her daughter, Lienhardt is already looking ahead. The novel is the start of a planned trilogy.
“There will be two more, and then it will be done,” she said. “Those books are in process now.”
Her hope is that readers feel both satisfied and eager to return to the world she’s created.
“I hope the ending is satisfying, but that they’re also left wanting more,” she said.
Rooted in Downriver
Though she grew up in Canton, Lienhardt now lives in Brownstown Township. Her mother grew up in Riverview, and her husband and his family are also from the Downriver area.
One local connection has been especially meaningful during the long road to publication: the adult writers group at the Trenton Veterans Memorial Library.
“I participate in and love, love, love that group,” Lienhardt said. “It’s a great opportunity for writers to interact with each other and share their work. It’s facilitated by Erin Chapman at the library, and she’s fantastic and a poet herself. I’ve found that group really inspiring.”
As she juggles an environmental policy career, parenting a 4-year-old daughter and a 6-week-old son, and launching a fantasy trilogy, Lienhardt is still getting used to seeing her private hobby become something public.
“This is my first book, and this is my first time doing any of this,” she said. “I’m very excited and grateful.”
A “Realm Undone” was released Jan. 20 and is available through Rising Action Publishing and major book retailers.
