Suit Up for Ralene Burke’s Armor of Aletheia

K.A.:
Ralene, welcome! Thanks for stopping by to give us a tour of the world featured in Armor of Aletheia. Tell us about the story that takes place there.

Ralene :
Armor of Aletheia is a YA fantasy that can be enjoyed by all audiences, but it is targeted at people striving to find their place in this world, their calling.

Ralene :
The death of her king changes Karina’s life forever. Fleeing the royal house, she must leave her life behind to seek out the Armor of the Creator—to save the very people who now hunt her.

Faramos, the evil warlock waiting to unleash hell, knows the Creator has already chosen his warrior, so he sends his bounty hunter to retrieve her. After Tristan abducts her, he witnesses Karina’s gentle nature and strong independence, and he finds he can’t complete his assignment.

Together, they set out to retrieve the armor and defeat the hordes of creatures sent to destroy them. But is Tristan’s heart secure as he faces certain death for defending the queen? And will Karina have the courage to become all the Creator intends her to be? Failure will condemn the world to eternal darkness.

You can find Armor of Aletheia on Amazon!

K.A.:
Karina’s got an intense battle ahead of her—saving those hunting her and fighting to keep the world from eternal darkness. What’s her world like? Hopefully, the weather’s at least nice.

Ralene:
The Sacred Armor trilogy takes place on an island world of the Three Kingdoms: Aletheia, Soter, and Tzedek. The first book takes place (mostly) in Aletheia, a snowy kingdom where warmth is found in the heart because it’s definitely not outside!

K.A.:
Oh, that’s cold! Seriously, I’m shivering just imagining Aletheia. Lol.

Ralene:
The Western Mountains take up about a third of the kingdom with their almost uninhabitable mountains which are too steep and rocky. To the east, you find Shadowed Forest, the only place you’ll find any green in Aletheia—but that’s only in the spring/summer. Along the southern edge of the mountains, the Barrens—a desert-like tundra stretches across the kingdom.

In the center of the kingdom is a large lake that is iced over year-round, called the Ice Plains. The capital city of Calliope rests between the Western Mountains and the Ice Plains, with snow-covered roads leading to the Northern Sea and Shadowed Forest.

Ralene:
The people of Aletheia are a kind people, always on the lookout for their neighbors, having taken the cue from their noble king. While there are still classes that separate the nobles from the peasants, the differences are not felt as deeply as in the other kingdoms. The king, his family, and the nobles go out of their way to make life better in the kingdom, just as the Creator has asked of them.

K.A.:
Sounds like peaceful place to live. In terms of history and day-to-day living, how does Aletheia compare to our world?

Ralene:
Aletheia is a medieval fantasy, and much of the world is set similar to our medieval times. The main character, Karina, is a healer, and you see her working with herbs and using traditional medical supplies from the time period. The capital city is set up like some of the traditional smaller cities as well.

Of course, the world has none of our actual history. And there are fantastical creatures, magic, and the physical manifestations of the Armor of God in this world!

K.A.:
Tell us more about these fantastic creatures.

Ralene:
While you’ll find some traditional creatures like dragons in Aletheia, I’ve created some unique fantasy creatures for this world. Lupens resemble muscular werewolves but do not change or anything like that. Aqlaqs are giant albino ferrets that live underground and have a special taste for human flesh.

There is a race of elves in this book, but they only live on one island, off the cost of Tzedek. They are trained and chosen to be Guardians throughout the world. Guardians are charged with caring for a specific area of land. For instance, in Aletheia, you meet 3 guardians: Rashka, Guardian of Shadowed Forest; Asharan, Guardian of the Northern Plains of Tzedek; and Brusho, former Guardian of the Barrens.

K.A.:
Flesh-eating ferrets and intense, high-stakes conflicts…what inspired you to write this story? Where did the idea for Aletheia come from?

Ralene:
Like the story itself, the world came to me during a prayer. I wanted to write a story centered around a snowy-white kingdom (I love winter!—well, most of the time.) where I could showcase the beauty and the warmth of curling up with a good book. I love looking at photos of snow-covered mountains and—well, snow-covered anything. LOL. I also like seeing evidence of spring pushing its way through the snow.

K.A.:
I love snow too. It’s one of the things I miss about living in Minnesota. What influences and research went into building your story world?

Ralene:
I remember reading a few other fantasy books to see how they handled winter seasons or winter-like realms. I also spent time researching medieval life during the winter, but also just in general. I know I had to find out what kind of medical supplies they used!

Most of my research was done on the fly. I tend to research only when I run into something I don’t already know. Hmmm…Karina needs to stitch up this soldier, what kind of thread would she use? Time to Google! (Note: It’s not usually thread.)

K.A.:
Google’s an incredible resource, especially when it’s a topic that can’t be drawn from personal experience—like medieval life during winter!

K.A.:
Armor of Aletheia is available on Amazon in both ebook and print.

Ralene:
Thank you for letting me hang out today. Have a great weekend!

K.A.:
The pleasure was all mine, Ralene. It was good to have you here. And thank you for giving us an inside look into the Armor of Aletheia!

About Ralene Burke

Whether she’s wielding a fantasy writer’s pen, a social media wand, or a freelance editor’s sword, Ralene Burke always has her head in some dreamer’s world. And her goal is to help everyone #SHINEBeyond their circumstances! Her novels, Bellanok and Armor of Aletheia, are available on Amazon. More fantasy novels coming soon!

When her head’s not in the publishing world, she is wife to a veteran and homeschooling mama to their three kids. Her Pinterest board would have you believe she is a master chef, excellent seamstress, and all-around crafty diva. If she only had the time . . . You can also find her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or at her website.

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