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Valley Of Lights by Stephen Gallagher
01/09/2006 . Source: Pauline Morgan 
pub: Telos. 298 page enlarged paperback. Price: £ 9.99 (UK), $ 9.95 (US), $14.95 (CAN). ISBN: 1-903889-74-X. Limited edition signed hardback: Price: £30.00 (UK). ISBN: 1-903889-75-8. Buy Valley Of Lights in the USA - or Buy Valley Of Lights in the UK  check out website: www.telos.co.uk and www.stephengallagher.com
Whether we want to accept it or not, there is a lot of prejudice around, especially amongst the reading public. Mainstream readers look down on those who need their monthly fix of Mills and Boon. Some critics positively despise Science Fiction and fantasy. Some SF readers won't consider reading fantasy and vice versa. In this hierarchy, everyone dismisses self-published books as rubbish. The problem is that small press publishers often get tagged with the same label. Yet without them, some very good writers would never get published. Tindal Street Press, based in Birmingham, has published a Booker prize short-listed novel. Even Jo Fletcher of Gollancz values the role of the small press, having acknowledged that newcomers have a better chance of reaching the public if they are first published by a small press outfit. These publishers also have the opportunity to prevent masterpieces from being lost or of re-introducing them to the next generation.
In SF circles, Telos Publishing is probably known principally for its series of 'Dr Who' books, produced in the wilderness years between TV series. They are not, however, willing to be constrained by a small market niche. The editors produce what they enjoy reading. This title from Stephen Gallagher is well overdue for re-issue. 'Valley Of Lights' was initially published in 1987. It is a supernatural crime thriller. Volchak, the narrator, is called out to investigate a strange incident. There doesn't seem to be a definite crime, but three comatose men are found in a motel room. Hospital tests show that they are brain dead, yet later one of them gets up and walks out. Volchak puts various bits of information together and comes up with an explanation that he knows no-one will believe. This means he will have to deal with it himself. His theory is that an entity is able to move from one body to another. If one dies, then it can move on. The recipient, though, cannot be a fully functioning human, the spirit must have gone, leaving only a shell ready for habitation. Volchak assumes that the only way to stop this entity is to make sure there is no host for it to pass to when he kills the current body. In theory this works but the entity strikes lucky and Volchak finds himself with a much more complex situation. When his neighbour and her daughter become involved, the situation becomes far more personal.
On its own, this is an excellent, fast-paced short novel well deserving of reprinting. However, you get far more value than just this for your money. The original text is followed by an essay describing the inception and research that went into writing it a thoroughly readable take on the workings of an author's mind.
The novel was optioned by a film company aiming to turn the story into a movie. Production got as far as looking for suitable sites for shooting some of the scenes. Although the movie production didn't happen, Gallagher kept a diary of the search for the sets and in trying to find the right places to shoot scenes. This volume also includes an interview between Gallagher and Steve Laws about the writing of the original novel.
One of the things that authors, especially those working full-time at writing, often do is to put travel expenses against tax, calling it research. This Gallagher did, producing his notes of his travels in America when the Inland Revenue queried his claim. The travels in question took him to Phoenix, Arizona, the setting for 'Valley Of Lights'. The novel wasn't written immediately on his return to Britain. He had to find a credible plot first to put in the setting. His first attempt at using his research was the short story, 'Nightmare With Angel'. This is very different from the eventual novel but shows how very different pieces of work can be produced from the same beginnings. This story is the final gem in this book.
This book offers far more than the usual novel as might be produced by a large publishing house. It demonstrates clearly the value of small press publishers and shows the reasons why we should go out of our way to support them.
Pauline Morgan
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