The Moonsteel Crown

The Moonsteel Crown

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  • Create Date：2021-02-10 04:19:50
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Stephen Deas
  • ISBN：9780857668769
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Summary

The Emperor of Aria is dead， and three junior members of a street gang are unwittingly caught up in the ensuing struggle for the throne， in the first epic adventure in a new fantasy world from a master of the genre。

The Emperor of Aria has been murdered， the Empire is in crisis， and Dead Men walk the streets。。。

But Myla， Fings， and Seth couldn't care less。 They're too busy just trying to survive in the Sulk-struck city of Varr， committing petty violence and pettier crimes to earn their keep in the Unrulys， a motley gang led by Blackhand。

When the Unrulys are commissioned to steal a mysterious item to order， by an equally mysterious patron， the trio are thrust right into the bitter heart of a struggle for the Crown， where every faction is after what they have。

Forced to lie low in a city on lockdown， they will have to work together if they want to save their skins。。。 and maybe just save the Empire as well。

File Under: Fantasy [ Sword-Monks | Chicken Foot | Dead Men Walking | Murdering Bastard ]

Editor Reviews

11/09/2020

Three unlikely characters land in the midst of political intrigue in this fun fantasy from Deas （The Silver Kings）。 Myla is a former sword-monk in training now just trying to keep her head down。 Seth， a former novice driven out of the priesthood， and his close friend Fings—who took Seth in to help him survive the streets—only want warm food and to get through another horrific winter in the Empire of Aria unscathed。 All three are approached by a man they call the Murderous Bastard about joining a heist with the promise of great riches， and they dubiously accept。 The promised riches are real—but the heist throws the scrappy trio into the middle of a conspiracy involving the recent assassination of the emperor。 It also drops the Moonsteel Crown into their hands。 Each of the many contenders for the throne wants the crown， but in the wrong hands it could spark a devastating war。 Deas punctuates the sometimes frustratingly slow-burning plot with great character moments， like Myla’s internal conflicts over using her training to kill and Seth learning sigils to make the dead speak。 This will most appeal to fantasy readers who love seeing everyday characters caught up in sweeping events。 （Feb。）

Publishers Weekly

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Reviews

，

The Moonsteel Crown is the first book in Stephen Deas’s new fantasy trilogy， Dominion。 It’s set in the town of Varr in the empire of Aria that is struggling with a succession crisis and a bitterly cold winter。 Of the two， only the latter has some meaning to the main characters。 The book description made me expect a fairly standard fantasy plot where the lowest of the earth end up becoming kingmakers。 And while it sort of turns out that way in the end， that’s not what the book is about at all。 A group of thieves steal the emperor’s crown; accidentally， it seems at first。 But instead of putting it back where they found it， they hide it。 Naturally there are people who want it back and they know exactly who to come after。 Why is that？ Does someone in their group know more than they’ve let on？ The thieves’ boss has started a war with a rivalling gang， but is that random either， or is the other group after the crown too？ Meanwhile， the thieves themselves disagree on the best course of action， until the only way to save their lives is to give the crown back。 But nothing is as straightforward as that。 The book has three main characters with their own point of view chapters。 Seth is a former novice priest expelled from his church for blasphemy—or sticking his nose where it doesn’t belong。 He’s bitter and adrift， and he makes poor choices because of it。 And then he gets his hands into texts that push him on a path of forbidden death magic。 But is he in control of the magic， or does it control him？ The book ends before we get the answer， but we’ll likely follow that story in the upcoming books。 Myla is a warrior monk who has also been expelled from her order。 She’s excellent with her swords and quite deadly—and on the run。 But her past is catching up with her， and it threatens the lives of the thieves with whom she has found a new home。 So will she fight for them， or return home and face her past？ And then there is Fings， the greatest thief in Varr。 He’s the one who does the actual stealing， and he isn’t exactly happy with being manoeuvred to doing it， especially when it puts his mother and sisters in peril。 But as the forces who want the crown back press on them， he agrees with Myla that the crown must be returned—only he has an ace in his sleeve。 He was my favourite of the three with his cunning plans and superstitious beliefs。 This book took a long time to get going。 The characters were vague and difficult to get a hang of。 A lot of space was devoted to the myths and history of Aria that didn’t really have anything to do with the plot。 The reasons for Seth’s and Myla’s downfalls with their respective orders were hoarded like gold， but they turned out to be so mundane that the revelations were disappointing。 It wasn’t until after the half point that I began to see what the book was about， and where it was going—and then it didn’t go there。 At all。 The latter half was as exciting and interesting as the first was dull， and it saved the book。 The end was satisfying and complete， but it left enough questions open to lure the reader into continuing with the series。

Susanna ，

The Moonsteel Crown is the first book in Stephen Deas’s new fantasy trilogy， Dominion。 It’s set in the town of Varr in the empire of Aria that is struggling with a succession crisis and a bitterly cold winter。 Of the two， only the latter has some meaning to the main characters。The book description made me expect a fairly standard fantasy plot where the lowest of the earth end up becoming kingmakers。 And while it sort of turns out that way in the end， that’s not what the book is about at all。A gr The Moonsteel Crown is the first book in Stephen Deas’s new fantasy trilogy， Dominion。 It’s set in the town of Varr in the empire of Aria that is struggling with a succession crisis and a bitterly cold winter。 Of the two， only the latter has some meaning to the main characters。The book description made me expect a fairly standard fantasy plot where the lowest of the earth end up becoming kingmakers。 And while it sort of turns out that way in the end， that’s not what the book is about at all。A group of thieves steal the emperor’s crown; accidentally， it seems at first。 But instead of putting it back where they found it， they hide it。 Naturally there are people who want it back and they know exactly who to come after。 Why is that？ Does someone in their group know more than they’ve let on？ The thieves’ boss has started a war with a rivalling gang， but is that random either， or is the other group after the crown too？ Meanwhile， the thieves themselves disagree on the best course of action， until the only way to save their lives is to give the crown back。 But nothing is as straightforward as that。The book has three main characters with their own point of view chapters。 Seth is a former novice priest expelled from his church for blasphemy—or sticking his nose where it doesn’t belong。 He’s bitter and adrift， and he makes poor choices because of it。 And then he gets his hands into texts that push him on a path of forbidden death magic。 But is he in control of the magic， or does it control him？ The book ends before we get the answer， but we’ll likely follow that story in the upcoming books。Myla is a warrior monk who has also been expelled from her order。 She’s excellent with her swords and quite deadly—and on the run。 But her past is catching up with her， and it threatens the lives of the thieves with whom she has found a new home。 So will she fight for them， or return home and face her past？And then there is Fings， the greatest thief in Varr。 He’s the one who does the actual stealing， and he isn’t exactly happy with being manoeuvred to doing it， especially when it puts his mother and sisters in peril。 But as the forces who want the crown back press on them， he agrees with Myla that the crown must be returned—only he has an ace in his sleeve。 He was my favourite of the three with his cunning plans and superstitious beliefs。This book took a long time to get going。 The characters were vague and difficult to get a hang of。 A lot of space was devoted to the myths and history of Aria that didn’t really have anything to do with the plot。 The reasons for Seth’s and Myla’s downfalls with their respective orders were hoarded like gold， but they turned out to be so mundane that the revelations were disappointing。 It wasn’t until after the half point that I began to see what the book was about， and where it was going—and then it didn’t go there。 At all。 The latter half was as exciting and interesting as the first was dull， and it saved the book。 The end was satisfying and complete， but it left enough questions open to lure the reader into continuing with the series。I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more

Permanently_Booked ，

I admit when Angryrobot came through with this one I was hooked by the cover。 What I didn't realize was this is the type of fantasy that doesn't always work for me。 When it comes to heroic or high fantasy it's always been hard for me to find that connection。 Deas made this world and it's characters enjoyable for a reader like myself。 Set in what I'd consider a medieval type era， a thief， a sword-monk and disgraced novice walk into a bar。。。。。。 Made myself chuckle， but no these three are tricked i I admit when Angryrobot came through with this one I was hooked by the cover。 What I didn't realize was this is the type of fantasy that doesn't always work for me。 When it comes to heroic or high fantasy it's always been hard for me to find that connection。 Deas made this world and it's characters enjoyable for a reader like myself。 Set in what I'd consider a medieval type era， a thief， a sword-monk and disgraced novice walk into a bar。。。。。。 Made myself chuckle， but no these three are tricked into a plot to steal the crown。 Now of course with fantasy it's always more than it seems and with this trio this book lived up to that。 Fings is a superstitious thief， sucking feathers and wearing chicken feet for luck。 Seth is the novice kicked out of the order due to a little too much creeping into forbidden religious areas。 And Myla （my favorite） is a sword-monk who wields her swords with effortless precision。 Together they made the plot enjoyable and oddly funny。 I did grapple a bit on the world-building but that may just be me and my struggles with this subgenre。 I couldn't picture the empire in contrast to everywhere they traveled。 Its a slower build but expected for a work like this and being first in a series。 The action ramps up by the end。 The different gangs， the unique sectors of the city and the continual backstabbing kept me intrigued。 These are not your heroic MCs and I liked their ragtag personalities and realistic actions。 Favorite aspects for me besides butt-kicking Myla is the walking dead and Seth's sigil action。 I really liked this magic type element。 I'd recommend this to readers who love this type of fantasy subgenre。 It'll probably be a favorite read for them！ Thank you to angryrobot for unknowingly pushing my reader boundary with this gem。 True rating 3。5/5。 。。。more

Kristen ，

This and more reviews at superstardrifter。com！~This book follows 3 characters: Seth， Myla， and Fings。 Seth is a disgraced former novice， thrown out of the church; Myla is a sword-monk， trained to kill so well it’s nearly instinct; and Fings is a superstitious thief， very skilled at not keeping his hands out of people’s pockets。They are more or less part of a gang， known as the Unrulys， which is run by a man nobody really likes called Blackhand。 The gang fights with another rival gang known as th This and more reviews at superstardrifter。com！~This book follows 3 characters: Seth， Myla， and Fings。 Seth is a disgraced former novice， thrown out of the church; Myla is a sword-monk， trained to kill so well it’s nearly instinct; and Fings is a superstitious thief， very skilled at not keeping his hands out of people’s pockets。They are more or less part of a gang， known as the Unrulys， which is run by a man nobody really likes called Blackhand。 The gang fights with another rival gang known as the Spicers， but one day Blackhand takes the Unrulys shenanigans a bit further by having them steal an item of very， very special significance to the emperor。They do， and bury it， and then it seems that every faction in the city is after them for it。 So， they do what they can to avoid trouble coming down on their heads， each in their own ways。I liked this one， though I didn’t love it as much as I anticipated I would。 It was sweary and fun though， so I’ll call it a win。 I really liked Seth as a character。 His excommunication from the church was interesting， and he more or less takes it in stride。 As he sees it: ‘what are they going to do？ Excommunicate me some more？’ – some of the shenanigans that he gets up to， especially in the latter half of the book， were quite interesting and a little funny。 Especially when he makes a uh… special friend named Cleaver。 Myla and Fings I also liked， but less so。 I did enjoy Myla’s badassitude， and I thought that some of Fings’ adventures were quite interesting。 I liked how each of the three main characters had a unique characteristic about them。 For instance， Seth talks to himself。 A lot。 He answers himself too。 He does it in his head， but having that internal dialogue visible helped me warm to him， because I totally have internal dialogue like that as well。 All told， I thought that this was a fun， fast-paced book that laid a lot of groundwork in a story that I do hope continues along in more books。 The ending left a lot of opening for more books， without leaving this one seeming incomplete。 I’m interested to see where else this story goes in the future！Thanks to the author， as well as Angry Robot for the review copy！ 。。。more

Bella ，

I'm dying to know what happens next。 At first， I found the story quite slow， but boy does it pick up the pace towards the end。 The voices in the novel are so defined and distinguishable which really helps the reader to connect with the characters and become invested in their arcs。 ⁠⁠Also， I'm a little obsessed with how beautiful the cover is！ 💙⁠⁠ I'm dying to know what happens next。 At first， I found the story quite slow， but boy does it pick up the pace towards the end。 The voices in the novel are so defined and distinguishable which really helps the reader to connect with the characters and become invested in their arcs。 ⁠⁠Also， I'm a little obsessed with how beautiful the cover is！ 💙⁠⁠ 。。。more

Jennifer Hill ，

‘The Moonsteel Crown’ is the first in a series of novels and is set in a glorious fantasy world。Myla， an ex-sword fighting monk， and the rest of the gang are stuck committing crimes on the streets of Varr。 When what seems like a normal everyday job to them goes wrong， they soon realise is that there is a lot more going on around them that they don’t know and that there’s a conspiracy against the crown。 The gang soon find themselves fighting for their lives and now it’s upto them to save the crow ‘The Moonsteel Crown’ is the first in a series of novels and is set in a glorious fantasy world。Myla， an ex-sword fighting monk， and the rest of the gang are stuck committing crimes on the streets of Varr。 When what seems like a normal everyday job to them goes wrong， they soon realise is that there is a lot more going on around them that they don’t know and that there’s a conspiracy against the crown。 The gang soon find themselves fighting for their lives and now it’s upto them to save the crown。‘The Moonsteel Crown’ is a beautifully written story that is full of action and great character development。 There are also lots of funny and witty moments throughout the story。 The author has created an amazing world which I can not wait to delve into some more。If you like your characters sword-wielding and kick-ass then I’d highly recommend ‘The Moonsteel Crown’！ 。。。more

Christina Marie Reads ，

This book was a rather fun， fast-paced， action packed fantasy read with a highly interesting cast of characters！ I enjoyed it quite a bit！

Stacia ，

#TheMoonsteelCrown #NetGalley #angryrobotThe Moonsteel Crown is a highly enjoyable read – I usually switch between several fiction books at a time， but I had Stephen Deas’ latest novel in high enough rotation that I finished it in 3 days。 What seems like a plot that has been done to death （low lives recruited to commit a crime， nothing goes as planned， everyone wants them dead， etc。 in a medieval-ish setting） is a wonderful read with fully developed protagonists and an extremely dense plot。 The #TheMoonsteelCrown #NetGalley #angryrobotThe Moonsteel Crown is a highly enjoyable read – I usually switch between several fiction books at a time， but I had Stephen Deas’ latest novel in high enough rotation that I finished it in 3 days。 What seems like a plot that has been done to death （low lives recruited to commit a crime， nothing goes as planned， everyone wants them dead， etc。 in a medieval-ish setting） is a wonderful read with fully developed protagonists and an extremely dense plot。 The three slum-dwelling protagonists: a novice priest kicked out of his order， a sword-monk who deserted her training， and a superstitious thief， are very sympathetic characters， and the story does not set aside any of their plot lines for so long that the reader risks forgetting what is going on。 The plot is complicated by the politics of the empire， which the protagonists have little interest in， and their backstories， which are their main concerns。If I could improve anything in The Moonsteel Crown， it would be to include a map of the city and a map of the empire。 I would also have liked a clearer indication of when the interludes set in the past occur relative to the main action; but neither of these things interfered with my enjoyment of the book。 。。。more

Tom Lloyd ，

A cracking read - fun， frenetic and full of great characters。 There's a wider plot of empire-spanning conspiracies， murder and betrayal， but the strength of the book is the characters。 You often see unreliable main characters who are less-than heroic types， but rarely do you get a bunch who're so wholly uninterested with world events， whose lives are played out on just a handful of streets as they spend their days lying to themselves let alone everyone else， friends and enemies included。 There's A cracking read - fun， frenetic and full of great characters。 There's a wider plot of empire-spanning conspiracies， murder and betrayal， but the strength of the book is the characters。 You often see unreliable main characters who are less-than heroic types， but rarely do you get a bunch who're so wholly uninterested with world events， whose lives are played out on just a handful of streets as they spend their days lying to themselves let alone everyone else， friends and enemies included。 There's loyalty to each other， but everything has a pragmatic angle - they're poor people， some with families to look after， some just needing to find out how they eat over the next few days。 And it works， not feeling contrived or idealised as the Seth and co ricochet through life。 Roll on book 2！ 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Moonsteel Crown

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Moonsteel Crown&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Moonsteel Crown&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0