Books › A Crown Imperilled
A Crown Imperilled
481 pages
A sprawling, high-stakes race against the twilight of a beloved fantasy world, where old heroes and new blood must unite against unseen darkness.
What it feels like
Reading this feels like standing on the edge of a precipice as a beloved, decades-old world threatens to shatter. The narrative moves with a propulsive, desperate energy, weaving together political espionage, desperate sieges, and world-ending magical threats. There is a palpable sense of twilight hanging over the pages—a heavy, nostalgic dread that comes from watching legacy characters and their descendants fight a seemingly unwinnable war against unseen puppet masters. The prose is functional and relentlessly forward-looking, prioritizing sweeping action and intricate lore over quiet introspection. It is a tense, shadow-draped experience designed to thrill long-time epic fantasy readers who love sprawling casts, high-stakes maneuvering, and the bittersweet thrill of an era hurtling toward its final, explosive climax.
- Mood
- tense
- apocalyptic
- shadow-draped
- desperate
- Tone
- urgent
- earnest
- suspenseful
- epic
- Pace
- propulsive
- Themes
- the weight of legacy · twilight of an era · duty against annihilation · hidden machinations · brotherhood and sacrifice
- The writing
- Functional and action-oriented, prioritizing forward momentum and sprawling lore over ornate descriptions.
- The arc
- Moves from a creeping sense of unraveling stability to desperate, high-stakes defiance against overwhelming odds.
- Who it's for
- Devoted fans of classic, long-running high fantasy epics who crave sprawling casts, political maneuvering, and world-ending magical stakes.
Content notes
- fantasy violence
- war themes
- character death
- political assassination
About the book
The penultimate volume of the mighty Riftwar Cycle
War rages in Midkemia but behind the chaos there is disquieting evidence of dark forces at work.
Jim Dasher’s usually infallible intelligence network has been cleverly dismantled; nowhere is safe. He feels that the world is coming apart at the seams and is helpless to protect his nation.
Quiet palace coups are underway in Roldem and Rillanon; and King Gregory of the Isles has yet to produce an heir. In each kingdom a single petty noble has risen from obscurity to threaten the throne.
Lord Hal of Crydee and his great friend Ty Hawkins, champion swordsman of the Masters’ Court, are entrusted with the task of smuggling Princess Stephané and her lady-in-waiting, the lovely but mysterious Lady Gabriella, out of Roldem to a place of greater safety. But is there any safe haven to be found?
Meanwhile, Hal’s younger brothers Martin and Brendan are attempting to hold the strategic city of Ylith against an onslaught of Keshian Dog Soldiers, and a mysterious force from beneath the sea. The Kingdom might lose Crydee and recover; but if Ylith falls, all is lost.
An unknown player appears to orchestrating these conflicts. Can Pug and the Conclave of Shadows track down this source before Midkemia is destroyed?
Description from Open Library.
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