Crest of Souls [Progression Fantasy]

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

To retrieve the soul of his sister, he chooses to become what he loathes.

Elmer Hills watched his sister, Mabel, lose her soul during a ritual performed by Ascenders of the Soul Pathway, forcing her to live as an empty shell ridden of all the life she used to have. Years have passed, and Elmer’s arrival in Ur, the city of the God of Time, provides him with an opportunity of the path of an Ascender, and the power to take back his sister’s soul from those who had emptied her of it.

What to expect:

• Slow burn. (The story deals with a lot of progression, but I try my best not to force the scenes so it might seem a bit slow to readers. But I believe the route I’m taking is for the betterment of the story.)

• Lots of Worldbuilding drip fed through dialogues.

• No info-dumps.

• Lots of character interactions

• Well done fight scenes.

• Lots of stakes for many characters.

•Update schedule is 4 chapters a week on Mon / Tue / Wed / Fri at 11:03 PST

Inspirations:

Magic system inspired by lord of the mysteries.

Eldritch horrors inspired by Call of Cthulhu

Currently working my way through Bloodborne to garner more insights on the way horrors work.

Main Cover Art by: bryanbarry_

Volumes Cover Art by: https://qonnnarts.carrd.co

Enjoy!

Information

Status: Hiatus
Year: 2023
Author: Five6212

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.1/ 5.0
Followers: 1,492
Views: 407,002

Reviews

No reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!

Community Reviews(10)

ntlazerRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
The first line hits you like a punch in the face. And it only gets more intense from there
This is an imaginative story with a lot of heart. The story of one sibling trying to help the other in the worst moments of her life. You are there with him when the worst moments go down at the start, and revenge seems like the natural next step after what happens. You want Elmer to succeed and can feel his devotion to his sister Mabel. It's like a shining beacon of hope in the series to know his love for his sibling is so pure.
Elmer himself is a fantastic protagonist. He's a bit naive and young, but he's relatable, sympathetic, and struggling to do right in the circumstances he's in. It's always enjoyable to follow a character you can't help but root for. He's resourceful and figures things out relatively quickly in getting himself moving and acquainted with the world
The world is rife with Victorian Era fun including bounty hunters, steam cars, and ascenders, adding some fun intrigue to the otherwise straight-laced world.
Overall, this is a fantastic and original story. The world is unique, immersive, and great in its exploration of the time. The characters are alive and speak in natural ways to one another.
DivineUmejiRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Style: Narrative and very easy to understand, well detailed and very good use of language, while reading my imagination really makes it feel like I'm actually there.
Grammar: No problem whatsoever in my opinion, but then again English is not my first language but I understand it very well and I can't find any grammatical errors or issues whatsoever. The story is easy to read and and has a really good flow.
Story: Filled with urgency and suspense, but I must say the prologue is brilliant, and it sets the tone for a sinister story that kept my attention to see what's going to happen next.
Character: Elmer is a well written character who has a strong sense of self. His feelings, his love for his sister, and his strong will to keep her safe. His character is given depth by the way his weaknesses and internal conflict are portrayed, the prologue alone made him a character who you can't help but have sympathy for.
Overall the story is great and I don't think I have found any issues with it yet, the writer has done a really good job. I believe this has potential to be one of the best stories here and would strongly recommend especially to those who love thrillers. Even after reading further from the draft this review doesn't really do justice to this story but I wouldn't want to spoil what's to come.
IstancapitalRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
ELMER! what a character and what a fantastic job by the author here, this story got me hooked right from the intro and I have to point out something here which is the author's choice of words and how was able to portray every emotion perfectly wow!.
"Crest of Souls" Masterpiece!
Shakur007Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
The story is very captivating and i already found a book that i’m glued to, the story line and the suspense are all nice and I think the author really did a very great job in putting out a great work like this because it’s really not an easy coming up with such an amazing work like this, kudos once again to the author for this great piece of work.
SlaughterBotRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I’ve read the first 20,000 words so far, I think that’s the first 6-7ish chapters, and I greatly enjoyed it! Five has clearly been inspired by eldritch stories like LOTM and bloodborne, and anyone who enjoys Victorian worldbuilding and a more creative progression system will enjoy Crest of Souls. The worldbuilding is detailed. The characters are interesting, distinct and likable. Elmer has solid motivation right from the start which is great, a deviation from the standard “I get stronger cuz this is a progression story” type MC, and I’m very excited to see what the magic system will look like.
Style
One thing I’m a big fan of is that the characters actually speak like you might expect people in a Victorian-era to speak. They’re in a fantasy world with magic, too, of course, but still I feel that having characters actually come across as Victorian people is an important part. Five nails this in the dialogue which really helped with my immersion.
I also enjoyed the descriptions, which really get across the world and you can feel that Five isn’t just writing this stuff as a backdrop, but that he’s actually interested in this Victorian world and how it would look and feel and wants to get that across. Imo the best stories are always written by people who are passionate about them.
Story
It’s early days still and from the parts I’ve read, Elmer was mostly focused on getting situated in the Big City. But the very first chapter starts off really strongly by setting up his motivation and we can see his road is ultimately going to push him into conflict with a group who looks very dangerous.
He’s set up with a VERY strong motivation and I have no doubt it will push him to the top. Most of the progression so far hasn’t been of the magical type but more grounded as is fitting for this kind of world and system. Finances, a place to stay, making allies, all of these are set up with some satisfying moments. Personally I really love financial progression because I feel there’s so
ikdahlRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I was fortunate enough to advance read some 20k words of Elmer's adventures, and oh boy! are you in for a ride! I have been reading scifi and fantasy for some 35 years, and have encountered Steampunk settings before, and in general it's not my go-to genre; but something about Five's worldbuilding is just awesome, pulling you in!
The Overall Score reflects the pure enjoyment I got out of following Elmer's story in the first few chapters. Although; that enjoyment is tinged with other emotions - the author is not afraid to take you to dark places, as you will see very early. The interactions (if you can call them that) between Elmer and his sister is a great example of taking an awesome concept and building on it to create an emotional resonance that underlies the story to provide an ongoing undercurrent of despair.
The Style is one that pulls the reader in, inviting you to become part of Elmer's journey. You get to know him in a way that very soon makes you care about him and his goals, whilst at the same time colouring in a world that integrates and supports the story, instead of jus being an arbitrarily chosen backdrop.
The Grammar goes hand in hand with the style, using language in a way that seems somehow fitting for the story told. The word choices are at times novel, and is part of the journey that the reader takes with Elmer.
The Story itself grips you from the beginning (don't skip the prologue!), taking the reader on a journey of despair. I want to emphasize one thing here: Don't expect an MC that gains a superpowered ability in chapter 1, and proceeds to dominate 450 chapters. Elmer is a boy, with a goal and ambitions far larger than he has any right to have. A core strength of Crest of Souls is how Elmer can start from such a hopeless place, and (hopefully? I only read 20k...) obtain what he seeks.
Lastly, the Characters are one of the key strengths of the story. It's weird how a character such as Elmer's sister (you will see what I mean after a few chapter
Sem destinoRoyal Road
★★★★ 4.0
• Tamanho e consistência dos capítulos: O tamanho dos capítulos é médio a pequeno, a consistência é firme, com cada capítulo sendo importante para o desenvolvimento dos personagens, construção do mundo e sistema de poder.
• Escrita e velocidade dos acontecimentos: a escrita não é ruim desde o começo, dá para perceber que a escrita melhorou (do começo ao fim do primeiro volume). A velocidade de leitura não é que dá vontade de dormir, também não é rápida que não dá tempo de pensar, a velocidade é média, com tempo de sobra para absorver o que está acontecendo e não entender o que está acontecendo.
• construção de mundo e sistema de poder: um romance ainda está em sua infância e não há muito o que criticar ou falar sobre este tópico
Protagonista, personagens secundários e antagonista: a engenhosidade do protagonista é explicada e realmente faz sentido, mesmo assim ele é um pouco irritado mas suportável, ele melhora nesse quesito (se você tiver paciência vai gostar da melhora dele.) cada personagem secundário tem sua importância (não vou falar muito para não dar spoilers.) Como o romance está no começo, ainda não teve nenhum antagonista importante.
• quebra cômica e carisma: este romance não tem muita quebra cômica, mas cada personagem tem seu próprio carisma.
• história: é uma história clássica de vingança com o protagonista que faz de tudo para ter sua irmã de volta (eu particularmente não odeio, mas se você não gosta de protagonistas egoístas, é melhor não ler)
• lutas e mistérios: é um romance mais sobre mistérios do que sobre ação, então se você está lendo apenas pela ação, desejo-lhe sorte
•o que esperar:
Sem despejos de informações
Muitas interações entre personagens
Cenas de luta bem feitas
Protagonista humano (no sentido de que ele tem emoção e comete erros)
Conteúdo sensível
Violência gráfica
Biscuit_8Royal Road
★★★★ 4.0
If you have read stories that progress slowly you will notice that it can be tiring and sometimes tedious. But this story, which has progressed slowly, has what LOTM offered me a slow and enjoyable read.
The story you have told us in these 50 chapters has been a refreshing start, especially the first chapter. I liked the author's descriptions quite a lot, to the point that I think he should pay attention to improve other things in the story.
Its magic system I haven't been able to grasp it enough. It is clear that it is an inspiration of LOTM (not to say that it is the same thing), but the differences that the author makes to give it his own point of view have not yet made it clear to me how it works. I think that in the next chapters this will improve, I hope the author will take it into account.
Finally to mention I think that its characters have been a great writer, the sister, Patsy and Patsy's acquaintance (I don't remember his name) have seemed nice to me. But it have one problem and that is the main character. He is silly and sometimes pathetic, but I have to say that he is not pathetic by his own will but because I feel that what he really is, is a desperate boy. I think the author should take into account to improve that aspect.
It is a recommendable novel that should be read slowly for a better understanding.
TheLunaticCORoyal Road
★★★★ 3.5
Great world building and solid grammar let down by a painfully immature MC.
Also has the bizzare combination of happily dealing with classism, gore and body horror but being terrified of human sexuality. Although this is probably just my own pet peeve with our content rating system.
Worth a read if you can pretend the MC is half his stated age.
Don't stop writing author, you're doing well, it's just not for me!
ksok007Royal Road
★ 0.5
English is not my first language, hence I can only say this when it comes to the proper writing.
Looks very good when it comes to grammar and flow of the sentences.
Story is advertised as slow-burn and it certainly is. 42 chapters in and I'm still not sure what is the purpose of the Ascended and their powers. I am really annoyed that MC is so unprepared in his quest to avenge his sister. He lacks the common knowledge that is required to save or avenge Mabel.
How to be ascender ? Ask around some random girl and she will tell you. How do you get Elixir's for Ascension ? Girl knows a guy who knows a guy. Who's the mysterious Alchemist who can prepare the Elixir illegaly? He's MC's landlord. Wow.
I think that this is a very poor writing, where everything is handed to the MC on silver platter by random people on the basis of his sister's sad story.