Crimson Crow: Thief of Fortune

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

Breaking News: The multiverse's supply of luck has been stolen! A crack team of detectives are attempting to track down the culprit. But this is not their story.

This is the story of the Crimson Crow, who, after committing the audacious heist, fled to begin a new life on a distant world, Llyr. Beyond the reach of her pursuers, or so she hopes.

Far from the comforts of civilization, she must rely on her quick wits and magic to survive and prosper. But she soon discovers that Llyr’s past is as dark and storied as her own. And that the past is inescapable.

Currently Updates Semi-Monthly ~Every 14 days.

Diamond Vector byVecteezy

This fiction is LGBT+ friendly.

Information

Status: Hiatus
Year: 2019
Author: Velara

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.3/ 5.0
Followers: 143
Views: 29,047

Chapters(17 total)

Reviews

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

Community Reviews(10)

LaikaRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Just as the Crimson Crow pulls off a luck-heist of epic proportions (my favorite type of magical manipulation!), this story makes off with your heart before you realize it. With an amazing mix of genres, a cast of enthralling characters, and a world that's as fleshed-out as can be, you're in for an exhilerating ride.
To be honest, the LitRPG elements feel a little out of place sometimes, but they're well-planned and I'm interested to see what happens as a result of their inclusion.
It's grammatically sound and structurally solid. Although we and Cali spend a lot of time with the natives of the world, the story feels like it has a clear direction, especially with the POV swap to the gritty, misogynistic detective I just know we're all going to love to hate.
This isn't your average story. Don't treat it that way.
Skylark (Dion Sky)Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
The Crimson Crow: Thief of Fortune is one of the most underrated fictions I've seen on Royal Road, and it's such a shame it hasn't garnered more attention. It's been a while since I've been so hooked by a story that I feel like gently bopping the author on the head to ask them to update - I need more!
Our main character Cali is the mastermind behind some of the greatest heists in the multiverse, the infamous Crimson Crow. The story opens in the moments immediately following the greatest heist of her career, and possibly all time - the theft of all the luck in the multiverse. Fleeing to the isolated planet of Llyr, she soon realises starting a new life won't be as simple as she'd expected.
It's such a glorious premise, and the execution doesn't disappoint. Part high fantasy adventure, part sci-fi police procedural, it all comes together in a perfect blend. From the thrilling opening scene to the many subsequent mysteries and even the interludes, every second of Crimson Crow is gripping, fascinating and dripping with personality. Llyr is an explorer's dream, full of ancient ruins, hidden secrets and mysterious forces. We know almost as little about Cali and her past, but are peppered with hints that her history contains just as much fascinating depth to uncover.
I love multiverse stories, and the world-building here is second-to-none. Llyr may be wild and isolated, but it's also vibrant and rich. Its societies are unique, rife with distorted legends, cultural depth and charming personalities. Elsewhere in the multiverse we're treated to highly sophisticated science fiction married with magical fantasy, and the intricate workings of high-level police drama. Details are fed out so naturally as part of the story's events, and you can tell so much thought has gone into every aspect. It's just brilliantly done.
I'm honestly amazed so many other reviews have mentioned the grammar needing work, because to my eyes it's professional quality, occasional typos aside. All it need
TheWitchOfTheRockRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
A gal trying to start a new life on a new world? Sigh me up! We're thrown into the story ( And so is our protaganist) and put into danger right away. There's enough questions to make me keep reading in the beginning, and by the time the alien species comes in, I'm hooked.
Of course, I'm always a sucker for NB aliens.
Style: My major rule of tumb for anything is "does this take me out of the story" and the style for the most part doesn't do this. There was a few parts in the first chapter where repition and awkward paragraph breaks threw me, but it wasn't enough to fully shake me from the story and wasn't noticable afterwards.
Story: It's a survival story to start. I like to review after the first three chapters of any story, so within the first few I'm hooked, and I have Things I Hope to See in future chapters, meaning I care about the story, so 5/5.
Grammar: A few minor things here and there, but good otherwise. Nothing to be concerned about. Editing your own work is tedious and very hard, so I'm happy with editing that simply lets me stay in the story.
Character : Character will ALWAYS be what keeps me in the story, and these characters are great! Cali has a distain for her coworkers that I already relate to, and courage that I admire. I feel like I know a lot about who she is already, without ACTUALLY knowing who she is.
I'm also VERY interested in the sentient species on this planet. They seem fascinating, and I want to see more!
I will continue to read this story. Please continue to write.
BullerRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I was reading this while listening to a random song that was about Cali on repeat. Safe to say that I had a full and deep experience while reading this story. But, on a more actual-review note, I would say that this is more than good enough to read. Style was engaging, answering questions as they began to form in my mind. Good stuff overall.
5/5
ImpavidusRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Definitely intriguing so far. The story starts with a bang and keeps an air of intrigue. The main character is easy to follow along with and root for, and overall the descriptions are very well done. High quality story without any noticable grammar or spelling errors that I could see, would reccomend it.
Kagan M FallfieldRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
This story starts off rather mysteriously, with the protaganist being seemingly dumped into a strange world that she knows nothing about. We soon learn that her name is Cali and that she is a legendary thief who just pulled off a massive heist for a substance called luck. Her heist was a success, but during her escape--intending to transport to a planet named Lyrr--she finds herself in a wild land uninhabitated by humans.
The prose of this story is great. Very well written and exquisitely detailed. The indigenious tribes of the world the story is set in is very unique with its own detailed culture. There are a few minor typos here and there, but that's really a non-factor imo because the attention to detail in everything from the setting to the magic to the characters more than makes up for it.
We also learn that Cali isn't the only character we follow, as we also follow a man named Richter, a renowned investigator who's deadset on bringing her to justice. Not a whole lot has been said about Richter's side yet, but I know that his story will be very interesting as well!
This is a very good story that I highly recommend. At only 11 chapters in, it's really only getting started. Give this one a chance!
freeelectronRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
that there is not more. i like the universe and the characters and they seem real. get cracking! the pacing is good and i want to understand how the cops play in. should definitely be a chase near the end and is it just a game? does richter ever grow up? does cali ever admit she is nice.
AzakenRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
I would like to see some more backstory and some grammar fixes, but overall a really good start to a great story! I think it has a lot of poetntial, and I cant wait to see more! I especially would like to know more about Crow and her backstory, and about both this new planet she got to and the place where she left.
And I really feel like the characters are really communicating and properly are being displayed.
FernicusRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
Disclosure: I reviewed this as a review swap.
I used to be a massive sci-fi fan, so this hits both my sci-fi and my fantasy enjoyment zones.
It's a good hybrid sci-fi adventure. Interesting characters and an imaginative setting. I love the sci-fi magic too :D
The critique.
The early chapters stumble in a couple of places. There are some akward statements and they feel fragmentory, they do not flow well from scene to scene. It feels almost like two versions of the chapters were mashed together in a rush.
However, it picks up again in later chapters where the writer gets more into the flow of the story.
I noticed few gramatical issues, there are some odd wording choices here and there, which gives the story an unpolished vibe.
Overall, worth the read with some inventive new ideas, good characters, interesting setting.
AnjinRoyal Road
★★★★ 4.0
Whilst reading this I'm reminded of Artemis Fowl, and the incredible journey I went on in that bizarre world. Velara has similarly created universe that is fun, enticing and, yet, still somehow approachable for everyone. It's a tough line to tread, but Velara does so very effectively.
The writing here is some of the best I have seen online, and, honestly, even rivals a lot of published fictions. Yes, grammar is on point, yes, the vocab is decent, but mainly I want to highlight just how beautifully this story flows. The writing is excellent, and excellent writing translates into excellent world building.
The story is intriguing, and I really find the concept to be absolute genius. There's not a lot to say on that yet, but I think the theft of luck is one of the greatest ideas I have stumbled across in years.
The characters are good, but we're still in the early stages. My only gripe is that I don't always buy Cali's thought processes or motivations. It's a tricky situation, because we are given action from the get go, and, thus, the tradeoff is that we don't get to see our character in a 'normal' situation. Still, I sometimes worry that Cali is doing what needs to be done to advance the story, rathe than what Cali would do.
To conclude, I dip my hat to Velara for writing a beautiful piece with some real intrigue and a great flow to it. It's one I can see myself binging a little later on!