I’ve heard of James Rollins although I’ve never read any of his books before. They seem to be fantastical science fiction action with battles, and I wanted a glimpse of his storytelling. He describes this story as sf that reaches back to his roots in fantasy. It is indeed very fantansy-oriented, and not the science fiction I had been expecting. I’m sure this book will find its way into the hands of many a happy fantasy reader. I’m sorry, it’s not something I enjoy.

Thank you NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for my feedback.

The narration was fairly solid with a good range of voices.

The story is based on a planet that has arrested its rotation and subsequently reducing civilization to small rings or crowns between the hot and cold while also providing a pseudo-steam-punk (think air-ships) world to play in. Most of the animals appear to have evolved into greater threats and/or intelligence, with bats in particular gaining a hive mind organization that was pretty interesting. There were a number of other takes on animal life that added to the general dystopian feel of the story. The principle societies appear to be marked off with a north/south divide and provide the engine for much of the plot conflict. There is a dash of magic that was based on visualizing songs that control the environment in some fashion mixed in with mechanical alchemy (which was a bit weird). Only all it felt like a solid setting for the story.

The main characters were also well developed and generally sympathetic figures. Nyx is a girl abandoned at birth in the beginning of the story under mysterious circumstances that are gradually revealed throughout the story and is generally pretty interesting. Raffe is a thief, betrayed by his guild who escapes from the Salt mines with a powerful artifact/weapon that Kingdom forces want to aid their desire for conquest/war. Kanthe is the spare Prince of the Realm on the run from assassins. These POV run mostly parallel for the first half of the story before you start to see them come together … and it takes a LONG time to develop that part of the story where you really don’t see much in the way of action (for 10 hrs or so). There is some … but mostly you just get people on the run, but most of the story is the characters trying to figure out what is happening to them and why. The second half gets a lot more exciting once they all get together and the hunt kicks into high gear, but the ending seems a tad unfinished (as if this was just the setup for the series).

So … the story is really 3.5 stars … but I am rounding up for the narration and world building.

I was given this free advance review copy (ARC) ebook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
#TheStarlessCrown #NetGalley.

I enjoyed the narration of this audiobook, the reader does a great job. I also really liked the author's note before the first chapter. The story itself was, for me, slow to get going - mainly at the beginning, with a lot of description and telling, rather than showing. I didn't find the plot all that surprising, there are many high fantasy tropes at play, although I enjoyed it enough to listen to the end. It felt long - there were a few moments where I thought things might wrap up, but then there was another chapter. I did like one of the main characters, Nyx, but the others we follow weren't as engaging for me. All in all, a good fantasy with an interesting, detailed world, but not a series I'd rush to continue with, beyond this first book.

This Sci-Fi/Fantasy is a long book that covers a lot of ground. There are multiple POVs and a rather convoluted plot. Author Rollins works hard at world-building and does a pretty good job of it.
The characters are interesting and generally likable, including those that aren’t human. Since the action is fairly continuous I wasn’t bored at any point.
I found this tale to be a four star read. There was a lot that felt original and I like that. My thanks to #MacMillanAudio via #Netgalley.
#Fantasy #SciFi #Dystopia

This is a review Of the audiobook. I had high hopes given the description of the book and the introduction read by the author. Unfortunately I only made it through about three chapters before I had to stop listening. The author is very descriptive and for me the blood and violence was too much to keep listening. I had a hard time following the plot as well. This wasn’t my style but may. Be someone else’s, especially if you’ve enjoyed other books the author has written and are familiar with his writing style. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to an early copy.

A great start to a new series by one of my all time favorite author's , at first I wasn't sure how I would like it because I love his standalone's as well as his SIGMA books, but once I started listing to it it ,I started to get in to it, while its different then any of his other books since this one is a mixture of sci fi and fantasy, you can still get a glimpse of the author I love so much, from his characters to his world building . Can't wait to see what comes after this one . As for the narration of it , that also helped me to get lost in the story and I loved how Mr.Rollins started it off by giving you the back story has to how it came to be.

The Starless Crown is an adult fantasy with a hint of sci-fi. It has a fascinating world, where the planet stopped rotating long ago, leaving half freezing and half scorched, with catastrophe on the way when a young girl receives a vision of a moon crashing down on all. It has a ragtag group of misfits, magic and plenty of action and drama. Highly enjoyable narration that keeps your interest over 22+ hours. The only downside is the surely long wait for more.