Story recap of The Crown of Fire & Fury
With The Stone of Iron & Omen coming out on 2/20, you might need a reminder on what happened in the previous book, The Crown of Fire & Fury. Well, you’re in luck! Check out this summary of the book below.
And if you’d also like a refresher on The Throne of Ice & Ash, the first book in The Runewar Saga, there’s a post for that, too! You can find Throne’s story recap here.
RECAP OF THE CROWN OF FIRE & FURY
Two additional points of view are introduced in The Crown of Fire & Fury. One of these we met in the previous book: Alabastor Ragnarson, who goes by "Bastor." The second is Sehdra Ohkweht, the sister to the karah, or god-king, of Ha-Sypt. We'll address both of these more later in the recap.
To continue with our previous protagonists, Bjorn begins the story by arriving at Eildursprall, a town nestled at the foot of the tallest mountain in the Teeth and where the Inscribed Order makes its home. He is traveling with a company consisting of the gothi Brother Yonik, the Skyardi scout leader Hoarfrost, the jokester Loridi, and his bemused companion Seskef. Though their welcome is hostile, they are soon given shelter, and Bjorn is taken on as the pupil to an enigmatic and strange gothi named Mother Sign, one of the three Silvers who head up the Order. Through her, he is to learn more of seidar, or the Sight, the rune magic he first touched in The Throne of Ice & Ash.
After fleeing her home before the invading giant known as the Jotun, Aelthena also approaches her destination: Petyrsholm, another of the Seven Jarlheims of Baegard. This city is where the Jarlmoot, or meeting of the nation's leaders, is taking place, and where she hopes to convince the jarls to aid in taking back Oakharrow. She has been traveling with her flirtatious guardian Frey, her father Lord Bor, her father's thrall caretaker Uljana, and Bastor.
At the end of the previous book, Bastor revealed his role in Oakharrow's fall, yet by a profession of remorse and his previous aid to Aelthena, he was afforded enough trust to remain with them. Though Aelthena's betrothed, Thane Asborn, greets them outside the city, the jarls' welcome is colder, with Aelthena excluded from their meetings on account of being both a woman and a mere jarl's heir. Seeing little other recourse, Aelthena resolves to forge her alliances by way of the jarls' wives.
Bastor, upon reaching Petyrsholm, makes a silent escape from the others. Instead of aligning himself with Aelthena and her cause, he goes to his father. Though he resents Ragnar for his harsh parenting and treachery, he nevertheless complies with his wishes, believing Lord Ragnar to be the best option for uniting and saving Baegard from the threats facing it. Working in the shadows, he undermines Aelthena's efforts, though it comes at the cost of unintentionally murdering a guard. The guilt of this act takes its toll, and Bastor quickly slides into a state of drunkenness he had once only pretended to embrace.
Sehdra Ohkweht is, by virtue of birth and origin, on the opposing side of the war. But this is not a conflict of her doing. Even her brother, Hephystus, though thirsty for blood and glory, is only partially responsible. It is the giantess Oyaoan who truly rules in Ha-Sypt, though it is unclear how much authority she wields at first.
Under the karah's banner, Ha-Sypt marches on Baegard and heads for Petyrsholm, intending to crush their foes in a single mighty blow. Not only are their numbers superior, but they have a dozen giants among their ranks and the use of "Hua-fire," explosives made from the silvery sand khnuum. Sehdra, deprived of any explicit power, schemes from the shadows to try to set herself up for an advantageous position should power come her way. When she can, she tries to temper her brother's brutal impulses, often to little success. Though Oyaoan sometimes seems to favor her, Sehdra is just as wary of the giantess. She seeks to understand their puppetmaster, a task made more difficult by the need to communicate through Oyaoan's translator and a leader in his own right, the Ibis.
Bjorn learns much during his time at Eildursprall, including how to properly use runes, and he is swiftly becoming competent in the Sight. He also develops a friendship with Tyra, an acolyte of the library, upon whom he has a crush, despite intimacy being forbidden to those of the Inscribed Order. Knowing his affinity for old stories, Tyra shows him an artifact hidden away in the library: the Witterland Runestone, a rune-inscribed tablet carved by Baegard's ancient ancestors. Bjorn marvels at the discovery, though he has little concept of what it yet means.
Back in Petyrsholm, Bastor's machinations come to a head with news of Ha-Sypt's impending arrival. Despite Aelthena's objections and countering plans, Lord Ragnar is elected as the arkjarl, becoming the leader of their nation's forces and gaining yet more power. With Baegard united, they begin preparations to meet their oncoming enemy.
Along the Sypten army's march, Sehdra bears witness to her brother's deteriorating mental condition under Oyaoan's yoke. It becomes clear that he won't be able to submit to her puppeteering for much longer. Yet their purpose remains aligned in taking Petyrsholm, and it seems they must triumph.
In a mockery of good faith, Sehdra and Bastor are sent forth to attempt a negotiation for peace. As the conditions of both are untenable, the battle proves inevitable, though the two find like minds in each other.
In Eildursprall, Bjorn's journey takes a sharp turn when Yonik discovers a secret the Silvers have been keeping: a man they call Torvald Geirson, the Last King of Baegard, is supposedly alive atop the slopes of Yewung, the tallest mountain of the Teeth, despite two centuries having passed since his disappearance. Bjorn and the others follow the priestess Embla up the mountain to meet the King of Ice. In a frozen cave, Bjorn speaks with the man, though he is now trapped in a cage of ice and seems barely alive. At Torvald's request, he prepares to See with him, and views visions from a collection of runestones he calls the Shadows. In them, he sees a terrible truth: that the path to peace lies in aligning with the Jotun, the very giant who stole his home and slaughtered half his family.
At Eildursprall, the battle is engaged. Ha-Sypt shows an early dominance, marching with their full strength upon the walls. Hua-fire rains down to torment the Baegardian defenders. But Highlord Ragnar has a trick up his sleeve. Buried under cover of darkness are barrels of khnuum, which erupt when the fuses are lit by fire arrows. The Sypten army is devastated, even more so when Baegardian troops flood out to take advantage of their disarray. Bastor leads a company out with one purpose: to hunt down giants. As the giants carry pouches of Hua-fire upon their belts, several are destroyed when the pouches are ignited, and the rest are forced to flee. Bastor is knocked from his horse, and on his way back to the city, is ambushed by two of his father's men. Managing to slay them, he returns to Petyrsholm, battered and exhausted and betrayed, but alive.
Aelthena watches the battle from afar with Frey, believing themselves to be safe. Yet somehow, Sypten raiders have entered the castle, forcing them to fight for their lives. Frey kills most of them, but is himself dealt a grievous wound, compelling Aelthena to kill the last herself. She takes him to her father, who has stayed alive as well, before being saved by the castle guards. She goes to gather with the jarls, hearing more plots are already afoot. Sure enough, arriving atop the tower, she finds all of those still alive gathered. Taking advantage of the moment, Ragnar gets himself raised to the monarchy, with Asborn voting in Oakharrow's place, betraying Aelthena because she earlier broke off their engagement. Thus, Baegard has a new king.
Aelthena almost loses hope, but Bastor comes to her room afterward and swears to be her ally. Together, they resolve to do whatever it takes to dethrone Ragnar.
Sehdra bears witness to her enraged brother screaming for his troops to return to the battlefield. Though Sehdra tries to stop him, Hephystus turns his rage on Oyaoan, and the giantess crushes his skull. Thus does Sehdra become the new puppet ruler of Ha-Sypt.
Following his vision with Torvald, the King of Ice expires. Moments later, Loridi comes in with news that Eildursprall burns below. Reaching the town as soon as they can, they discover jotunmen, the bestial servants of the Jotun, have come and gone, with only a few remaining behind. Bjorn uses a runestone to enter a berserking state, killing his enemies but suffering grave wounds himself. Upon awakening, he hears from Tyra, one of the few survivors, that the Jotun took the Witterland Runestone. They set their course for Oakharrow, seeking to follow Torvald's visions.
That about does it for Crown! Now that you’re ready to continue The Runewar Saga, pick up the latest installment, The Stone of Iron & Omen, through the button below.