The Long Moonlight is a novella by Razorfist set in the fictional medieval fantasy city of Menuvia featuring Xerdes a thief who after a failed intrusion at the mansion of a crime boss find himself enlisted in a series of heists with a new accomplice : an outsider swordswoman from the north.
All the while Coggins, inspector of the city guard try to understand what is going on between the warring factions of Menuvia underworld and the corrupt elements of his side.
It’s a pulp noir fantasy, part of a series of 2 and as many have noted it also comes as something that would make a great scenario for a reboot of the old Thief video game.
Razorfist is known as a social media personality and youtuber who publishes videos ranging from political to media commentary. He often talks about his love for old pulp authors and it definitely show in his writing style.
Said writing is i think one of the big selling point of the novel, if it might sound a bit strange to modern readers not used to flamboyant prose it contribute greatly to the book not feeling short despite the only 140 pages and does a great job at giving a feeling of discovery of a new universe to get immersed in
While the action unravels entirely in the city the author manages to make you feel that there is a world outside of it with several footnotes and comments that made me want to see more of this world which taken from the blurb of the sequel is exactly what I’ll get when picking the next book of the series (unfortunately there is only two books for now and I haven’t heard of a third coming anytime soon)
The setting is low fantasy, don’t expect elves, orcs or magic here it’s at heart a heist and later revenge story about a thief caught between the schemings of two crimelords in a gritty city reminiscent of medieval Europe. The plot is moving fast as expected with a short pulpish book and the characters are appealing. Xerdes don’t spend time brooding on his condition or the world around him.
Overall i really liked this short adventure and I hope he finds time despite his other projects (including a western graphic novel that I’ll review once I’m done putting up a comic category for the site) to write a third at some point as it really stands out among the indie publishing scene.
Speaking of graphic novels the book also comes with some little sketch after certain chapters which is nice.
