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The Weight of Silver
Adair Veyashi risked everything to shield young conscripts—including her brother—from war… and paid the price in iron.
Buried deep beneath the earth in a prison that devours the weak, she finds herself thrust into the Gauntlet—a brutal spectacle where death is entertainment, and survival is a wager few ever win.
But the Gauntlet is only the beginning.
Something ancient stirs beneath the mountain. Something long forgotten… and it’s calling to her.
What Adair awakens in the dark will tip the balance of the realm—rousing creatures that should not exist and drawing the gaze of kings. As the truth of her lineage begins to rise, Adair is torn between duty, desire, and a destiny she never asked for.
The Weight of Silver, the first in a planned duology, is a story of grit, blood, and the price of survival—of what we sacrifice for those we love and who we become when the world demands more than we ever intended to give.
Buried deep beneath the earth in a prison that devours the weak, she finds herself thrust into the Gauntlet—a brutal spectacle where death is entertainment, and survival is a wager few ever win.
But the Gauntlet is only the beginning.
Something ancient stirs beneath the mountain. Something long forgotten… and it’s calling to her.
What Adair awakens in the dark will tip the balance of the realm—rousing creatures that should not exist and drawing the gaze of kings. As the truth of her lineage begins to rise, Adair is torn between duty, desire, and a destiny she never asked for.
The Weight of Silver, the first in a planned duology, is a story of grit, blood, and the price of survival—of what we sacrifice for those we love and who we become when the world demands more than we ever intended to give.
444 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 7, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 19, 2026
The Weight of Silver by Chelsey Moore
A YA coming-of-age fantasy
No Spoiler Review
4-Stars
Overall, this was a great story! I haven’t delved into many YA fantasies. But as her debut novel, this author belted it out of the park. Very well written, with no punctuation, grammatical, or misspellings of note. It was a pleasure to read and captivated me early.
The story revolves around a young woman bound by an ancient and powerful destiny. The tell is her unique silver eyes and gifts that manifest only after she is thrown into the most horrid of human conditions—the Abyssal Gaol, where only the strong survive, and the weak pray for a swift death. Compelled to take sides against the very nature of her ancestral charge of neutrality, she faces bitter trials, betrayal, and heartache, all in exchange for a meager chance at freedom. In order to survive the trials, she must rely on more than skill at arms and dubious alliances. As her unique gifts materialize, she finds support in unexpected places.
Pros and Cons—
Cons first (always). What didn’t work for me—Honestly, I have little to criticize. The author set out to deliver an epic non-spicy fantasy that’s heavy on intrigue, political drama, betrayal, and oh so many fight scenes. And she delivered!
Alas, the hook… (It’s always the hook with me—or lack thereof). I felt the story's intro was a bit rushed, but I can see why she wrote it that way. We sort of fast-forwarded to the goal, an underground prison where inmates lived in abject misery, competing in brutal trials for a chance at freedom. But the hook, those dynamic early words, are designed to grab the reader and pull them in…
“In every story they told, power passed like an heirloom, claimed by kings with swords and…”
I felt it was a bit anemic. Until I got to part two—
“They said the first kill is the hardest. They were wrong. It’s the ones that come after….”
Holy halberds…"
That’s a HOOK! If I were to offer one single critique, it would be to move that to the front of the book.
What did work for me—This is as close to an original trope as you can get these days. The story is rich and vibrant, and there is rarely a moment when the reader can sit back and catch their breath before another secret is revealed, a heart-wrenching betrayal, or an uplifting revelation that completely alters the story's path. Her words convey emotion that draws readers straight into the characters' hearts and minds. The raw sense of hope, determination, dismay, bitterness, and betrayal will give you goosebumps.
The ever-changing landscape (physical and political) is well-scripted and flows smoothly, with detailed, colorful language and just the right amount of tension and suspense to keep you turning pages. The author creates her own bestiary of powerful creatures, which I would love to see captured in fan art. For that matter, I crave an image of Adair that depicts her renowned silvery orbs.
It serves as a standalone novel, but I can see the opportunity for a welcome expansion.
A YA coming-of-age fantasy
No Spoiler Review
4-Stars
Overall, this was a great story! I haven’t delved into many YA fantasies. But as her debut novel, this author belted it out of the park. Very well written, with no punctuation, grammatical, or misspellings of note. It was a pleasure to read and captivated me early.
The story revolves around a young woman bound by an ancient and powerful destiny. The tell is her unique silver eyes and gifts that manifest only after she is thrown into the most horrid of human conditions—the Abyssal Gaol, where only the strong survive, and the weak pray for a swift death. Compelled to take sides against the very nature of her ancestral charge of neutrality, she faces bitter trials, betrayal, and heartache, all in exchange for a meager chance at freedom. In order to survive the trials, she must rely on more than skill at arms and dubious alliances. As her unique gifts materialize, she finds support in unexpected places.
Pros and Cons—
Cons first (always). What didn’t work for me—Honestly, I have little to criticize. The author set out to deliver an epic non-spicy fantasy that’s heavy on intrigue, political drama, betrayal, and oh so many fight scenes. And she delivered!
Alas, the hook… (It’s always the hook with me—or lack thereof). I felt the story's intro was a bit rushed, but I can see why she wrote it that way. We sort of fast-forwarded to the goal, an underground prison where inmates lived in abject misery, competing in brutal trials for a chance at freedom. But the hook, those dynamic early words, are designed to grab the reader and pull them in…
“In every story they told, power passed like an heirloom, claimed by kings with swords and…”
I felt it was a bit anemic. Until I got to part two—
“They said the first kill is the hardest. They were wrong. It’s the ones that come after….”
Holy halberds…"
That’s a HOOK! If I were to offer one single critique, it would be to move that to the front of the book.
What did work for me—This is as close to an original trope as you can get these days. The story is rich and vibrant, and there is rarely a moment when the reader can sit back and catch their breath before another secret is revealed, a heart-wrenching betrayal, or an uplifting revelation that completely alters the story's path. Her words convey emotion that draws readers straight into the characters' hearts and minds. The raw sense of hope, determination, dismay, bitterness, and betrayal will give you goosebumps.
The ever-changing landscape (physical and political) is well-scripted and flows smoothly, with detailed, colorful language and just the right amount of tension and suspense to keep you turning pages. The author creates her own bestiary of powerful creatures, which I would love to see captured in fan art. For that matter, I crave an image of Adair that depicts her renowned silvery orbs.
It serves as a standalone novel, but I can see the opportunity for a welcome expansion.
February 4, 2026
3✨
I enjoyed this read! Fantasy is definitely not my normal go-to genre, so I have to be in the mood, as well as have a fantasy book I can follow easily enough for me. Luckily, romantasy is usually a good to go for me on that front. So, this was not nearly difficult for me to follow.
It was not overly saturated in descriptions or details, while having enough that I was able to understand what was being built. That was helpful for someone like me.
I feel like with fantasy books, our female protagonists are either always very weak and untrained, or the opposite, and are very skilled and badasses. Adair was the latter, and I liked it for this book. I did not always like her, and I was at times annoyed with her internal dilemmas and issues (lack of compassion on my part I think lol), but these instances also made her more real to me.
I felt a bit of frustration regarding the lack of clarity, or even further hinting at, what was meant by the creatures when they say that she needs to restore "balance" to the realm because she is a Velkai. I know Adair is supposed to be confused and not really be sure about what it all means, but I feel like there wasn't enough information given to us by the end of the book to make it less frustrating (maybe this was a me thing rather than a plot thing). But I found myself wanting more direction as to what it is she is supposed to be doing. What her mission or goal in achieving this is.
This was just over four hundred pages, but damn, I felt like so much happened during it. We had such a seemingly long-time frame covered in the pages. Not a complaint; it was great. Having so much going on and happening, kept me reading feverishly.
I am excited for the second book and will very much be reading it. And I would recommend it for sure.
I enjoyed this read! Fantasy is definitely not my normal go-to genre, so I have to be in the mood, as well as have a fantasy book I can follow easily enough for me. Luckily, romantasy is usually a good to go for me on that front. So, this was not nearly difficult for me to follow.
It was not overly saturated in descriptions or details, while having enough that I was able to understand what was being built. That was helpful for someone like me.
I feel like with fantasy books, our female protagonists are either always very weak and untrained, or the opposite, and are very skilled and badasses. Adair was the latter, and I liked it for this book. I did not always like her, and I was at times annoyed with her internal dilemmas and issues (lack of compassion on my part I think lol), but these instances also made her more real to me.
I felt a bit of frustration regarding the lack of clarity, or even further hinting at, what was meant by the creatures when they say that she needs to restore "balance" to the realm because she is a Velkai. I know Adair is supposed to be confused and not really be sure about what it all means, but I feel like there wasn't enough information given to us by the end of the book to make it less frustrating (maybe this was a me thing rather than a plot thing). But I found myself wanting more direction as to what it is she is supposed to be doing. What her mission or goal in achieving this is.
This was just over four hundred pages, but damn, I felt like so much happened during it. We had such a seemingly long-time frame covered in the pages. Not a complaint; it was great. Having so much going on and happening, kept me reading feverishly.
I am excited for the second book and will very much be reading it. And I would recommend it for sure.
February 2, 2026
Absolutely ENTHRALLED. Where do I begin? This book kept my attention throughout. Sexy main character? YES. Brutality? YES. Adventure? DEFINITELY. Love triangle? You BET. Ending? Top notch!!! I’m one of those people who like to see the book in my head, like when I’m reading be able to picture it well. This book did for me without being too descriptive. It was definitely a page turner! Chelsey really captures your attention and keeps it, whilst telling a story of determination, dedication, and devotion to those you love. One thing I truly appreciated too was there weren’t any raunchy scenes or smut. I feel like that can ruin an innocent tale and take away from the real theme. I could recommend this book to all ages! Can’t wait for book #2! 5/5 stars
June 28, 2026
This is a tale of burden, grit, political intrigue, military strategy, monsters of beast and man and familial bonds that run deep.
It is not for the faint-hearted--nor is it truly dark--it just is raw.
If you want a read that is going to break you a bit, dive you into military strategy, and give you some romance with closed door spice-- this is for you.
[This is absolutely a romance sub-plot and the action drives the story.]
My wishes from this book to take it to an exceptional read for me would be: less tell me and more show me (and no need to tell me if you showed me) and I feel this would have been more raw from first person point of view of Adairand could have really have been integrated into her development as a reader.
It is not for the faint-hearted--nor is it truly dark--it just is raw.
If you want a read that is going to break you a bit, dive you into military strategy, and give you some romance with closed door spice-- this is for you.
[This is absolutely a romance sub-plot and the action drives the story.]
My wishes from this book to take it to an exceptional read for me would be: less tell me and more show me (and no need to tell me if you showed me) and I feel this would have been more raw from first person point of view of Adairand could have really have been integrated into her development as a reader.
May 13, 2026
great story
I absolutely loved this book! The otherworldly experience, creatures, mystery, violence and strength. I can’t wait to continue this series!
I’m so super proud to know you as a person Chelsey. You are a wonderful writer and I cannot wait to read more of your books!
I absolutely loved this book! The otherworldly experience, creatures, mystery, violence and strength. I can’t wait to continue this series!
I’m so super proud to know you as a person Chelsey. You are a wonderful writer and I cannot wait to read more of your books!
April 1, 2026
3.1 Stars.
I started this book from teasers about the beginning, and I enjoyed that section the most. It was a good hook and kept me invested enough to finish the book.
I started this book from teasers about the beginning, and I enjoyed that section the most. It was a good hook and kept me invested enough to finish the book.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews