Crow flies over the rooftops of Marketh as a successful thief and gets himself targeted to perform the most amazing heist of all in As the Crow Flies by Robin Lythgoe. Crow quite easily removes items of importance and value from all sorts of locations and becomes the means by which the evil Baron Duzayan hopes to obtain the key ingredient for the spell to open a portal to another dimension. Forced to work with the Imperial Agent Tanris, who has been chasing him for many years, Crow undertakes a four-month adventure, surviving all sorts of challenges, spells and encounters with spirits, wizards, and dragons. Together with a mute girl they rescue from bandits, Crow and Tanris uncover secrets that may help them prevent the destruction of the city. Their return home is just as dangerous and leads to a battle with creatures from another realm until some quick thinking turns the tide.

Crow, a thief with a well-developed sense of honor and gratitude to the gods, joins against his will with the warrior Tanris to do the bidding of Baron Duzayan who, it is discovered later, is a wicked wizard determined to take over the city and empire with the help of the minions of another dimension. Crow and Tanris must retrieve a dragon's egg for the Baron to be able to complete his spell and they suffer through horrible conditions, tremendous danger, and unbearable loss before they are able to figure out a plan to survive the quest.

Robin Lythgoe has created a delightful tale of magic, intrigue, and plenty of good old-fashioned luck in As the Crow Flies. Following the adventure of Crow and Tanris is quite entertaining and offers an enjoyable look into a mystical world that is also quite realistic. I really enjoyed the combination of characters - especially the dragon. I loved Crow and his group of acquaintances.

As the Crow Flies is a fun mystical adventure for fantasy enthusiasts by Robin Lythgoe. Crow, a notorious thief, has chosen the wrong victim for his thievery bout when Baron Duzayan, a cunning yet mad wizard, caught him instead and blackmailed Crow to steal a dragon's egg for him. Crow has no choice but to agree. Worst of all, he has to join forces with Tanris, the guard who has been trying to catch him for as long as he could remember. Throughout the journey, Crow and Tanris' clashing personalities will keep readers amused.

The premise, plot, and characterization are familiar but not cliched. Author Robin Lythgoe is also nonchalant when it comes to names. Crow's horse is named Horse and the dragon's egg is called Egg or Not-An-Egg. Then there is Girl, a mute girl that the duo rescued. My favorite scene is at the dragon's lair, where Crow has to use every bit of his skills to steal the egg without alerting the female dragon. It is tense, fun, and hilarious.

Initially, the monologue drags the early pacing of the book - although it is fun to see the story from Crow's point of view. It often veers to include tangential details, which also hampers Lythgoe's flowing prose. Even so, the story gets better as one progresses. On the whole, Lythgoe has produced an entertaining fantasy journey for fans of the genre to enjoy.