The Powder Mage trilogy

Plot

At the beginning of Promise of Blood, Field Marshal Tamas has just committed a brutal coup against Adro's monarchy. When he kills every single member of the Royal Cabal, they all utter the same mysterious phrase: "You can't break Kresimir's Promise".

Adamat, a former police inspector who is now a private investigator, is asked by Tamas to help resolve the mystery. Meanwhile, Tamas is busy with purging the country's nobility and struggling to maintain peace during the inevitable civil war. Taniel, Tamas's son and a talented powder mage who is able to consume gunpowder to give himself supernatural powers, is given the task to hunt down an uncommonly powerful member of the Royal Cabal who managed to escape during the coup. Soon it becomes clear that overthrowing the monarchy was just the beginning.

Promise of Blood

Promise of Blood was well received by reviewers, one commenting, "With strong characters, a unique magic system, and a compelling story that looks to just be getting started, Promise of Blood is, hands down, my favourite read of the year. Brian McClellan has written an instant classic and will be hard pressed to top what he has already written.

Kirkus Reviews gave the book a starred review stating: "A thoroughly satisfying yarn that should keep readers waiting impatiently for further installments." Publishers Weekly, in reviewing the book, stated "McClellan neatly mixes intrigue and action..." and gave the book a generally positive review.

In 2014, Promise of Blood won the Morningstar Award for Best Fantasy Newcomer. The book's cover, by Gene Mollica and Michael Frost, was also nominated for the Ravenheart Award for Best Fantasy Book Jacket/Artist.

The Crimson Campaign

Review of The Crimson Campaign were generally favorable. Publishers Weekly referred to the book as a "swirling sequel" and Staffer’s Book Review stated it was "just great fun." Kirkus Reviews gave a more reserved appraisal stating the "book is less relentlessly inventive than the inaugural volume but still impressively distinctive and pungent…".

Richard Bray of Fantasy-Faction wrote in his review, "In all, The Crimson Campaign is the rare middle book of a trilogy that actually kicks its pace up a notch. It’s an amazing work, and has the series well-situated for an outstanding finale in The Autumn Republic due out next year.

Books in the series

Eight novellas and short stories set in the world of The Powder Mage Trilogy were released:

Sequel

In May, 2016, McClellan revealed a sequel to the Powder Mage series, entitled Gods of Blood and Powder. The first book, Sins of Empire, was released March 7, 2017.