Promise of Blood
The Powder Mage trilogy, Book 1
Brian McClellan
Orbit
Fiction, Fantasy
Themes: Epics, Girl Power, Magic Workers, Religious Themes, Soldier Stories, Urban Tales
****+
Description
Since the days when the god Kresimir and His saintly companions walked the world, divinely-appointed kings have ruled the Nine nations, protected by Privileged sorcerers of great power... but the monarchies grow fat and corrupt and the people and land suffer. Now, the nation of Adro has thrown down their king, a coup spearheaded by Field Marshal Tamas and a collection of powerful men and women. But casting down the king was the easy part. Now Tamas and his allies (and their conflicting agendas and loyalties) face the task of rebuilding an Adro bled dry by royal excesses, even as the neighboring nation of Kez readies their armies, assassins appear at every turn, and sorceries more powerful than any seen since Kesimir's age threaten to tear the fledgling republic apart.
Review
This flintlock fantasy was clearly inspired by the French Revolution, with the added twist of various classes of mages: the relatively common Knacked with their minor and peculiar gifts of varying usefulness' the Marked, or powder mages, who sniff gunpowder like cocaine and can manipulate bullets (at the risk of addiction); and the elite Privileged sorcerers who can level buildings with their willpower alone. Nor are these the sole powers in the world, as there are teases and hints of other gifts and traditions from outlying nations beyond the Nine (which are generally dismissed as "savage" lands, to be colonized and conquered). The story starts on the very eve of the revolution, a dark and bloody night of intrigue that sets the tone for the rest of the tale, with an omen of trouble in the dying declaration of a royalist. From there, Tamas struggles to pull the fractured capital together while mopping up royalist pockets (including a painful reckoning with a man he'd once considered a friend and colleague), while dealing with strained relations with his powder-addicted Marked son Taniel. Taniel, meanwhile, has acquired some unusual dress and habits from his time abroad, helping a colonized nation throw off Kez's yoke - where he picked up the mute young "savage" woman Ka-Poel, who turns several tropes of the "noble savage companion" on their ear. Along the way, investigator Adamat pursues clues about the royalist's declaration and how great a threat it portends, while also being tasked with discovering the traitor among the ranks of Tamas's allies, and a possible madman sets himself up among the revolutionaries while claiming to be a god reborn. Intrigue, action, politics, history, betrayals, violence, surprises, and some needed spots of humor fill the pages, along with interestingly flawed characters and a world that's both familiar and original. I'm looking forward to the next installment, especially as this one ends on a bit of a cliffhanger.