Isaac here with the promised reminder that The Autumn Republic—the third volume of Brian McClellan’s Powder Mage Trilogy—was released this week. Those of you who enjoy Brandon’s fantasy novels will likely find a lot to sink your teeth into with Brian’s. As we’ve mentioned before, Brian was a student of Brandon’s back in the day and is writing some really good stuff.

Brandon gave the first book in the series, Promise of Blood, quite a nice cover quote. He said, “This book is just plain awesome. I found myself enjoying every moment of it. Innovative magic, quick-paced plot, interesting world. I had a blast.” Adam and I reviewed the second book in the series—The Crimson Campaign—in a post a few weeks ago, lauding its readability, interesting characters, and fun twists.

Now here we are with the third in the trilogy. Brian’s writing has grown more confident and more powerful. The trilogy concludes with punch (think fist, not Kool-Aid), an ending that finishes things without the contrivance of feeling like it’s wrapped up too nicely with a nice little happy birthday card attached. History, countries, characters, and lives all feel like they continue on beyond the pages of the trilogy, and there’s some good suspense here, as we’ve learned from previous volumes that not all of Brian’s characters are safe from bullet or sword.

Now let’s hear from our resident McClellanite, Adam, with his take on The Autumn Republic:

It’s awesome!

Now, I don’t need to say any more than that to sum up my feelings on The Autumn Republic or the Powder Mage Trilogy as a whole, but I will. Just as Isaac said, there is some great suspense and the pacing is awesome. I found myself saying, “I will put it down after this chapter,” only to read for another two hours. If you like Brandon’s books you will enjoy these. Do take notice, they are grittier than Brandon’s usually are but they stay pretty clean in other regards. Needless to say, I have been converted and have become a McClellanite and look forward to Brian’s books in the future.

Other sites have done a good job of summarizing the book with the intent to excite readers—see the Kirkus and Publishers Weekly reviews. If you’ve read the first two books, by all means check out the conclusion, and if you haven’t read Brian’s books before, and you enjoy fantasy novels—especially fantasy with a bit of a historic feel to it—then check out Brian’s first book, Promise of Blood. The story is a lot of fun, and I have it on good authority that the maps aren’t anything to scoff at either.