Promise of Blood (Powder Mage, #1)
Brian McClellan
The Age of Kings is dead . . . and I have killed it. It's a bloody business overthrowing a king... Field Marshal Tamas' coup against his king sent corrupt aristocrats to the guillotine and brought bread to the starving. But it also provoked war with the Nine Nations, internal attacks by royalist fanatics, and the greedy to scramble for money and power by Tamas's supposed allies: the Church, workers unions, and mercenary forces. Stretched to his limit, Tamas is relying heavily on his few remaining powder mages, including the embittered Taniel, a brilliant marksman who also happens to be his estranged son, and Adamat, a retired police inspector whose loyalty is being tested by blackmail. But when gods are involved... Now, as attacks batter them from within and without, the credulous are whispering about omens of death and destruction. Just old peasant legends about the gods waking to walk the earth. No modern educated man believes that sort of thing. But they should... In a rich, distinctive world that mixes magic with technology, who could stand against mages that control gunpowder and bullets?
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Promise of Blood is an epic fantasy that takes very strong influences from Bernard Cornwell's Napoleonic era Richard Sharpe series and adds in a couple different magic systems for a fairly fast-paced, intriguing ride.
I've read this book three times now and it's interesting to see how my thoughts have adjusted on it. On the first read, it was a full five stars because I really loved the use of magic related to black powder firearms and the intrigue of how the recent revolution impacted the state of the various countries and the implications for the future. But I've also read it enough to see its flaws, particularly in relation to the character work.
While I still really enjoy the characters who are sympathetic but flawed (outside of Taniel, who still annoys the heck out of me), the female characters are definitely the glaring weak spot in this one. And there's some pretty cringe worthy moments with Taniel in particular. What I still love about this book though is the magic, the action and the potential for the world-building in the sequels.
Overall, I still really enjoyed Promise of Blood, especially via the audiobook which has fantastic narration and is definitely my preferred way to experience the story. I love the blending of Napoleonic era weapons and magic and someday I definitely want to finish the series so I can continue onto the sequel series.
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