♡♡♡ A lot of characters transcended the potential McClellan already gave them in book 1.There was a meticulous development for both Tamas and Taniel (2 of the main POVs) that made these two great characters so real, so human, so relatable at some levels. Let them come upon us with all their fury, because these hounds at our heels will soon know we are lions!” The book was well structured with a lot of epic battles and fighting scenes (both with firearms and with magic) well distributed throughout the story. Whether it’s a journey to save loved ones, protect one’s country, prove oneself or of self-discovery, each one had its own tone, suspense and unexpected twists (except the female POV that fell flat for me and didn’t bring much to the story). The story was like a long journey for all the POVs – literally for one of them. While Promise of Blood felt more like a collection of successive stories, here the narrative was more linear. ♡♡♡ The storytelling was very different from the first book. ♡♡♡ The number of tropes and sub-genres used in this book and series in general was staggering. Fantasy, military, politics, religions and mythology, mystery and detective arc… It’s brilliant, truly, to juggle so many elements in the same story. So why not a 5 stars rating, one would ask ?īecause, while addressing some of the issues of Promise of Blood, The Crimson Campaign still had some flaws (for me) and I’ll explain the ones that bothered me.īut, first things first, let’s start with the positive things. Brian McClellan showed in it some of the great potential Promise of Blood hinted at! The Crimson Campaign was really, really good. The story is still told from 3 main male POVs and a smaller female POV (that is gaining in importance). The Crimson Campaign is the second book of the Powder Mage trilogy and it picks up a few days after the last events of Promise of Blood. Genre: Fantasy, Flintlock Fantasy, Military fiction

Powder mage book 1