Sins Of Empire

McClellan starts up another trilogy set in the same universe as his 'Powder Mage' trilogy, but ten years after.I daresay it's also the author's best work so far, with complex social themes, an interesting setting, compelling and developed characters, a unique magic system, and breathtaking action scenes.It's full of some old and new characters, but still maintains the overall same vibe of the a wild west landscape on the verge of an industrial revolution, with the push and pull of the frontier struggling to stave off the encroachments of civilization.McClellan is pioneering a newly developing subgenre called Gunpowder fantasy which is a variation of steampunk, but one that merges the aesthetics and setting of the American wild west with gunfighting, magic, and mayhem.I suspect you'll really find a lot to love in this one if you were fans of Sanderson's Mistborn series (specifically, his Wax and Wayne series).Sins of Empire one of the most enjoyable steampunkish action fantasy books I've read this year. Read this one and you get a gritty, action-packed ride that's hell of a lot of fun to read. Despite the action-heavy, there's a lot of depth between the pages: troubled characters, a world in the midsts of civil upheaval, themes of revolution social class struggle, and of course, a deep mythology and interesting magic system.What more can I say? Absolutely read this one. If anything, it's a better book than McClellan's last effort (which was an impressive series already).