The Autumn Republic

By: Brian McClellan

Narrated by: Christian Rodska

Tamas, Taniel, and Adamat have been betrayed and Adro now lies in the hands of a foreign invader. But it remains the duty of the powder mages to defend their homeland unto death in the explosive conclusion the Brian McClellan's Powder Mage trilogy.

The capital has fallen...

Field Marshal Tamas returns to his beloved country to find that for the first time in history, the capital city of Adro lies in the hands of a foreign invader. His son is missing, his allies are indistinguishable from his foes, and reinforcements are several weeks away.

An army divided...

With the Kez still bearing down upon them and without clear leadership, the Adran army has turned against itself. Inspector Adamat is drawn into the very heart of this new mutiny with promises of finding his kidnapped son.

All hope rests with one...

And Taniel Two-shot, hunted by men he once thought his friends, must safeguard the only chance Adro has of getting through this war without being destroyed...

he Autumn Republic is the epic conclusion that began with Promise of Blood and The Crimson Campaign.

©2015 Brian McClellan (P)2015 Hachette Audio

Awesome!

One of the best trilogies so far. I really didn't want it to end. Loved the characters, the way the story flowed and the humor throughout.

incredible trilogy!

Great finish to this incredible trilogy.

I love the work the narrator does to make the story come alive.

Drives relentlessly to the climax

The third book, “The Autumn Republic,” drives relentlessly to the climax. Still more surprises are in store for the POV characters, some are heart-rending. Plot lines initially continue their precipitous downward spirals, but eventually converge into a compelling culmination. The payoff is powerful.

Gritty, messy … the author is not easy on his characters. He beats them, shoots them, stabs them. They must suffer outrageous fortunes. Battle scenes are descriptive of strategy, tactics, battle, and the confusion therein. The characters operate on incomplete knowledge and sometimes make mistakes. Yet the protagonists are heroes. They overcome the challenges they face by courage and determination.

Antagonists are not necessarily evil. They have their own motivations and agendas. The major antagonists emerge as more than cutouts. Further, as the story develops, their machinations nest and overlap each other. Aside from the opponent characters, an overarching antagonist reveals itself, namely Change, or more fully, the chaos that accompanies changes in society, the economy, religion, and of course, political authorities. As the POV characters encounter the many changes around them, they must adapt and grow.

Brian McLellan is a creative spirit kindred to Brandon Sanderson. Characters do things for reasons. They grow; they’re different at the end. Magics are limited--and have rules, and magic takes a back seat to a character’s choices and actions. The world-making is magnificently deep, detailed, and complex. McLellan’s talent is in crafting a very good story of relatable characters set in a believable context.

Christian Rodska gives each character a voice. His narrative tone is and expressive, changing pitch, volume, and rate appropriate for the material. He emotes well. He gives the central character a gravelly tenacity touched with the right amounts of exasperation and weariness that makes you feel like that character is doing the talking. A British actor, he really does an excellent performance.

Enjoyable

A great and original story, but I was overall unattached to any of the characters. Also, I felt some of the plot lines were underdeveloped. Many of the minor plot lines could have not been included and the story would not have been changed in any way.

great series

I was a huge fan of this trilogy though a late come to it which was food because I don't know if I could have waited for the next book the suspense would have killed me

excellent!

I'm sad that i have finished the series! i'm always depressed when a good series is finished..

A stellar ending

What did you love best about The Autumn Republic?

This book had me engaged from start to finish. The pacing is incredible, and it never really seems to let down. The different POV characters all give a different angle and feel to the story, making sure that none of the storylines go stale.

What about Christian Rodska’s performance did you like?

Everything. His use of different dialects and inflections really sells the diversity of the characters.
I was really impressed about the entire way he performed the book.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The ending. Spoilers.

Love the book, love the story, love the narrator!

This series is right up there along with Jim Butcher's The Dresden Files, and Brandon Sanderson's the Stormlight Archive. It's a shame that it is only a trilogy.

Exceptional!

The entire series is beautifully written and performed. The humor jumps out at you and the world building is spectacular.

Very good conclusion to the series

I wasn't a huge fan of The Crimson Campaign, but the Autumn Republic was a good conclusion to the series.

There are a lot of fantasy series these days that start off as trilogies, but then spin out of control as POVs increase and the author loses control of the overall story. Brian McClellan did not let that happen here. This was planned as a trilogy and it ended as a trilogy. This is not because McClellan doesn't have other stories to tell in this same world, but he told those story in ancillary novellas. His discretion with the story should be praised. There is no need for ever-increasing POVs, especially because it almost always comes at the expense of the overall story.

The Autumn Republic wrapped up the important story lines in a satisfying conclusion. This is a solid series and I look forward to reading whatever McClellan releases next.