Ink Mage SideQuest Trilogy Books in Order

The Ink Mage SideQuest Trilogy is exactly what the name suggests, a set of shorter adventures in the same world as the main ink mage books, but told on a smaller, quicker scale. The center of these stories is the partnership between Templeton Kane and Lill.

Templeton is a rogue, an opportunist, and the kind of man who would rather talk, bluff, or flirt his way out of trouble before reaching for a blade. Lill balances him out. She is from the Glacial Wastes, built for hard living, and she is also an Ink Mage whose tattoos make her dangerous in ways Templeton can barely follow.

That odd-couple rhythm gives the trilogy its snap. In The Murder Blossom, they chase an ancient artifact. In The Shadow Sorceress, new magic puts them on the run. In The City at the Top of The World, the road leads north into tribal politics and a lost city with old dangers waiting in it.

These books do not carry the same weight as the main trilogy, and they are better for it. They feel nimble. You get the worldbuilding, the magic, and the sword-swinging action, but in a format that behaves more like an adventure serial than a kingdom-sized epic.

They are side stories, yes. They are also a good reminder that this world is big enough to support thieves, barbarians, strange magic, and trouble well beyond the main plot.