The Coldest War

Published in 2012, The Coldest War is the second book in Ian Tregillis's Milkweed Triptych, set in an alternate-history 1960s during the Cold War. The novel explores the supernatural and magical consequences that arose from the altered outcome of World War II, as Britain and the Soviet Union race to weaponize warlocks.

Yes, it is highly recommended to read the first book in the Milkweed Triptych, Bitter Seeds, before diving into The Coldest War. The trilogy features a continuous overarching plot involving British warlocks and Nazi superhumans, and the second book relies heavily on the altered timelines established in the first.

The novel blends actual Cold War paranoia with dark fantasy, featuring secret government agencies that use blood magic to bind demonic entities. Tregillis mixes the geopolitical tension of the 1960s Soviet Union and British intelligence with intense, gritty superhero and occult tropes.

The narrative follows several returning characters from the first book, most notably the British intelligence agent Raybould Marsh and the troubled warlock William Beauclerk. The book also expands upon the roles of the superhuman Nazi children who survived the previous conflict.