The Warded Man: Book One of The Demon Cycle
As darkness falls, the demons will rise: This first book in the Demon Cycle series by New York Times bestselling author Peter V. Brett has been ”justifiably a fan favorite for fifteen years.” (Robin Hobb)
The time has come to stand against the night.
At sunset, the corelings rise—demons who well up from the ground like hellish steam, taking on fearsome form and substance. Immune to mortal weapons, they burn with a consuming hatred of humanity. For hundreds of years corelings have terrorized the night, slowly culling the human herd that shelters behind magical wards—symbols of power whose origins are lost in myth and mystery.
It was not always this way. Once, men and women battled the corelings on equal terms. Once, under the leadership of the legendary Deliverer, and armed with powerful wards that were not merely shields but weapons, they took the battle to the demons. Now those days are gone. The fighting wards are lost. Night by night, the demons grow stronger, while human numbers dwindle. With hope for the future fading, three young survivors of vicious demon attacks will dare the impossible, stepping beyond the crumbling safety of the wards to risk everything in a desperate quest to regain the secrets of the past.
Don’t miss any of the thrilling novels in Peter V. Brett’s Demon Cycle
THE WARDED MAN • THE DESERT SPEAR • THE DAYLIGHT WAR • THE SKULL THRONE • THE CORE
The time has come to stand against the night.
At sunset, the corelings rise—demons who well up from the ground like hellish steam, taking on fearsome form and substance. Immune to mortal weapons, they burn with a consuming hatred of humanity. For hundreds of years corelings have terrorized the night, slowly culling the human herd that shelters behind magical wards—symbols of power whose origins are lost in myth and mystery.
It was not always this way. Once, men and women battled the corelings on equal terms. Once, under the leadership of the legendary Deliverer, and armed with powerful wards that were not merely shields but weapons, they took the battle to the demons. Now those days are gone. The fighting wards are lost. Night by night, the demons grow stronger, while human numbers dwindle. With hope for the future fading, three young survivors of vicious demon attacks will dare the impossible, stepping beyond the crumbling safety of the wards to risk everything in a desperate quest to regain the secrets of the past.
Don’t miss any of the thrilling novels in Peter V. Brett’s Demon Cycle
THE WARDED MAN • THE DESERT SPEAR • THE DAYLIGHT WAR • THE SKULL THRONE • THE CORE
BUY THE BOOK
Community Reviews
So fun! I love this world, the magic rules, and the main characters. Okay, maybe Rojer is a little unnecessary but we'll see if he does better stuff in later books.
This reminds me a little of Game of Thrones in that it takes place in a less civilized time with different villages, cities, and kingdoms, but I find The Warded Man is less grossly violent and more feminist.
This reminds me a little of Game of Thrones in that it takes place in a less civilized time with different villages, cities, and kingdoms, but I find The Warded Man is less grossly violent and more feminist.
Disclaimer: I have read very few books of this genre, which my library labeled as "Science Fiction" and which I call "Fantasy." Whatever it really is, I have little experience and may not use the proper terminology.
I picked up this book because well over a year ago I entered a giveaway here on Goodreads for [b:The Desert Spear|6736971|The Desert Spear (Demon Cycle, #2)|Peter V. Brett|https:images.gr-assets.com/books/1388219761s/6736971.jpg|6527274] because it looked pretty darn cool. I did not, however, realize that it was the second book of a series, so I had to read this one first.
No regrets.
A few pages in, I thought I was out of my realm. Corelings? Uh...what are corelings? I wasn't sure if this was something Mr. Brett had thought up or something every fantasy aficionado would know. I had a sinking feeling that I was not going to understand what the heck was going on for much of this book. FANTASY NOVICES TAKE NOTE: You need no previous experience to comprehend and enjoy this book.
Before long, I was fully aware of what corelings were. As it turns out, corelings are demonic, razor sharp toothed, tear-you-to-shred claws carrying creatures that come out at night and rip humans to shreds and then devour said humans. Oh, cool. NO BIGGIE.
There are even different types of corelings/demons: rock demons, wood demons, sand demons, flame demons, etc. Thus far, the rock demon is largest, strongest, most intimidating of the bunch. Here are a few words used to describe one: fifteen feet tall, hulking mass of sinew and sharp edges, spiked tail, gnarled arms ended in talons the size of butchering knives, row after row of bladelike teeth.
YIKES.
I visited Google to get a photo of what a rock demon may look like and did find this photo:
This is a little different than the drawing I did of a coreling, but I think you can see the resemblance.
But enough about these sweet little demons because despite the incredible descriptions of these creatures and the amazing action sequences they contribute to, the real gems are the three main characters.
What I really liked about the characters was that you were given a peek into their childhoods to help understand why they ended up where they did as adults/almost adults. The other thing I loved was how strong the "supporting cast" was. There were quite a few characters (Bruna, Ragen, Elona, Cob, Arrick, etc.) that I found myself wondering about even when they weren't in a particular chapter. I wanted to know what happened to them and if they would appear again. The three main characters, however, definitely stayed in the spotlight and proved to be relevant (I say this only because I have read one too many books where the main characters become the least important characters to me because the focus somehow strays from them mid-book).
Rojer - Young Jongleur who lies about his age, is missing part of his hand, and can play a fiddle like a bad mammajamma. I think his character has much development to come.
Leesha - Herb Gatherer/Healer who takes care of the sick, defends both the weak and her virginity, and has the hots for the Warded Man. Which leads us to...
Arlen - Messenger/Warder/Lone Ranger who ends up having daddy issues after he watches his father merely watch his mother be gored to death by a coreling. Oh, and there is the fact that POTENTIAL SPOILER! POTENTIAL SPOILER! CAUTION! DO NOT ENTER! OKAY, ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK IF YOU PLEASE! he becomes the Warded Man. That is quite the switcher-roo because you start to think of him as your kid brother and then he becomes that hunk on the cover. I kept feeling a little pervy for having this massive crush on him. But seriously, what a
Honorable Mention Cool Stuff:
-Wards. Wards are symbols that the people paint/engrave/draw/whatever around their bodies, homes, etc. These "circles" keep the corelings at bay because they cannot break through them. Oh, wait! Except that they can...if there is a weak "link" in the circle. For example, if you draw your wards in the sand and then the wind blows part of a symbol away, you could very possibly be coreling food. Nom nom!
-Twilight Dancer. Twilight Dancer is the Warded Man's horse, and he is kick-ass. I found a photo of him online as well:
While this is a pretty good depiction of how I envisioned Twilight Dancer, I thought my sketch was a little more accurate (don't hate me because I'm such a phenomenal artist):
-The ACTION. The action was amazing. Even though I could not for the life of me get a grasp on the time period (it seemed like a distant future that was a lot like the long ago past), I could envision each village, villager, and coreling. The battles were very descriptive; I kept thinking, "This needs to be a movie!" I was really into it and liked not feeling conflicted about the corelings. I knew they were the "bad guys" and had no problem with them being slayed left and right by the Warded Man. I felt like I was right there fighting with them.
I am quite excited to read the next one and a bit annoyed with myself for waiting so long to read this set.
FIVE EASY STARS
I picked up this book because well over a year ago I entered a giveaway here on Goodreads for [b:The Desert Spear|6736971|The Desert Spear (Demon Cycle, #2)|Peter V. Brett|https:images.gr-assets.com/books/1388219761s/6736971.jpg|6527274] because it looked pretty darn cool. I did not, however, realize that it was the second book of a series, so I had to read this one first.
No regrets.
A few pages in, I thought I was out of my realm. Corelings? Uh...what are corelings? I wasn't sure if this was something Mr. Brett had thought up or something every fantasy aficionado would know. I had a sinking feeling that I was not going to understand what the heck was going on for much of this book. FANTASY NOVICES TAKE NOTE: You need no previous experience to comprehend and enjoy this book.
Before long, I was fully aware of what corelings were. As it turns out, corelings are demonic, razor sharp toothed, tear-you-to-shred claws carrying creatures that come out at night and rip humans to shreds and then devour said humans. Oh, cool. NO BIGGIE.
There are even different types of corelings/demons: rock demons, wood demons, sand demons, flame demons, etc. Thus far, the rock demon is largest, strongest, most intimidating of the bunch. Here are a few words used to describe one: fifteen feet tall, hulking mass of sinew and sharp edges, spiked tail, gnarled arms ended in talons the size of butchering knives, row after row of bladelike teeth.
YIKES.
I visited Google to get a photo of what a rock demon may look like and did find this photo:
This is a little different than the drawing I did of a coreling, but I think you can see the resemblance.
But enough about these sweet little demons because despite the incredible descriptions of these creatures and the amazing action sequences they contribute to, the real gems are the three main characters.
What I really liked about the characters was that you were given a peek into their childhoods to help understand why they ended up where they did as adults/almost adults. The other thing I loved was how strong the "supporting cast" was. There were quite a few characters (Bruna, Ragen, Elona, Cob, Arrick, etc.) that I found myself wondering about even when they weren't in a particular chapter. I wanted to know what happened to them and if they would appear again. The three main characters, however, definitely stayed in the spotlight and proved to be relevant (I say this only because I have read one too many books where the main characters become the least important characters to me because the focus somehow strays from them mid-book).
Rojer - Young Jongleur who lies about his age, is missing part of his hand, and can play a fiddle like a bad mammajamma. I think his character has much development to come.
Leesha - Herb Gatherer/Healer who takes care of the sick, defends both the weak and her virginity, and has the hots for the Warded Man. Which leads us to...
Arlen - Messenger/Warder/Lone Ranger who ends up having daddy issues after he watches his father merely watch his mother be gored to death by a coreling. Oh, and there is the fact that POTENTIAL SPOILER! POTENTIAL SPOILER! CAUTION! DO NOT ENTER! OKAY, ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK IF YOU PLEASE! he becomes the Warded Man. That is quite the switcher-roo because you start to think of him as your kid brother and then he becomes that hunk on the cover. I kept feeling a little pervy for having this massive crush on him. But seriously, what a
Honorable Mention Cool Stuff:
-Wards. Wards are symbols that the people paint/engrave/draw/whatever around their bodies, homes, etc. These "circles" keep the corelings at bay because they cannot break through them. Oh, wait! Except that they can...if there is a weak "link" in the circle. For example, if you draw your wards in the sand and then the wind blows part of a symbol away, you could very possibly be coreling food. Nom nom!
-Twilight Dancer. Twilight Dancer is the Warded Man's horse, and he is kick-ass. I found a photo of him online as well:
While this is a pretty good depiction of how I envisioned Twilight Dancer, I thought my sketch was a little more accurate (don't hate me because I'm such a phenomenal artist):
-The ACTION. The action was amazing. Even though I could not for the life of me get a grasp on the time period (it seemed like a distant future that was a lot like the long ago past), I could envision each village, villager, and coreling. The battles were very descriptive; I kept thinking, "This needs to be a movie!" I was really into it and liked not feeling conflicted about the corelings. I knew they were the "bad guys" and had no problem with them being slayed left and right by the Warded Man. I felt like I was right there fighting with them.
I am quite excited to read the next one and a bit annoyed with myself for waiting so long to read this set.
FIVE EASY STARS
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