Barren by Peter V. Brett

Pros: fast paced, realistic relationships

Cons: homophobic world which may be distressing for some to read

Selia Square’s time as speaker of Tibbet’s Brook hasn’t always been easy, and as the demons start to swarm mistakes from her past threaten to destroy the Brook.

This is a demon cycle novella set around the time of the events in the novel The Core. You’ll be lost if you haven’t read the novels.

I liked Selia, though I’ll admit that the large age gap between her and her lover did give me pause. The novella is strongly focused on her sexuality and how being a lesbian goes against the religious and moral codes of the peoples of the Brook. Though it has a happy ending, some readers may find the negative language and how an earlier affair ends distressing. The author creates his own terms so there are no slurs, but it’s still a world that doesn’t accept gay couples.

The interpersonal relationships were handled realistically. Grudges festered, past events haunted the present, the youth didn’t care much about what happened before they were born. The town and its borroughs felt real and lived in.

It’s a quick read that fleshes in what happened in Arlen’s home village after he gave them the fighting wards and helps his father redeem himself.

Book Review: The Core by Peter Brett

Pros: lots of action, character development, satisfying series ending

Cons: at a disadvantage if haven’t read the novellas

This is the fifth and final volume of the Demon Cycle. A lot has happened as Arlen and Jardir finally take their party down to the core. Their captured mind demon alerts them that the hive is close to swarm, but it’s too late for them to help their friends and loved ones who are about to be overrun at the new moon. All they can do as they journey below is hope they’ve prepared those they leave behind well enough to survive on their own.

There are a lot of point of view characters, some for the first time. This allows the reader to see events all over Thesa as the demons attack. And they attack hard. The book does a fantastic job of consolidating all of the people and places that have been visited in the series. 

Having said that, I was surprised that the people and events of some of the novellas were referenced without preamble. Derek from Brayan’s Gold shows up with no introduction and I’m assuming the novella Messenger’s Legacy (which I haven’t read) explains why Ragen and Elissa aren’t in Miln when The Core begins. While I felt Briar was properly introduced in The Skull Throne, when Regan and Elissa showed up it felt like I’d missed a chapter, as there’s no explanation of what they’ve been doing though there are a few cryptic hints that they were in Laktown looking for Briar. Once they were back in Miln I found their political situation quite interesting.

There is a lot of action both with the defenders up top and those penetrating the deeps. The battles are varied, as the mind demons fight dirty. Once or twice we’re shown the after effects of a scene rather than a scene itself, which lessened the impact of some tragedies. But on the whole it’s a whirlwind of battles intercut with preparations for surviving the next battle. 

I liked that Arlen and Jardir continue to develop as people. Seeing Jardir start to question his beliefs as he learns more about Kaji’s own descent while Arlen starts to realize there may in fact be a Creator after all, was kind of neat. I thought that the birth of Leesha’s child and the politics surrounding its identity were handled well.

There are a number of touching, heartfelt moments in the book. I particularly liked when Jardir says his goodbyes.

The final battle was hard fought and gave a very satisfying ending for the series.

The Warded Man Still Life

Peter V. Brett's fifth and final Demon Cycle book has a name (The Core), covers (with an interesting creation story for how the US and UK covers were designed), and a release date (October 3, 2017 - pushed back from August).

When I worked at the World's Biggest Bookstore, I often went to publisher run bookseller events. SFF wasn't often represented, outside of YA. The Warded Man was the first adult Random House title I was mailed outside of an event, because I specialized in SFF at the store and they wanted to promote the book. So it has a special place in my heart beyond simply being an incredible debut. In 2009, a few months after it came out in the US/Canada I interviewed Mr. Brett, asking questions about the writer life. A few years later, while handselling book two, The Desert Spear, I opened the book and realized my review of it was quoted in the front! For some reason publishers don't notify reviewers when they do this so it was a complete surprise and only one of two instances (that I know of) that this has happened to me.

About a month ago I noticed that Peter V. Brett was hosting a still life contest on his blog. I'd intended to enter and then completely forgot about it. Well, yesterday I saw a twitter post with some of the entries and decided to do it anyway, even though the contest is over now.

Here's what I came up with:

I think the first shot is better, as it shows the scales and other objects closer and at an angle, but I like that you can see that the cloth is a cloak in the second shot. My idea behind this was that Leesha had just entered her hut, thrown her cloak down and was frantically preparing an herbal remedy for a patient (hence the knocked over bottles).

This second scene isn't as detailed (and yes, the hora should be bone not crystal, and warded to boot), but I wanted to do something to honour Inevera, one of my all time favourite characters.

Book Review: The Great Bazaar & Brayan’s Gold by Peter V. Brett

This is a collection of 2 short stories and 2 passages that were cut from The Warded Man.  Each story has a short introduction from the author explaining either where the ideas came from or why the scene was cut.  The stories were originally published as limited edition hardcovers by Subterranean Press, with this new combined edition being published in trade paperback by Tachyon Publications.  The book also includes a short Krasian dictionary, which is not really necessary as all the required terms are explained in the stories themselves, and some examples of wards and the types of demons they’re used to protect against, which is pretty interesting to read. 

***** Brayan’s Gold - While an apprentice messenger, Arlen and his master are assigned a longer run than usual, transporting thundersticks to Brayan’s Gold, high in the mountains.  But while the compensation is generous, the risks are also high: bandits, harsh conditions, and several nights outdoors with only warded circles as protection against demons.  This is a fantastic story with a lot of different elements to it.  There’s a surprising amount of variety to the troubles Arlen faces as he heads into the mountains.

***** The Great Bazaar - Using a map procured from Abban, a khaffit from the great bazaar in Fort Krasia, Arlen hunts for treasure, and discovers demons he’s never faced before.  This story has scenes from both Arlen and Abban’s point of views.  It’s a pretty focused story, but you do get to see a little more of what life is like for the underclass in the bazaar.

Brett manages to pack a lot of content into both stories and writes them in such a way that they fill in gaps left by the novels but explain everything required to enjoy them if you haven’t read the books.

***** Arlen - This is a prologue that didn’t make the book, dealing with Arlen’s life before the events of The Warded Man.  It’s an interesting look at his youthful personality and how he was already pushing boundaries.

**** Brianne Beaten - This passage deals with a scene from Leesha’s life that kind of stands on its own, though it involves an unmentioned incident that ruined a friendship.  It helps to know what that incident is, but the scene still works if you don’t.  

It’s a pretty short book, but the stories are high quality and help flesh out Arlen’s character.  If you missed the Subterranean Press editions, then this is a good time to get the stories.  If you’ve never read Brett, it’s a great sampler of his work and will whet your appetite for more.

Out July 14th.