Sections
If the first book of The Demon Cycle series was so uneven that it appeared as if it was written by two different authors, The Desert Spear certainly was written exclusively by the worst of the pair: Peter V. Brett’s fantasy novel continues to dismantle the best parts of its characters while offering a troublesome take on sexism – and this time with an anticlimactic ending to boot.
The protagonist is now Jardir, a desert warrior who, after obtaining a magical spear, decides to proclaim himself the sacred leader of his people and start a holy war. Meanwhile, the herbalist Leesha, alongside her friend Rojer, continues her preparations to arm a village against the night [...]
The Warded Man, the first volume of Peter V. Brett’s Demon Cycle fantasy series, is a well-structured book that presents a frightening universe inhabited by tormented characters. Its last two acts, however, throw away both character development and common sense, demolishing much of what had been built so far.
The story of The Warded Man takes place in an even more bleak and inhospitable feudal world than usual: in addition to terrible living conditions, unrelenting prejudice, and strong inequality and social injustice, demons also leave the earth whenever the sun goes down. The people – whose weapons barely scratch the corelings, as they are called – try to survive every [...]