The Daylight War

Book 3 of The Demon Cycle

The Warded Man by Peter V. Brett, Book One of The Demon Cycle (US cover)

With The Warded Man and The Desert Spear, Peter V. Brett surged to the front rank of contemporary fantasy, standing alongside giants in the field such as George R. R. Martin, Robert Jordan, and Terry Brooks. The Daylight War, the eagerly anticipated third volume in Brett’s internationally bestselling Demon Cycle, continues the epic tale of humanity’s last stand against an army of demons that rise each night to prey on mankind.

Preceded by:
The Desert Spear

Followed by:
The Skull Throne

On the night of the new moon, the demons rise in force, seeking the deaths of two men, both of whom have the potential to become the fabled Deliverer, the man prophesied to reunite the scattered remnants of humanity in a final push to destroy the demon corelings once and for all.

Arlen Bales was once an ordinary man, but now he has become something more—the Warded Man, tattooed with eldritch wards so powerful they make him a match for any demon. Arlen denies he is the Deliverer at every turn, but the more he tries to be one with the common folk, the more fervently they believe. Many would follow him, but Arlen’s path threatens to lead to a dark place he alone can travel to, and from which there may be no returning.

The only one with hope of keeping Arlen in the world of men, or joining him in his descent into the world of demons, is Renna Tanner, a fierce young woman in danger of losing herself to the power of demon magic.

Ahmann Jardir has forged the warlike desert tribes of Krasia into a demon-killing army and proclaimed himself Shar’Dama Ka, the Deliverer. He carries ancient weapons—a spear and a crown—that give credence to his claim, and already vast swaths of the green lands bow to his control.

But Jardir did not come to power on his own. His rise was engineered by his First Wife, Inevera, a cunning and powerful priestess whose formidable demon bone magic gives her the ability to glimpse the future. Inevera’s motives and past are shrouded in mystery, and even Jardir does not entirely trust her.

Once Arlen and Jardir were as close as brothers. Now they are the bitterest of rivals. As humanity’s enemies rise, the only two men capable of defeating them are divided against each other by the most deadly demons of all—those lurking in the human heart.

“Along with Brandon Sanderson and Daniel Abraham, Peter V. Brett is at the forefront of purveyors of epic fantasy whose teeth were ground on the likes of Robert Jordan, George R.R. Martin, Terry Brooks, and David Eddings […] in other words, with The Daylight War, he’s at the top of his game. I give this my highest recommendation (including the first two novels in the series.)”
Tor.com

“…this volume will leaves series fans impatient for more.”
Booklist

“That his world is not the standard castles and knights backdrop is a breath of fresh air, and the Middle-Eastern-influenced cultures and locales of the world about which he writes are captivating, alluring, deadly, and full of intrigue.”
Bookreporter

“Brett’s prose, as always, is precise and fluid and vivid. It draws you in easily and keeps you in, never turning pedestrian or clumsy or repetitive […] This is certainly one of my favorite series in fantasy and Book Three, which if you haven’t figured out I enthusiastically recommend, continues the story at its high, high level.”
Fantasy Literature

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