Follow up: From the Bookshelf

In the middle of all my theatre activities, I still take time to read every night. I like it. It’s fun.

Recently, I’ve been reading my way through this book, The Desert Spear. Find out why you should read it too, after the break.

First of all, The Desert Spear is a sequel to The Warded Man, a book I read back in December (Warded Man Review). I’ll give you a quick refresher. In this world, demons called corelings rise from the earth every night. Their goal? The total destruction of humanity. The only protection humans have is behind symbols of power called wards.

In the first book, Brett really only focused on three characters, Arlen, a Warder who becomes the Warded Man when he tattoos himself with the symbols of power. Leesha, an apprentice Herb Gatherer who becomes an expert (their version of a doctor), and Rojer, a jester who can mysteriously charm the corelings with his music.

However, this is where the Desert Spear differs significantly. It covers about eight or nine characters.

Brett’s writing is great. What I liked a lot about the Desert Spear was that he introduced more about the Krasian culture ( a desert people dedicated to fighting the corelings). It was very precise and detailed, and it was easy to envision all of it, because Brett’s vision is obviously very clear.

Also the characters we do know get some more development. Brett isn’t shy about pushing his characters forward. Several characters we met briefly in the Warded Man returned in the Desert Spear to have their own stories like Renna, Jardir, and Abban. And Arlen, Leesha, and Rojer still make huge strides on top of that.

Also, a new kind of demon emerged, and in the process of fighting those, the readers learn a lot more about where they come from, their hierarchy, and cool stuff like that.

Meanwhile, Jardir, Arlen, and Leesha all make HUGE progress in the art of warding, and learning about their kind of magic is really cool (it’s all based on geometry and placement – neat!)

I normally don’t say this, but I think the sequel was even better than the first one. Brett is doing a fantastic job, and if he continues in this fashion, I can’t wait to read the rest of the series (known as the Demon Cycle).

So, if you’re looking for an interesting new series, the Demon Cycle is ready and waiting.

– JV out.