The Daylight War review

The Daylight War is the third book in the Demon Cycle series by Peter V. Brett. It hardly needs an introduction, as I'm convinced that this novel was one of the most expected releases of 2013 for many Fantasy readers.  The author still has two more books in mind to finish the story.

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 him 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.

In The Desert Spear, we were witness to the back-story of Jardir.  It covered almost the first half of the book and created a significant dichotomy in tone, pace and perspective.  In The Daylight War, the same kind of pattern is used.  This time, it's Jardir's wife, Inevera, who gets the spotlight from her young days as a basket weaver to the head of the Krasian matriarchy.  The Shar'Dama Ka's first wife earlier days are insightful, they give us yet another perspective of the Krasian society, but for several parts of it, it's the third time we hear about the same account.  Variation on the same theme has its limits and its cost even if Inevera is now a more elaborate protagonist.

In some measure, for the third book, that return to the past isn't the longest part of the story and the switch to present day is less sharp.  The complete main cast eventually get the center stage and the story evolves slowly but steadily toward the next waning since the last attack from coreling princes. Most of the time is spent on preparing the defenses for the dreaded coreling invasion while some events lead to a sizing up of the enemy armies for the Daylight War as the Krasian put it. However, I'm not sure why the author kept The Daylight War title for the book, aside from the return ride of the Hollow representatives from Everam's Bounty and the plans being elaborated for the next target for Jardir's army, the focus is more on Sharak Ka, the First War with the demonkind.

My feelings toward some characters changed in The Daylight War.  Rojer finally woke up and stopped being the unsuccessful boy with complexes focusing on his failures, about time. His storyline starts with a bang and he rides on it throughout the book, creating an arc with an interesting blend of humor and gravity. On the other hand, it's now Leesha who's becoming kind of annoying.  After Jardir's account in The Desert Spear, she and Abban became the most compelling characters.  However, her frustration, her insecurity and mostly the way she deals with those felt somewhat wrong.  Maybe I misjudged her character before.

With the narrative concentrated around the two would-be Deliverers, gone are the 'good old tales of farmer wives'.  Finally, Renna is now an active member of the cast without all the disturbed family bickering and unhealthy behavior.  She ought to be the character needed to confront Arlen and falls just short of doing it. However, alongside Rojer and Leesha decisions, she creates an interesting situation in term of love affairs.  Things couldn't be more complicated now and the time spent on each relationship as they clash together while the world is at the mercy of monsters or global warfare is intriguing enough.  Humans will always be humans.

In my review of The Desert Spear, I mentioned: "With both the deliverers getting stronger and stronger with the help of all those new wards, they ought to have more terrific foes to fight, and they have. I would have hoped to have a glimpse of them earlier but they send a signal that a glorious challenge is coming.".  In The Daylight War, the two heroes are now at the top of their game, their powers transcending the balance that ought to be present if we want to continue to believe in their struggle.  The corelings may try new tricks and offer a substantial challenge for a time, in the end, both Deliverers deals with them with too much ease. It was hard to believe in their possible demise.

While choreographic combats between good and evil or men and coreling if you prefer are still present, I think that the real battle now is between the ego, personality, tactic, friendship and resolve defining the two men.  The duality between their realities and the way they face the same kind of predicament is the core element driving the whole tale forward and keeping it captivating.  Sadly, for both of them, the point of view they deserve is seldom used.

Warding is now a natural element of the world Brett created. With the insights from the princes, even the corelings don't sound so much out of this world. The variety of drones now found in the book is testament enough of the author's work on his particular species of demon.  Combine all this with the rich society of the Krasians, which more than ever feels unique, not simply an imaginative substitute of the Muslim world and you get a nice accomplishment in term of world building.  The cohesion the author achieves in this third book is a palpable amelioration from The Warded Man.

The Daylight War still has a bridging/middle novel feel but that's not an absolute problem when I think about the evolution of the meta story. Parts of it could be considered as an unnecessary stretch, the result of switching from a trilogy to a longer series. By the way, the conclusion feels rushed but I can only applause the cliffhanger ending. There you have it. I think that Brett's latest book is probably his best work so far, showing good writing skills but still not without diverse lacks that can be improved in the future.  However, if the previous novels in the series didn't charm you, this book won't do much to make you care more.  All things considered, I still gave the book the same score as Brett previous novels.

Technically, I love the cover with Inevera casting the dices, the work of the talented Larry Rostant. The Del Rey hardcover edition of the novel stands at 768 pages, a simple map is included and a useful Krasian Dictionary is present for reference at the end of the book.

The Daylight War review score :

Characterization
World building
Magic system
Story
Writing

Overall (not an average)

Enjoy!


Peter V. Brett page
The Warded Man review
The Desert Spear review