A Quick Comment on the Gemmell Award Shortlists, and One of the Nominees. Sort of…

This post is a bit of a break from the norm for me. I’m also not really sure what it’s meant to do. It’s a bit waffley, for which I apologise only slightly, and in not entirely a heartfelt manner. Fiction awards mean very little to me, being neither author, editor, publisher, nor agent. (At least, not yet…) This means I have never (to my recollection) written a post of any worth/note about shortlists or winners.

Award lists tend to pass me by without comment or thought. Invariably, this is because there aren’t any books featured that I’ve read – or, if there is, it is one that didn’t leave much of an impression one way or another. This year has been a bit different, however. For example, Kameron Hurley’s God’s War has been cropping up on a few shortlists, and it’s a book I rather enjoyed. So that made a nice change.

The shortlists for the Gemmell Awards were announced today at Eastercon. In a real break from the norm, the shortlist for the Legend Award (best fantasy) features not only five authors I have read, but also a book I feel particularly strongly about. So I thought I’d write a quick blog post about it. The book in question is Peter V. Brett’s The Daylight War, the third in his Demon Cycle series.

“The Daylight War” by Peter V. Brett (Voyager)

The long-awaited third book in The Demon Cycle

On the night of a new moon all shadows deepen.

Humanity has thirty days to prepare for the next demon attack, but one month is scarcely enough time to train a village to defend themselves, let alone an entire continent caught in the throes of civil war.

Arlen Bales understands the coreling threat better than anyone. Born ordinary, the demon plague has shaped him into a weapon so powerful he has been given the unwanted title of saviour, and attracted the attention of deadly enemies both above and below ground.

Unlike Arlen, Ahmann Jardir embraces the title of Deliverer. His strength resides not only in the legendary relics he carries, but also in the magic wielded by his first wife, Inevera, a cunning and powerful priestess whose allegiance even Jardir cannot be certain of.

Once Arlen and Jardir were like brothers. Now they are the bitterest of rivals. As humanity’s enemies prepare, the only two men capable of defeating them are divided against each other by the most deadly demons of all: those that lurk in the human heart.

After finishing The Desert Spear, it was not long before I had to dive into The Daylight War. I’d come late to the series, so I hadn’t been champing at the bit quite as much as other fans, but after finishing book two, I could certainly see why people were so very eager. The third book in the series continues to build on the excellent foundations of The Painted Man and The Desert Spear, as the story moves ever forward. This is an addictive, immersive and excellent fantasy novel.

Recent Arrivals (January 2013)

I’ve recently got back to Britain for a short spell. Jet-lag has finally struck, so I’m afraid there won’t be a particularly involved post for a couple of days. I hope to get some more reviews up this week, but please bear with me…

In the meantime, here are some books that were waiting for me upon my return (you can count of at least a few of them featuring more on the blog in the future):

It’s a nice little haul, actually – four of the five are really interesting, two are must-reads (no prize if you can guess which two), and only one hasn’t completely fired my interest.

Peter V. Brett’s “The Daylight War” covered in the UK… (Voyager)

It’s been a good week for cover-reveals. Yesterday, there was Chris F. Holm’s excellent The Big Reap (Angry Robot), and today it was Peter V. Brett’s highly anticipated The Daylight War. The third book in the Demon Cycle, its US cover was revealed a short while ago,and I really liked that cover – it was bold, with striking colouring and an excellent composition.

Now, revealed first on the great Fantasy Faction, we have the UK cover art (to be published by Voyager also in February 2013), done by the great Larry Rostant:

Do I prefer it to the US edition…? Well, maybe. I think it will match the first two novels better on the shelf, but I think they are both very good. Hopefully I’ll catch up with the series (I loved The Painted Man and the two novellas – The Great Bazaar & Brayan’s Gold), so I can read this third novel relatively close to its release.

Upcoming: “The Daylight War” by Peter V. Brett (Voyager/Del Ray)

I shamelessly pinch this from A Dribble of Ink, who got it after Entertainment Weekly was given the exclusive (as well as an extract).

I loved The Great Bazaar, Brayan’s Gold and The Painted Man. As with many novels I have on my Kindle, I seem to keep forgetting about The Desert Spear, though. At the same time, that was a novel that came out and was not as eagerly embraced as the first by the fantasy blogosphere. So maybe I’ve been hesitant because of that?

Needless to say, with book three now on the horizon (it’s published February 2013 in both the UK and US), it seems like a good time to get my ass in gear. Here’s the very red cover:

The one thing I don’t know, is if this is the cover for both the UK and US editions – certainly the American cover. When I saw early mock-ups (two versions, actually), they had chosen a blue palette. It was a very nice blue, I thought… The woman’s pose is way better in this version, and is certainly more suitable for Inevera.