The Painted Man — Peter V Brett

The stunning debut fantasy novel from author Peter V Brett The Painted Man book one of the Demon Cycle is a captivating and thrilling fantasy adventure pulling the reader into a world of demons darkness and heroes Voted one of the top ten fantasy novels of 2008 by amazon co uk Sometimes there is very good reason to be afraid of the dark Eleven year old Arlen lives with his parents on their small farmstead half a day s ride from the isolated hamlet of Tibbet s Brook As dusk falls upon Arlen s world a strange mist rises from the ground a mist that promises a violent death to any foolish enough to brave the coming darkness for hungry corelings demons that cannot be harmed by mortal weapons materialize from the vapours to feed on the living As the sun sets people have no choice but to take shelter behind magical wards and pray that their protection holds until the creatures dissolve with the first signs of dawn When Arlen s life is shattered by the demon plague he is forced to see that it is fear rather than the demons which truly cripples humanity Believing that there is more to his world than to live in constant fear he must risk leaving the safety of his wards to discover a different path In the small town of Cutter s Hollow Leesha s perfect future is destroyed by betrayal and a simple lie Publicly shamed she is reduced to gathering herbs and tending an old woman more fearsome than the corelings Yet in her disgrace she becomes the guardian of dangerous ancient knowledge Orphaned and crippled in a demon attack young Rojer takes solace in mastering the musical arts of a Jongleur only to learn that his unique talent gives him unexpected power over the night Together these three young people will offer humanity a last fleeting chance of survival