The Warded Man – Best Convention Swag Ever
Posted June 3rd, 2010 by Howard TaylerBalticon story: I’m having a loud, happy conversation with Lawrence Schoen in the Lunacon Party Room, and while I’m talking a beautiful woman in a blue dress sweeps into the party, looks right at me and says “I recognize your voice!”
While this kind of thing happens from time to time, it never fails to freak me out. It’s also hugely flattering in this case, as I learn that the beautiful woman is also a fine author by the name of Gail Carriger. She listens to Writing Excuses, and this is thrilling to me.
Gail is accompanied on her Balticon party-hop by the dashing and svelte Peter V. Brett. After the introductions and some “so-what-do-YOU-do” I realize that I need to put his upcoming Red Sonja run in my comic hold (can’t do it yet, it remains unannounced by Diamond) and that I really, really regret running out of merchandise two days ago. You see, Peter V. Brett has handed me a book — his debut novel, The Warded Man.
This, by the way, is my favorite thing about attending conventions as a quirky, came-in-through-the-back-door professional. Every so often I get handed fantastic books by brand-new friends.
On to the book review: The day after the party The Warded Man looks like heavier fare than the other book I am carrying onto my return flight. Usually I prefer light reading when I fly, but I decide to take a chance, and two paragraphs in I am hooked.
I’m not going to tell you all about the concept or plot. The synopsis and cover will spoil plenty of things for you without my help. I’m going to tell you that this book delivers the goods described in this episode of Writing Excuses: It makes me stand up and cheer.
Well, not literally. The “Fasten Seat Belts” light is on, and even if it weren’t I’m just a hair too tall to stand up without knocking my chrome-dome on the overhead compartment. Ha ha. I said “hair” and I haven’t any.
A “stand up and cheer” moment is when somebody does something truly heroic and it stirs the reader with real emotion. What amazes me about The Warded Man is that these moments don’t all come in epic battles or life-and-death situations. The very best of them are moments where one person musters up some courage and stands fast to their beliefs, breaks with tradition, or otherwise does something that a small town will remember (and gossip about) forever.
These are the heroic moments of which our own ordinary, everyday lives can be made of. We don’t have to fight corespawn demons in the real world, but we DO need to make hard choices. The Warded Man rocked my world because it FIT my world in spite of being a dark fantasy novel completely full of corespawn demons, complicated ward-magic, epic battles, and life-and-death situations which I’m unlikely to ever face.
How good was the book? I dropped around $20.00 the very next day on the sequel, The Desert Spear, which is only available in hardback. I haven’t had a chance to open it yet, but Peter V. Brett, you have my attention.
(Gail, I’ll be picking up one of your books before WorldCon. Thanks for introducing me to Peter! I think he owes you one.)
Explore posts in the same categories: Books, Conventions, Events, Reviews
June 4th, 2010 at 1:09 am
I found this book last year and had to read it in one sitting as I couldn’t put it down. Thanks for reminding me that I need to get hold of the sequel.
June 4th, 2010 at 1:47 am
Huh. You’ve given some pretty glowing reviews before, but I detect some hard radiation in the light coming off this one. And thus my metaphor falls apart before I can even finish using it, as in this case I’m drawn towards the glow of doom, not away.
Thanks for the heads-up! I normally stick with Baen books — out of convenience rather than brand-preference (other than the convenience provided by said brand) due to their DRM-free ebooks and generally high quality. I often get lazy and forget to browse other publishers’ sites. I also don’t browse the dead-tree editions in the bookstores these days, either, as I’ve become handicapped and there’s never a stool around when the guy with the cane needs one. I may bite the bullet and go get a wheelchair. I miss browsing.
For now, though, I get to continue being lazy as you’ve done my shopping for me. Don’t worry; I’ll pick up the tab. ;)
June 4th, 2010 at 8:23 am
I read The Warded Man last year and when I saw Desert Spear a week ago in the bookstore, I picked it up immediately and finished it within days. :D It’s currently sitting in my personal library next to Simon R. Green. The series is one of the better ones I’ve read in recent years and I’m crossing my fingers in hope that the proposed movie can live up to even half of what the novel can do.
I’d recommend checking out Peter’s website to get a glimpse of the map and other nifty bits and pixels that the US copy of the novel is lacking.
Now, back to trying to convince my wife to put down the romances and pick this one up…
June 4th, 2010 at 9:38 am
Damn, now you got me to really want to read it… thank you for that great review!
June 4th, 2010 at 11:05 am
[...] The other night at Balticon while playing arm candy to the lovely and talented NYT Bestselling author Gail Carriger, I gave a copy of The Warded Man to Howard Tayler, the Schlock Mercenary. He has since called it the best convention swag ever. [...]
June 4th, 2010 at 1:10 pm
I recently picked up a Nook and rediscovered my love of reading. The best part is, I don’t have to run all over town to find a book to read – it’s a few clicks and blammo! On the Nook! This one has been added to my eWish list for my next spendy splurge, thanks, Howard! (PS – Early happy anniversary!!)
June 4th, 2010 at 9:25 pm
I love “stand up and cheer” moments in books. I’ve had a couple of those when I learn I was right about something I suspected, or a big surprise comes up.
I will put in an order for this book posthaste.
June 5th, 2010 at 3:30 am
I almost hate to ask, but would that be Writing Excuses Season 4 Episode 22 — the one that will be out next Monday? I don’t recollect “stand up and cheer” in the Writing Practical Fantasy podcast (which, actually, you weren’t in, either… :-)
June 5th, 2010 at 11:42 am
Ugh. I did not enjoy this book at all. The first 260 pages were narcolepsy inducing. After that it settled down into just dreary. The telegraph machine was completely unneccessary during the entire read as I got all the messages loud, clear and way ahead of time. But that’s just me.
June 5th, 2010 at 11:59 am
@mbarker – No, it’s 4.02, the episode on heroism. I linked to it in the blog text.
June 5th, 2010 at 11:37 pm
Ah, you’re right, I misread. Thanks!
June 5th, 2010 at 11:45 pm
@Arazmus: Narcolepsy-inducing? REALLY? And yet you finished it? You’re either exaggerating for effect, or you lack the moral fiber to put down a book you dont’ like.
Me? If I hate a book that much I don’t finish it.
June 6th, 2010 at 1:53 am
It looks like the book is sold as ‘The Painted Man’ in the UK (Same cover, same author listed). I may well pick up a copy soon.
June 6th, 2010 at 2:12 am
Based on the description of what you like about this series i would heartily recommend the “night angel trilogy” by Brent Weeks if you haven’t already tried it… I know I’ll be checking this dude out anyways…
And as always keep up the good work man!
June 6th, 2010 at 8:44 am
@Howard You’re either exaggerating for effect, or you lack the moral fiber to put down a book you dont’ like.
Well, I didn’t actually develop narcolepsy, but there was NO way I could get through it in less than a week, it failed to hold my interest. It wasn’t like it was a difficult read complexity-wise. As for finishing the book I don’t like to say poorly of someone’s work if I haven’t finished it, especially a first work, he worked too hard not to at least give him the courtesy of finishing the book. Having read it all the way through, I can honestly say I did not like cery much about it, it bored me most of the way through and the parts where it was interesting wasn’t enough to make up for the rest. Not my style of book.
@Me? If I hate a book that much I don’t finish it.
I also don’t walk out on movies.
June 6th, 2010 at 9:40 pm
Just registered simply so I could post that your review had me clicking my Amazon “1-click” faster than Shlock inhales some Chupaquesos.
Should be here soon. Been hearing good things about this book (and series) for a bit now, but your review tipped me over the edge.
PS: Now that I’ve registered you may never get rid of me – I’ve been reading since about year 3, and I re-read the entire archive at least once a year ;) Gratz on 10 straight years, btw.
June 6th, 2010 at 9:43 pm
As far as finishing books you hate goes, I once made it all the way through the 10 volumes of Hubbard’s Mission Earth. Fortunately, the trauma seems to have burned out the part of my brain responsible for such sick compulsions.
June 6th, 2010 at 11:10 pm
I, too, finished the Mission: Earth series. That was back when I was young and life was not, in fact, too short for me to be caught wasting time reading things I’d stopped enjoying.
June 7th, 2010 at 6:21 am
aggg, never remind me about mission:earth… I’d managed to forget how much of my life I wasted on that series.
I’ll pick up a copy of painted man next time I go book shopping.
June 7th, 2010 at 9:19 pm
Mission Earth wasn’t that bad… when I was 12… in middle school… ;)
Battlefield Earth was good. The book, not the movie. The movie makes me die a little inside even thinking about it.
July 11th, 2010 at 9:01 am
I finally picked up a copy of Painted man yesterday, I also finished it yesterday. I now have to wait for desert spear to come out in small format paperback (I don’t have enough space for large formats)
August 10th, 2010 at 11:32 pm
The first two thirds of the Warded Man are absolutely fantastic, just as described. The later third, and the entirety of the second book, was stuffed full of more rape triggers than you can shake a stick at (and not particularly well handled ones either). That, plus the introduction of a culture that is basically a twisted variation of all the worst stereotypes of the Arab world completely turned me off from the series.
August 11th, 2010 at 12:13 pm
Re: Arab culture — I can totally see that. It didn’t turn me off of the book, though.
SF/F authors borrow from Arab culture a lot. The Fremen from Dune, and the Aiel from The Wheel of Time are two that immediately leap to mind.
Was it cliché? Perhaps. But for me it worked.
Re: “Rape triggers” — I’m not sure what you mean by “triggers.” I see where you’re coming from, but I didn’t think it was insensitively or clumsily handled.
August 13th, 2010 at 9:03 am
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