This was a good read. Plain and simple. I was wanting to read a solid fantasy novel and this really fit the bill.
The Warded Man has all the makings of great fantasy:
- Does the story have a group of average people who overcome insurmountable odds to become epic heroes? Yep. Two average Joes and one average Jane evolve into pretty memorable characters who can only get better as the series progresses.
- What about horrible villain(s) threatening all of life as we know it? You betcha! Scores of evil demons (aka Corelings) rise from the Core each nightfall to kill as many humans as possible before sunrise.
- How about a cool world? Yep indeedy. Brett creates a rich world of which we only seem to scratch the surface in The Warded Man. Fragile, hand-drawn wards protect humans at night from the corelings, yet there are whispers of a time when the wards were used to attack and kill the corelings. Lacking the knowledge about the offensive wards, humans have been at the mercy of the corelings for centuries, praying for a time when the Deliverer would return and rescue them from the demons' claws.
Suffice to say, I really enjoyed this book. I tend to like my fantasy chock full of dragons, elves, dwarves and the like - this book has none of those. And that's ok. Brett creates a rich and vivid story with characters you want to see evolve and grow.