{"product_id":"the-demon-cycleisbn-9780345524157","title":"The Demon Cycle","description":"\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNEW YORK TIMES \u003c\/i\u003eBESTSELLER • “[Peter V. Brett] confirms his place among epic fantasy’s pantheon of greats amid the likes of George R. R. Martin, Steven Erikson, and Robert Jordan.”—\u003ci\u003eFantasy Book Critic\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn this third volume in the internationally bestselling Demon Cycle series, humanity has found hope in the battle against demonkind, if only they can avoid going to war with themselves. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe night of the new moon, an army of demons rises in force, seeking the deaths of two men with the potential to become the Deliverer—the man prophesied to reunite the scattered remnants of humanity. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eArlen Bales, the Warded Man, denies he is the Deliverer, but the more he tries to live as one with the common folk, the more fervently they believe. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAmong the desert tribes, Ahmann Jardir has proclaimed himself the Deliverer, forging his followers into a mighty demon-killing army. But Jardir’s rise was engineered by his First Wife, Inevera, a cunning and powerful priestess whose motives and past are shrouded in mystery. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOnce Arlen and Jardir were as close as brothers. Now they are the bitterest of rivals. As humanity’s enemies rise, the two must first contend with the most deadly demons of all—those lurking in the human heart. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eDon’t miss any of the thrilling novels in Peter V. Brett’s Demon Cycle\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE WARDED MAN • THE DESERT SPEAR • THE DAYLIGHT WAR • THE SKULL THRONE • THE CORE“[Peter V. Brett] confirms his place among epic fantasy’s pantheon of greats amid the likes of George R. R. Martin, Steven Erikson, and Robert Jordan.”\u003cb\u003e—Fantasy Book Critic\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Brett’s prose and flow remain virtually flawless, providing for a smooth read during which you don’t feel guilty for skipping two meals so you can lie on the couch and keep reading.”\u003cb\u003e—Fixed on Fantasy\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“The best book yet in The Demon Cycle. If you are looking for a great series, look no further.”\u003cb\u003e—Roqoo Depot\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“After the phenomenal success of both \u003ci\u003eThe Warded Man \u003c\/i\u003eand\u003ci\u003e The Desert Spear,\u003c\/i\u003e I was tentative about \u003ci\u003eThe Daylight War; \u003c\/i\u003esurely it couldn’t get much better? Well, I was wrong. . . . This will be a strong contender for one of the best books of the year, even this early on.”\u003cb\u003e—Jet Black Ink\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Brett has his hooks in me and I want more of The Demon Cycle.”\u003cb\u003e—Best Fantasy Books\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003ePeter V. Brett \u003c\/b\u003eis the internationally bestselling author of the Demon Cycle series, which has sold over three and a half million copies in twenty-seven languages worldwide. Novels include \u003ci\u003eThe Warded Man\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Desert Spear\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Daylight War\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Skull Throne\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eThe Core\u003c\/i\u003e. He lives in Brooklyn.Chapter 1\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eArlen\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e:: 333 AR Summer ::\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e30 Dawns Before New Moon\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRenna kissed Arlen again. A gentle breeze swept across the thin sheen of sweat on their bodies, cooling them as they panted on the hot night.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Been wonderin’ if you were tattooed under that cloth nappy,” she said, nestling in next to him and putting her head on his bare chest, listening to his heart.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eArlen laughed and put his arm around her. “It’s called a bido. And even my obsession has limits.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRenna lifted her head, putting her lips to his ear. “Maybe you just need a Warder you trust. It’s a wife’s duty to take good care of what’s in her husband’s bido. I could paint you with blackstem . . .”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eArlen swallowed, and she could see his skin flush. “The wards would distort even as you drew them.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRenna laughed, wrapping him in her arms and dropping her head back to his chest.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Wonder sometimes if I’m cracked,” she said.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“How’s that?” Arlen asked.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Like I’m still sitting in Selia Barren’s spinning room, staring off into space. Everything since has been like a dream. Wonder if my mind just took me to a sunny place and left me there.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“You’ve a poor imagination if this is your sunny place,” Arlen said.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Why?” Renna asked. “I’m rid of Harl and that corespawned farm, stronger than I ever imagined, and dancing in the naked night.” She swept a hand around her. “Everything’s awash in color and glow.” She looked at him. “And I’m with Arlen Bales. How could my sunny place be anywhere else?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRenna bit her lip as the words rushed to them. Words she had thought to herself many times, but never dared say aloud. Part of her hesitation was fear of Arlen’s reaction, but much of it was her own doubt. All the Tanner sisters had been willing to run to the bed of the first decent man they met, but had any of them ever been in love?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRenna had thought she loved Arlen when they were children, but she only knew him from afar, and understood now that much of what she cherished had been her imagination of what he was like in close, rather than the boy himself.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRenna had convinced herself that she loved Cobie Fisher this past spring, but she saw the lie of that now. Cobie hadn’t been a bad sort, but if any other man had come to Harl’s farm, Renna knew she would likely have seduced him, too. Anything to get away, because anywhere was better than that farm, and any man in creation was better than her da.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut Renna was done lying. And done biting her tongue.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Love you, Arlen Bales,” she said.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHer courage fled as the words left her lips and she held her breath, but there was no hesitation as Arlen tightened his arms around her. “Love you, Renna Tanner.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eShe exhaled, and all the fear and doubt left her.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCharged as she was with magic, Renna found no sleep as they lay, but she would not have wished for any. Warm and safe, she wondered almost idly how she and Arlen could have been fighting a demon prince and its servants on this very spot a few hours before. It seemed a different world. A different life. For a short time, they had escaped.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut as the sweat dried and the glow of passion faded, the real world began to creep back into focus, terrible and frightening. They were surrounded by the bodies of dead corelings, black ichor splattered all over the clearing. One, the shape-shifting demon, still wore her form, its head neatly severed and leaking ichor. Not far off, Twilight Dancer still lay with his legs in splints after nearly being killed by a mimic demon.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Going to need to heal Dancer again before he can walk,” Arlen said. “Even then, it might be another night or two before he’s at full strength.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRenna looked around the clearing. “Don’t like the idea of staying here another night.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Me neither,” Arlen said. “Corelings will be drawn here tomorrow like worms to a rain puddle. I have a safehold nearby with a cart big enough to carry Dancer. I can fetch it and be back not long past sunrise.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Still have to wait for nightfall,” Renna said.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eArlen tilted his head at her. “Why?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Horse weighs more’n your da’s house,” Renna said. “How we gonna get him in the cart without night strength? Who’ll pull the thing, for that matter?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eArlen looked at her, and even through the wards tattooed all over his face, his expression told all. “Stop that,” she snapped.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“What?” Arlen asked.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Deciding whether or not to lie to me,” Renna said. “We’re promised now, and there oughtn’t be lies ’tween man and wife.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eArlen looked at her in surprise, then shook his head. “Wan’t gonna lie, exactly. Just tryin’ to decide if it’s time to talk about it.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Is if you value your skin,” Renna said. Arlen squinted at her, but she met his eyes and after a moment he shrugged.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Don’t lose all my strength in the day,” he said. “Even under the noon sun I reckon I could pick up a milk cow and throw it farther than you can skip a brook stone.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“What makes you so special?” Renna asked.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eArlen gave her that look again, and she scowled, shaking a fist at him only half mockingly.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eArlen laughed. “Tell you all once we get to my safehold. Honest word.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRenna smirked. “Kiss on it, and it’s a deal.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhile she waited, Renna took out the warding kit Arlen had given her, placing a clean cloth on the ground and laying the tools out in a neat row. She took out her brook stone necklace and her knife, and slowly, carefully, lovingly, began to clean them.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe necklace was a promise gift from Cobie Fisher, a stout cord strung through dozens of smooth, polished stones. It was so long Renna needed to loop it twice, and it still fell below her breasts.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe knife had belonged to her father, Harl Tanner. He’d always kept it at his belt, sharp as a razor. He’d used it to murder Cobie when she ran away to be with him, and she in turn had used it to kill him.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf that hadn’t happened, Renna and Cobie would have been man and wife when Arlen came back to Tibbet’s Brook. The necklace was a symbol of her failure to be true to Arlen, a promise gift from another man. The knife was a reminder of a man who had kept her in a private Core her entire life.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut Renna could bring herself to part with neither. For better or worse, they were the only things in the world that were truly hers, the only parts of her day life that had come into the night. She had warded them both, the necklace with defensive wards, and the knife with offensive. The necklace could serve as a ward circle in need, but proved an even more effective garrote. And the knife . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe knife had punched through the chest of a coreling prince. Even now, its magic shone brightly to her warded eyes. Not just the wards—the entire blade had a dull glow to it. It drew blood on her finger at the barest touch.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eShe knew the power would burn away with the sun, but at the moment, the weapon seemed invincible. Even in the day, it would be stronger. Magic always left things better than it found them. Likewise, the barest brush of the polishing cloth brought the necklace back to a shine, the cord even tougher than when it was made.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRenna stood guard over Twilight Dancer until dawn. The morning sun struck the scattered bodies of the corelings, setting them ablaze. It was a sight she never tired of, though it came at a heavy price. Even as the demons burned, the blackstem wards on her skin began to tingle as their magic faded. The knife grew hot in its sheath, burning her leg. She had to lean against a tree for support, feeling like a Jongleur’s puppet with the strings cut, weak and half blind.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe disorientation passed quickly, and Renna took a deep breath. With a few hours’ rest, she would feel fitter than the best day of her life, but even that was but a pale shadow of how she felt in the night.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHow did Arlen retain his power in the sunlight? Was it that his wards were permanent tattoos rather than blackstem stains? If so, she would take a needle and ink to her skin that very day.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe demon corpses burned hot and fast, in seconds leaving only scorched ground and ash. Renna stamped out the last few scrub fires before they had a chance to grow, and then finally gave in to her exhaustion, curling next to Twilight Dancer and falling asleep.","brand":"Del Rey","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46303242780901,"sku":"NP9780345524157","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780345524157.jpg?v=1730753587","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/the-demon-cycleisbn-9780345524157","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}