THE PAINTED MAN (AKA THE WARDED MAN) - PETER V BRETT

Whilst this may cause confusion (as the book has a UK title and a differing US one), here's the place to chat about new author Peter V Bretts novel The Painted Man. Is Arlen brave for facing his fears? What do you think of the book? Why is this a potential winner?

Views: 315

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Mihai, Dark Wolf on December 15, 2008 at 11:24
Like I said "The Warded Man" ("The Painted Man") is a strong contender and a novel which I really enjoyed this year. I am happy that I also had the opportunity to make an interview with Peter V. Brett for my blog. He is very nice and the interview made me want to read the sequel of the novel even more. And I think that I can guess a nominee for the next year awards :)
Permalink Reply by Andrew Guile on December 15, 2008 at 13:29
Right, I have finished now - I didn't think Peter himself would comment on my views (!) but I am honoured that he did.

SPOILERS !!!!!!!!



I have finished now and I was not dissappointed. I stand by everything I said before.

Though this may seem dumb, I didn't initially realise Arlen would become The Painted Man (TPM). Seems obvious now but I was waiting for him to be the Deliverer ...and yet we find out that the Krasian guy has been dubbed such by his own people; BUT .. maybe Arlen's people will also dub him the Deliverer and they'll have a barney in the next book. TPM has a reckoning with the Krasian as it is.

I thought the times around Amon Sul were great and the stand at the end was 'pure Gemmell'; ordinary people, the old and infirm included, and those who do what they know they should even though they wet themselves in the process. That's real courage. David always reciognised that the brazen blood-thirsty maniac is not the hero; it's the boy who trembles as he raises a spear to defend his fallen horse. Those sentiments are developed here nicely.

In this post 9-11 world, everyone may have a place where they can take a stand against evil. I hope we all have the same conviction as the Hollowers ...

Bravo, Peter, bravo.

Andrew.
Permalink Reply by Justin on December 26, 2008 at 22:07
I loved this book and its definitely one of my favourite fantasy reads of 2008, together with Name of the Wind ( I know it came out in 2007, but I only got round to it this year). Well written Peter and Good Luck with the voting.
Permalink Reply by Phil Keeton on January 6, 2009 at 15:40
I was recommended this by Sid in Waterstones , Swansea..... a man who knows his Sci-Fi from his Fantasy and is my Guru of what to read when I'm stumped. This read gave me the same goosebumps and thrills as my early expeditions into fantasy as a teenager. Somewhere between Gemmell, Feist and Irvine for me....it pressed all the right buttons and left me wanting more. I want to see the concept expanded.

I hope Brett can go somewhere with Arlen's character. He could be a far more organic character and I would like to feel the complexity of his attachment difficulties and his need to distance himself community rather than just family........otherwise, where does he draw his resilience from to prevent himself from insanity?

A potential winner because of it's potential...... a ripsnorting read with out relying too heavily on sex and violence, lots of elements to develop whilst still satisfying the reader..... plenty of pace, nicely interwoven stories and a interesting knitting together in the final chapters..............not the perfect book, not the best book ever, but the best this year and a great indication of things to come.
Permalink Reply by drosdelnoch on January 7, 2009 at 6:53
Phil Keeton said:
I was recommended this by Sid in Waterstones , Swansea.....
Don't forget to let Sid know to so he can get his vote in. Whilst you don't have to register to vote it would be a good thing if he did so he could put his views on other entrants.
Permalink Reply by janeite42 on March 11, 2009 at 15:04
"Is Arlen brave for facing his fears?"

On the surface it would seem so, but there's that bit when Elissa talks to Mery about Arlen hating himself. If she's right, it gets me wondering whether he's out fighting demons as an excuse for avoiding life. Perhaps he's brave for fighting demons, but a coward for avoiding other aspects of life. Or perhaps Elissa doesn't know what she's talking about.
Permalink Reply by DaveBrendon on March 12, 2009 at 12:30
janeite42 said:
"Is Arlen brave for facing his fears?"

On the surface it would seem so, but there's that bit when Elissa talks to Mery about Arlen hating himself. If she's right, it gets me wondering whether he's out fighting demons as an excuse for avoiding life. Perhaps he's brave for fighting demons, but a coward for avoiding other aspects of life. Or perhaps Elissa doesn't know what she's talking about.

That's a good point, and something that many readers miss: for all that TPM / TWM is about Arlen's coming of age, we still don't know what he went through between our last reading of him and then seeing him Painted. I think there's still a major depth of character that will be explored in the subsequent books. :-)
Permalink Reply by Matija on April 15, 2009 at 8:50
This is a fantastic book, and I'm very sorry it didn't make it to the shortlist. Two out of three award candidates that I read I liked less while still enjoyed. But this is really top stuff. Brett is one of the new authors I'm very excited about, like Abercrombie and Lynch. I hope they all have long years of writing ahead. 8>)
Permalink Reply by DaveBrendon on April 15, 2009 at 9:23
I couldn't agree more! With such a strong debut, I'm very excited to think of how strong Peter will become as an author; award or no award, Peter is without doubt one of the strongest fantasy authors in the genre! :-)
Permalink Reply by Deborah J Miller - Award Administrator on April 15, 2009 at 16:23
Just FYI people - Peter did poll highly and only missed out on a shortlist spot by a few places. I agree, he's a terrific talent, and I hope we'll see him on the Shortlist in future years...
Permalink Reply by DaveBrendon on April 15, 2009 at 19:44
I'm sure he will be, and I'm not surprised at all that he would've polled highly! :-) Thanks for that info, Deborah! Now, when are we seeing one of your novels on the shortlist? :-)

▶ Reply to Discussion

RSS

Be a Legend!

The DGLA is a Not-for-Profit organisation, which operates through the goodwill of its volunteers, sponsors and friends.

If you would like to help the DGLA continue, please consider making a small donation to our funds:



Forum

Favourite Book By David Gemmell 165 Replies

Started by drosdelnoch in David Gemmell Discussion. Last reply by simon sweeney yesterday.

Artist Nominations 2013

Started by drosdelnoch in 2013 Nominations Jun 6.

DOWNLOADS/UPDATES (PDF)

 

PBSale.pdf

CRITERIAFORDGLAV1.2.pdf