In my opinion, Peter V. Brett is one of the finest examples of a modern fantasy author. For those of you who don’t know why I’m such a huge fan of Peter V. Brett, you can read reviews for The Painted Man and The Desert Spear to find out. To summarise it for you though, Peter V. Brett’s work is the perfect combination of character based fantasy, terrifying enemies, a unique magic system, a roller coaster of a plot and an atmospheric setting unlike any other. The result is what all readers and writers strive for: a book that truly draws you into the world, a book that has you tearing through the pages to find out how the story and characters develop and leaves you, once finished, demanding more.

The problem for me, and for Peat’s thousands of fans, is that Peter V. Brett isn’t the type of author who bangs a book out every year. Indeed, in an interview with Peat last year he told me that he’s ‘an insane perfectionist’, and that he ‘[doesn’t] let a manuscript out of [his] sight until [he is] totally satisfied with it.’ For this reason, the wait for The Daylight War has been killing fans, understandable though it is. For two years and six months we’ve been waiting, following Peat’s blog and twitter in anticipation. The good news is that we’re on the home stretch now. We are just a couple of months away from one of the most anticipated fantasy novels of the modern era and we’re getting excited.

So, you can imagine my elation when Peter’s UK team got in touch and asked if we’d like to reveal the UK cover for The Daylight War. Now, all I know about book three is what I’ve gathered from extracts. Peter has this wonderful ability to take what you would consider a ‘villain’ and tell their story in such a way that leaves you seeing them as justified, perhaps even a hero. He did this incredibly well in The Desert Spear with Jardir, and it looks to me that Inevera will be getting the same treatment in The Daylight War.

Anyway, the reason I’ve told you this is to give a bit of context to the cover. The cover for book one was one of the finest covers to grace the UK’s (and eventually US’s) bookshelves. The second book was equally as good and so it will not surprise people that book three’s cover is just as iconic, just as amazing. So, without further ado from me…without any more rambling about how great Peat is (although I honestly could do it all day…), here’s the UK’s cover:

Beautiful…isn’t it? :O Personally, I love the blue look of Inevera. She is just as beautiful and as dangerous as I imagined her. The blacks contrast perfectly and if you click the image to see the larger version, you’ll truly get a feel for the detail that the artist has taken time to add. There is no question about it, this book will look amazing on the shelf sitting next to the two other hardbacks in the series. Seriously, I’m going to need wider bookshelves by the time Peat’s series is done with: I’m going to be turning them all face-on!

Now, not content with just giving us this stunning cover reveal, Peat has asked us to host a COVER OFF between the UK and US cover art. Now, I’m glad I didn’t have to give my opinion, because I think it’s impossible to choose between the two!!! The American cover is a beautiful red – perhaps more what you would expect from a woman equal to royalty in a desert setting. The difference between wielding a dagger and wielding magical items should be considered too. However, The United Kingdom’s version pops more and the character is more openly dangerous looking.

The Artist

For those of you who don’t know, Peter has had the same artist, Larry Rostant, for all three of his books. I guess the logic there is that if someone does a friggen awesome job, why not use them again, huh? Also, for those who don’t know, Larry’s work isn’t exclusive to Pete’s books. Mr Rostant has been awesome-ing up fantasy book covers for years and looks to continue doing so for a long time yet! Take a browse through Larry’s website and drop him a message over Twitter to let him know how much we in the fantasy community value his skills 🙂

RED VS BLUE

Now guys and girls, it’s down to you: US publisher’s vs UK publisher’s decision. It’s time to vote!

Leave a comment with your choice and why 🙂

The Daylight War hits shelves February 12, 2013 – make sure you pick your copy up. It’s sure to be one of the books of the year. You can learn more about Peter V. Brett and his Demon Cycle series here. You can see more of cover artist Larry Rostant’s work on his website here.