Cold Days (The Dresden Files, 14) (edition 2012)

Man! I keep hoping Harry gets a better break than he's got. There's a lot I like in this book; but I can't mention it without spoiling the entire plot. I did love that just about every one of his friends tells him he's a jerk and an idiot for A) not getting in touch, B) not seeking their help, and/or C) leaving things unsaid. I could NOT believe the end. Whoa. Why do I never know where Butcher is going with Harry? Why!? ( )

This is #14 in the Dresden Files series, and I’ve been eagerly awaiting it for over a year. Combine that with the fact that the last couple of books (particularly #12, Changes) were so mind-blowingly awesome, and you can imagine that this one came it with some pretty high expectations to meet. It did pretty well, but it fell just a little short of meeting those expectations. Had it been just some random book by another author, I’d probably be raving all about it. As it is, I find myself bouncing between loving it and feeling a little disappointed in it. Or maybe that’s just the post-high blues settling in.

So, what can I say about a book and series with so many big reveals without actually spoiling it? A friend and I were jokingly messaging each other while reading it, saying things like, “Just wait until Harry and some other character do that thing in the place… you know, with the other guy.”

So yeah… it’s kind of hard to say much without getting all spoilerific, but here’s my best attempt at being specific enough to review it without being so specific as to spoil it.

While the first eleven books were about Harry’s adventures as Chicago’s only professional wizard and all the complications that entails, book #12 (Changes)… well, you know, changed things. Book #13 was mostly about the aftereffects of that and attempting some notion of recovery.

Cold Days picks up after that and shows Harry settling into something of a new role. Then he gets his first job in that new role, and it’s a doozy. In fact, it’s virtually impossible. But Harry’s life has never been as simple as presenting him with a tough problem, so it all gets much more complicated with struggling loyalties, questionable allies, plots within plots, and a world-ending timebomb ticking away. And of course, Harry saves the day with his usual wit and well-earned angst. The ending was bittersweet, with victory being filled with loss, but when did Harry every have a truly happy ending?

About the only nit I have to pick was that Butcher did a bit of preaching in the middle of the book. It happened to be a message I wholeheartedly agree with (i.e. homosexuals are OK, and even if you disagree you should adopt a live and let live approach), but it kind of stuck out from the surrounding material as the author preaching at us rather than Harry Dresden dishing out his own irreverent attitude. It did not blend in with the rest of the story and felt kind of tacked on. If Jim Butcher really wants to communicate that message, he would be better off writing a book where he showed it to be true rather than taking a five-minute break to hit us up with a public service announcement.

Still, it was good to see many of the old gang, but we didn’t see everyone. The world has certainly changed since Changes, and not all for the better. Mostly though, Cold Days revealed more about the dark subtle forces moving through the world and set up the shape of the background conflict for the next several books. I’m sure there will be diversions and unrelated struggles, but I think this set up the main storyline for the next dozen books.

I just hope that the next book picks up the storyline in short order and not two years later… which coincidentally is also when I wish the next book would come out, i.e. in short order.

*taps at veins*

Gotta get more Dresden! ( )

Book Info: Genre: Urban Fantasy
Reading Level: Adult
Recommended for: Fans of urban fantasy, fans of the Dresden Files, people who enjoy stories involving the Sidhe

My Thoughts: First of all, if you haven't read any of the previous books, be aware that the synopsis below is absolutely full of series spoilers. Won't spoil this book, but then again, if you haven't read the previous books, you really have no business reading the review for the latest, now, do you? So, be aware, and don't come crying to me about spoilers. You have been warned.

So, this book was, to a large degree, the most hilarious in several books. And the most tense. Things are ugly—very ugly—but you know Dresden. The uglier it becomes, the mouthier he grows. I really enjoyed the Cat Sith; what a great character!

There were a few places that didn't make much sense to me. Like, when Thomas and Harry were under fire on the boat, why didn't Harry put up a shield to block the bullets? (Trying to be vague here to avoid too many spoilers) Little things like that.

But all in all, this was an awesome book. I'm so bummed to be finished with the series until the next comes out! There are questions left unanswered that I really, really want to know about. This is a fast-moving story, mostly taking place over a single day (the first three months are heavily condensed), but an absolutely awesome story. Love it! More please, now!

Disclosure: I purchased this book new in hardcover for myself. All opinions are my own.

Synopsis: After being murdered by a mystery assailant, navigating his way through the realm between life and death, and being brought back to the mortal world, Harry realizes that maybe death wasn’t all that bad. Because he is no longer Harry Dresden, Chicago’s only professional wizard.

He is now Harry Dresden, Winter Knight to Mab, the Queen of Air and Darkness. After Harry had no choice but to swear his fealty, Mab wasn’t about to let something as petty as death steal away the prize she had sought for so long. And now, her word is his command, no matter what she wants him to do, no matter where she wants him to go, and no matter who she wants him to kill.

Guess which Mab wants first?

Of course, it won’t be an ordinary, everyday assassination. Mab wants her newest minion to pull off the impossible: kill an immortal. No problem there, right? And to make matters worse, there exists a growing threat to an unfathomable source of magic that could land Harry in the sort of trouble that will make death look like a holiday.

Beset by enemies new and old, Harry must gather his friends and allies, prevent the annihilation of countless innocents, and find a way out of his eternal subservience before his newfound powers claim the only thing he has left to call his own…

His soul. ( )

There is so much awesome in this book I don't even know where to start! When I get my scrambled thoughts together, I'll post a proper review. ( )

If Ghost Story was all about filling in missing pieces from the first half of the series, Jim Butcher’s latest in the Harry Dresden series, Cold Days, is about setting the stage for the rest of the series. In addition to feeling his way around his new role as Winter Knight, Harry begins to learn more about the obscure foe that has beset him from the very first story of the series. However, as important as that knowledge is, Harry must first survive Mab’s initial assignment.

Harry’s role as Winter Knight provides its own problems and will bring enough entertainment and danger for it to be its own subplot in multiple books. However, anyone who has stayed with the series understands that nothing happens without a reason. Harry is not the Winter Knight just to provide subplots and individual story lines. Given the revelations about a greater evil hinted at and directly mentioned in Cold Days, a reader knows that as detrimental as it may be to become involved in the Fae Courts, there is something about Mab and/or the Winter Knight that is going to play a pivotal role in future proceedings. It will be highly interesting to watch him balance his new, darker powers with his inherent goodness, as well as watch him go toe-to-toe with Mab. Given how Mr. Butcher references his other powers, like soul fire, it will be even more fascinating to see how these dueling powers find a balance within Harry, if they do at all.

Still, as exciting as all the world-building is for the final showdown, Cold Days is action-packed and is just as nerve-wracking as one has come to expect from Mr. Butcher and Harry. In particular, Harry’s refusal to accept the full results of his actions, namely the mantle of the Winter Knight and his close working relationship with Mab, provides some highly surprising and entertaining scenes. The fallout for this new role is not quite what one might have expected, while Harry’s own reactions remain uniquely his. The psychological impact of everything Harry has experienced has yet to have made itself fully known, and this is one area that remains primed for further disclosure/discovery. Physically, Harry might be back to his 100 percent, but mentally, the damage obtained along the way is vast. The possibilities are endless as to what this might mean for Harry in the future, but readers/fans know that it is going to cause problems and most likely wring a few heartstrings along the way.

After missing James Marsters fiercely in the previous audiobook, it was a relief to have him back and in his quintessential role of Harry. The character is just not the same without him. Without sounding like a broken record, his performances are essential to understanding Harry’s anger, his desperation, his bone-weary tiredness, his joy, and every other emotion to which he succumbs and even those he doesn’t know he is feeling. Add to that his spot-on voices and the stories comes to life in a way that is not typically found in audiobook performances.

Just when one questions how the Dresden story is going to continue for another ten books or so, Mr. Butcher provides enough hints for readers to glean where he is ultimately taking the narrative. Those intimations are enough to start building anticipation for the ultimate showdown between Harry and his shadowy nemesis. Based on Cold Days, one can guess that it is going to be dark and dangerous and deadly. I cannot wait.