Damn good news. More Dresden Files is always good in my book, even if its two smaller doses rather than one big one.
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So Peace Talks came out this week...
spoilers
TL;DL feels a lot like a Part 1 with lots of lose threads and while there's a resolved plotline, another bigger one starts up in the last third giving the book just enough time to wrap up what's immediately happening and then pointing at the metaphorical Wrestlemania sign. Lots of death flags being set for the next book too. It will probably be better when Part 2 rolls around in September, but for now it feels like the weakest Dresden Files book yet.
Yeah I didn’t like this one as much as I thought I would. Didn’t hate it or anything but I was a little underwhelmed
It's not like the story didn't have a proper resolution or anything, the theme of family is pretty upfront throughout. It just feels like it left too much up in the air, like a studio's attempt to build a cinematic universe from one property. Like the Dark Universe, Battle Angel Alita, or any YA adaptation in the last few years. Only this comes 16 entries into the series.
Yeah my reaction when I got to the end was basically "this feel like half a DF book".
I'm also really dissatisfied with the fact that the Peace Talks are just pure backdrop for another Heist story that's not even a good heist story.
Also, 90% of the problems Harry has in this book go away if he just communicates with people.
Seriously, so many idiot balls being juggled by the characters here.
Actually, it really feels like he tries to take the dipolatic way out more than he usually does in other books, it just doesn't really work. He tries with the Drawves and Whites and that fails, and he tries with McCoy and that backfires. The thing with the Wardens though is a real "Just Talk" moment, but since that plotline doesn't get wrapped up it feels like it has no effect either way. Though next book it will bite him in the ass.
Yeah, it's pretty apparent that he had to split one book into two, it felt short and unfinished. Hopefully the next one makes up for that.
Alright, so I may or may not have procured a
early copy in slightly less than legitimate ways.
Gotta agree, this was pretty obviously only half of a story. It's still Dresden Files, of course, and it's still good, but after such a long wait it's not exactly blowing anyone's head off.
More specific opinion inside
There is a bit of the "we'll kill each other some other time" thing at the end, but I think Harry might be trying to avoid being so heavy handed, with all the Bianca comparisons in that scene, and musings on how that turned out.
As for the Carpenter kids, Molly was 18 in Proven Guilty, and that was book 8. Most of the books tend to have a gap between them of about nine months to a year, so she's probably in her mid to late 20's at this point. So most probably half have moved out. Hope the second youngest is 14 here.
Edit: Just checked the official timeline. Molly was born 12 years before Storm Front, and as of Peace Talks 14 years have passed throughout the series, so she's be 26, and each kid is two years apart, so 4 would be over 18 by now.
Yeah, some characters are kinda off in this one, I kinda feel that Jim's Hiatus has affected the story there. In regards to Ivy, that's actually shown in one of the Microfictions on Jim's Website, and I'm not gonna lie, I really would like her to have a chat with Harry all things considered. It really feels like there was a missed opportunity with the Peace Talks to see some of these characters again, especially since Jim was forced to split the Book across two volumes.
Yeah, I wouldn't mind being taken out of Dresden's headspace for a chapter or two now and then.
I felt like Dresden took half a dozen steps forward since the last book, which is a relief. He's been developing as a character since the very start, but it comes as a relief that in this one he was actually able to say "nope, fuck that, not dealing with this thirtieth problem that's dropped itself on my lap since I woke up, I'll get someone else to deal with it." And he actually does just push some crap to the side whereas with every one of the books up until now, he'd have grabbed that baggage and held on tight.
So I finished Battle Ground. That was a much better book than Peace Talks. It's more of an action story than a detective one, feeling a lot like Changes. Lots of character deaths, some way more telegraphed than others, and even a wedding at the end. It's pretty easy to see what bits were added on to make the two books seperate, and shine some light on the parts of the last as well.
in depth gripes/praise
o7
Yeah there is a lot to unpack in all these books but it weirds me out that in a pair where there was apparently to much fat to be trimmed and a massive headache dealing with what could and could not be included they somehow had time for a nerd threesome
Harry's never had a love life. Butcher learned early in his life that X-Files style, will-they-or-won't-they is the way, and he never changes.
Yeah, the Butters threesome is a thing that I think was in there more for the teen nerd Butcher, not so deep down, sitting in his basement watching Star Wars for the sixteenth time and staring forlornly into the distance, self inserting into a book he swears he's going to write one day.
And yeah, the two books kind of read like they were put together from a bunch of puzzle piece chapters and pages. Hope the next book comes out relatively soon, and brings back the magic.
Honestly even though you could see the seems in Battle Ground, it still felt really on point. Peace Talks is the one that really suffered in the split, but in the end I'd rather have one good book and one lacklustre than two medicore ones. One disappointment vs two.
Yeah, I’ll second that. Battlegrounds had a lot of the magic peace talks lacked. It was still hiring and suffering from jagged edges. But if you treat peace talks and battlegrounds as to seperate books instead of frankenbook, battlegrounds was P good
Finally managed to pick up Battle Grounds. Just got started, but this phrase:
"No matter what happens tonight, the world. Changes. Period.”
Made me realise the word "Changes" gives me PTSD now.
Oh boy, this is gonna be a fun read.