Pretty much this and I felt we were on track with the plot until the assassination derailed everything rather abruptly. For a time it all played out well, what with Abe warning Harry in the early chapters about distractions. There was even mention of Harry putting in the effort to build bridges with White Council members during the talks(we know how well that went-___-).

Then it was full on saving Vampire Thomas.

I knew we were in iffy territory as soon as Jim remembered about Dresden-verse alchemy.

 

One thing that surprised me in this book is how little Dresden cares for Bonnie. She's in one scene and from there he almost doesn't mention her in his narration.

Maybe Harry doesn't really consider her as a real person and his second daughter, but I was expecting other reaction.

 

That bothered me quite a bit, too. I was hoping we would see her or Harry trying to interact with her when he went to the Carpenters but nope, nada. It was Maggie and Mouse times. Guess Bonea was still stuck in the bowling bag.

 

Do we have info on whether Bonnie (I really hate Bonea for some reason, feels like trying too hard to seem like a lazy naming) possesses Lasciel's knowledge? I get that she's essentially a small child, so Dresden isn't gonna ask her dangerous questions, but I couldn't tell from the pancake scene as to whether she was starting from zero, or Lasciel didn't know shit about pancakes

 

I think she has knowledge but no real context for it.

 

I think its cause the Verse is getting cluttered.

Look we are all complaining about the filler and fluff, yet here we are asking for more. We have Bob who we didn't get, Bonea who we didn't get much of, a load of missing people from the peace talks.

Overall I think the series is getting bloated, which is in a way unavoidable. Although it would seem Battle Ground will solve that problem with a lot of deaths.

 

It's difficult to rate this book definitively, being just the first half of a typical Dresden book. It was not my favorite as a standalone, but I'm willing to wait and see where it leads in a couple of months.

As far as the increasing messiness of the series, with some more continuity errors and such, I figure that there's three types of authors out there:

1. The rare geniuses who make complex story universes and managed to keep all the balls in the air (i.e. are smart enough to not make more balls than they can handle).

2. The more typical authors, who start dropping some balls here and there but (hopefully) keep the most important ones going.

3. The authors who look at the challenge they are faced with and balk, and therefore stop writing...or delay so much they may as well have stopped writing.

Butcher seems to be falling into category 2. Obviously category 1 is preferable to category 2...but category 2 is way, way, way better than category 3. Looking at you, Rothfuss...maybe GRRM as well.

 

I think thats the problem with his stupid approach of having multiple concurrent media all being canon. The books, the short stories, the microfictions, and the graphic novels. At least the TV series isn't also canon that has to be remembered...

 

Extra media should be best left to an Easter egg sort of thing. Nothing important for plot, but can be a fun inside joke or reference.

 

Wow, Ivy works hard to erase that kind of thing from the memory of humanity you know, why you gotta make her job harder?

 

Blame Bezos, it appeared on Prime recently so I attempted to watch it. Didn't get very far...

 

I do like blaming Bezos for things.

 

Read the book recently. It is quate telling that I am pretty much done with Harry as character since the 3rd book when he showed up to White Council meeting in bathrobes and never really had to change my opinion since then. Because every book there is atleast a couple places where I just want to punch him in the mouth then choke the hell out of him for being a total idiot. This book was chock full of it.

I normally read the books because I love the world building but even that was absent. The peace talks were very much lesser and much more lifeless than last party we saw. I mean when Bianca threw her party for her ascension to peerage we got introduced to Ferrowax, there was stuff happening that paid off later like Leanisidhe getting a gift from Bianca, there was a menancing in the air that caused Harry to stand up and pay attention that ended in a war.

In the Peace Talks people talked I suppose? Even when Fomor were killing people I honestly didn't feel anything about it. I will read the Battlegrounds bu honestly my expectations are lower that what it was.

 

So, a few thoughts after I've finally managed to read the book. Might be disorganized.

Starborn happening every 666 years is not ominous at all. I mean, not like there aren't many stars associated with that number. A Morning Star, anyone? Now I'm not calling Dresden the Antechrist, but have we ever seen them in the same room at the same time? Also, apparently the direct fight against the Outsiders seems to be reserved to the reputably-bad guys while the reputably-good guys stay around to hold them in check, so it would kinda fit. If you squint.
Anyway, what year is Dresden meant to be born in? Would be interesting searching what year the previous ones were born. I don't think the previous ones were nobodies. And three times 666 is 1998, so there should be one a little before year 0.

Am I the only one who thinks that the whole shtick with Thomas was an elaborate trap to get an in to Demonreach? After all, we still don't know why he attacked the Svartalves, Nemesis could be the explanation. Especially since Justine being pregnant shouldn't have happened as he said himself. Now, whether he got infected from Evanna or Justine (who are both being suspicious as hell in their scenes), I don't know.
The fact that he'll be in contact with a guy that warrants isolation treatment even in Demonreach is also not very confidence-inducing. I feel like the Fomor are going to get some reinforcements from the prison.

Plus, let's be serious, when has a subplot not been somehow linked to the main one in Dresden? There's no way Thomas's arrestation was coincidental, and I don't see what else has been gained by that. Any rift between the supernatural nations would be quite attenuated by the Big Bad threat coming in front of everyone. Simply pushing Dresden from the Talks seems pointless since there wasn't anything he could do anyway. And there were much easier ways to simply kill Thomas. On the other hand I could actually see someone anticipating the Svartalves reaction, Thomas being close to death and Harry wanting to put him in stasis.

The Conjuritis is totally more important than it seems. The thing weakens his Mantle (he feels pain for a few seconds whenever he sneezes), there's no way it is only a childhood disease. In fact, with adding his forgetting about it whereas everyone finds it obvious, it reminds me of when Mab made him forget his fire magic: someone messed with his memories so he wouldn't do anything useful to actually cure it. Except that it messing with the Mantle makes me doubt it comes from Mab this time. In all cases, it's going to either bite him in the ass something fierce or save his skin in BG.
On the other hand, that's a great illness for HP fanfic.

Also, the peace talks seem wasted because they were no peace talks at all. Carlos says they were asked by the Fomor, which means they were simply a set-up to let them declare war on all he Accorded nations at once. It's also why the happenings seem low-key: the real talks hadn't started yet. Maybe we'll get the actual talks in BG. Title is Battlegrounds, after all. Plural. I don't think it will be only one big fight against the Fomor/Ethniu, it's going to tie up most of the plotlines in this one. Except maybe the Rudolph one, I see it continuated in the next book and being the last push towards Murphy not being human anymore by the end (if she dies then the police inquiry is really pointless because there's no way Harry ends up in prison).

Mab is Viviane? I don't remember, has she ever commented on Harry being custodian of Amoracchius/Excalibur? Considering the parallels between Harry and Merlin (Demonreach, Amoracchius), there's a good dynamic waiting to spawn here. Also in this book he asks for her trust. And she immediately goes along with his plan without question or hesitation. That seems like a Big thing for a faerie.

I will join the riot. She's basically a third daughter by now. She and Bonea could have gotten more timescreen easily enough. Although, let's take a second to acknowledge that Maggie is god-send. Best parts of the book by far in my opinion.

"cause he'd end up destroying the city" being the crucial part. Ethniu wouldn't really mind doing that, that's even her exact goal.

That, or maybe what we sees IS a fraction of her total power. Which is scary as hell, I agree. Or, linking with the Ferrovax comment, a big part of their restraint is actually voluntary, because they don't want to destroy the mortal world. She doesn't care so she doesn't pull her punches. Or her kicks.

Losing Mab's support right now, when he's just possibly pissed off the Svartalves and might be kicked out of the White Council, seems like a Grade-A bad idea. Unless he independently signs the Accords as Warden of Demonreach, that would be removing both his most powerful support and a significant powerboost.

 

Ohhhhh, I'd not considered that idea. That would be a really interesting twist...

 

Battle Ground. Both six letters words and because of that singular.

The biggest problem with mistakes in this book is that it spoils a fun of trying to guess if something more is going on because you can't be certain if something is a hint or another error.

 

Huh. I was actually glad to notice something for once, and turns out I invented it. Let's say my post was getting too long and addled my brain.

 

yes and no. Its also giving him his independence. Theres no way this series ends with Dresden still being subordinate to Mab as her servant. Essentially he is getting his defacto independence eventually the question is just how. i.e it could be he comes to appreciate Winter and of his own willingness embraces the mantle and figures out he can have an independent role as winter knight. It could be he gets free of the mantle through mab's respect. Something else.

But there's no way at the end of all this Harry is still essentially Mab's servant who has to trick her or maneuver around her to have free agency. Its literally the opposite of the hinted trajectory of Harry's story. So TLDR: He either is going to get free of Mab or change the parameters of their relationship somehow.

 

The fans that maintain a timeline on Butcher's site think his birthday is October 31, 1974. That would make previous starborn dates 1308 AD and 642 AD. The only person that comes to mind is that 642 is, give or take a couple centuries, around when King Arthur and Merlin were supposed to live.

I feel stupid for not recognizing the significance of this.

 

I tend to think the relevance of conjuritise is that it’s a childhood illness that he caught off Maggie. It’s her introduction to being magical herself.

I’m sure it’ll somehow tie into the main story line somehow, but I don’t think it’s uber important.