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Cold Days by Jim Butcher Narrator: James Marsters
Series: The Dresden Files #14
Published by Penguin Audio on November 27, 2012
Genres: Mystery, Science Fiction Fantasy, Urban Fantasy
Length: 18 hours and 47 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Library
Purchase Links: Amazon*Libro*Kobo*Chirp
Goodreads
Harry Dresden lives!
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 one 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.
Also in this series: Strange Brew, Storm Front, Fool Moon, Grave Peril, Summer Knight, Death Masks
Cold Days is book fourteen in The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher and narrated by James Masters.
When we start Harry is alive, yet still recovering, and under the care of Mab who is determined to shape him into her Winter Knight.
I like this series, but this one is my least favorite of the bunch. I had such a hard time getting through it. It was oh so slow too start and just dragged for me. I really don’t like the Fae in this series nor do I care for Mab. Having Harry spend all that time at the start in Mab’s care just irritated me, but finally he makes his way back to Chicago and reunites with his friends and brother.
Cold Days tackles a lot. We get a lot of surprise. Butcher always surprises his readers in each installment. He also gives us humor and wit. This one was no exception.
Good god, Harry has a lot on his plate. He’s back from the dead, has the mantle of the Winner Knight, has to figure out how to fulfill Mab’s first task, save Chicago by making sure Deamonreach doesn’t implode, and much much more. Whew! That’s a lot on one wizards plate, yet alone for the reader. It was a lot for me to handle. Their where so many close calls, but this time it was a bit much and added to the drag I was feeling in the story.
The best scene and the ones I liked the most where the ones in which Harry reconnects with his brother and friends. I cried a few times. And, Karen… man she changed after Harry’s death.
Audio: The narration was brilliant! I felt that the audio helped move things along even if the story did drag a bit, it still moved. Masters is a marvelous narrator. He brings out the scenes and the voices. The vast array of voices he does are unique, distinct and well done. I enjoyed his portrayal/dialogue of the inner battles of Harry the Wizard vs Harry the Winter Knight
All and all Cold Days was ok. I like exploring this series; wither I’m reading or listen. Thou I will say that I prefer the audio; because Masters is exceptional in his portrayal of The Dresden Files series.
Rated: 3 Stars
Narration: 4 Stars
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Challenge(s):
- 2020 Audiobook
- 2020 Library Love
About Jim Butcher
Jim Butcher is the author of the Dresden Files, the Codex Alera, and a new steampunk series, the Cinder Spires. His resume includes a laundry list of skills which were useful a couple of centuries ago, and he plays guitar quite badly. An avid gamer, he plays tabletop games in varying systems, a variety of video games on PC and console, and LARPs whenever he can make time for it. Jim currently resides mostly inside his own head, but his head can generally be found in his home town of Independence, Missouri.
Jim goes by the moniker Longshot in a number of online locales. He came by this name in the early 1990′s when he decided he would become a published author. Usually only 3 in 1000 who make such an attempt actually manage to become published; of those, only 1 in 10 make enough money to call it a living. The sale of a second series was the breakthrough that let him beat the long odds against attaining a career as a novelist.
All the same, he refuses to change his nickname.
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I do recall this one was a bit tough; to see what happened to Harry’s friends… I do know that I loved the next one, so that brightens my recollection a bit. lol
Ah Mab..the b@tch. LOL
Ya!
This is definitely a tough time for Harry and hard for us to see. I can’t say I’m a big fan of Mab either.
I haven’t been able to read/listen on in the series since this one. It was a hard listen and Mab is just awful.