“Battle Ground”, Dresden Files #17 by Jim Butcher - Actually Dresden files #16 and #17 go together. 16 is the setup and 17 is the kick. I finished this up about a week ago, and enjoyed the heck out of it.
I ended up rereading the last 1/3rd of the book, something I almost never do. But there was so much information being conveyed: old plot threads being tied off, new info, new info being shared between characters and new plot threads starting that I had to go back. All of these may just be imbedded in a few words or a really short sentence so they are easy to miss when there are so many things in play simultaniously. Jim Butcher does not waste words, he is very precise, so if he writes it he means it.
Anyway, rereading was worth it and brought more clarity in my mind. It also made me excited for book #18 in this series. I hope I won’t have to wait years for it.
The two things I like most about this series are the characters and the mythos Butcher has cobbled together. Combine those with some very clever plotting, settings, wise-cracking humor and epic action scenes and you have a lot of Win.
So, for fans, here are some bonus reference websites:
Dresden Files Wiki this has a lot of good reference material. I heck of a lot of characters have been introduced in 17 books and some come back after several books so a wiki like this comes in handy to refresh your memory.
The Word of Jim the author, Jim Butcher, talks to fans a lot, online, at conventions and also book signings. This is a collection of things, clarifications, he’s posted and fan questions he’s answered over the years. These are preserved here by the author and are part of the canon of the series.
