Cold Days

The Dresden Files, Book 14

By: Jim Butcher

Narrated by: James Marsters

Length: 18 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

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.

©2012 Jim Butcher (P)2012 Penguin Audio

Cold days is the best Dresden Files yet!

What did you love best about Cold Days?

We see a lot of old characters in new ways, as well as a fierce new little fairy in fishhook armor. Mab's ruthlessness and viciousness takes a vivid turn and yet at the end Harry defies her despite being her vassal. We see Mac in a new light and with new mysteries. Harry must deal with new and disturbing impulses which are probably brought on by the mantle of the Winter Knight. We come to understand the purpose of Demonreach, and we see it both as a place and a character. The Winter Lady shows incredible vulgarity and murderous intent, and as a result Harry winds up with friends in the Winter Court. Harry's mother's silver pentacle is returned to him, and he is gifted with a new leather coat, so we have the feeling we're getting back to the old Harry again. Harry and Karrin Murphy share a tender moment, and at the very end we still have a lot of mysteries but not one of those painful cliffhangers we've seen before in the Dresden Files series.

James Marsters is a great narrator as always, and the book is amazing. What's not to like?

wonderful story

Narration is unbelievably good. The story is everything I expect from a Dresden book. I really didn't want to put this one down.

Almost to the end. Oh no.

I am not giving away anything. I never really know how it will end when I read the Deesden Files. there is always a twist that leaves me immediately downloading the next book. whether I have credits or not.

Merry Christmas to me!

If you could sum up Cold Days in three words, what would they be?

Thank you Jim Butcher and James Marsters (and Audible for bringing back James to narrate)! This books give us fans exactly what we want....more. It is amazing that the story goes on just as exciting and witty as it has always been. I'm ready for the next one!

Another fine tale!

Where does Cold Days rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Jim has uncorked another wonderful page-turner. When added to James' storytelling this is one of those books that seriously endangerd my ability to keep my job! I just had to keep listening to the end of the Chapter. (Okay, maybe one chapter more!)

This book rates near the top of my top-ten!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Kringle! Jim doesn't know it, but he gave me the best Christmas present when he wrote Kringle into this story. First time (IIRC) that he's been talked about since Jim's original short story. I'm a professional Santa, and began listening to this book about 10 days before Christmas as I was driving to a gig. I'm afraid that the drivers around me got a bit nervious as a "whooped" when Kringle showed up at the party!

Which scene was your favorite?

It has to be the "Santa Beat Down"!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

As I said, I made quite a public display as people saw Santa driving down the highway hooting and hollering as I listened to the story on my way to an appearance!

Any additional comments?

So the next one is coming out when?????

What a ride!

Wow, one of the best in the series. Marsters delivers another amazing performance, but the story is definitely supreme. Danger at every turn, Harry gets no breaks in this one.

wow

If you could sum up Cold Days in three words, what would they be?

it was thrilling.

What other book might you compare Cold Days to and why?

it was like eating pringles chips once you started you couldn't stop.

Which character – as performed by James Marsters – was your favorite?

As always i love harry because you get to experience his emotions and have almost the same reactions.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It was wonderful it made me want to shout in triumph, cry in frustration and smile sadly at the circumstances that can unwittingly befall one.

lots of surprise

First and foremost it is important to note that Jim Marsters is back. All readers should be grateful to the girls at Buzzy Multimedia for the initial pairing of writer and narrator. Jim Butcher reads well in print but Marsters make good into magic.

The forethought, just plain good planning, is as much a surprise and satisfaction as the actual plot in this book. The intricate weaving and revelations read like an author's sweetness to loyal readers. One feels cared about and gifted with an author's personal interest in how readers share his skill. Well, I like his showy intelligence and the poetry of his weaving through his own work to tag my memory and interest was fun to understand. This book will change all kinds of relationships and is probably essential reading for the books that follow. It is a good story on its own but there is no reason to think readers would choose just one Jim Butcher story, especially when Jim Marsters reads it to us. This book makes the 4th book essential reading or rereading. That book was so much fun that it was my favorite. There is so much maturity as a writer and storyteller in this book that I would be hard pressed to choose. I do not have to choose. I have them both and I highly recommend the experience to others.

Winter knight is coming.

The best book in the Dresden series by far. You get to see how truly vast the Never Never is and how grand a scale the battle being waged against the outsiders is. The depths of the power the major players wield are thoroughly explored. If they ever turned this into a movie only IMAX could do it justice.

Cold Days is Awesome Addition to the Dresden Files

What did you love best about Cold Days?

I have been a huge fan of the Dresden File books since I first found them with #3. Through the years I have watched the twists and turns that Harry has been put through; Most of the time I just thought that Jim Butcher was a little sadistic with how he seemed to delight in putting Harry against beings far more power than himself, and situations with far too much responsibility for one hapless wizard to bear.In Cold Days, I love the way Jim Butcher pulled all those things together to give some purpose to the crucible that Harry has been put through. In this book we learn that Butcher was not merely sadistic--- he had a plan, and this book ties many of those elements together to form some understanding of what is actually going on in the world.Even more - it gives Harry a purpose. I feel like I should capitalize that - It gives Harry PURPOSE and Harry reacts in the fashion that we all love about Harry. To quote Mr. Marsters from another role: "Wackiness Ensues".

Who was your favorite character and why?

Harry has to be my favorite character of all time, and in this book he does not dissapoint. We learn far more about other characters as well. Molly in particular displays her growth since Ghost Story and we see her as a powerful woman, and not the girl that she was.

What does James Marsters bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

James Marsters IS the voice of Harry Dresden. I bought my first DF audiobook at a garage sale years ago and I thought that Marsters was OK. But over time he has developed nuance to the characters that I think few others could bring. Some day I want to head to a sci/fi convention just to ask him a question about his audio work on this series. I'm desperate to know if he does Toot's voice alone, or with electronic filtering.The last book was much less enjoyable without him as the voice of Harry, I would seriously debate whether to purchase another if he were not the vocal actor performing it.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

There is a moment near the end where a character is asked a question. It was a human moment from an unexpected source. I was actually moved by the simplicity of it.

Any additional comments?

If you are not listening to the Dresden Files books with James Marsters as the reader you are missing out on a treat. I drive for hours sometimes for my job and Harry/James are my companions on those lonely days. I look forward to those long drives now so I can spend more time with them.