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

Mr Marsters is audiobook perfection

The story is excellent and well written, and the narrator does an amazing job. His performance is the standard by which I judge other audiobooks. I find most of them wanting...

One of the best so far!! 5 stars all around!

I could not stop listening! So many plot twists. I found myself pulled in so many directions.

Entertaining

What made the experience of listening to Cold Days the most enjoyable?

It stayed busy. I listen while driving across the country and this one kept me listening the whole time.

Read the first 13 books first!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

All of the books are great. Well edited and well cast but not confusing. All character strings are well followed up and humor is fun part of book. Wish some of the other books of this type had funny components.

Who was your favorite character and why?

All hail the Zahh Lord!

Which scene was your favorite?

Too many!

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

No extreme reactions but just enjoyed them.

Any additional comments?

Author and Editor did an excellent job bringing these books to market! Nice work!!

And the magic continues

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

hard biting fiction

Who was your favorite character and why?

Harry Dresden - he struggles to do the right thing

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

Harry Dresden - the voice is just what I feel that Harry would sound like

Any additional comments?

Was not sure where the author could go after Harry 'died' and then came back as the winter knight to an evil queen of fairy. But Jim Butcher delivered again and as the story moved on we find that evil is not always what we think that it is.

The Best of the series

Would you consider the audio edition of Cold Days to be better than the print version?

Yes, as James Marsters who I believe has done all the narration in the series, gives an excellent performance as the main character as well as the others

What did you like best about this story?

The story was very thought out, with all the loose ends resolved. The best of the entire series to me.

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

Harry; he gives life to the character

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

none other than pure enjoyment

Any additional comments?

This series is one of the few where I'm sorry when its finished, and I can't wait for the next. I have to say that 2 books ago when Harry was "killed" I was saddened thinking the series was over. I love fantasy fiction and this has become the best of the type. My other favorite author is Terry Brooks, but Jim Butcher is more of the adults version or fantasy fiction.

bubble of glee

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

Bubble of Glee

What did you like best about this story?

Everything is wonderful. I know that is not very discriptive or helpful. However, I have had a bubble of glee inside me during every second of this audible book. I've mostly listened to it in my car so as to draw it out as long as possible because I do not want this feeling of happiness to pass.

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

He brilliantly brings this book to life and manages to carry forward the inflections in character's voices from book to book. When he didn't read the last one my brother and I almost cried. The stand-in did a great job, too, but he couldn't duplicate James' voices exactly though in the end this worked out because Harry was only a spirit and possibly he would sound different so we were happy about it after we listened to it.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

"It will be a cold day in hell before I give up my will."

Any additional comments?

Can't wait for the next book. Brilliant job.

excellent

i am pleased. thank you beware the sublte shift in voices from the last book. still great book

my favorite of the series, after Dead Beat that is

I love this book. Of all the Dresden Files, this is my second favorite. Good mystery, no deus ex machina to save the day, interesting character development. If you are a fan of the series then this is a must listen title.

Harry's Back!

What did you love best about Cold Days?

Butcher does a great job of reinventing Harry while throwing a lot of great twists that had me screaming - what?! He also had me laughing out loud, something his last book didn't do as well. I still loved it as a fan of the series but felt a little let down. Cold Days made up for it all. I'm back in love with Harry.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Harry of course was the best character. His reunions with the gang from his brother to his apprentice made me as a fan tear up, cheer and laugh.

Have you listened to any of James Marsters’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes, thank God they got James Marsters back on the Dresden Files audiobooks. He is the voice of Harry Dresden and one of the let downs of the last audiobook was his absence. The hole was obvious, big and insurmountable. Those shoes just can't be filled - sorry! However his return in Cold Days was fantastic.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

I just said it Harry's Back! Thank God!

Any additional comments?

This is well worth the listen if you're a fan of the series and if you want to be a fan I'd start with Storm Front, but it certainly wouldn't hurt to try Cold Days.