Peace Talks - Jim Butcher

 

Peace Talks – Jim Butcher

3/5 

I almost rated this lower but I needed some time between finishing it and actually writing the review to come to terms with the fact that this is a set-up book for Battlegrounds which comes out September 29th.

In terms of the book itself, I was not overly thrilled. It seemed like the same kind of fight over and over again, though I was happy to see more of McCoy and the white council. I liked the introduction of the new characters, I found them varied and interesting and should be fun to read about as their powers are pretty cool. It was decent for a set up book, if a little repetitive from previous books (ie. Harry having White Council issues, more drama than was really necessary with Thomas – though I think that was a plot device for the next book). I find Harry being so quick to anger annoying. He was always mouthy and sarcastic and didn’t edit himself but I really am not a fan of the addition of the personality traits that he has received from the Winter Mantle.

It is well established that Butcher has never been good at writing female characters and Peace Talks is no exception. There is far too much description of female anatomy and women exist as one of two things in Butchers world: perfect, svelte, beautiful or ugly, disgusting hags. There is no in between and it is irritating to read. He literally used the phrase “most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen” twice when describing two women in the same scene. Spoiler alert, Mr. Butcher... women can be beautiful but all of them have imperfections – same as men.

This issue leads me into the second issue I have found increasingly annoying with The Dresden Files which is Harry’s fixation on the women in his life. Peace Talks especially made this clear with his internal monologue regarding Molly. This is a woman you’ve known since she was a child. The descriptions and emotions he attaches to her are... uncomfortable to read. They almost feel like they are veering into pedophile territory, even though Molly is of age. It’s creepy to read. I know a lot of it is blamed on the emotions being tied to the Winter Mantle but frankly, it seems like the same kind of path that the Anita Blake series followed right before it got really bad, to a point of unreadability. 450 pages of a 500 page book became sex scenes and that is literally the last thing I want for a series like The Dresden Files that has so much back story and continued potential.

Apparently the book was too long and they had to split it into two. My most immediate question is too long for who? The series? Or customers? There is a great deal of argument right now online surrounding these two books because Butcher has stated if he released it as one, it would have cost readers upwards of $50. I have never seen a hardcover go for that much when it is a fiction title, regardless of length and I have a fairly extensive knowledge of how publishing works to have serious questions about this assertion. I almost suspect that he was done the first half of the book and fans were so impatient that they decided to run with the first half and had to hope they could complete the second half by the projected release date. Regardless, what is done is done and we will see how the next installment works out.

Honestly I am just so on the fence about this book that I’m not even sure what else to give you. I think I am definitely going to read it again before I get Battleground and see how the two work together.