Anyone else... disappointed? [PT/BG spoilers]

[Bad Alias]

I'm constitutionally incapable of skipping a book.

[Mira]

I'm constitutionally incapable of skipping a book.

Why would you want to?    Quit the series maybe, but skip a book?   Naw...

[Dina]

I suspect he means "when rereading".

[morriswalters]

This type of book shouldn't have been written in the first person.  Or we should have seen much less of the action. Harry see's everyone and is in every frame.  The book might have been written as a series of desperate fights in isolation and no knowledge of overarching events until the very end when the pieces will come together for the climatic battle. And this is precisely how Changes is written. The action isn't tight and it's written to drive set pieces for fan service. Can you say dropping a bridge with a light saber? And to put a coda on it we are now going to go through the whole save the child from the clutches of the evil Outsiders book, sort of a proto Changes.

[Mira]

I suspect he means "when rereading".

Even then, the thing is, even if it isn't one of your favorite Dresden books, it will contain bread crumbs, clues that on the first read weren't all that apparent.

[Bad Alias]

I suspect he means "when rereading".

Yep.

[KurtinStGeorge]

Even though the parts of the books I liked best weren't the battle scenes, overall I liked what Jim did with these two books.  He finally swept the wreckage created by Changes off the board and set the series on a new course at full speed.  I'm expecting Mirror Mirror and the book that follows it to be smaller and more focused stories that have much more character development in them.

I didn't like Ghost Story very much, particularly the B story about the second rate sorcerer.  Some might say it was necessary to sort out some of Harry's issues; and there were parts of that book I really liked, but overall it felt like the series had gone from being in a high speed racing boat to dead in the water, at least until the ending promised to restart the motor.  Cold Days turned the series in a new direction, but to me; one, I thought that novel dragged a bit, but it also felt like a ship that was slowly regaining speed.  To put it another way, Harry was still dealing with the fallout of his attempted suicide and Chichen Itza and it just dragged the story down a notch for me.  Even though I really liked Skin Game, Harry was still dealing with Susan's death.  In a way that was realistic.  Grief doesn't get wrapped up in nice neat package that you put away forever, but it was still an indication that Harry was weighed down by the past.  I wanted to see the main story start to move at full speed again.

I think that is what Peace Talks and Battle Ground have done.  They've set the ship back to full speed and opened up new possibilities for Harry.  We can see the beginning outline of Harry taking an open stand against the White Council.  The Black Council is in ascendance.  Even though I wish we had seen more of Drakul and even Mavra, we have a sense of the threat the Creature; as Ebenezer once called him, possesses.  I really liked the way Mab manipulated Harry in both books and I like the forced marriage to Lara Raith.  I'm certainly not seeing it as a Love Connection, but I think it should be fun to watch.  Despite the flaws I think the series as a whole is now in a good place.     

[Mira]

I think that is what Peace Talks and Battle Ground have done.  They've set the ship back to full speed and opened up new possibilities for Harry.  We can see the beginning outline of Harry taking an open stand against the White Council.  The Black Council is in ascendance.  Even though I wish we had seen more of Drakul and even Mavra, we have a sense of the threat the Creature; as Ebenezer once called him, possesses.  I really liked the way Mab manipulated Harry in both books and I like the forced marriage to Lara Raith.  I'm certainly not seeing it as a Love Connection, but I think it should be fun to watch.  Despite the flaws I think the series as a whole is now in a good place.     

Yeah, she may have manipulated him as far as Lara goes, but it didn't take any to get him to defend Chicago.  That was the significance of the volunteers following him under his banner, not Winter, no help from the mantle at all.  I think I enjoyed the interaction between Mab and Harry the most. Something one sees in soldiers fighting a seemingly hopeless cause, but still fighting.  They seemed to have reached an understanding and a level of respect for one another.  Yes, Harry will still fear Mab and think she is an evil monster at times, but he begins to understand her.  He begins to understand why and how she got to be the way she is.  I think it is an understanding that Rashid achieved a couple of centuries ago more or less.  Mab will still find Harry a tremendous pain in the ass at times, I suspect of her orders to marry Lara. However she respects her Knight, she isn't just playing lip service either, she sees Harry as a comrade in arms.  She hasn't regarded a Knight in this manner in a millennia.
 

[Bad Alias]

I didn't like Ghost Story very much, particularly the B story about the second rate sorcerer.

I liked Fitz, but the whole side quest seemed kinda pointless. Honestly, the whole book seemed a bit pointless. Cold Days relitigated basically the whole thing.

I did really like the Mavra was giving lip to the other vampires.

[KurtinStGeorge]

Yeah, she may have manipulated him as far as Lara goes, but it didn't take any to get him to defend Chicago.  That was the significance of the volunteers following him under his banner, not Winter, no help from the mantle at all.  I think I enjoyed the interaction between Mab and Harry the most. Something one sees in soldiers fighting a seemingly hopeless cause, but still fighting.  They seemed to have reached an understanding and a level of respect for one another.  Yes, Harry will still fear Mab and think she is an evil monster at times, but he begins to understand her.  He begins to understand why and how she got to be the way she is.  I think it is an understanding that Rashid achieved a couple of centuries ago more or less.  Mab will still find Harry a tremendous pain in the ass at times, I suspect of her orders to marry Lara. However she respects her Knight, she isn't just playing lip service either, she sees Harry as a comrade in arms.  She hasn't regarded a Knight in this manner in a millennia.

Oh, Mab manipulated Harry and it was masterful.  I'm going to start a new thread on that subject tomorrow.  Wait until you see the evidence before you judge.  Jim did a great job of hiding the manipulation in plain site.

[KurtinStGeorge]

I liked Fitz, but the whole side quest seemed kinda pointless. Honestly, the whole book seemed a bit pointless. Cold Days relitigated basically the whole thing.

I did really like the Mavra was giving lip to the other vampires.

I agree.  That was one small bit that I really liked.  In the Dresdenverse even the un-dead can be as petty as a high school clique lording it over the other students.

One more thing that liked in BG.  John Marcone getting darker and more dangerous.  I have viscerally disliked fan ideas about Marcone becoming a KotC.  I'm not saying this character is irredeemable, but he's a cold blooded mass murderer.  Just because Marcone has a code of behavior that he follows and enforces doesn't make him a proto good guy who just needs a push in the right direction.  I think Marcone will have to suffer a great deal before redemption becomes possible for him.

[Mira]

I agree.  That was one small bit that I really liked.  In the Dresdenverse even the un-dead can be as petty as a high school clique lording it over the other students.

One more thing that liked in BG.  John Marcone getting darker and more dangerous.  I have viscerally disliked fan ideas about Marcone becoming a KotC.  I'm not saying this character is irredeemable, but he's a cold blooded mass murderer.  Just because Marcone has a code of behavior that he follows and enforces doesn't make him a proto good guy who just needs a push in the right direction.  I think Marcone will have to suffer a great deal before redemption becomes possible for him.

Yeah, what is scary is when he let Harry have the eye, he said he is learning think for "the long term."  He has something in mind.

Oh, Mab manipulated Harry and it was masterful.  I'm going to start a new thread on that subject tomorrow.  Wait until you see the evidence before you judge.  Jim did a great job of hiding the manipulation in plain site.

I'm not saying she didn't and I will be interested in what you write.  However Harry loves his city and those who live with in it, he didn't have to be manipulated to fight for it or them.  Yes, Mab manipulated him as any general will manipulate her officers.  But what I am saying is also true.  They reached an understanding, especially on the subject of how one loses one's soul.

[Bad Alias]

Yeah, what is scary is when he let Harry have the eye, he said he is learning think for "the long term."  He has something in mind.

I'm not saying the totality of the plan was revealed in BG, but I do think some of it was. Harry thinks that Marcone wanted the Council to have another reason to throw him out. Furthermore, the eye doesn't really give Harry any more power. It does put a target on him. Marcone's more worried about Harry than having an artifact he can't use that will put a target on his back.

[Mira]

I'm not saying the totality of the plan was revealed in BG, but I do think some of it was. Harry thinks that Marcone wanted the Council to have another reason to throw him out. Furthermore, the eye doesn't really give Harry any more power. It does put a target on him. Marcone's more worried about Harry than having an artifact he can't use that will put a target on his back.

Oh I think it is longer term than that.  I think Namshiel thinks he can win Harry over to his side eventually.  If for no other reason than Marcone and Harry have been allies in the past when it suited both of them.  It may all come down to Beckett's daughter, who still is in a coma somewhere.  That is Marcone's weak spot.

[Bad Alias]

Oh I think it is longer term than that.  I think Namshiel thinks he can win Harry over to his side eventually.  If for no other reason than Marcone and Harry have been allies in the past when it suited both of them.  It may all come down to Beckett's daughter, who still is in a coma somewhere.  That is Marcone's weak spot.

I really hope it's something more than just what Harry's already figured out. That would be a little boring.