Twelve month is little disappointment (spoilers)

[lw007]

I understand that after the peace talks the story needed to slow down a bit and be less dramatic. From a storytelling perspective, that generally works. That said, there are a few points that felt unclear or slightly at odds with earlier books.
   1.   Ramirez and Harry’s relationship
Ramirez seems to be on good terms with Harry again, but the transition isn’t really shown. A bit more explanation of what changed between them would have helped this feel more natural.
   2.   Lara and the soulgaze
Lara appears unaware of soulgaze, which was a little surprising, since we’ve already seen a soulgaze involving Ramirez earlier in the series.
   3.   Lara’s father regaining strength
This is an interesting idea, but it could use more clarification. Based on previous books, Papa Raith didn’t seem capable of independent thought. I’m open to this being explained later, but at the moment it feels underdeveloped rather than wrong.
   4.   Questions around Mab and Justine
One plot point raised some questions for me. Mab is strongly opposed to Outsiders, and Justine was known to be infected. It’s unclear why Mab wasn’t actively looking for her once this became known—presumably around the time Justine left Harry.
And if Mab couldn’t intervene directly, it’s a bit confusing that Harry could simply ask for Justine to be taken and Mab would comply. Especially since Mab later explains that she could kill her, suggesting that the usual restrictions on harming humans don’t fully apply here.

Overall, the story still works, but these moments made it feel as though not everything was quite lining up as smoothly as it could have.

[Dina]

I loved the book but I am really wondering about your second point, and I know we are not the only ones. I am also wondering something about Harry's memory. I made another post about Justine hair. Harry says that Justine had shaven her dark mane, but Justine had white hair for many years. So...is it a real book mistake or is it a hint that Harry is having memory problems? Like not remembering Lara's soulgaze with Ramirez, or Justine change of colors, or who know what else.

About your other points:
1. I am ok thinking that some time and knowing what Harry lost and also watching that he does not seem under Lara's influence can make Ramirez more ok with Harry. Perhpaps they even talk off-screen. I can live with that, I don't need to see everything.
3. More or less the same, but it bothers me more because it makes Lara look as an incompetent ruler, what she was not (so far)
4. I think Mab knew Harry would ask for that, so he took her time until it happens. Now Harry can't blame her for taking Justine and use the baby to free Thomas. He basically asked for that and Mab paid in spades, she even called the two Mothers. That is not a minor thing.

[Mira]

1.   Ramirez and Harry’s relationship
Ramirez seems to be on good terms with Harry again, but the transition isn’t really shown. A bit more explanation of what changed between them would have helped this feel more natural.
 

I agree, this isn't the first time, I felt the same way at the end of Blood Rites, problems between Thomas and Harry, then the next time we see them together it was like nothing had happened, no transition.

[Bad Alias]

Carlos's behavior in this book doesn't bother me so much. His behavior at the end of Battle Ground. The only reason his behavior in 12 Months is weird is because of his weird behavior in Battle Ground.

His behavior in Battle Ground can be written of as his immediate and emotional reaction to the battle. He's had time to calm down and think more clearly about what happened. Harry is his only option for getting Yoshimo's and Wild Bill's bodies back. The Merlin said no. Harry is now in a fortress. He's Winter Knight. He's allied with the White Court. The White Council can't really afford to deal with him. The best they can do is threaten him and hope he doesn't call their bluff.

Even if Carlos still feels the way he did in Battle Ground, he's probably taking the best course of action with Harry given his motivations.

2&3 are problems for me too.

[LaraBeck]

To be frank, I had no problems with how things went with Ramirez, or with Eb, for that matter.
I would agree on points 2 and 3. Everything about Lara bothered me, for more that one reason.

I honestly wanted to like this book, I mean, I went into it thinking that it'd be touching, but there were too many things that made little sense to me.

I thought part of Harry's grief would be confronting Vadderung about Murphy's situation, try to negotiate, you know, because he is very stubborn and adamant when he cares about something, and yet, he gets Vadderung on the phone even, and not even a "is she really okay?" I dunno.

I liked the twist about Harry "enslaving" Lara, so to speak, I think that makes a relationship harder for now, and I really don't want to see them getting together as a couple yet (yeah, I know it's coming, ugh).

I liked how things got resolved with Thomas, and I wished we had explored that even further, but I supposed that is for future books, I don't think the relationship between Thomas and Harry is good, and I hope it's not (yeah, I'm evil like that).

Lara seemed neutered and like Butcher is trying so hard to make her fit into Murphy's shoes now. The whole Lara is Thomas mother, because we have to show that she cares, is eyerolling. I really wish that the whole potential for the Harry/Lara romance wasn't built on Murphy's demise, it feels like a diservice to the three characters (Harry, Murphy and Lara).

I wished the rest of the cast had been allowed more depth, and not just Michael.

Bear is the other half of the Murphy replacement, a very predictable addition.

The other scenes were okay, I guess.

I don't really care about Fitz.

I'm glad Maggie shows a bit more personality now, at least.

And the last fight was just ridiculous, IMO, like a very bad 90s cartoon, I think what JB was trying to do was a sort of "friendship is magic" vibe, where all of Harry's friends just show up to support him, but honestly, it didn't work for me, felt cheesy not in a good way.

I am glad that Mab seemed evil, I think JB has been writing her too much in a way that people emphatize with her.

I did like that Harry was genuinely broken over Murphy, I wouldn't have believed anything else, but I was disappointed in his... how to say it, his comformity with it. And I don't know if I can explain this properly, but it felt to me, like he accepted her death very easily, what he had problems with was her absence and his guilt over not doing more in the past. But having Vadderung within reach, I would have imagine the Harry we knew would have tried to ask about her, to learn more about how exactly the einherjar worked, or if there was something that he could do, or even to ask if he could get a message delivered to her or something.

[Dina]

You don't want Harry and Thomas having a good relationship?  I love them together, it is one of my favourite things in the series.
I honestly see nothing eye rolling about Lara being Thomas "mother". It is nothing that we did not know.

Of course, everyone likes different things. That is fine or life would be much more boring.

[g33k]

...   1.  Ramirez and Harry’s relationship
Ramirez seems to be on good terms with Harry again, but the transition isn’t really shown. A bit more explanation of what changed between them would have helped this feel more natural ...

I'm still unclear on whether there ever was any "on bad terms" with Ramirez.  Way back, they picked roles to play, long-term:  Harry was gonna be the "bad boy / rebel" & Carlos was gonna be the "good boy / straight."

When Carlos acted "on the outs" with Harry, it really could all have been just that:  an act ...

...  2.  Lara and the soulgaze
Lara appears unaware of soulgaze, which was a little surprising, since we’ve already seen a soulgaze involving Ramirez earlier in the series ...

Maybe Lara just wanted to give Harry a chance to talk about something familiar; but yeah, I think Jim just dropped the ball here.  Lara soulgazed Carlos (she didn't even seem surprised by the experience; I presumed she had had other similar experiences, and/or it was part of standard Raith Family "how to be supernatural" training).  Harry watched it happen, so he HAD to know about it.

...  3. Lara’s father regaining strength
This is an interesting idea, but it could use more clarification. Based on previous books, Papa Raith didn’t seem capable of independent thought. I’m open to this being explained later, but at the moment it feels underdeveloped rather than wrong ...

Harry's an unreliable narrator:  he told us the situation "as he understood it."
I think Harry was simply wrong.

...  4.  Questions around Mab and Justine
One plot point raised some questions for me. Mab is strongly opposed to Outsiders, and Justine was known to be infected. It’s unclear why Mab wasn’t actively looking for her once this became known—presumably around the time Justine left Harry.
And if Mab couldn’t intervene directly, it’s a bit confusing that Harry could simply ask for Justine to be taken and Mab would comply. Especially since Mab later explains that she could kill her, suggesting that the usual restrictions on harming humans don’t fully apply here ...

I expect Mab had track of Justine from very shortly after she sank the Water Beetle.  If nothing else, she used the Little Folk as scout/spies, much as Harry does.  But I suspect the Queen of Air and Darkness has better & subtler tools, more on the order of Nicodemus'  "any shadow in the world" listening ability.

But Mab always plays a long game; she just tracked Justine, maybe to see if she could spot the target/agenda of the Nemfection... but more likely:  because Justine was inevitably going to be an element of critical importance to manipulating Harry.
 

[LaraBeck]

You don't want Harry and Thomas having a good relationship?  I love them together, it is one of my favourite things in the series.
I honestly see nothing eye rolling about Lara being Thomas "mother". It is nothing that we did not know.

Of course, everyone likes different things. That is fine or life would be much more boring.

Yes, we knew she had raised him, but that's not the same as having those motherly feelings that she describes in twelve months, those that are hard to believe were always there when she was willing to kill him before. I think the push to "humanize" her is just too much. And this is a me issue, I used to not care about Lara, I mean she was cool, whatever, but ever since Peace Talk / Battle Ground when it felt like Murphy was pushed aside to further a Harry / Lara romance, I just despise her portrayal, and I don't think it's entirely unmerited, she's presented as a capable leader in all the previous books and since PT/BG she's a fumbling, blushing damsel. I will always say that we could have grown the romance with Lara in a way that didn't feel like we were doing it over Murphy's cooling corpse. I despise this development in the series. (yes I'm aware of the irony that we share a name, lol). But again, it's just a me issue since most of the fandom seem to be cool with all this.

Regarding Thomas, I genuinely like his relationship with Harry and I wish it was all puppies and roses between them, but I just think that at some point Ebenezer is going to be proven right, and unfortunately it will be by Thomas' hand, I think it's the perfect way to torture Harry, to have Thomas betraying in some way. I think Twelve Months might be setting us up for that. And if I were in Thomas shoes, I would also be angry at Harry, very angry. It's not necessarily rational, but it's very understandable IMO.

Furthermore, Thomas is just a baby, in vampire years, with time, he would probably develop into what the rest of his kind are or do. He might be different due to Harry's presence in his life, but without him? I have to say that I don't buy that he doesn't turn like the rest of them. Plus, I always wanted to see Thomas as the King of his Court, because it gets tiresome that he keeps getting kidnapped and neutered when we've known since Backup that his Hunger is actually really more powerful than many. Give the man some agency. I dunno.

[Dina]

I thought your forum name was because you were a fan of Lara, and I was so confused about your posts 

I always thought Harry would not be with Lara because she feed of people, so yes, some retconned seemed to have been happened, so now she tries not to kill. She is the same person that had imprisoned the wee-folk. I agree now Jim is making her nicer (btw, the same happened with Mab, who suddenly became "not cruel"). Some things can be explained in universe by Harry being unreliable, Harry growth and Harry different mental states. And some can be explained by Mab being a manipulator, that sometimes presents herself as crueler and sometimes as a full Vulcan. However I think there is some retconning too. All that said, I think Lara is literally a good partner for Harry, both in universe and as a character for us to read.
But the part of maternal feelings did not affect me because I think it was not new. We have seen what Lara can do for Thomas, in PT/BG for example and I think Lara behave differently when she was under her father control, so she cannot show a preference for the "silly and useless" brother.

I also hope you are wrong about Thomas because I want them together, being loving with each other. Thomas had time to think. To reflect about what his own actions did, how Harry lost his woman for ever, not for a few years like Justine. And also he had lost Susan too, by his own hand. And how Harry lost friends in the battle, and what Lara and Harry risked for him. I think when Thomas got time to think, to talk to Lara, to heal some of the pain, much of his anger dissipated, and hopefully with more time, he will be back to completely love and trust Harry. It Harry had not did what he did, Thomas would be dead or imprisoned, Justine nemfected and who knows what plans Nemesis had for the baby. Those are facts and Thomas eventually will understand that. At least, that is what I hope and what I believe  . Of course I may be wrong.

[Mira]

I did like that Harry was genuinely broken over Murphy, I wouldn't have believed anything else, but I was disappointed in his... how to say it, his comformity with it. And I don't know if I can explain this properly, but it felt to me, like he accepted her death very easily, what he had problems with was her absence and his guilt over not doing more in the past. But having Vadderung within reach, I would have imagine the Harry we knew would have tried to ask about her, to learn more about how exactly the einherjar worked, or if there was something that he could do, or even to ask if he could get a message delivered to her or something.

  It is complicated, yes, Harry accepted Murphy's death, what else was he to do?  She bled out and died in his arms, stark truth. That doesn't mean he accepted her death easily, it means he accepted that she is dead, not the same thing.  He says a couple of times that he'd like to crawl into a hole somewhere and grieve, but he can't.  The world is moving on too quickly, too many people depend on him, he either gets up and move or it all passes him by and leaves him behind.   Those questions for Vadderung will come later, his confrontation with Mab over the spell that enabled Murphy to overcome her physical injuries to be present and die as a result was realistic.

[Dina]

I agree, Mira.

[LaraBeck]

Those questions for Vadderung will come later, his confrontation with Mab over the spell that enabled Murphy to overcome her physical injuries to be present and die as a result was realistic.

I hope that is true, that we see those questions to Vadderung.
I felt like the confrontation with Mab was a good moment, and that felt more like the true Harry to me.

I thought your forum name was because you were a fan of Lara, and I was so confused about your posts 

LOL, nope, just my name.

I always thought Harry would not be with Lara because she feed of people, so yes, some retconned seemed to have been happened, so now she tries not to kill. 

I always admired that Harry seemed to know the dangers of Lara, that he was aware and tried to not be fooled, lately, it feels like it's all about getting Harry to a hotter younger model. I don't know if that's going to be the case, honestly Twelve Months probably left me as confused about this as Harry regarding the relationship with Lara. But I think it's too titilating to miss and JB would want to go there. Plus, the fans really like it, so *shrug*

So I am disappointed by the retcnonning here. Unless the idea is to take Harry to a darker path with this.

I'm reading the series out of spite at this moment, and still participating in forums for the same reason, if I have to be the one/last person still remembering Karrin and reminding Jim that she deserved better, I will be. LOL I will admit Harry is not my favorite character in the books, obviously.

I hope JB proves me wrong in all my bad feelings about where the series is going, I do. I've been with this series for 20 years, I'll see it through, lol. Clearly, I am a masochist.

I also hope you are wrong about Thomas because I want them together, being loving with each other. Thomas had time to think. To reflect about what his own actions did, how Harry lost his woman for ever, not for a few years like Justine.

I think there's a setup for a riff between Harry and Thomas, it's been there since Turn Coat. But I think it will end up ultimately with them reconciling, thought it'd be very rough for a while.

I'm still on team Eb though. But I did like that Harry followed Murphy's advice to try to at least talk to him. It turned out even better than that, which frankly surprised me.

[Bad Alias]

I honestly see nothing eye rolling about Lara being Thomas "mother".

Besides her deciding to kill him in Blood Rites.

Harry's an unreliable narrator:  he told us the situation "as he understood it."
I think Harry was simply wrong.

I think I recall Jim saying Raith didn't have much left going on.

[LaraBeck]

Besides her deciding to kill him in Blood Rites.
I think I recall Jim saying Raith didn't have much left going on.

Exactly.

[Bad Alias]

I think there was also some stuff in PT about there being nothing she could do.

I do believe Lara will go to great lengths to care for Thomas, but not as far as she says in 12 Months. She may have just been trying to get her point across to Harry in a way he would understand.

Thomas is probably as close to having her own child as she plans on.