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Peace Talks
Cover of Peace Talks
Peace Talks
HARRY DRESDEN IS BACK AND READY FOR ACTION, in the new entry in the #1 New York Times bestselling Dresden Files.

When the Supernatural nations of the world meet up to negotiate an end to ongoing hostilities, Harry Dresden, Chicago's only professional wizard, joins the White Council's security team to make sure the talks stay civil. But can he succeed, when dark political manipulations threaten the very existence of Chicago—and all he holds dear?
HARRY DRESDEN IS BACK AND READY FOR ACTION, in the new entry in the #1 New York Times bestselling Dresden Files.

When the Supernatural nations of the world meet up to negotiate an end to ongoing hostilities, Harry Dresden, Chicago's only professional wizard, joins the White Council's security team to make sure the talks stay civil. But can he succeed, when dark political manipulations threaten the very existence of Chicago—and all he holds dear?
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  • From the book

    One

     

    My brother ruined a perfectly good run by saying, "Justine is pregnant."

     

    That kicked me completely out of my mental zone, and suddenly I became aware of the burning in my legs, my heavy breathing. I dropped out of gear and gradually slowed down until I was walking. In the blue light of July predawn, Montrose Beach was deserted. It wasn't hot yet. That's why I was up at oh-God-thirty.

     

    Thomas slowed down, too, until we were walking side by side. His dark hair was pulled back into a ponytail. Like me, he wore an old T-shirt, sweatpants, and sneakers. He was one of those men who were so good-looking that it made people check around to see if they were being pranked.

     

    He was also a vampire.

     

    "Let me get this right. You pick me up this morning," I said. "We came all the way down here. We did six miles in the sand and neither of us said a word. The whole city is still and quiet. We've barely seen a moving car."

     

    "Yeah?" Thomas asked.

     

    I scowled. "So why'd you have to go and ruin it?"

     

    His mouth twitched at the corner. "Sorry to spoil your man time, there, Hemingway."

     

    "Nnngh," I said. We had reached the end of our last lap and were almost back to the cars anyway. I stopped and turned toward the lake and breathed. The weighted vest I was wearing pinched at something on my shoulder, restricting its movement, and I rolled it irritably.

     

    Far out over the lake, the blue had begun to lighten. Sunrise would be soon.

     

    "You sure?" I asked.

     

    "Very," he said.

     

    I glanced aside at him. The ideal symmetry of his face was stretched tight with tension. His eyes, which were sometimes blue, usually grey, were tinting toward reflective silver. I knew the look. He was Hungry.

     

    "How did that happen?" I asked him.

     

    He looked aside at me without turning his head and lifted his eyebrows. "Did no one ever have this talk with you?"

     

    I scowled. "I mean, weren't you careful?"

     

    "Yes," Thomas said. "And my kind are all but infertile to boot. Happened anyway."

     

    "What happens now?"

     

    "The usual, mostly. Except that the baby's Hunger will draw life energy from Justine. She's going to be fed upon continuously for the next seven and a half months."

     

    I studied him. "Is that dangerous?"

     

    He swallowed. "According to the family records, just over fifty percent either don't survive the delivery or die shortly after."

     

    "Hell's bells," I said. I kept staring out at the water. Blue had given way to lighter blue and then to the first wash of gold. Chicago was starting to wake up around us. The burble of noise from the freeways had begun to escalate by slow degrees. Birds in the sanctuary at the end of the beach were beginning to sing.

     

    "I don't know what to do," Thomas said. "If I lose her . . ."

     

    He didn't continue. He didn't have to. There was a universe of pain residing in that ellipsis.

     

    "You'll be fine," I said. "I'll help."

     

    "You?" Thomas asked. A faint smile lightened his profile for a second.

     

    "I'll have you know I've been a full-time dad for well over a month, and Maggie isn't dead yet. I clearly have mad parenting skills."

     

    The smile faded. "Right. But . . . Harry . . ."

     

    I put my hand on his shoulder. "Don't borrow trouble," I said. "There's plenty of that going around without looking for more...

Reviews-
  • Library Journal

    Starred review from April 1, 2020

    Harry Dresden is not a popular wizard in the eyes of the White Council, but he has been tasked with providing security to the senior council members as they join several other coalitions to discuss peace with the signers of the Unseelie Accord. As the Winter Knight, Harry must also liaison for Mab, Queen of Air and Darkness, which has placed him further in the crosshairs of the council, his grandfather, Ebenezar McCoy, comes to warn him. As the allies he was living with face an assassin who's well-known to him, Harry must find a way to keep the talks going while he tries to discover the truth behind the attack, satisfy the players he serves, including the vampire Lara Raith, and make sure that his loved ones survive. Harry has protected his hometown of Chicago from the paranormal for years, but this summit may end up revealing far more than the powers at hand. VERDICT With many familiar faces returning and lots of magical action, this latest from Butcher (Princep's Fury) will have fans rejoicing at the return of Chicago's only professional wizard.--Kristi Chadwick, Massachusetts Lib. Syst., Northampton

    Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

  • Publisher's Weekly

    May 11, 2020
    Butcher ramps up the tension for wizard Harry Dresden in this open-ended 16th installment to the Dresden Files urban fantasy series (after Skin Game). The supernatural world is coming together for a cease-fire, and Harry is called to serve on the security team during the peace talks. When Thomas Raith, Harry’s half-brother, attempts to assassinate the leader of the Svartalves, one of the groups in attendance, Harry comes under suspicion for his role in the crime. With the aid of vampire Lara Raith and human detective Karrin Murphy, Harry frees Thomas from prison and certain death. Along the way, he discovers a new threat that could upend both the mundane and supernatural worlds. The first half of the novel is taken up by backstory, which will help newcomers navigate Dresden’s world, but longtime fans will find the exposition tedious. When Butcher finally pushes the story forward, readers are rewarded for their patience with gritty magical worldbuilding and bursts of dark humor. The high-stakes mysteries established in the second act are left largely unresolved—including the question of why Thomas attempted to murder the Svartalves leader—making this feel more like a prologue to the next in the series than a self-contained narrative. Die-hard fans will hope to see the action from the end carry into the next volume. Agent: Jennifer Jackson, Donald Maass Literary.

  • Booklist

    Starred review from June 1, 2020
    Fans have endured a long wait since the last Dresden Files novel (Skin Game, 2014), but Harry Dresden, resident magician of Chicago, Wizard of the White Council, Warden of Demonreach, Winter Knight to the Queen of Air and Darkness, and general all-around wiseass, is back. Things are looking up in his love life, he is taking his responsibilities as a father seriously, he is about to become an uncle, and the supernatural war that has been raging for years is about to be resolved. And then the other shoe drops. Some on the council are maneuvering to have him ousted; his Wintery boss, Mab, has loaned his services to a vampire queen; his brother attacks and almost kills a powerful ally; and the meeting of the greatest powers in the supernatural world is taking place in Chicago. Harry promises to save his brother and will protect his city, but as usual, whenever he comes into conflict with the mystical and unnatural, treachery and fireworks are just around the corner. The action-packed cliffhanger ending promises a confrontation of epic proportions in the forthcoming Battle Ground (scheduled for September). The release of back-to-back Dresden Files books is the treat readers need right now.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

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Jim Butcher
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