“In this installment of Butcher’s Dresden Files series, the staff-wielding wizard is honor-bound to return a favor to a crime boss for saving his life.

With the city still struggling to return to some semblance of normalcy after the cataclysmic events of the Battle of Chicago, Harry Dresden is recovering in his ancient Chicago castle (which might have been Merlin’s fortress) when an old adversary shows up at his door: Gentleman John Marcone, Baron of Chicago. Since Marcone saved Dresden’s life in the conflict, the kingpin of Chicago’s criminal underworld asks the wizard to help with a troubled associate who supposedly wants to go straight. The only problem is that the man in question is Tripp Gregory, “one of the more contemptible people [he’d] ever had the displeasure to meet.” Gregory may have ripped off an elderly woman on her deathbed, stealing millions of dollars meant for a children’s charity he’d created and gambling most of the money in Vegas—where he won big. With the IRS and a Mexican crime boss with some demonic firepower hot on the reprobate’s tail, Dresden is tasked with saving Gregory’s life, collecting the millions for charity, and helping a morally bankrupt man transform himself into “one of the good guys.” Butcher checks all the boxes when it comes to satisfying readers’ expectations. The paranormal fantasy elements are on point, including some nightmarish—and memorable—monstrosities. Many familiar returning characters are featured, including Bear, Dresden’s seven-foot Valkyrie bodyguard; his apprentice, Fitz; CPD Special Investigations Captain John Stallings; and Bob the Skull. The author impressively maintains the exciting pacing and intensity throughout, powering the narrative with an abundance of high-octane action sequences. The intricate plot is fittingly complex, connecting Dresden’s redemptive mission with Mexican cartels, the Red Court, and demonic cults…Dresden fans will enjoy this bite-sized supernatural adventure.” — Kirkus

“James Marsters’ weary delivery perfectly captures Harry Dresden’s fractured psyche as he navigates a year of mandatory mourning and political maneuvering in Chicago. Marsters doesn’t just read; he inhabits Harry’s exhaustion, using deliberate pacing and a somber tonal palette that underscores the protagonist’s post-traumatic stress. Marsters’ gift for distinct vocal characterizations remains sharp, effortlessly pivoting from the ethereal, detached elegance of the Sidhe to the grounded warmth of Harry’s remaining allies. By leaning into the book’s quieter, more introspective moments, Marsters elevates this urban fantasy’s emotional stakes, transforming a year of Dresden’s life into a poignant study of grief. It’s an immersive performance that makes the wizard’s vulnerability feel hauntingly real. Marsters’ soulful performance makes this a compelling entry in the Harry Dresden series.” — Audiofile / Kirkus Audiobook

“If you keep upping your protagonist’s powers throughout a series, then you must balance the scales by increasing the number and strength of their enemies—as well as seriously messing with their personal life. Over the course of the Dresden Files, Harry Dresden, Chicago PI and now one of the most powerful wizards in the world, thought his first love was dead (she wasn’t), sacrificed his half-vampire girlfriend on an altar to save their child, lost another girlfriend when they learned she’d been mind-controlled into their relationship, bound himself into servitude as the Fae Queen Mab’s Winter Knight, and, for the length of an entire book, thought he himself was dead (he wasn’t). But nothing has hit quite as hard as the death of Karrin Murphy, the former police lieutenant who was his quasi-partner, friend, and, after a slow burn across many books, lover. Chicago is in a terrible state following a battle with Ethniu the Titan and her Fomor army, and Harry is doing his best to confront the monsters, dark magic, and anti-supernatural prejudice running wild amid the slowly rebuilding city. He’s also trying to save his half brother Thomas from two different death sentences, train a new apprentice, and juggle a relationship with Thomas’s half sister Lara, the dangerously seductive vampire Queen Mab is forcing him to marry. But he’s doing all this while nearly crushed by grief that threatens his judgment and disturbs his control over his magical powers. Butcher really makes you feel the dark, depressive state Harry exists in as well as the effect it’s having on his friends. Despite all that happens in it, this book is a pause as well as a setup for the series’ planned conclusion, an epic conflict with the eldritch creatures known as “the Outsiders.” It’s a tough, redemptive pause that could be a real drag, but thankfully, it’s not, because Butcher shows balance, too: Even as the crises pile up, so do the help and goodwill from unexpected sources. The series’ snarky noir vibe might be dwindling, but there’s something of substance in its place.” — Kirkus, Starred Review

“Butcher shifts gears in his emotional 18th urban fantasy featuring professional wizard Harry Dresden (after 2020’s Battle Ground), focusing on the character’s struggles, over the course of one year, to come to terms with recent devastating events. These include the deaths of tens of thousands of Chicagoans, massive infrastructure damage, Dresden’s expulsion from the White Council of Wizardry, and the murder of his significant other, Karrin Murphy. Unfortunately, the threats to his city and those dear to him haven’t stopped just because Dresden is processing so much trauma; the corpses of the fallen attract ghouls who hunger for human flesh, and the damage to the city’s streets makes supplying its residents with food and other necessities extremely difficult. If that wasn’t enough, Dresden finds that he has another loved one at risk: his half brother Thomas, who is battling a malevolent possessing spirit. The high-stakes plotlines keep the pages turning as rapidly as ever, but this installment’s greatest strength lies in its exploration of Dresden’s mental state as his resilience is tested as never before. It’s not the ideal jumping-in place for newcomers, but those invested will appreciate this more intimate, and ultimately more optimistic, outing for Dresden.” — Publishers Weekly

“It has been three weeks since the devastating magical attack on Chicago (Battle Ground, 2020), leaving the city in complete disarray and wizard Harry Dresden’s life in shambles. He is mourning the loss of a loved one, has been banished from the White Council of Wizards—although he is not as upset about that—and has been forced by the ruthless Queen Mab into an engagement to the provocative leader of the White Vampires. Harry is grieving and exhausted but nevertheless providing food and shelter for neighbors left homeless by the battle. He is not sure how, or even if, he will recover. What he needs is time, but Mab has given him the impossible task of resolving a conflict with the sovereign of another magical nation, the same king who wants Harry’s brother dead. And an overzealous new White Council warden is out for Harry’s literal head. His friends and, oddly, his new fiancée are trying to help, offering support, a new apprentice, and a Valkyrie bodyguard, but the heartbreak and anguish may still be too much. Series fans will be intrigued by the new characters and changes in Harry’s life as Butcher deftly explores the impacts of loss and grief.” — Booklist, Starred Review

“Three decades ago, Jim Butcher put pen to paper and invented a wildly popular fictional universe. At the time, he was just trying to finish his homework.”