I've enjoyed the Dresden Files but am not as enamored by this book. The cats are the best part but I couldn't finish because I had trouble following the plot. So many names and Spires. It was a lot of jargon and a challenge to follow the story.

"The fate of the Cinder Spires may be decided by crossed swords in the next exhilarating fantasy adventure from the author of the Dresden Files, in this New York Times bestselling series of noble families, swordplay, and airships.

For centuries the Cinder Spires have safeguarded humanity, rising far above the deadly surface world. Within their halls, aristocratic houses rule, developing scientific marvels and building fleets of airships for defense and trade.

Now, the Spires hover on the brink of open war. Everyone knows it's coming. The guns of the great airship fleets that control the skies between the last bastions of humanity will soon speak in anger, and Spire Albion stands alone against the overwhelming might of Spire Aurora's Armada and its new secret weapon - one capable of destroying the populations of entire Spires.

A trading summit at Spire Olympia provides an opportunity for the Spirearch, Lord Albion, to secure alliances that will shape the outcomes of the war, and to that end he dispatches privateer Captain Francis Madison Grimm and the crew of the AMS Predator to bolster the Spirearch's diplomatic agents.

It will take daring, skill, and no small amount of showmanship to convince the world to stand with Spire Albion - assuming that it is not already too late."

I will read whatever Jim Butcher writes.

This eARC was provided by Netgalley.com and I am giving an unbiased review.

This is the second book in 'The Cinder Spires' series by Jim Butcher. It has been awhile since I read the first one, so the it took a bit at the start to pick up on what had transpired. A bit of time has passed since the first story, and this one finds us with many of the same characters. The war between spire-states is starting to escalate, and this book is more centered around what is going on around the Olympian Spire.

I have always enjoyed Butcher's books (Dresden Files and Codex Alera series) and this series has been enjoyable to read as well. I do like the world-building and character development employed, as well as his easy-to-read writing style. I am looking forward to reading more in this series, as I am sure there will be at least one more book (I hope).

I was beginning to think we would never see this second entry in The Cinder Spires series! The Spires were built a millennium ago to rescue humanity from the savage surface. Through the use of floating ships powered by etheric strands, humans traverse the skies. But, war is brewing. A terrible power has arisen than can control the terrifying beasts of the ether. A giant mistmaw has consumed one spire and is moving toward Spire Olympia. All the Spire rulers are meeting at Spire Olympia to negotiate treaties that will protect them in the coming war. Spire Albion and Spire Aurora are searching for allies. Who will prevail. This is such an imaginative world, peopled with fascinating characters, including cat tribes who ally themselves with various Spires. I highly recommend it and look forward to a new book (sooner than five years, I hope).

Patiently (?) waiting for this next title in the series, I am thankful to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group/ ACE for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Without a re-read of the first book beforehand, Jim Butcher does an excellent job of reacquainting the reader with the cast of characters; human, warriorborn, feline, and other. Would I recommend a re-read of The Aeronaut's Windlass before starting? Probably yes. The naming convention of the Spires alone caused me to pause and refresh my mind on who was with which Spire.

Our favorite characters are here, and the underlying mysteries of this world are brought back without preamble. The technology of the world is a blend of fantastical/magical and chemical most often explored in the mechanics of the flying ships. Think seafaring battles in the sky and life lines that keep you not from drowning, but from falling thousands of feet.

There are new friends and foes, new species and more investigation into the what this world is made of beyond the great Spires that house known humanity. While adventure is what I'd call primary mood, there is romance, political intrigue, and a hint of environmental history.

The wait was worth it for a great adventure, so I suppose I will have to practice more patience for the next in the series.

I wish I had re-read the first book before diving into this one because it became clear pretty quickly that it had been too long since I had read that one and I remembered nothing, but even though it took me a bit to remember who all the characters were, this was super fun. And I still love the cat characters. They are the best. I look forward to more and hopefully we don’t have to wait quite as long for the next book.

I didn't realize what this was a sequel to because the cover art is so different, hah. I vaguely remember reading book one, but I do remember liking it. I found myself really struggling to get into this story, mostly because of the super slow start to the story. I also found the characters not really working for me. They seem like characters that can only exist together, so when they're apart it just makes the story a bit weird and unbelievable. While I like steam punky sci-fi, this just didn't do it for me. I also really think this needs to be better marketed as a sequel.

I admit, I was not a fan of the first book from this series… at first. It did take me a couple of reads to get into the groove of it. This is not the case for The Olympian Affair, I found it to be an enjoyable read, and I can say with all honesty I am looking forward to more of this series. I have recommended it to friends to purchase this when it’s released, but of course it is best to begin with the first book.

I was so excited to get an early copy of this book! It's been a long time coming, and I dove right into this, even though I probably should have done a reread of The Aeronaut's Windlass first. There were quite a few things, and even characters that I had forgotten, but they all came back to me as I read. I loved the world building in this but what I love most are the characters. I especially love Miss Folly and Master Ferus, Captain Grimm, and Bridget and Rowl. Yet again the cats were there to provide a lot of the humor, which I loved. The airship battles and the duels were quite fun. There was a part that I found very sad near the end, and it ends with one character in quite the predicament, so obviously there will be more. I'm looking forward to finding out what happens next! Thank you Mr. Butcher for continuing this series!

On a side note- I'm not super crazy about the cover redesign. I don't think it's a bad cover but I have the hardcover on pre-order and it won't match my hardcover copy of The Aeronaut's Windlass.

Thank to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing me with and ARC of this book.

We have a LOT of Jim Butcher that passes through our libraries. However, we try not to purchase books that read like a sequel, and this one definitely reads like a sequel. I'm not as familiar with the author's work, but I do think fans will enjoy this. I stopped at the end of chapter 1 (6%).

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC.

I was SUPER excited to read this. I mean...talking cats, come on! I loved this second installment and it was well worth the wait. Highly recommend it.

Jim Butcher does it again with this fantasy adventure, it does everything that I was hoping for and really thought it worked overall. The characters felt like they were suppose to be in the world. It had everything that I enjoyed from the genre. I’m excited to read more from Jim Butcher.

I loved book one, but I found myself struggling to get in to book 2. Any series that has talking cats has my attention, but book two is slow to start. I believe that when the characters are together they play off each other better then when they are apart. About chapter 12 is where I set the book aside for other reading material, before returning. It didn't keep my attention as well as the first. I got back to it, but this alone hinders my love for book two. In truth I think Jim Butcher is better at Fantasy then Steampunk/Sci-Fi. I think I would have prefered this as an audio.

The Olympian Affair by Jim Butcher, I highly recommend a reread of the first book to familiarize yourself with the characters again, but this book blows itself out of the water!

A thrilling second installment to the Cinder Spires series. The spires are each a kingdom thriving on trade and commerce and trying to avoid squabbles and war, But war is coming and representatives are meeting at Olympic Spire to work out a truce. Magic is in the air and one spire has developed a new secret weapon which can wipe out whole spires at one time. A group of tiny cats are rescued from the destruction of such spire and trade their knowledge of what caused the destruction to secure them a new home. The cat's intelligence (Yes the cats can talk to certain humans.) may save them all. However unrest is in the air - duels must be fought and fighting begins as the heroes take to the air to stop the destruction.
This is a wonderful thriller with lovable characters, that will move the reader to laugh and cry along with them.
Fantasy aeronautics at its best !!!!!!

Recommended book which is well-written and will be enoyable fans of the author. Enoyable book and will look forward to more.

I have a disclosure to make. It’s impossible for me to objective with Jim Butcher. I’ll start this review with a story that many who have visited the store have already heard.

Years ago, I had the absolute worst year of my life while I was still in the Air Force. Like, I’m still going to therapy for it. To make it through, I escaped into a number of fantasy books, and when things stabilized enough, I reached out to several of those authors. Exactly one responded, Butcher. He sent me a long, thoughtful, and incredibly kind email at a pivotal low point in my life.

Attached to the email was a word document with the first draft of The Aeronaut’s Windlass. It was full of typos and mistakes, and I read it voraciously. One day, I hope to have the opportunity to get Butcher to sign a printout of the email to put up on my wall.

All of that preamble aside, The Olympian Affair is the sequel to that book. Even before getting the advance reader copy, I knew I was going to enjoy it. I was pleasantly surprised to find out how much.

It’s common in science fiction for a story to take a genre and lift it, genre expectations and all, into space. Firefly is a Western… but in space. Star Trek is Lewis and Clark… but in space. Star Wars is World War II, but in space. The Cinder Spires do the opposite. Butcher takes a space opera, with the ensemble cast and intricately woven plotlines and spaceship battles and drops them all into a unique fantasy world.

The Cinder Spires are giant pillars of stone that tower above a perilous mist-covered, monster-infested world. For safety, humanity (and sentient cats) have clambered up above the mist to the safety of the skies, and use crystal-powered airships to get from spire to spire.

The first book rips open a political rift between the two most politically important spires, and this one dives deep into the power vacuum that follows. Plots are made, backs are stabbed, duels are fought, ships exchange cannonballs and magical lasers far above the misty death far below.

Honestly, even if I weren’t already a Butcher fanboy, this book may be the one to push me the rest of the way there. The characters are remarkably deep, the political intrigue is nuanced and clever, and the women aren’t two-dimensional. I know that last point is redundant, but it’s worth hanging a lantern on.

Overall, this may be my favorite Jim Butcher book yet.

Thank you, Jim Butcher, for returning your talents to the Cinder Spires series. The Olympian Affair added more depth to the adventures begun in the Aeronaut's Windlass. Featuring exciting sword battles, the action is nonstop, the scenes are set with incredible details, and the characters are well developed. I enjoyed every page!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for access to a free e-ARC!

Just wow! It has been a loooong wait for this book, but Jim Butcher delivered with the second book of the series. Often when there is such a long time between installments, the characters do not have the same endearing qualities, but The Olympian Affair picks up the characters right where Aeronaunt's Windlass leaves off and the result is wonderful. Can't wait for the next one!!

I remember when the Aeronaut's Windlass (Book 1) came out in 2015, and I was annoyed that it was not another Dresden Files. What's a windlass? Who cares? Why is Jim Butcher personally making my life sadder?
Of course, then I read it. It was clever, charming, and fun. It had romance, gallantry, skullduggery, and excellent steampunk world-building! Who doesn't like oversized cats running their own fiefdoms and commenting on the inefficacy of human methods?

And then there was nothing. (So then I went and read the Codex Alera series, because honestly, Butcher does third person, multi-pov fantasy very well.)

Set two years after the events of book 1, our heroes (and antagonists) are largely where we expect them to be, still engaged in a cold war between Spire Albion and Spire Aurora. Steampunk England, I mean Spire Albion, is still engaged in privateering against Steampunk Spain, but open war is on the horizon. Something is absolutely decimating colonies, leaving no survivors. Meanwhile, on Spire Olympia, there is in international diplomatic summit, where Spire Albion needs to win more allies to hope to withstand Spire Aurora. Unfortunately, despite the neutral ground and forum-setting, Spire Aurora's intent is anything but diplomatic.

Our antagonists are on a road that requires an enormous level of commitment and some are having second thoughts. Our cadets are finally getting to be real seasoned adults making harrowing decisions. Captain Grimm is finally getting some...background explanation. Ahem. And I really enjoyed the addition of Abigail Hinton, Bayard's scandalous long-term partner. This book also gives more insight into why humanity has fled the surface and lives in floating cities in the clouds, and I'm here for it.

Eight years later, I was not expecting book 2. But God in Heaven (TM), age improves this one. Book 1 was fun. Book 2 is more exciting, with higher stakes, deeper character development, and plenty of satisfying gambits. Did I see the "twists" coming? Yes. Did that make them any less enjoyable? NO. We have more cats, more war crimes, more espionage! I suspect this series might be at least 5 books, and I really hope that we don't have to wait another 8 years for Book 3.