Following the second major series upheaval (Battle Grounds, just five entries after Changes) Twelve Months presents Harry Dresden’s year long journey towards physical, emotional, and spiritual recovery. A brilliant examination of grief, loss and getting on with it, the story skips along through time in a series of vignettes that touch on all the relationships and responsibilities that Butchers protagonist must constantly juggle. While I would hesitate to suggest anyone start a series with its 18th installment, the material is presented in such a way as to clue in newcomers to the rich backstory or reiterate for lapsed fans returning to the fold. The only slight disappointment could be found in how after spending so much time reestablishing a status quo, and lining up so many dominoes, the climax is a little lack-luster, promising so much more that we will likely have to wait years for.

This feels like a reset of sorts. It's not as action packed as most Dresden Files books are (especially in comparison to the previous entry) but maybe that's not a bad thing. The focus is on Harry's healing process, with a lot of time spent in his head as he processes his path forward. It's a good book, and maybe a welcomed slow-down from the non-stop action of the series.

However, for as slow of a book as this is, it seems to speed through a lot of content. Harry is understandably in pain, and perhaps the lack of focus on individual elements is trying to convey this process. Long time readers may have some difficulty with this since it feels like important events are missed or skipped over, and in a lot of ways Twelve Months reads as a narrative time-skip with weeks passing between chapters and a year passing over the whole book. I'm interested to see where the series goes from here, but hope that the future entries abandon the lengthy gaps in narrative.

Jim Butcher is back with a fantastic new Dresden Files release. It's been a long wait for fans of the series, and Butcher does not disappoint. I've always felt that even though this series has such strong world building, tons of action, and twists and turns in the narrrative...the biggest strengths are the amazing characters, and of course, the first person perspective of Harry Dresden. Twelve Months places you right in Dresden's mind as he has to soldier on from the harrowing events of the previous novel in the series. It's a slow crawl for Dresden to again find hope and keep moving ahead, as plenty of people are entirely dependent upon his help. I'll look forward to recommending this to readers as the publication date draws nearer!

What can I saw except this one was totally worth the wait! I can hardly wait for publication so everyone can read it and enjoy it as much as I did. I would actually give it six stars if that was something Goodreads allowed!

Dresden is back, and things (as always) go in a direction that was not entirely expected - but it's so much fun to be along for the ride. No spoilers, but I am almost 100% certain that faithful fans of the series will not be disappointed!

I already can't wait for the next installment!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

My thanks to NetGalley and Ace, who gave me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Twelve Months picks up a little after where Battle Ground left off, focusing largely on Harry's healing process after the devastating battle. Harry spends much of the book grappling with his grief and shame for his responses to his grief, while also building new important relationships: a new apprentice and a fiancé. Old relationships are not forgotten, as Harry continues to look for a way to save his brother, his brother's mate and unborn child, and working on his relationship with his own child.

A very emotional and character heavy book, almost as monumental as Changes in terms of setting up what is clearly going to be the next phase of Harry's life, though with a less action packed plot. Harry's many reflections throughout cement for both the reader and Harry himself just how far Harry's come as a wizard throughout the series.

TWELVE MONTHS is the eagerly anticipated sequel to BATTLE GROUND and I admit I have been chomping at the bit to get my hands on a copy. Harry Dresden has been my comfort food for almost twenty years (since Dead Beat in 2005). He's gone through a lot of trauma since CHANGES and seeing a book dedicated to him finally getting a chance to process it all is a big deal. So, how is it? I'm going to say the book is fantastic and this is probably the best book since Changes. I love the deal with Lara Raith, the rebuilding of Chicago, handling Thomas' "condition", and so many other storylines that get explored in depth.

This is the first Harry book I think has successfully restored a thing that has been lacking for awhile and that is hope. So many of the previous books have been just piling more trauma on Harry and not giving him time to grieve. I was never a big fan of Harry/Murphy but I'm glad he was allowed to also grieve and deal with it. I still support Molly/Harry but I also love what Lara and Harry is shaping up to as well. It's surprisingly believable. The book is more set up for the coming apocalypse but I can't to see Harry deal with a new enemy and a very old one.

Jim Butcher does it again, knocking it out of the ballpark. With the love of his life gone, can he go on? Its Harry, of course he can! Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to review this book!

It has been five years since 2020 brought us the double whammy of “Peace Talks” and “Battle Ground,” but for Dresden, it has been mere moments. For the twelve months following unimaginable loss, the city and all the familiar characters must grieve, rebuild, and cope with the ramifications of the Battle for Chicago.

Side note: If you’re fuzzy on the details, it would be worthwhile to at least re-read a synopsis of “Battle Ground” before starting.

As expected, this is not an easy book to read, but it the themes of grief and renewal are a necessary transition to whatever comes next.

When I finished Battle Ground, I was pretty mad at the direction the story was taking, and I didn't know how friendly I was going to feel toward the series going forward. But I had to see. And I'm glad I did. It's not as much whiz-bang action as a lot of the books. Harry is grieving and working hard to heal and take care of himself (while taking care of a million other people). So there's a lot of therapy language and self-care. There were still some good action scenes sprinkled into the slower first half or so, my favorites with Michael Carpenter's son Daniel.
In the midst of his healing journey, Harry's also navigating his arranged engagement, which was a little eye-rolly, but actually mostly O.K. Lara is a good ally, and I felt better about things than I expected to. I'm not shipping them or anything, though, and I still hope they get out of this.
There were some great new characters introduced, along with beloved ones who have been around for a while.
Butcher's dedication at the beginning thanks the people who helped him through "a very bad year." It made me wonder how much of his own experience he poured into Harry in this book, who was working through a lot. Hopefully, he's doing as well as Harry is by the end.
The last handful of chapters felt more like the Dresden Files I know and love, with some very satisfying magical ownage of the baddies. This is clearly not the end, and I hope the next book is right around the corner.

Another great Jim Buitcher book inthe Dresden Files! Harry Dresden suffering from PTSD in the wake of the Battle of Chicago is an important emotional next step for the wizard as he tries to help the city rebuild.

This was really good. It was worth the wait. Harry is really struggling. He's grieving. He's got to save his brother, prevent war, be engaged, deal with rogue magic practitioners, the council, his boss, his friends, and Chicago being rebuilt. The pacing gave Harry time to grieve, which I am glad of, and kept things moving with all the obligations he has and people he cares for who still need him and want him around. Thanks, Jim Butcher, this was a very satisfying read.

Twelve Months by Jim Butcher might have less generically been named A Shellacking in Chi-Town or better The Gruesome Ghouls. Butcher gets away with it because he has the formula down pat and he gives the fans, including me, what they want. Ghouls are running rampant in the aftermath of the Beirut-like destruction of Chicago and what’s a wizard supposed to do? Wait for it…use his transformed domicile to claw back some civilization? You know the answer. But how? You’ll have to read this cauldron boiler to find out. Fallen comrades are mourned, loved ones appreciated, some main plot lines are shifted but without quite the climactic heights of Battle Ground. What seems to be in the works is a trilogy that will end the series. (Ouch!) Well, don’t dwell on that just buy your talisman to this latest exciting Dresden File installment and forget about real life for a while.

I started reading the Dresden Files a lifetime ago, and I really love that I'm still enjoying the books. This book starts right after book 17, and the hit Harry feels is clear. This books felt a bit like an emotional recovery from the last one, but ooof it ends with a bang. Solid book, and I really liked visiting some of my favourite characters. Such a great series, and remains not stale and enjoyable. Grab it when it's out!

Another great addition to the Dresden Files. I was delighted to find the series was not over yet. I love that the Winter Queen has allied with the White Court of vampires. There are so many powers working in the city. Even with all of the pain and loss Harry Dresden has been through, he is still the man for the job!

Twelve Months feels like a recalibration.

Stuff happens in this book but the real theme is Harry processing his grief over Karrin Murphy. It makes for a difficult read at the beginning, especially. The author does not hold back on the immense amount of pain that Harry is in. He knows that he "just needs time" but knowing that doesn't help when you hurt that much and nothing makes it easier. Well, I take that back a little. This book feels almost like a textbook on how to do self care during great emotional pain. Harry finds discipline in lifting weights, in meditating, in structure. He takes on an apprentice and the act of service of teaching becomes meaningful and healing to him. He also takes on the responsibility for caring for some of those who had their lives upended in the events of Battle Ground. Basically, he's going through the motions of all the things that he knows that he needs to do to heal until his heart returns to him.

Not that Harry is entirely healthy in his grief. Being him, he doesn't want to talk to anybody about how he's feeling except for one relationship that he knows isn't exactly right.

This book is different. Instead of constant big flashy fights, it shows the effort and tedium that working on yourself truly is. It shows that there's no short cut through pain.

Harry feels older and more mature here. Make no mistake, he is still an extremely powerful and dangerous wizard and some of the other powers that be are not comfortable with him or his actions. And Harry is done with bowing the head to those who think they can tell him what to do. At this point, the only person who probably can actually command him is Mab.

Harry has things that he's got to do during this twelve months. His brother Thomas is in stasis but that can't last forever and Thomas has offended several great powers. Harry is supposed to marry Lara Raith, the leader of the White Court of vampires, and that relationship needs to develop. Now that the mundane world knows that magic is real, there's a lot of fear and bigotry toward those that use magic, and there's also the danger that persecuted magic users will strike back. Plus, Harry is afraid to be around his daughter in case he puts her in danger.

This book feels like the author is resetting the stage and that he's really thought through the different players and how this great change would play out. It feels like he's resetting Harry too; there's a sea change happening here. I appreciate that the author plays out the time that it takes for things to change. I hope that people who are struggling themselves while reading this book will close it feeling that they too can come out the other side of their pain.

Spoilers for the previous entries in the series to follow. Read at your your own risk.

Twelve Months may not be the best entry in Jim Butcher's long-running urban fantasy series, but it's probably the best book he's written.

Certainly it's the most personal; Butcher has spoken quite candidly about his mental health struggles with depression and suicidal ideation, both of which our plucky hero suffers from in the wake of the Battle of Chicago and the death of his girlfriend. As such, this book represents a significant departure from previous books of the series, both tonally and in terms of pacing. Gone is the familiar monster-of-the-week formula; in its place is a raw, unflinching, honest meditation upon loss, grief, and healing.

The book opens upon Harry at the lowest he's ever been. The dust from the Battle of Chicago has settled, leaving our hero alone in the dark with his grief over the death of the person he loves most. Butcher pulls no punches in his description of the overwhelming despair and anguish which are Harry's constant companions throughout the early chapters of this book, and the reader feels Harry's loss as keenly as he does. But there's no bereavement leave from the position of Chicago's resident wizard and self-appointed protector, and Harry soon finds himself drawn once more into the political machinations of the city's supernatural underworld as he contends with the challenges of training a new apprentice, navigating his arranged engagement to a powerful vampire, rescuing his brother, and healing from his grief.

None of these are hurdles Harry can overcome alone, and the last one least of all. Over the course of the series' eighteen novels and dozens of short stories, Harry Dresden has amassed a huge cast of friends and allies. Slowly, often painfully, and always messily, that complexly interwoven web of relationships pulls Harry from his depression, reminding him that even at his lowest he is loved, that things can and will get better, so long as he endures.

Healing, Butcher tells us, is not something done alone--that no matter the depths of our despair, we need merely reach out to find the hands of those we love reaching back, pulling us towards the light. It's a truth profound in its simplicity, and one anyone who's ever struggled with depression and grief should hear.

If you or someone you love is struggling with thoughts of self-harm or suicide, please call 988 for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, available 24/7.

Jim Butcher has done it yet again. The newest Harry Dresden book, Twelve Months, is a great read! We follow the course of wizard Harry and his home city of Chicago's first year of recovery from the Battle of Chicago. As Harry comes to terms with his personal loss, he also, as ever, attempts to help and protect others who are facing the challenges of life in the battered city. There are bad guys trying to hurt the folks who have been displaced and struggling with safety, energy, and food reliability. Harry uses his special abilities to repel dark forces and move forward. Butcher introduces characters new to the series, and Harry reconnects with several characters we know and love. Harry does a lot of introspection without getting bogged down, and hope continues to build throughout the year. Again- enjoyable read. Thank you, Jim Butcher, NetGalley, and Ace Books for providing this ARC- I feel honored to have the opportunity to have this preview of what is sure to become a reader favorite.

Twelve Months by Jim Butcher, a really good read that I have waited for a long time. It does a good job of wrapping up a few loose ends and setting up the next stage of the books.

As a long time Dresden Files fan, I found this book both boring and overly moralistic. Dresden has always had a core of heroism, but this book feels the need to hammer it over your head practically every chapter. The more other characters (and Dresden himself) say he's a good guy, the less I believe them.

Tensions in the story seem to exist only as plot conveniences--his struggles with the Winter mantle, Daddy Raith's machinations, Drakul and the Black Court, etc. This book is far too interested in both maintaining (or returning?) to the status quo whilst simultaneously insisting it is moving forward.

Harry's previous struggles with fatherhood have at least felt earned, but his every interaction with Maggie now seems contrived and stale. Neither character can be allowed to progress or change in their feelings, even over an entire year (which, for a child, is an incredibly long time).

I read this book hoping it would reignite my interest in the series, but I can now say I will not be reading the next book. Whenever it may appear.

Thank you to Netgalley and Ace for an ARC.
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What can I say? Dresden is probably my favorite series of all time--the perfect blend of urban fantasy, amazing worldbuilding, memorable characters and humor.

In the aftermath of Battle Ground, Harry Dresden is just as broken as his beloved city of Chicago. He's suffered unbelievable losses but despite the fatigue and pain, he is still standing and refuses to forget his city and those closest to him in their time of need.

Twelve Months is a slow burn but its pacing is meaningful for the narrative and Dresden's character growth.

I loved every word and am hopeful for the next book.