Battle Ground

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Synopsis

Ethniu, the Last Titan, has declared war against the city of Chicago and all of its inhabitants and she doesn't intend to stop there. She's threatened to subjugate all of humanity on Earth and obliterate everyone who gets in her way, and she's brought a formidable army of Fomor with her to carry out her objective. In the past, Harry has taken on many a foe more powerful than himself, but this is one battle he cannot fight alone. Harry, along with both his allies and his frenemies, all of whom have a stake in Chicago continuing to exist, are now the only things standing between Ethniu and her prey. Harry and company have little time to prepare for the coming onslaught, but they are determined to put up a good fight and give Harry the best chance they can muster to put his plan to defeat Ethniu into action. Even still, it will be a long, dark night fraught with an epic battle, which everyone may not survive, and for those who do, their lives will be forever changed, none more so than Harry's.

Review

Battle Ground is the seventeenth full-length novel in Jim Butcher's Dresden Files series. Typically each book in the series is a self-contained story, but in this case, the previous book, Peace Talks, combines with Battle Ground to create that single story. Therefore, Battle Ground picks up exactly where Peace Talks left off with Harry, Karrin, Lara, and her bodyguard returning from Demonreach island where Harry left his brother, Thomas, in "cold-storage" until a cure can be found to help him. Along the way, they must fight off a Kraken in Lake Michigan, before they are successfully able to return to Chicago. Once they've made it back, they have little time to prepare for the coming battle against Ethniu, the Last Titan, who has threatened to level the city and all of its inhabitants, and her Fomor army. Harry has a plan to use the Spear of Destiny that he nabbed from the vault heist in Skin Game to bind Ethniu and trap her on Demonreach, but getting close enough to do the job is not going to be easy. Literally everyone, friend and foe alike, who has a stake in Chicago comes to Harry's aid and to fight for their city. It's a long, dark night and an epic battle with many lost along the way, and even if Harry can mange to succeed in his mission, which is no small task, nothing will ever be quite the same again for him or those who call Chicago home.

Throughout the series, Harry has been growing and changing. He's still a young wizard in relative terms, so he isn't as powerful yet as someone like his grandfather, Ebenezer. But he is still a very formidable wizard in his own right. He also has the mantle of the Winter Knight now, as well as holding the proverbial keys to the island of Demonreach, both of which give him even more power. Because of the magical energies permeating the air throughout the battle for Chicago, from which Harry is able to draw, we get to see him unleash some pretty impressive magic himself. He also gets to draw on the Winter mantle to muster a small army of his own. It isn't without a cost, though, as his psyche is linked to each of his "soldiers," so when one dies, he can feel it in his soul. In order to save Chicago and the world at large, Harry must battle his own grief over each loss, but none more so than that of someone close to him. Yet, somehow he continues to put one foot in front of the other and keep fighting. Not being much of a respecter of authority figures, Harry has always kind of marched to the beat of his own drum, doing what he has to in order to win, no matter what challenge lies before him. Despite his heroic deeds, though, he's still an outsider when it comes to the White Council who expect complete adherence to their rules and regulations, and he faces an uncertain future with them. Also in spite of sometimes allying himself with people who are considered the "bad guys," he's not one of them either. I admire that he's been able to keep the worst impulses of the mantle of the Winter Knight in check. While he may sometimes color outside the lines for the greater good, he hasn't gone full evil and I know he never would. Harry continues to be one of the best literary characters I've read, and I can't wait to see what he'll do next.

Harry may be powerful, but he's never gone it alone. This has been true for all the Dresden books, but especially for this one, since he's up against a freaking Titan. I'd say pretty much every character who has ever played any kind of significant role in the series turns up to fight for Chicago. As always Karrin Murphy, Harry girlfriend and pretty much right hand, is a bad-ass. I can't be specific about what she does in this book without giving away a major spoiler, but suffice it to say I was totally cheering for her. Waldo Butters, the newest Knight of the Sword, put in an impressive performance, too, that gave me chills in a good way. The same is true of little Toot-Toot and his ‘Za Lord's Army. I'm always excited and impressed when the little guys truly make a difference. Molly appears in all her glory as the Winter Lady, leading the armies of the Winter Court. Mab, the Queen of Air and Darkness, shows her mettle as well, acting as bait and putting her power up against the Titan. I'll simply say that some things have changed for John Marcone, but he brings all his forces to bear in the battle as well. It may be for his own selfish reasons, but there's no way the Baron of Chicago would let his city be overrun by anyone else without fighting back. Like I mentioned, nearly everyone was there battling in some capacity, so these were just a few of the more memorable performances.

Given that Peace Talks basically ended on a cliffhanger with Ethniu declaring war on Chicago, I'd been very eager to read Battle Ground, and it absolutely did not disappoint. All but the last couple of chapters, take place in the course of just one night. The story primarily encompasses a single, classic, epic fantasy battle that brings to mind several others from literature, movies, and video games. In the beginning, it reminds me of the Battle of Helm's Deep from The Two Towers, with Harry, his friends, and frenemies, very much outnumbered and outgunned. There are smaller--but still challenging--skirmishes along the way before they reach the big boss battle at the end. It all made for an edge-of-your-seat thrill ride from beginning to end. I love how Harry can't win by himself, but only with the help of everyone else. The Sidhe, the Little Folk, the Knights of the Sword, the wizards of the White Council, Odin and his Einherjar, Marcone and his gangsters, the vampires, werewolves, and humans, alongside several others, would make for strange bedfellows in any other circumstances within this series, but together, they're not going to let their city go down and put up one hell of a fight. There are losses along the way, mostly of some lesser characters who've been more in the background, some for just a few books and others from early on in the series. But I was shocked and saddened by Jim Butcher killing off one of my all-time favorite Dresden characters, someone who's played a pivotal role in the series. I was rolling along, loving the story, and then boom!, it just hit me like a freight train. Things did get back on track for me after that, but the next story just won't be quite the same without this person. I have a small amount of hope that maybe a magical loophole might be found to bring them back later, but I'm not counting on it. In spite of that, Battle Ground was still an amazing story that took me on an emotional roller-coaster ride that ranged from tears to joyful euphoria and everything in between. I couldn't have asked for a better read. I know it's still early in the year, but it's definitely my favorite book of 2026 so far.

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Jim Butcher