This one was a step back, for me. There’s some more world building but again Murphy is such a good and likeable character and she again gets done dirty. This is also awkwardly paced, with a huge fight taking place an hour and a half before the conclusion and everything else, even a final conflict, feeling perfunctory. The development of Thomas also is double-edged. It does explain some earlier encounters with him, but it also isn’t very convincing. It’s a bit odd it goes from the cliffhanger in the previous one, with the coin, to an odd case. Sure, it does sprinkle in some foreshadowing with it, but it just seems odd that it elides most of that. I guess they really wanted to develop the side characters? That is the most enjoyable aspect to this instalment, but then the mediocre plot and hook don’t do that aspect any favours.

Also, it’s weird how this is going into consent issues now. Starting with the sex scene last book, now sex worker vampires without sex positivity, and vampires that transgress them completely. Vamps have always been about taking away agency, but this feels, well, man-handled, I guess. Dresden seems almost sociopathic in what actually upsets him with women. Sometimes he blows up when someone skins a knee, other times, like with people literally made slaves, he’s like well it’s no good, but oh well!