Release day

For the first time ever, I’ve started reading a new book on the day it’s released.

For all the nonsense 2020 has thrown at us, it’s not all bad. For one, it’s the year that we got not one, but TWO new Dresden Files novels from Jim Butcher.

Last weekend I finished the Witcher novel, Sword of Destiny, by Andrzej Sapkowski. Not in the mood for another Witcher novel right away (though I do very much want to get ahead in the story before season 2 of the Netflix adaptation starts so I’ll know what the heck is going on this time round), I ventured to Amazon to buy the new Dresden novel for Kindle that came out in July.

It’s been a while since the last Dresden Files, Skin Game, was published in 2015, and I’ve been desperate for a fix, so much so that I’ve re-read all 15 existing novels and two short story collections over the past year. So it was a pleasant surprise to see not one, but two new novels listed on Amazon.

I exercised restraint, and only bought the one. I finished it way too quickly, though, and after a brief attempt to exercise delayed gratification I found my browser open to Jim Butcher’s Amazon page again on Sunday.

Only to find that the next one, Battle Ground, has not actually been released yet!

Peace Talks ends on a massive cliffhanger…the entire novel, though a riveting read in its own right, is really just the setup for Battle Ground…so I did what any reasonable person would do: I pre-ordered and refused to start another book in the meantime.

This morning, I suspect I was one of the first people (who’ve actually bought the book; the people who got advance copies don’t count) to start reading Harry’s newest adventure – less than an hour after the email telling me the book is now available, I’d downloaded it and gobbled up chapter one during my coffee break. I’m quite proud of myself that I put it back down to get back to work – at the end of the first chapter the Apocalypse is about to start, and a kraken is trying to eat Harry’s face.

I’ve never worried much about being the first to experience anything, but I have to admit there’s a certain thrill to getting a new novel on release day. I mean, the Dresden Files Wikipedia page hasn’t even been updated to add Battle Ground yet. That’s how new it is. And it’s nice knowing I’m able to support an author whose work has given me (and the wife, for that matter) days of enjoyment already.

It would have been nicer if it was the physical book, but I’m not complaining. I’ll get the paperback editions to match the ones already lining their own dedicated shelf in my bookcase once they come out. For now, I’ll use my Kindle to find out how Harry gets out of this one…