Turn Coat (The Dresden Files, Book 11) [Hardcover]

Jim Butcher (Author)

Book Description

Release date: April 7, 2009

The new novel in the hit New York Times bestselling Dresden Files series.

The Warden Morgan has been accused of treason against the Wizards of the White Council—and there’s only one, final punishment for that crime. He’s on the run, wants his name cleared, and needs someone with a knack for backing the underdog. Someone like Harry Dresden...

Now, Harry must uncover a traitor within the Council, keep a less-than-agreeable Morgan under wraps, and avoid coming under scrutiny himself. And a single mistake may cost someone his head—someone like Harry

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The search for a traitor in the highest circles of power forms the main plot thread of Butcher's 11th hard-boiled fantasy novel featuring Chicago's wizard detective Harry Dresden (last seen in 2008's Small Favor). Harry, a warden of the magic-governing White Council, finds himself in an unusual position when Morgan, his fellow warden and frequent antagonist, asks for his help. One of the White Council's leaders has been murdered, and Morgan was found at the scene of the crime holding the murder weapon. If he has been framed, then another senior wizard is behind the killing and may be trying to destroy the council entirely. Aided by werewolf and vampire allies, Dresden investigates with his trademark sardonic noir flair. Despite the sprawling plot, both fans and newcomers will get into the fast-paced action. (Apr.)
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From School Library Journal

When fans of the immensely popular Dresden Files series last left the urban wizard in Small Favor, he was dealing with the aftermath of an adventure that might have left his best friend's life and family in danger. But Harry is back in fine form in his 11th outing, which begins with another, extremely unexpected White Council Warden begging for sanctuary at Harry's place and ends with several frightening revelations. Once again, Butcher's urban fantasy features excellent, irreverent humor, the return of favorite characters, and new challenges from unexpected foes. Harry's cop friend, the tiny but fierce Murphy, sticks by his side here, as do the werewolves Harry befriended in 2001's Fool Moon. Longtime readers will not be disappointed. Recommended for public libraries collecting the series; this is also a great book to plunge newbies into the dark, magical side of Chicago.—Stacey Rottiers, Warren Civic Ctr. Lib., MI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: Roc Hardcover; 1 edition (April 7, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451462564
• ISBN-13: 978-0451462565
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (212 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #160,010 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jim Butcher read his first fantasy novel when he was seven years old--
the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. By the time he turned eight,
he'd added the rest of the Narnia books, the Prydain Chronicles, every
book about Star Wars he could find, a great many Star Trek novels and
the Lord of the Rings to his count.

So he was pretty much doomed from the start.

Love of fantasy, his personal gateway drug, drew him toward a fairly
eclectic spread of interests: horseback riding (including trick riding,
stunt riding, drill riding, and competitive stunt racing), archery,
martial arts, costuming, music and theater. He played a lot of role-
playing games, a lot of fantasy-based tactical computer games, and
eventually got into live-action roleplay where players beat each other
up with boffer weapons.

So, really, he can fly his nerd flag with pretty much anyone, and
frequently does.

He took up writing to be able to produce fantasy novels with swords and
horses in them, and determinedly wrote terrible fantasy books until,
just to prove a point to his writing teacher, he decided to take every
piece of her advice; fill out outlines and worksheets, and design
stories and characters just the way she'd been telling him to do for
about three years. He was certain that once she saw what hideous art it
produced, she would be proven wrong and repent the error of her ways.
The result was the Dresden Files, which sure showed *her*.

She has not yet admitted her mistake and recanted her philosophy on
writing.

Jim has performed in dramas, musicals, and vocal groups in front of
live audiences of thousands and on TV. He has performed exhibition
riding in multiple arenas, and fallen from running horses a truly
ridiculous number of times. He was once cursed by an Amazon witch
doctor in rural Brazil, has apparently begun writing about himself in
the third person, and is hardly ever sick at sea.

He also writes books occasionally.

Jim stands accused of writing the Dresden Files and the Codex Alera.
He's plead insanity, but the jury is still out on that one. He lives in
Missouri with his wife, romantic suspense and paranormal romance writer
Shannon K. Butcher (who is really pretty and way out of his league),
his son, and a ferocious guard dog.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#87 Overall (See top 100 authors)

#8 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

#11 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

#12 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy

#85 in Books

#97 in Books > Literature & Fiction

#8 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

#11 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

#12 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy

#85 in Books

#97 in Books > Literature & Fiction

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

111 of 113 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The end of the beginning April 11, 2009

By Timothy Fitzgerald

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Over the course of the last few books, the Dresden Files has been steadily upping the ante for our pal Harry Dresden. He has become a Warden, picked up an Apprentice, triumphed over Hellfire, captured the attention and respect of an Archangel and shown significant signs of growth as a Wizard.

Harry has grown so much that by Turn Coat, the series has really come full circle in many ways. In Storm Front, Harry was the suspected Warlock who had to prove himself to the Wardens, specifically Morgan. It was Morgan who had to pull Harry's butt out of the fire. Now, ten books later and at roughly the halfway point in the Dresden Files (according to info at his site), it is Morgan who is the suspected Warlock/traitor to the White Council, and it is Harry he comes to to pull his butt out of the fire.

Morgan shows up on Harry's door, looking like death warmed over and barely able to speak, but what he does say is like a bombshell dropping: he is a hunted man, accused of murdering a member of the Senior Council.

So begins the best Dresden Files book yet. Turn Coat is everything I expected, and more, it is everything I hoped for. It has been the worst kept secret of the series that a traitor was lurking in the highest echelon of the White Council, and the unveiling of that traitor is very well done. The highest compliment I can pay to Butcher is that he genuinely kept me guessing until he wanted us to know. The ultimate reveal is handled with complexity and a laudable maturity of authorship.

Many of the usual faces return for Turn Coat. Molly, Mouse, Thomas, Murphy, Morgan, Ebenezar, Luccio, the Alphas and Toot-Toot!! all have feature supporting roles, (though Ramirez is surprisingly absent since the book is so much about the Council) and of course, they are all as excellent as ever.

Other characters we have already met, but know little about, such as The Gatekeeper and Injun Joe, are explored in more detail. I do not know about anyone else, but this book is worth it for Listens-to-Wind alone. He is just an amazing Wizard, and I look forward to seeing him more in later books. Add in some quality Gatekeeper conversations and a real look at what just some of the Senior Council can do in action, and you really have as much Wizard action as ever before. And they are really only a very small fraction of the goodness that is Turn Coat!

Ultimately what I am most impressed by is how much Butcher is willing to change the "status quo". There are some major shakeups in Turn Coat, and somewhat of a change in direction for the series. As Bob the Skull says, Harry has really started playing in the Big Leagues. His power and abilities are increasing, but so are the threats he has to face, as the world around him is getting nastier and more perilous every day.

I compared Grave Peril to the second season of Buffy once, similar in how both characters really grew up all at once. I would compare Turn Coat to the fourth season of Angel: a movement away from the more singular storytelling and the beginning of piecing together the larger tapestry. Both characters somewhat outgrow their PI status, still utilizing the talents but focused more directly on the larger scale. Both face enormous powers behind the scenes as they are caught up in the whirlwind, losing friends and allies along the way, but they shall Not Fade Away.

This one has it all: good philosophical debate, fascinating new insight into some characters we thought we knew, moral and ethical quandaries that exceed mere "black and white" bordering into grey, killer action, quality one-liners and a deepening sense of maturity to the series as a whole.

418 pages has never felt so short.

5 out of 5 stars

79 of 85 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Turn coat, turning point April 7, 2009

By E. A Solinas HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

Morgan has always been a major thorn in Harry Dresden's side. So of course, he appears on Harry's doorstep, half dead and convicted of murder.

But that's only one of the problems facing Jim Butchers wizard PI in the eleventh Dresden Files Book,. The aptly named "Turn Coat is half whodunnit and half magical thriller, with plenty of explosive magic, hard-nosed wizards, deadly conspiracy and plenty of grotesque monsters and vampires. What's more, Butcher pulls some brilliant plot twists out of his hat, including some that are sure to wrench the heart.

An injured Morgan turns up at Harry's door, hunted by Wardens and convicted of murdering Aleron LaFortier for the Red Court. Even worse, it's an airtight case against him.

But Harry can't bring himself to believe that Morgan could ever do something treacherous (even if Morgan is a big bottom-pain). His investigations take him on an unpleasant tightrope to vampire hangouts and the Council HQ, where he learns that LaFortier's death could -- if left unpunished -- lead to a very messy civil war between the weakened wizard factions. In other words, the Black Council is making a move.

And Harry has problems close to him as well -- a price on Morgan's head, the Binder's ectoplasmic hordes, and a chilling immortal monster of Native American legend called a naagloshii (skinwalker). When the naagloshii kidnaps Thomas and trashes the Raith mansion, Harry must find a way not only of saving his brother and Morgan from certain death -- but unveiling the traitor within the Council as well. Hard to do when everyone is very, very mad at you...

"Turn Coat" is definitely a turning point in the Dresden Files series, where the Black Council becomes a widely-known -- though not widely-acknowledged -- reality, and Butcher is clearly setting up a massive conflict. Relationships are shattered, alliances are strained, personalities are changed, a traitor is revealed and the White Council is more openly threatened by the Black Council. A few people even die.

And Butcher does a pretty brilliant job meshing together fantasy, political thrillers and Agatha Christie-style murder mystery. He fills the story with sharp dark-edged noir prose, fun dialogue ("Mission accomplished, my lord of pizza!"), and some literally explosive action scenes (including a pitched battle on a rainy magical island). But despite the dark, grim cast of the plot, Butcher doesn't forget to add some humor to the mix. Where else can you find a spell that uses Silly String?

What's more, he fleshes out the rather mysterious Council, and shows the motivations and sacrifices that it has been built on, as well as its reasons for being so strict and reclusive. The one problem is that the murderer is a bit obvious, and I expected someone a bit more... important.

Harry proves himself to be the right kind of guy simply by wanting to prove Morgan innocent, and by forging ahead with some really risky magic that even the Gatekeeper blanches at. But his quest for justice takes away some people that he cares about as well, leaving some terrible long-term repercussions for his brother Thomas. And Butcher takes great care to show that while Morgan is annoying and self-righteous, he's also strong and honorable. And once he was more like Harry.

"Turn Coat" also fleshes out the Council considerably, showing them more as real people -- the Merlin eats sandwiches, Mai is revoltingly rigid, and there are even bureaucromancers. And "Injun Joe" shows the incredible range of his power, as well as the sadness of his past. Butcher needs to show a bit more of this awesome old wizard, because he rules.

"Turn Coat" is a brilliant turning point for the Dresden Files series, as well as a painful series of lessons for Jim Butcher's wizard anti-hero. And the battle is hardly over yet.

24 of 30 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Best in the Series! April 7, 2009

By KdVeis

Format:Hardcover

I have just finished reading the book, I spent most of the day devouring it. As a big fan of the series and Jim Butcher I can say without a doubt I was impressed and this book finally answers nagging questions fans of the series will have. In addition it sets up the next book with a great conflict and more intrigue. I would recommend though that those just getting started with the Dresden Files not make this their first book. So much in this book is dependent on previous books. Once again if you are a fan of great writing I recommend this novel.