Jim Butcher

The Dresden Files — (2000-2011) Publisher: Harry Dresden — Wizard. Lost items found. Paranormal investigations. Consulting. Advice. Reasonable rates. No Love Potions, Endless Purses, Parties, or Other Entertainment.  Harry Dresden is the best at what he does. Well, technically, he's the only at what he does. So when the Chicago P.D. has a case that transcends mortal creativity or capability, they come to him for answers. For the "everyday" world is actually full of strange and magical things — and most of them don't play too well with humans. That's where Harry comes in. Takes a wizard to catch a — well, whatever. There's just one problem. Business, to put it mildly, stinks. So when the police bring him in to consult on a grisly double murder committed with black magic, Harry's seeing dollar signs. But where there's magic, there's a black mage behind it. And now that mage knows Harry's name. And that's when things start to get... interesting. Magic. It can get a guy killed.

Available for download at Audible.com

Related novels:

Backup — (2008) Publisher: Let's get something clear right up front. I'm not Harry Dresden. Harry's a wizard. A genuine, honest-to-goodness wizard. He's Gandalf on crack and an IV of Red Bull, with a big leather coat and a .44 revolver in his pocket. He'll spit in the eye of gods and demons alike if he thinks it needs to be done, and to hell with the consequences — and yet somehow my little brother manages to remain a decent human being. I'll be damned if I know how. But then, I'll be damned regardless. My name is Thomas Raith, and I'm a monster. So begins "Backup," a twelve thousand word novelette set in Jim Butcher's ultra-popular Dresden Files series. This time Harry's in trouble he knows nothing about, and it's up to his big brother Thomas to track him down and solve those little life-threatening difficulties without his little brother even noticing.

Side Jobs — (2010) Publisher: The first short story collection in the #1 New York Times bestselling series-including a brand-new Harry Dresden novella! Here, together for the first time, are the shorter works of #1 New York Times bestselling author Jim Butcher — a compendium of cases that Harry and his cadre of allies managed to close in record time. The tales range from the deadly serious to the absurdly hilarious. Also included is a new, never-before-published novella that takes place after the cliff-hanger ending of the new April 2010 hardcover, Changes. This is a must-have collection for every devoted Harry Dresden fan as well as a perfect introduction for readers ready to meet Chicago's only professional wizard.

Storm Front

It is hard to believe that Storm Front, the first book of the Dresden Files, came out more than a decade ago. Jim Butcher introduces his scrappy wizard-detective in this inaugural adventure. That was a more innocent time, and Harry was a more innocent character back then.

Harry is a working wizard in Chicago. He has an office with the word “Wizard” on the door and he advertizes in the yellow pages. (“No Children’s Parties; No Love Potions.”) Harry is the real deal, a powerful magical practitioner, but lately most of his income comes from the Chicago PD, particularly their Special Investigations or SI unit—think “X Files.” Early in Storm Front, his police contact Karrin Murphy requests his help at a shocking murder scene; a luxurious hotel love-nest sprayed with blood, a couple locked in the throes of passion with their hearts exploded out of their chests. Since this is Chicago, magic and organized crime intersect when the man of the couple is identified as a soldier of Gentleman Johnny Marcone, the city’s most powerful crime lord.

Harry must locate the murderer, a sorcerer powerful enough to control the murderous spell, and also find a missing husband who is dabbling in black magic. He confronts a powerful vampire madam, and John Marcone, each a dangerous entity, although in very different ways. He worries about the rising popularity of a new drug called Third Eye, which seems to give people paranormal powers. As if his life weren’t complicated enough, he has to dodge Morgan, a humorless wizard and Warden from the wizards’ White Council. Harry is under a Last Chance Agreement — as in, “mess up once more and we behead you” — imposed by the powerful council, and Morgan plans to do the honors. Morgan may be disappointed, though, since the sorcerer has already targeted Harry for death.

Butcher balances all of this. He gives us a few tantalizing tastes of Harry’s past, such as why he is under the order from the Council, and spends a fair amount of time explaining how magic works in this universe. In one chapter, Harry and his indentured air elemental Bob, who lives in a skull, mix potions. Harry’s potions are one of the best things of the earlier books, as he walks us through the magical ingredients; a base, an ingredient for each of the five senses, one for the spirit and one for the will.

Storm Front introduces us to characters we will grow to love. There is Murphy who, five feet nothing with curly blond hair, looks “like someone’s kid sister,” and who is a tough, practical and smart street cop with awards for marksmanship and aikido. There is the sexy, smart and dangerous Susan Rodriguez, reporter for the Chicago Arcane and Harry’s squeeze; Mac, the laconic tavern owner who may be more than he seems. There is Morgan, straight-laced, up-tight and Harry-hating. There is Bob, and a sprite named Toot-Toot who is fierce and loves pizza. In this first book we also begin to see the tightrope Harry walks between his mother’s shadowy magical heritage and his mundane father’s decency and strength.

For those who like noir, the book is plenty dark. Harry is a hard-boiled detective who can call fire out of the air, but bruises when he is hit and throws up when he has a concussion. He can mix an escape potion or a love potion to humorous and dangerous effect when the two get confused. Harry feels fear, like when he’s fighting a sorcerous scorpion the size of a golden retriever, but he masters his fear. No one pushes him around.

“No one pushes him around.” In some ways, this could be Harry’s motto. The character becomes bitter as the series progresses and moves away from the intriguing magic that is on display in Storm Front, but Harry’s stubbornness and will-power get our attention from the very first book. —Marion Deeds

Fool Moon

In Fool Moon, Harry Dresden’s second adventure, Jim Butcher gives us four flavors of werewolf — or five, if you want to be flexible.

Harry, Chicago’s only practicing wizard-detective, is called to the scene of a gory murder by his friend and client Karrin Murphy. Murphy, a Chicago police detective, is in charge of Special Investigations (SI), Chicago’s nod to the paranormal crime that fills the city. Chicago PD is unofficial on this investigation though; it is the jurisdiction of the FBI, and while Harry is investigating the scene the FBI shows up. Things immediately go bad. Murphy and Harry are evicted from the scene, but not before Harry picks up enough magical clues to identify this as a werewolf hit.

As they leave the scene, Murphy admits that this killing is not the first. There is a pattern to the killings, or has been until recently. When Harry begins to explore, the pieces of the puzzle don’t quite fit. There have been random murders on the full moon, and some murders that do not seem so random on nights when the moon is not completely full. Aided by Murphy and Susan Rodriguez, Harry’s girlfriend and Nightstalker-like reporter, Harry soon uncovers a connection to organized crime and John Marcone, the powerful mob boss we met in Storm Front. There is also, strangely, a connection to a millionaire who wants to create a wilderness preserve in the northwest.

As the book progresses, Harry must untangle the threads of the mystery. Is the killer a lycanthrope, a human who takes on the attributes of a wolf while staying in human form; a loup-garou, who, when the moon is full, transforms into a savage monster, driven only to kill; a werewolf, someone who can transform but maintains the pack mentality and loyalty of a true wolf; or a hexenwolf, a person with an enchanted talisman who assumes a wolf shape but is driven by a human mind and motives? Before the book is over, Harry meets each one of these. Then there is Tera, a mysterious woman with connections to both the loup-garou and the band of college-student wolves Harry discovers. The book is full of wolves, but Butcher manages to keep control of his story.

Murphy, meanwhile, is having some trouble trusting Harry when a magical doodle she gets from him is found at the scene of one of the murders. This felt a bit contrived; it is understandable that Murphy won’t always understand Harry’s motives, but this really seemed like a moment where two uninterrupted sentences from each of them would have resolved the issue. It is needed, though, to get Harry and another character into the police station at the same time for an action-packed fight scene. I also had a little trouble with the loup-garou. I thought Butcher needed to massage the laws of physics a little bit more for this monster.

The climax takes place at Marcone’s palatial estate. At times, I had trouble placing the action geographically in this sequence, but the final showdown between Harry and the villain is primal, visceral, Butcher at his best. In between fighting, mixing potions, detecting, casting spells, and back-talking law enforcement, Harry reveals a little bit more about the dark episode with Justin, the sorcerer who found him and exploited him after he was orphaned.

Fool Moon delivers on the promise made in Storm Front, of a different kind of fantasy story, a potent blend of action and magic, snarkiness and vulnerability. —Marion Deeds

Grave Peril

Someone is torturing the ghosts of Chicago, driving them mad and juicing up their power. Harry Dresden, wizard, is the best person to handle this, but even a wizard needs back-up sometimes. In Grave Peril, the third book of The Dresden Files, Jim Butcher introduces Michael Carpenter, a Knight of the Cross.

Michael wields a sword given to him by an angel. He has pledged his life to serving God, vanquishing evil and freeing the victims of evil. For Michael, life is black and white, and faith is all, which makes him an interesting companion for Harry.

The first ghost they face in the book is a woman who accidentally killed her own child. This sets a tone for Grave Peril, because it is in many ways a book about women.

As Harry struggles to identify the force behind the angry, souped-up ghosts he confronts various women from his past and present. Murphy is the five-feet-nothing Amazon, the cop whose commitment to the protection of the innocent makes her glow like a guardian angel to Harry’s wizardly Sight. Susan, Harry’s girlfriend, embodies sexuality, playfulness, love and vulnerability. Bianca, the Red Court vampire who is Harry’s enemy, represents sensuality, corruption and deceit. Charity Carpenter, Michael’s wife, is a mother of five with another on the way, fiercely protective of her family and no friend to Harry.

There is a woman from Harry’s past, a dangerous one. The Leanansidhe, or “Lea,” is a powerful faerie from the Nevernever, handmaiden to the Winter Queen, and Harry’s... godmother. There are no pumpkin coaches or rat-footmen for Harry. Lea wants to transform him into one of her hellhounds.

Rounding out the array are Lydia, a street waif with the gift of prophecy, who has seen her own death and wants to hire Harry to help her evade it, and Justine.

The story of the ghosts is powerful and Butcher chooses a different story structure, telling a key part of this story as a flashback. Harry nicknames the hidden force Nightmare, and finding the identity of the Nightmare is a challenge. It seems like one early phone call from Murphy could have cleared things up, but there is enough going on in the book that this was a thought I had later, not while I was reading.

The Nightmare almost pales in comparison to Lea. Beautiful, witty, cultured, amoral, compassionless and soulless, she is a real risk to Harry. The Fae are merciless tricksters and seducers; they will keep their word literally, often in the worst possible way. Harry has broken a vow to Lea in the past, and intends to do it again in this book. When his carelessness lets Michael’s sacred sword fall into Lea’s hands, he knows he can no longer play games.

The action heats up at a sinister party hosted by Bianca at the Red Court vampires’ mansion. The reader meets Justine, who is candy, literally, for supernaturally handsome Thomas Raith, a psychic vampire. At first, Justine just seems like a tasty morsel, a plaything; but from Justine we learn a lot about love and dependency. Susan agrees to a cruel bargain with Lea to save Harry’s life, and Butcher does a version of “love conquers all” that is not smarmy or sentimental, and well-foreshadowed by events in the earlier books. Admittedly, toward the end, Harry must behave stupidly for the plot to work, but the action was so suspenseful I forgive Butcher for that.

Events that happen in Grave Peril reverberate down through the series. Like the other Dresden Files books, there is action, strategy and lots of witty banter. At the end, though, the book is about the women in Harry’s life, from his shadowy mother forward. The wellspring of this story is family, loss and love. —Marion Deeds

Summer Knight

As Summer Knight opens, Harry Dresden’s true love, Susan, has left town, the Red Court Vampires have declared war on him and someone’s shooting at him. Oh, and it’s raining toads.

To top it off, Mab, the Faerie Queen of Winter, wants to hire him to investigate the murder of a mortal. The Faerie Queens are beautiful, powerful, alien and frightening, even to Harry:

My voice came out unsteady and more quiet than I would have liked. ‘Sort of like Tokyo, when Godzilla comes up on the beach.’

Mab tilted her head, watching me with that same smile. Maybe she didn’t get the reference. Or maybe she didn’t like being compared to a thirty-foot lizard. Or maybe she did like it. I mean, how should I know? I have enough trouble figuring out human women.

The realm of Faerie is closest to the mortal realm, and consists of two kingdoms, the Summer Court and the Winter Court. The Fae live for millennia and are not kind to mortals. Mab wants the death of the mortal artist Ronald Reuel investigated, because he was the Summer Knight, a human sworn to serve the Summer Queen, Titania. With his death, his power — his link to the Summer Court — has vanished. This causes a power imbalance. Harry soon discovers that in this case, the political is not personal, but global. A power shift to either side could cause a permanent ice age, or turn the earth into a desert. The most obvious suspect is Mab herself, or the vicious Winter Knight, Lloyd Slate, but if so, why would Mab have Harry investigate?

Harry thinks it can’t get worse, even when the White Council convenes to consider turning him over to the Red Court to end the vampire war. He is wrong. It does get worse, when he is forced to investigate Ronald’s murder with Summer’s emissary, the beautiful, traitorous wizard Elaine, Harry’s first love. Elaine conspired with Justin, the sorcerer who mentored Harry and then betrayed him. Harry killed Justin in self-defense. He thought Elaine died in that magical battle, but she didn’t. She fled to the Summer Court for sanctuary. Harry would be a fool to trust her, but he has no choice but to work with her.

The action in Summer Knight moves from a local park to a battle in the cloud cover above Chicago, with a believable magical brawl in the garden center of a Walmart. Butcher creates a vivid and creepy underground city and a deadly enchanted forest. The dialogue is as sharp and witty as ever. After the unrelieved darkness of Grave Peril, this book is somehow lighter, even though the stakes are high and the consequences are real. Despite the convincing action, this is a who-done-it, and Harry has to use his brain to save the day.

Harry has Murphy, his tough but vulnerable cop friend, and a group of werewolf college students on his side. A minor-key theme to the book is the story of Meryl, Lily and Fix, half-blood Fae who have been abandoned by the Faerie. Lily has gone missing and Meryl wants Harry to find her. Meryl and Fix show the kind of loyalty and valor that reminded me what Harry is fighting for.

With its sparkling wit, pizza-snarfing pixies, fantasy-gamer werewolves, plausible magic and powerful action scenes, Summer Knight is one of the better books in this strong series. —Marion Deeds

Death Masks

With Death Masks, the fifth Dresden Files novel, Jim Butcher returns to Chicago-noir. Harry Dresden, that city’s only advertising wizard, is simultaneously challenged to a duel by a duke of the vampiric Red Court and hired by the Vatican to find the missing Shroud of Turin.

The search for the Shroud leads to a headless, handless corpse that died of plagues, several plagues, carried by magically amplified germs. It also introduces Harry to the remaining two Knights of the Sword, Shiro and Sanya. Like Harry’s friend Michael Carpenter, they wield swords given to them by an angel, and they fight for justice and mercy.

On the duel front, Harry runs into his old girlfriend Susan, who has gone through some changes of her own. She warns Harry that the Red Court vampires do not want the duel to happen because it will end the war between the Red Court and the White Council of Wizards. They want the war to continue. Harry will have to watch his back as he chooses his second, prepares for the mano a mano fight, and searches for the Shroud.

That quest brings him into contact with deadly new adversaries, the Denarians. The Denarians are a group of fallen angels. They possess humans and give the possessed two natures; one human and one monstrous. They seduce and corrupt, and it is no accident that the token they use to possess a mortal is a silver coin.

Death Masks introduces some new characters, like Shiro and Sanya; the mercenary Kincaid; Ivy, the scariest seven-year-old girl alive; and Anna Valmont, a mundane art thief who gets in over her head. It also brings backs familiar faces like Michael Carpenter, John Marcone, and of course Harry’s cop pal Murphy. Butcher always uses interesting locations in his books. Here, he sets scenes on a yacht at the harbor, in the city sewers, a luxury hotel and at Wrigley Field.

The duel is fresh and suspenseful with the most interesting dueling weapon I’ve seen. As the story progresses, the reader learns a little more about Butcher’s system of magic, and Harry learns some things about himself. There is also a bondage-themed love scene between Harry and Susan that sizzles. Unfortunately, it’s not enough to overcome the differences between them. As Harry puts it, “Maybe some things just aren’t meant to go together. Things like oil and water. Toothpaste and orange juice. Me and Susan.”

The book ends with a dark twist, paving the way for a plot in a future book. While I didn’t enjoy Death Masks as much as Summer Knight, I liked what I learned, especially about the swords, and Anna Valmont was a pleasant surprise. This is a strong entry in the Dresden series. —Marion Deeds

Blood Rites

“The building was on fire and it wasn’t my fault,” says Harry in the opening line of Blood Rites. This has to be one of my favorite DRESDEN FILES books, and the very first line is quite possibly one of the most memorable in the series. Harry has been asked for a favor by his pseudo-friend and White Court Vampire, Thomas Raith: he is to investigate a possible death curse at an independent adult film studio. As with all Dresden stories, not everything is as it appears to be. Harry finds himself in multiple perilous situations, all of which are over his head. Jim Butcher masterfully weaves the reader through the chaotic mess that is Harry’s life, all culminating in a dramatic finale that deserves a standing ovation.

There are so many great moments in Blood Rites, from demon monkeys throwing flaming poo, battle meetings held in an IHOP, to the endless humorous banter between Thomas and Harry. The events that take place in Blood Rites have a lasting impact that still lingers six books later. Several wonderful characters are introduced, and many existing ones are fleshed out. You learn more about the White Court vampires, and Harry’s relationship to them. Mouse the Fu-Dog is introduced, and Kincaid the mercenary body guard becomes one of my favorite characters.

Blood Rites is what I call a keystone book in a series, and long-running series like THE DRESDEN FILES generally have a few of these. The events taking place are essential to the overall story arc that will end many books later. I like to be given the feeling of a “big picture,” and Blood Rites is one of the first DRESDEN FILES books that really move the overall story further along. It was after Blood Rites that I first realized that Jim Butcher had a plan for how he was going to end this series.

I cannot recommend Blood Rites highly enough, and I'm excited that Roc has now released it in hardcover and Penguin has produced it in audio. In the unabridged audio version, James Marsters is the voice of Harry Dresden. You may know James as Spike from the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I was somewhat skeptical of him portraying the haggard macho voice I had imagined Harry to have. To say I was pleasantly surprised would be an understatement.

It was so important for Penguin to cast this voice correctly. The Dreden Files are written in first person, so the only voice in the story is Harry's. Having a mediocre voice play the character would have been disaster. Luckily for us, they picked the right man: Marsters is brilliant and he has permanently portrayed Harry's voice in my head since the first sentence he spoke — he's perfect.

The middle books of the DRESDEN FILES certainly deserve this new attention, as they are some of the best books in the urban fantasy genre. —Justin Blazier

Blood Rites

Harry Dresden never knew his mother Margaret. He knows that she was a wizard, that she used the last name LaFey, and that before she married Harry’s father she hung out with some shady characters. In Blood Rites, he discovers something about Margaret that changes everything he believes about himself.

In the sixth Dresden Files novel, Jim Butcher shakes up Harry’s world. In addition to shocking new information about his mother, Harry has to deal with a revelation about Ebenezar, the White Council wizard who was his guardian. While he is absorbing those shocks to his life, Harry is waging a battle with the Black Court vampires and trying to protect a charming porno-movie director from a potent curse. Yes, I used “potent” intentionally there.

Blood Rites develops the third and strangest vampire court, the White Court. White Court vampires are incubi and succubae. Harry’s friend Thomas, a White Court vampire, and his two sisters figure prominently in the story.

The book is funny and harrowing. Even though people attached to the porno die, these sections have the most humor. When he is not body-guarding the actors, Harry assembles a rogue’s gallery to fight Marva, the eldest of the Black Court vampires. His group includes cop pal Karrin Murphy, the mercenary Kincaid, and Ebenezar. In this book, Harry also finds out a little bit more about Murphy and her family. Murphy’s mother shares a surprising bit of news; Murphy’s father was also a cop, and before they had a name for Special Investigations, they called paranormal cases “black cat” cases. Murphy’s dad was a black cat cop. This adds some mystery and risk to the character of Murphy, because her father killed himself. Mrs Murphy says she thinks he did it because he couldn’t face what he was learning about the world. Murphy has already been the victim of magic on more than one occasion; can she survive in Harry’s world?

It’s common for plotlines to converge in a Dresden book and Blood Rites is no exception. Harry uses intellect to solve the mystery of the porno death curse, and the battle against the vampires reads like an action-adventure movie. Before he is even recovered from injuries taken in this battle, Harry confronts the puppet-master behind it all. This final battle puts Thomas and Murphy in mortal danger.

From the opening sequence in a burning warehouse, to the snicker-inducing final line, Blood Rites never lets go. It has clenched-fist action, dramatic magic, intriguing mental puzzles, and a nail-biting battle of wills at the climax. Blood Rites is complex, suspenseful, funny and sets up issues that will play out across the rest of the series. —Marion Deeds

Dead Beat

Mavra, Queen of the Black Vampires, is after “The Word of Kemmler,” the ultimate how-to on being an all-powerful necromancer. Mavra wants it, and is blackmailing Harry into getting it for her. Harry must find this book, while dodging a whole collection of black wizards who are also seeking the tome.

Jim Butcher’s Dead Beat is another one of the “middle” Dresden books that I love so much. Just about the time when most series start getting stale, The Dresden Files gets better.

Dead Beat continues the tradition of one-upping the action from the previous novel. Harry seriously gets to unload on the bad guys, and the battles take place around some of the most iconic Chicago landmarks. While I was at a Jim Butcher book signing, someone asked Jim which of the books he would like to see turned into a motion picture. His answer was Dead Beat. The story is still early enough in the Dresden universe to begin a movie with, and the effects and action would be amazing.

I can’t really tell you any more without spoiling the book, and I’ve said about all I can say about how wonderful this series is in my previous reviews. There is never a dull moment, and the books just keep getting better as Butcher’s craft gets tighter and tighter.

Dead Beat is available in unabridged audio from Penguin Audio. James Marsters is the voice of Harry Dresden. James is best known as Spike from the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and he is brilliant in Dead Beat, as he is in all the audio Dresden Files I have listened to. When I hear Harry in my head while reading, I now hear James Marsters. Penguin has used Marsters in every Dresden audiobook to date, and if they are wise it will remain that way. —Justin Blazier

Small Favor

How does a pragmatic Chicago wizard take on one of the most powerful Fallen angels? It is this question which drives the action-packed Small Favor, the continuing adventures of Harry Dresden, modern wizard, and his host of friends as they take on the evil forces of Nicodemus and his wife Tessa. Forced by Queen Mab to fulfill one of the favors he owes her, Dresden comes up against the very creatures that have nearly killed him before, namely, the Fallen. Meantime, Titania, Queen of Summer, has ordered a hit on Harry, and her agents keep showing up at the most inopportune times.

Harry is a sardonic character, usually shooting his mouth off when he is in danger. But it seems to work for him as he escapes one trap after another. Although the marketing people have called The Dresden Files a fantasy/mystery blend this particular novel is less mystery and more of a spy novel. Harry is a rough amalgam of James Bond and Jason Bourne, with a bit of Jack Ryan thrown in. He is loyal to his friends, deadly to his enemies, and for one reason or another, always in trouble with someone.

Small Favor is enjoyable. There are few plot twists, and even though this is the eleventh novel of the Dresden Files, as someone who had never read any Jim Butcher before, it was relatively easy for me to pick up. The story moves from action to action, with only a few pauses for introspection, rest, and even a little romance. Perhaps the most difficult part of reading a series so well-established was the references to past occurrences, and the introduction of characters whose background had been established in previous books. However, to recreate the backgrounds of some of the characters (Harry’s brother Thomas and his situation is still something of a mystery to me) would have unnecessarily slowed down the story. So as reader, I just picked up what I could, and enjoyed the story’s action otherwise.

Butcher’s writing is straightforward. He doesn’t delve into linguistic flourishes, or spend overmuch time on the setting. He doesn’t have to, as it is relatively easy for a reader to imagine a modern city like Chicago, whether or not we have actually been there. This is a novel that is read for entertainment purposes, something best read on the plane, the train, or a rainy afternoon.

Of particular interest to me, as a religious person, was Butcher’s integration of the Catholic faith into the story. Two of his characters are Knights of the Cross, who carry swords designed to fight evil, but whereas other writers of urban fantasy often use this as an opportunity to denigrate faith and elevate reason, Butcher instead gives faith a fair shake. Harry respects the Knight of the Cross (one of them is a good friend) and although he doesn’t understand their beliefs, he respects them. This is rare in the paranormal/urban fantasy subgenre, where such characters either end up being evil, stupid, or an object of ridicule. Not in Small Favor, and my respect for Butcher as writer rose, especially when at a critical moment in which Harry finds himself wrestling with the issue of a good God allowing bad things to happen, Butcher doesn’t have his character simply write God off as a masochist. It’s nice to see faith having real power in a paranormal/urban fantasy novel.

I recommend this novel as one the best of the few paranormal/urban fantasy novels I have read. It’s right up there with Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere in creativity, even if its quality is a little lower. Butcher writes an entertaining tale, easily picked up and enjoyed. If you’re looking for an easy, sit-on-the-couch-and-eat-chips book for a Sunday afternoon, Jim Butcher's Small Favor is a good way to go. —John Ottinger
FanLit thanks John Ottinger III from Grasping for the Wind for contributing this guest review.

Turn Coat

I like Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden series. I like the idea of a wizard-detective in novel-noir Chicago, VI Warshawski with testicles and a magical staff instead of high heels. I liked the wise-crackery of the early books, I appreciated the whimsy of Harry’s potion-making, and I loved his brown leather, weatherproof, spell-laden duster, one of the coolest pieces of outerwear in fiction. With Turn Coat, the eleventh book in the series, however, Butcher has wobbled off course.

First and foremost, he cheats on the mystery. Butcher gives us a murder that ripples across the overarching multi-book plot he has been developing. A “minority member” of the wizards’ White Council has been murdered, apparently by another wizard, the Merlin’s sword arm and Harry’s nemesis, Morgan. Plainly Morgan has been framed, perhaps by the Red Court Vampires who are in a cold war with the wizards, perhaps by the agents of the Oblivion War, or perhaps by a group of unknowns Harry has dubbed “the Black Council.” Harry reluctantly agrees to shelter Morgan and uncover the real murderer/traitor.

Here’s where Butcher cheats. He gives us clues that make it obvious who the murderer should be, but switches away at the last minute to a straw-man character he’s just set up. If the book were a stand-alone, only about solving a murder, this might have been fine. This book isn’t a stand-alone. It’s about uncovering a conspiracy that has been brewing over several books... several books in which Straw Man never made an appearance. Cheat, Cheat! No fair.

This is either a failure of will or a bad tactical decision on Butcher’s part. Maybe he’s saving the real villain for a later book. If so, please remind me to act surprised.

In a larger sense, Turn Coat has some other problems. The White Council is starting to look like an apparatus from Harry Potter, not Harry Dresden — a hidebound bureaucracy at odds with the few really “cool” wizards, like Harry with his badass coat. Substitute “Hogwarts” for “Edinburgh” and there you are.

A few intriguing clues about Harry’s mysterious mother, Margaret, help out the book, the island of Demonreach is top-drawer awesome, and there is a mano a mano battle between shapeshifters that is exactly as great as it should be. The incubi/succubi White Court vampires are overexposed, however, in more than one sense. And Molly? Can’t she go off to beauticians’ school or something, just for a while?

Jim. Get back on track. Give us a stand-alone Dresden book, Harry with Murphy at his side, where he finally delves into the history of his mysterious wizard mother. —Marion Deeds

Changes

I love Harry Dresden like he’s the crazy scary magical uncle I never had. My wife (The Asian OverLord™) gets annoyed at my exclamations of “Hell’s Bells!” and my constant need to tell people that a scar on my hand came from “Hell Fire” rather than a childhood bicycle wreck. The Dresden Files have become a part of my life in a way that few stories do.

When I first learned about Changes, it frightened me. I thought to myself: if Jim Butcher “Changes” too much, I will be forced to follow him around conventions until he promises to change it back, or send him e-mails filled with frowny faces. I don't like it when the creator of something I enjoy takes drastic measures for the sake of being "fresh." Fortunately for Mr. Butcher, Changes shakes a lot of things up, but does so without losing sight of what makes these stories so great. This novel does bring some serious “Changes” to the Dresden universe, but they feel justified. Harry is still funny, still finding his way out of tight jams, still surrounded by people he loves, and still tries to always do the right thing.

In Changes, Harry is once again at odds with the Red Court Vampires. They have taken a loved one hostage in a power play that puts in motion events that jeopardize the unstable peace between the vampires and the white council. Over the years the cast of The Dresden Files has grown quite large and in Changes it seems that they all play a role in one way or another. Butcher manages to juggle the massive cast without it feeling like fan service, and more like it's what the situation actually requires. When Harry calls out the troops, just about everyone shows up. Even Susan makes a return and provides some good ol'fashioned relationship tension to the story.

I’m happy to report that in Changes, Butcher assumes you’ve read the previous books. Thus, there isn’t any tedious recapping of previous installments — he only recaps events which occurred far back enough that even old fans may have forgotten. Be prepared to have quite a bit of the old familiar rearranged in this book. The funny one-liners and humorous situations are still here, but the tone and plot are darker and more dramatic.

Changes is available unabridged from Penguin Audio. James Marsters returns as the voice of Harry Dresden and gives another perfect performance. Changes is an emotional roller coaster and the vocal challenges for Marsters must have been great. The anger, deep sadness, and stubborn resolve come through flawlessly. Marsters is once again brilliant. I judge all other audiobook performances against The Dresden Files.

In conclusion, Changes does just what the title suggests. Fans of the series will look back on this book and remember it as a pivotal moment in the story of Harry Dresden — these events will have a lasting impact. Changes is darker and more serious, and contains some of the most powerful scenes Butcher has ever written. I dare not ruin it by sharing them here, but you will laugh, cry, and often scream at this newest Dresden Files book. I cannot recommend The Dresden Files enough, and if you have not started them yet... you need to get busy! —Justin Blazier

Changes

Some changes are wonderful and terrible at the same time.

In Changes, the twelfth Harry Dresden novel from Jim Butcher, Harry finds out on Page One that he has an eight-year-old daughter, and that she has been kidnapped by the Red Court vampires.

Harry is a wizard in modern-day Chicago. Originally, Harry made his living as a magical private detective (he even had an ad in the Yellow pages). Over the past three years, the war between the White Council of Wizards and the Red Court vampires has taken up most of his time. Now, in the opening chapter of Changes, his life is turned upside down. Mac, the taciturn barkeep and owner of Harry’s favorite pub, has a few words for him about fatherhood:

“You’re going to find out who you are, Harry. You’re going to find out what principles you’ll stand by ‘til your death — and which lines you’ll cross.” He took away my empty glass. “You’re heading into the badlands. It’ll be easy to get lost.

The vampires have requested a truce to arrange for peace talks at the White Council’s headquarters, but with the abduction and planned sacrifice of Harry’s daughter Maggie, it is plain that they are not acting in good faith. Still, Harry cannot persuade the leaders of the Council, who have never trusted him, to help him find his little girl, and the wizardly allies who attempt to aid him are immediately side-lined. Harry is on his own, except for six or seven of his magical friends.

In Changes, Harry loses almost everything. He gains a gift from his magical, long-dead mother. He makes a deal with someone who is possibly worse than the devil. He damages a lot of real estate along the way, and wonders if he can trust Susan, the mother of his child, a woman who kills vampires, but is one throat-bite away from being one herself.

Harry has not been appealing to me in the last few books, but there is a tinge of his old vulnerability and charm here. Molly, Harry’s apprentice, who irritated me in the previous book, Turn Coat, has matured in Changes, and shows the courage to face down Harry’s temper tantrums. His cop friend Murphy is back and at her street-tough best.

Harry soon discovers that the Red Court plans to sacrifice Maggie along with many other mortals at Chichen Itza in Mexico. This sacred site, a place of historical blood sacrifice, is situated on mystical ley lines. An influx of blood magic will give the Red Court incredible power, enough to crush the White Council, while the death of Maggie will form the catalyst of a powerful death spell that will kill Harry and his half-brother Thomas. The stakes have never been higher.

The book is filled with battle scenes, both physical and mystical. There are two great duel scenes, one in the hall of the goblin king, against a devourer demon, and one purely magical contest between Harry and a Red Court aristocrat. In the goblin king’s feasting hall, as in the realm of the faerie Winter Queen, Harry is forced to fall back on old rules of magic, riddles and word-play. The magical sequences are suspenseful and filled with action. Harry’s fellows, including Sasha, a Knight of the Sword; Murphy; Thomas; Harry’s faerie godmother Leanansidhe and his temple dog Mouse, engage in the usual banter and wise-cracking. The finale in Chichen Itza is breath-taking; vivid descriptions that touch all the senses, tension and suspense crackling all around the tiny dark-eyed girl, in chains, crouched by the altar at the center of the pyramid.

I am disappointed that Butcher has not bothered to make the politics of the White Council more believable and more meaningful. Basically, they are just the hidebound old guys, while Harry and his friends are the cool kids. This has been done too many times. It does, however, let Harry and his mentor have a humorous moment over which is more dangerous; evil or stupidity:

Ebenezar blinked at me, then snorted. “Stupid, Hoss. Every time. Only so many blackhearted villains in the world, and they only get uppity on occasion. Stupid’s everywhere, every day.”

Just when it seems we’ve come to the end and we know what’s going to happen, Butcher reminds us that we are in Chicago, and that while Harry has a lot of enemies, not all of them use magic. Some use guns.

I am more of a fan of the earlier wizard-detective novels than I am of Dresden as battle-mage, and he is in full battle-mage mode here. Still, I enjoyed Changes. The book lives up to its title. If you like the Dresden books, particularly the later ones, you will be pleased with this — and, like me, you will be left wondering what Harry’s got himself into now. —Marion Deeds

Side Jobs (on audio)

Side Jobs is a collection of short stories from The Dresden Files. Some of the stories have been previously published in other collections, and some are being published for the first time. The timeline for the stories range from before Storm Front to after Changes, so aspects from every possible point in time in Harry Dresden’s life are represented.

There isn’t much of a central theme to Side Jobs, besides Harry himself. This collection is exclusively for Dresden fans — it makes no sense for anyone who hasn’t read all 13 novels to even take a peek at Side Jobs. Since it’s for fans, one of the most enjoyable parts of this collection is the opening comments by Butcher prior to each story. He provides some personal insight into the making of the story and The Dresden Files as a whole.

Side Jobs opens with the first story ever written about Harry Dresden which Mr. Butcher wrote as a writing assignment for a class at a local university. He has this to say about “A Restoration of Faith”:

It was perhaps the third or fourth short story I’d ever written, if you include projects in grade school…. Read this story for what it is — an anxious beginner’s first effort, meant to be simple, straightforward fun.

He’s a little hard on himself since the story was actually quite good. It was cool to see the Dresden characters in their infancy, only hinting at the fully developed versions in the books today. Side Jobs progresses chronologically in the Dresden Universe. Along the way you get treated to some real gems, like the very hard to find Subterranean Press novella Backup. There are many fans that have never read this, and will now finally get the chance.

Backup isn’t the only novella included. Aftermath is the final story, and it takes on the perspective of Sgt. Karen Murphy just hours after the events of Changes. There isn’t much progression in the overall Dresden story, but it is a nice teaser to get you through until Ghost Story is released next spring.

Dresden fans will be delighted with this collection of stories. The quality of the writing varies depending on the time and circumstances in which they were written. Most of the stories are meant to be as Butcher said: “simple, straightforward fun,” and mostly it’s the novellas that take a more serious tone.

I listened to Side Jobs on MP3 audio from Penguin Audio (downloadable now). James Marsters returns as the voice of Harry Dresden and he's fantastic, as always. The day they switch to a different voice actor will be the last time I listen to Dresden on audio — for me, Marsters has become essential to the Dresden audio experience. —Justin Blazier

Ghost Story

Writing this review is going to be impossible without spoiling some of the series for those who have not read through Changes, just a little warning. The title of this book, Ghost Story, does a pretty good job of revealing the entire premise of the story: Harry is a ghost. Like all ghosts he has a task that must be completed in order to be at peace. A lot of what was planted in Changes bears fruit in Ghost Story. Harry is now forced to deal with the horrible decisions he was forced to make while the Red Court held his daughter. To the living, Harry has been gone for six months. All hell has broken loose in Chicago without Dresden around. Harry is now dropped in the middle of all this and is practically helpless is his current state to do anything about it. Add that to the emotional turmoil of losing Harry, and well you got a pretty good idea of how things are going at the beginning of Ghost Story.

There is a formula to the Dresden Files novels. They very rarely deviate from the rhythm Jim Butcher established in the very first book. Changes broke away from that formula, and in Ghost Story we fall back into the structure of the pseudo detective noir novel that we are used to. That's a good feeling. Changes was amazing, and it certainly shook things up. However, I was surprised at how much I missed that familiar Dresden feel. Ghost Story tries to bring the Dresden universe back to some state of normalcy.

The characters in Ghost Story are plentiful. Many older characters are brought back from the early books, and a lot of new characters come into play as well. Jim Butcher spends a significant amount of time on the emotional state of the characters. Ghost Story emphasizes the mental and physical trauma that is weighing on them all. There were moments where I felt real empathy for many of them. I love these characters and it is painful to see them changed in irreparable ways. Dresden, in particular, wrestles with some rather big issues carried over from previous novels.

The writing in Ghost Story is solid. Jim continues to improve upon perfection and the last few Dresden Files books are damn near flawless. Ghost Story continues in the trend of mixing suspense, mystery, drama and humor. I also felt that Jim has become more relaxed in his voice as Dresden. The geek culture references are more prevalent, and maybe a bit more obscure. There is even a beautiful homage to a Star Trek battle in there somewhere.

I've reviewed a lot of the Dresden books and I'm finding it more and more difficult to find different ways to say how awesome these books are. They changed the way I read fantasy. I have driven 3 hours to wait in line at a signing. I have gotten my brother, father, and several friends addicted to these stories. I talk so much about these books that I sometimes feel I should be on the Penguin Group payroll. I remember reading Patrick Rothfuss' blog when he discovered the Dresden Files. How vindicated I felt when a best-selling author of his caliber squealed about them as much as I do. You must read these books. You have to read The Dresden Files. That is all. —Justin Blazier