The introduction to this blog, I would be starting soon with the works of Jim Butcher, specifically The Dresden Files. But if you're going to talk about a series, where would you start but book one?
The book opens with Harry Dresden, Wizard (he's in the book) getting a call from a woman named Monica Sells. She has sought out the sorcerer/private investigator for help locating her missing husband.
Harry at first seems like your common P.I. pulled straight from an old detective movie, but it becomes obvious that he's different in many ways. First of all, he's a wizard, which gives his character access to all that entails, specifically, magic. He's very intelligent, he's very noble, and he likes to help people. An all around good guy.
However, what good's a good guy. Harry's got a past, and most of it comes from his dealings with magic and other magical beings. The first book goes a long way to set up this, though it takes a few more to really flesh out what happened.
His day only gets worse when his friend and frequent employer, Lt. Karrin Murphy of the Chicago Police Department calls him out to consult on a case. Murphy runs the Special Investigations team of the CPD, the X-files office of the city, if you will. It's her job to solve mysterious murders that can't be solved.
Murphy, Harry claims, was smart to hire someone who actually knew what was going on out there as a consultant for cases that were more super than normal in nature.
Murphy from one of the graphic novels.
Murphy, like Harry, seems to at first be pulled straight from a classic Noir piece, playing the noble cop and defender of the law next to Harry's heel or high water solve the case mentality. It's good to see them play off one another like they do. She's a cop first and foremost, though. Her job is to protect the people, and she'll do whatever it takes to do it when she can. She grows more lenient as the series goes on, but being an officer of the law and justice, a defender of the people makes up a lot of who she is.
The case she's called Harry out on is the gruesome murder of local gang enforcer, Tommy Tomm, and his girlfriend. The murder was such that their hearts exploded from their chests. Being seemingly unsolvable, it's quickly thrown off to Murphy's team, who calls in Harry at the slightest thought of magic.
The book plays out as Harry strives to solve both of his cases, dealing with everyone from the local gang lord, Gentleman Johnny Marcone, a fierce bastard who gets what he wants and rips through everything in his way...literally, to Toot Toot, a pixie like member of the Fae (the books term for anything from the other side) who's addicted to pizza, to Bianca, the local vampire queen with a mad vengeance streak, working on both his cases, leading up to the ultimate showdown with the murderer.
If you haven't checked out the series previously, now's a good time to as it's a good read. However, it, unlike most of Butcher's other work, has also been made into other mediums.
Most notably, the book was made into a ninety minute pilot for the Sci Fi series about the books. Unfortunately, due to some poor casting and the fact that the people in charge barely read the books, it didn't turn out like it could have. You can check the even more mangled down version that eventually became an episode on Hulu, though the book is far and away superior.
It's also been made into a graphic novel by Del Rey. The graphic novel was written by someone who actually read the novel, and Butcher, himself, consulted on it in large part. The illustrator, Ardian Syaf who works for DC on Batman of all things, does some incredible work here (and on the other Dresden graphic novel, Welcome to the Jungle).
So, what do you think? Have you read the book? Do you think you might check it out now? Do you think that this might have the makings of a good series? Let me know.
-Sara
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