Since today is Halloween
The first of the Dresden Files, Storm Front is a great introduction to the lead character (Harry) and several of the major players through the series. In addition, Butcher builds a great world for the characters to inhabit. The book (and later, the rest of the series) are filled with moments that made me think, “Man, I wish I’d written that!” Buy Storm Front here
The basic premise: Harry Dresden is a private investigator… and he’s also a wizard. As someone who writes both fantasy and hardboiled fiction that was the first “I wish I’d thought of that!” Of course, being hardboiled, Dresden is a bit of an anti-hero — and being a private eye, he has a strained relationship with the police department.
He also has a strained relationship with the White Council, the governing body for wizards.
Dresden faces two cases in this first book: one, as a consultant for the police, through his friend Officer Karrin Murphy, and another, through a client: to find her husband, who was acting strangely. Of course, in the manner of all good hardboiled stories his responsibilities cross over and conflict, and Dresden finds himself in all manner of trouble through out.
The action grabs Dresden by the scruff of the neck and throws him from one bad spot to another, with the wizard only able to save himself through his own innate abilities and good sense — though often, he’s about a step behind the bad guys until the end.
Storm Front isn’t the best of the series (I have read them all), but it is the first: and it’s a top quality book. I’d recommend anyone interested in urban fantasy, hard-boiled fiction, or a perfectly crafted combination of the two read it. It’s entertainment in its purest form. Check it out: