The Stats
📖 BOOK REVIEW⠀📚
BOOK: Ghost Story
AUTHOR: Jim Butcher @longshotauthor
Publisher: Roc Hardcover, of Penguin Random House @penguinrandomhouse
Stars: ⭐⭐⭐
Published: July 26, 2011
The Review
The last book, Changes ended with the main character getting shot at extreme range and falling into Lake Michigan in winter while completely alone. He should be dead… And he is? Now he’s been sent back as a ghost to solve his murder, all while we get to see the world without a Dresden.
Changes was a hard act to follow, and I think this was adequate. It still isn’t my favorite book in the series.
The Title/Cover Draw:
That there actually was a cover. I mean… He’s dead.
What I liked:
We’ve seen ghosts before in Dresden Files. They’ve done interesting things and been cool baddies. This book gives us their experience: Why some ghosts can affect the world of the living, what their rules and challenges are. It also introduces what will be the big bad for the next few story arcs. I say that confidently, because they are BIG.
What I didn’t like:
Butcher peppers the Dresden Files with tangential adventures. Things that happen not because of the main plot, but more in spite of it. These stories sometimes give us memorable characters, like Mouse. This time, however, the tangential story is completely forgettable and serves no purpose but to hint at Waldo Butters having a much larger path than we thought.
Also, this is the only Dresden Files audio book not narrated by James Marsters. He wasn’t available. John Glover did this one. He made everyone sound like an old cowboy, and I just couldn’t take it. Apparently, there was supposed to be a new version with Marsters, but I have not seen it.
What kept me reading:
Um, what’s going to happen now that he’s dead? I mean, this really changes the series.
The Characters:
A world without Dresden is bleak. He killed off all the red court Vampires, which opened the door to the Fomor returning. If you aren’t a fan of mythology, I can summarize by saying this is a very bad thing. Molly is now a skittish, traumatized murder-hobo, her brother isn’t much better, Thomas isn’t eating, and Karrin is now a guerilla leader of sorts. Bright spots, Butters is growing as a character and as a fighter. Even without magic, he utilizes Bob the Skull in ingenious ways to do things even Harry had a hard time with.
The Ending:
Yeah, I never saw it coming. And after re-reading it, I can say that all the writing was on the walls. Satisfying, ominous, and reaffirming.
Consider if you like / Reminds me of:
If you’re all grown up and ready for darker, more mature content, but also loved Harry Potter, give the other magical Harry a try.
*****
Summary:
When we last left the mighty wizard detective Harry Dresden, he wasn’t doing well. In fact, he had been murdered by an unknown assassin.
But being dead doesn’t stop him when his friends are in danger. Except now he has no body, and no magic to help him. And there are also several dark spirits roaming the Chicago shadows who owe Harry some payback of their own.
To save his friends—and his own soul—Harry will have to pull off the ultimate trick without any magic…
I voluntarily read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.