Fool Moon (The Dresden Files, Book 2) by Jim Butcher
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Book Reviews of Fool Moon (The Dresden Files, Book 2)
Book Review: Book Two of The Dresden Files
Summary: 5 Stars
Fool Moon is the second book in Jim Butcher's Dresden Files series. This series follows the exploits of Harry Dresden, the only wizard who has gone public and tried to run a business based on his magical talents. This book sets up with the fact that Harry's business is in trouble, no one believes that he is really a wizard. When an opportunity comes along for him to once again work with the Special Investigations Unit of the Chicago PD, he jumps at the chance. From there on it's a nonstop roller coaster ride of action as Harry jumps from one situation into the next, involving werewolves (there are actually at least three different kinds, who knew?), street gangs, and the ever-present organized crime boss.
In this book, Butcher lets us know not to take this series too seriously. Dresden is often shown to be a kind of bumbling magician, catching on to things just a little too late, miscalculating the power of spells, and really mishandling his relationship with Murphy, the head of Special Investigations. The climax of the books ends up taking on an almost comedic slant. It is clear that the author is approaching this series with a tongue-in-cheek attitude. This really works for me. It almost puts you in mind of Steve Brust's Vlad Taltos series. The scenes with Bob, Dresden's rather unique magical assistant, go even farther in that direction. Much of the dialog between the two comes off exactly like Vlad and Loiosh in Brust's series. If you liked the Taltos series (and who doesn't?) give this one a shot.
Another series it is hard not to draw comparisons with is Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series. The protagonists of both series are supernaturally-inclined individuals who often help out their respective Police Departments with messy cases. The tone and setting is much the same in the two series, with the Anita Blake series being set in an alternate version of St. Louis and this series being set in a version of Chicago. Also, the array of supernatural beings is pretty much the same between the two series: vampires, werewolves, demons, etc. One big difference between the two is that most aspects of the Anita Blake's world are generally public knowledge. Everyone knows and accepts that there are really vampires, werewolves, and zombies. However, Butcher doesn't go in that direction with this series. Only a select handful of people know the truth, the general populace doesn't believe in magic or any of the creatures that lurk in the dark. This makes things interesting for Dresden as he is scraping to get by. Even the Special Investigations unit is under pressure from using him on cases. For me, this works better than having all of the supernatural stuff be public knowledge.
Anyway, this book is highly recommended. I would strongly suggest reading the first book in the series (Storm Front) before this one. This book is a fast, fun ride that you won't want to put down! Now on to Book Three, Grave Peril.
Book Review: An ordinary man with magic
Summary: 5 Stars
**SPOILERS**
Apparently in reviewer Marc Ruby's world, the main character of a book must be an invulnerable superhero or he is to be mocked. "Not too bright is our Harry," says Ruby about the fight against the loup-garou at the police station. Let's look at that particular scene. Harry (1) manages to get into the police station unnoticed through magic; (2) manages to survive the loup-garou's deadly attack; (3) manages to save his police friend Murphy from being killed; (4) manages to throw out the loup-garou from the building; (5) manages to BIND the loup-garou through magic from a distance, so that the werewolf can't kill anyone else that night. As for some other scenes, Harry manages to get out of a deadly encounter with a gang of lycanthropes, flattening the nose of one of them in their own lair; he almost defeats three of them single-handedly later on, and fails only because he is attacked from behind by another of them; he manages to flee from their lair and defeat a very large Hexenwolf in head-to-head combat while he's at it; he manages to escape being trapped in a pit, saving the allies trapped there with him; he manages to defeat another Hexenwolf in combat, manages to defeat the leader Hexenwolf shortly after that, and finally he kills the enormous loup-garou that the story revolves around.
**END SPOILERS**
What Fool Moon is about, is a wizard who is, at the end of the day, a human being. He does not always have another trick up his sleeve to counter anything the villains might come up with. He is not Batman. He is an ordinary, flawed human being, doing the best he can with the means at his disposal. Harry also refuses to kill other people with magic (which would condemn him to death if the White Council found out), and so we have a hero who is earnestly trying to do good in a town with a lot of corruption and a lot of people who look the other way. He is bruised and battered, but he ultimately wins through skill, luck and dedication. The fact that Harry doesn't succeed in everything he does is what sets Jim Butcher's stories apart from so many other stories out there - Batman, James Bond, and whoever else will do everything just right, in a way that makes them unreal and therefore less interesting. Harry Dresden on the other hand is just like you and me but with magical skills. It is also endearing when Harry has to make a blend-into-the-background potion, because a real Invisibility potion would require ingredients that cost too much. How often did Batman or Bond have to fight with lesser means because they were too poor?
If the Dresden Files were just about a superhero magician fighting like a comicbook character, the stories would be two-dimensional and forgettable. Instead they are so much more.
Book Review: On a Dark and Wandy Night
Summary: 5 Stars
After reading the first in this series "Storm Front" I had come to believe that the comic ineptness of Harry Dresden, the only wizard in the Chicago phone book (or any other phone book for that matter) was due more to the inexperience of the author than it was intentional. At that time, I thought the basic premise of the plot was serious. After all, people die when Harry gets things wrong. Well, it appears that I was wrong. Jim Butcher has clearly created one of the strangest wizards in detective fiction.Actually he is a wizard/gumshoe with the kind of do-gooder streak that is a cinch to cause trouble. In this volume Dresden is trying to solve a serial killer problem which seems to involve several different kinds of werewolves. These range from nasty people who think they are wolves right up to the honest-to-God tear-you-and-all-your-friends-to-pieces loup-garou. Inevitably Harry goes into each struggle well armed with wands, charms, and even guns. And inevitably he drops or loses all of them. In fact your first warning that Harry is going to get flattened again is when he points his magic wand.
One of Harry's skills is the ability to alienate almost everyone. So this time Harry is not only dodging werewolves, he is also being chased by Chicago's number one gangster and all of the local FBI. Nor are the local cops fond of him. After the FBI manages to capture the loup-garou and lock him in a police holding tank, Harry manages to not get to the police station quite on time. Before Harry can do anything most of the occupants of the building are dead. What does Harry finally do? He blasts an invincible werewolf straight through the station's walls and several nearby buildings before setting him down so that the wolf can escape. Not too bright is our Harry.
Sooner or later you give up and start chuckling. Despite Harry's continual insistence that he is one of the 12 best wizards in the U.S., only the gangster really wants Harry on his side, and that's because he thinks Dresden would make good wolf bait. Which is a mistake. Harry's real talent is sheer unmitigated luck, without which he would be a wolf dropping somewhere in the Illinois woods. Everyone else, however, has to fend for themselves.
Despite my sarcasm, this isn't a bad book by a long shot. It just isn't quite what one is lead to expect by the cover. If you can handle occult slapstick and a bit of grim humor you will find "Fool Moon" great light reading. The plot is non-stop, Butcher's narrative abilities have improved, and the characterization is what you would expect from this kind of work. I wish Butcher has spent more time on Harry's oversexed skull assistant, but there's always the next volume for that.
Book Review: Fool Moon Rocks!
Summary: 5 Stars
It's official! Jim Butcher has a hit series on his hands. Fool Moon, the much anticipated second book in the Dresden Files series, does more than live up to fans' expectations: It exceeds them. This book rocks, fulfilling the lofty precedent set in Storm Front for fast paced action, witty dialogue, a riveting plotline, compelling characters and, most of all, it's endearing protagonist: Harry Dresden, a wisecracking gumshoe wizard with a heart of gold and just enough of a dark side to keep things real. Fool Moon returns to the alternate-reality version of modern day Chicago as introduced in book one, an unsettling yet exciting world of both everyday familiarity and film-noir style fantasy where chaos results when paranormal forces interact with a mostly disbelieving humanity. It's this disbelief that keeps business in a slump for Harry, the windy city's only professional wizard. Thankfully Lt. Karrin Murphy, head of the Chicago Police's Special Investigations unit, has experienced enough weirdness on Chi Town's mean streets to know that the paranormal threat is very real. Determined to save lives at all costs and faced with having to solve crimes that go beyond the scope of forensic science, Murphy usually turns to Harry for help. But in Fool Moon Harry discovers that Murphy is forced to risk her badge to bring him in on a murder investigation after an editorial in a local paper criticizes her use of public funds to hire a "charlatan psychic" and Internal Affairs begins probing into her suspected connection to the Chicago Mob through her past involvement with Harry.
Time is running out. Evidence found following a series of gruesome murders leads Harry to believe that a pack of werewolves is on the rampage in the city and with only a few nights of bright moonlight left, the wizard is in a race against the clock to put an end to the slaughter or lose the trail until the next full moon.
Fool Moon is solid entertainment that leaves readers with that all-too-rare sense of deep satisfaction that comes from getting your moneys worth. New readers will discover the thrill of riding shotgun with Harry and returning fans will enjoy the hints scattered throughout the novel that unearth more of Harry's rebel past, in particular a closer look at the events that lead to the Doom of Damocles, a form of probation placed on him by the White Council who oversee the ethical use of magic in the world of the mundane.
I look forward with great anticipation to the next book in the series, and to watching Jim Butcher become a household name in fantasy fiction.
Book Review: Cry Wolf
Summary: 5 Stars
There are many kinds of wolves in the world, and not all of them are human. Not even those that walk on two legs.Someone, someTHING, is shredding people in Chicago, leaving behind huge doggy footprints painted in the blood of the victims. Oh, and of course, it's round about full moon time. Reluctantly Karrin Murphy, Director of Special Investigations for the Chicago P.D., has had to call in Harry Dresden, professional wizard. Not that she trusts him much anymore after the way he left her hanging the last time they worked together. But he's the only with the knowledge and special skills she'll need if she has to deal with a werewolf on the loose.
In this second volume of his exciting new "Dresden Files" series, Jim Butcher has packaged up another action-filled detective story with a mystical twist. Like any good gumshoe thriller, "Fool Moon" has a plot full of peril, false leads, near misses, and all the usual (and unusual) suspects. Like any good fantasy tale, it has a believable, well-developed mythology. The reader comes away with an arcane education--werewolf lore, potion-cooking, demon-summoning. As narrator, Harry Dresden lets his audience in on all the little trade secrets of the practicing mage. Now, if only he could learn to be so candid with his colleagues and friends....
In the final analysis, "Fool Moon" is more about learning to trust than about foiling werewolves, more about self discovery than arcane knowledge, more about the demons in Harry's heart than those in his summoning circle. In other words, it is about Harry Dresden himself, a hero of pure intention, tremendous power, and courage in the face of unspeakable danger, who just happens to be afraid to meet his own eyes in the mirror. He infers the blackness of his own soul from the reactions of others brash or foolish enough to meet his gaze. And he fears that the kind of knowledge that has so blackened him will be at least as destructive to others. Harry's struggle to come to terms with himself and those he cares about, his faltering advances and all-too-frequent backslides, are what really keep the reader turning the pages. They are also what keep Harry half a step behind the villains until it is almost too late.
If you like action, mystery, magic, or just watching the growth of a compelling character, you'll want to read "Fool Moon."