Grave Peril (The Dresden Files, Book 3)
by Jim Butcher
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Book Summary Information
Author: Jim ButcherEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2001-09-01
ISBN: 0451458443
Number of pages: 378
Publisher: Roc
Book Reviews of Grave Peril (The Dresden Files, Book 3)
Book Review: Audiobook by James Marsters adds to excellent story by Jim Butcher
Summary: 5 Stars
I assume that hearing the audiobook recorded by James Marsters is a different experience from reading Grave Peril. The audiobook is amazing however.
Mr. Marsters' reading of the Dresden Files has become stronger with each book. He infuses the characters with warmth, passion, anger, ferocity, and most importantly, love and humor. As the story progresses, Mr. Marsters does an excellent job expressing the cadence of the story, the descent into despair of Dresden and his attempt to do right no matter what the cost and the rise into light as he does what is right even though doing so doesn't always come with roses and kisses. His wail at the fundamental unfairness of the world touches the heart. Mr. Marsters is also becoming more comfortable playing with different voices to protray the various characters. I would wish the audiobooks to have a little bit better direction and much better production in terms of consistent sound (volume, pitch, continuity between tracks). It would also behoove Buzzymedia to use a better mp3 format; right now they are just including each track from the CD version as a separate poorly named file rather than having one or two bookmarkable files that are file protected but more readily playable on an iPod or other mp3 player.
Mr. Butcher's Dresden is an old-fashioned type. Harry Dresden is at some level simply a fantasy or a daydream for the nerdish adolescent who yearns to vanquish the monsters, save the day and the girl, get and lose the girl, and survive to fight again. When I can't wait to read the next book in a series it is a confirmation that a writer has touched my heart and engaged my mind. I bought the next three books in the series before hearing the end of this one. Mr. Butcher has intrigued me with the character of Harry Dresden and I am eager to find out how his story progresses; I believe that others will be similarly intrigued.
Additionally, Mr. Butcher has introduced us to other compelling characters. The character of Michael, the whitest of White Knights, a righteous man---whose wife is named Charity but perhaps would have been better named Joan (as in "of Ark")--- fights alongside Dresden; this uneasy partnership is an interesting protrayal of the tension between Christian belief and magical power; it makes me think about those Christians who are dismayed over the popularity of the Harry Potter books. Michael is the best of the newly introduced characters and it is comforting to see Harry Dresden having a partner in the fight. Another character, mentioned briefly in previous novels and drawn more fully in nightmarish detail in this one, is his fairy godmother, a sweet sounding phrase but not a sweet character here. Bianca, the Vampire Queen, comes to exact her "regret" threatened in the first of the series; she is just one more monster who wants to blame Dresden for her own sorry actions. Dresden needs to get over his guilt trip.
Sadly, a favorite character, Murphy, the police detective with the unenviable job of investigating supernatural mischief and mayhem that the modern world resists acknowledging, plays a minor role in this novel. Unfortunately or fortunately---I have mixed emotions---Rodriguez', plucky reporter and gorgeous Latina girlfried (see earlier reference to nerdish adolescent daydream), fate at the end of Grave Peril, opens the way for Murphy's and Dresden's relationship to develop in future novels. The juxtaposition of Murphy's cheerleader blondness and Rodriquez' Latin sensuality is worthy of a few eye-rolls but just underscores Dresden's nerdy old-fashioned need to save every woman in distress he meets; maybe someday he'll get that each is capable of kicking plenty of butt in her own way, and that either would be a worthy partner is the battle against the monsters.
As mentioned earlier, Dresden is an old-fashioned man: he is incapable of expressing his emotions, believes that everything that happens around him is his problem to solve because only he can solve those problems. He is everything stereotypically maddening about men in general, and everything worthwhile about an old-fashioned man as well. If that offends your modern sensibilities you might not like these novels; if you have some affectionate memories of such a man, you may enjoy them.
Well worth a listen for more than a little escapist fun. Unfortunately you can only get the first of the three audiobooks in this series. Hopefully BuzzyMedia will be able to engage James Marsters to record the rest of the series soon.
Summary of Grave Peril (The Dresden Files, Book 3)
In all his years of supernatural sleuthing, Harry Dresden has never faced anything like this: the spirit world's gone postal. These ghosts are tormented, violent, and deadly. Someone-or something-is purposely stirring them up to wreak unearthly havoc. But why? If Harry doesn't figure it out soon, he could wind up a ghost himself.
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