Author: Jim Butcher
Title: Dead Beat
Series: The Dresden
Files (#7)
ISBN: 9780451460912
Publisher: Roc (May 3rd
2005)
| 
My rating: 4 of 5
stars
“When a killer vampire threatens to destroy head of Special Investigations Karrin Murphy's reputation unless Harry delivers the powerful Word of Kemmler to her, he has no choice. Now Harry is in a race against time to find the Word before Chicago experiences a Halloween night to wake the dead.” GoodReads’ blurb
Harry hadn’t faced
off against zombies yet, had he?
Well, he does now.
This book turned out
to be a bit more serious than the previous one... Wait, no. Not really.
I mean, yes, this
time the stakes are higher—if he fails, it’s not a power play among vampires
but the end of Chicago and, pretty much, the World. It sure would be the end
for Murphy’s world, what with her ending up in jail for killing a vampire...
So, the motivations are dire and that should keep the tension high and the easy
humor low.
But this is Harry.
The first paragraph in this book, though I was expecting it after learning at
the end of book 6 that Thomas was going to move in, made me laugh out loud.
Harry’s new sidekick,
a forensic doctor who has seen a little too much by examining his victims, is
scared like hell but somehow he will find the courage to save the day under his
battlecry:
“Polka will never
dieeeee!!!”
And after much effort
and lots of contingencies, Harry will have to ride out and save the day in a
most unorthodox white horse.
So... this volume
dealt with some tough stuff, and still was funny. Hilarious. Worth every
minute, really.
The lore behind the
magic, as usual, was different and original too. If you’ve realized up until
now, mostly Butcher presents all kinds of paranormal creatures and gives them a
new approach... Well, he does the same thing with zombies. Granted, they are
not as interesting as the porn-eating vampires or the different classes of
werewolves, but they have their own traits.
By this point, the
worldbuilding behind the Dresden Files is titanic. Politics, magic, society,
war... Everything is very well developed, and while I’d not swear it in court,
I’m pretty sure that everything is consistent. People coming up is people we
know, or know how to place. Everything is solid, inner-logic-wise. And, since
the universe is so vast, Butcher can pull out trump cards we’d all but
forgotten about... Which is what happens here. I loved it.
And I think you’ll,
too. So, did you get started in the series yet?
Hah, unfortunately for all of us, polka really never will die. (Somehow, you always manage to make me laugh.)
ReplyDeleteI stopped after book two, not because I didn't want to continue, but because I simply can't find the time. This happened with several series I hope to finish some day.
But porn-eating vampires? Catching up might happen sooner rather than later.
Another fantastic review, Ron!
That whole "stop and get back" thing always happens to me too... I get caught up in other stuff and take too long to come back for beloved sequels - until I run out of other audio, hit a lul on print, or someone reminds me why I loved the series so much in the first place.
DeleteI hope you do get back soon to Harry, Maja. Book 3 was the one I liked less (not enough Murph!) but most people say that it's where the whole thing takes off (and I have to agree on that one: book three marks the moment where it stopped being a books with the same cast and became a series with a connecting arc).
I sure look forward to your thougts on this one! :)
*sigh* I want to read this series so bad. So... so... bad..
ReplyDeleteI think you'd love it, Christy. Give it a shot as soon as you can!
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