Storm Front (Dresden Files, #1)

by Jim Butcher

In the first novel in the #1 New York Times bestselling Dresden Files series, Harry Dresden’s investigation of a grisly double murder pulls him into the darkest depths of magical Chicago…

As a professional wizard, Harry Dresden knows firsthand that the “everyday” world is actually full of strange and magical things—and most of them don’t play well with humans. And those that do enjoy playing with humans far too much. He also knows he’s the best at what he does. Technically, he’s the only at what he does. But even though Harry is the only game in town, business—to put it mildly—stinks.

So when the Chicago P.D. bring him in to consult on a double homicide committed with black magic, Harry's seeing dollar signs. But where there's black magic, there's a black mage behind it. And now that mage knows Harry's name...

“A great series—fast-paced, vividly realized and with a hero/narrator who’s excellent company.”—Cinescape
 

• ISBN10: 1429583886
• ISBN13: 9781429583886
• Publish Date: 1 April 2000
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Roc
• Format: eBook
• Language: English

Reviews

[celinenyx]

I really liked this book. It being a first book in a very long series, there were a lot of characters to learn to know, but the main characters voice was very distinct, and I loved him immediately.

Harry the wizard for hire takes on a case of a woman, searching for her husband. He expects that he's just having an affair, but he'll look into it anyway. However, this case is not as simple as it looks on first glance. When his help is also needed by the police in a suspicious investigation, Harry might be in over his head.

This might even be the first UF book I've read with a manly main character, and I was pleasantly surprised. Even though Harry is pretty much the ultimate geek that is attracted to about every woman he sees, I still liked him because deep down, he's quite kick-ass.

The world Mr Butcher sketches here is highly entertaining and interesting. He has a slightly different take on vampires and other supernaturals, that make me curious for the next books in the series.

Storm Front is action-packed with a fast moving plot, and a great introduction into this series.

[inlibrisveritas]

A really good and quick read. It's similar to Anita Blake novels, but since it is based around a guy it doesn't have the same romance feel to it at times. He still has to deal with woman on a personal level and some sexual acts (he wasn't involved) but it doesn't come off as too much. Overall pretty good.

[SilverThistle]

Well now, I very nearly didn't read this. After the first two or three chapters I started to pick holes in it all and wasn't really 'into' it very much and thought I should maybe quit while I was ahead.... Laziness was the decider in the end and I stuck with it because it was either that or traipse downstairs to get a replacement from the bookshelf....

Anyway, it got a bit better after those first few chapters. Or at least I think it got better, I'm not altogether sure if it did actually. Maybe it was just more of the same and I got used to the style. That's the thing with this book, I'm not sure what to make of it or what to think.

Harry Dresden is a wizard. But a crappy one. Or is he? I don't think he's meant to seem crappy but that's how he comes across to me.

He's got a gumshoe/Philip Marlowe/Sam Spade thing going on but he's also got wizardy powers and you'd think that would be a huge advantage to him, but no, he doesn't know what he's doing half the time or even HOW to do it (and if sometimes he does know - he's too scared to do it).

If you took out the wizard stuff then this is just a detective story. Without magic he's just Columbo (minus the razor sharp mind). He even has a ratty duster coat that he eats, rests and plays in.

It's a book about a down on his luck Private Eye who is useless with women (although women seem to go for him, for some reason) and he's got special paranormal powers. That's it in a nutshell really.

So, why then do I like it? I have no clue. I honestly don't know - I just do. I wouldn't recommend it to others, I won't stay up 3 nights running to devour the rest in the series and I don't even particularly like Harry Dresden as a character. Doesn't make any sense but it is what it is.

I want to read the next few, and I will, but I'm not desperate for them. And if he would just stop defining women by how much make up they wear and what clothes they wear, he and I will get along a lot better in later books.

[empressbrooke]

Earlier this year, I greatly enjoyed the first season of the Sci Fi Channel's The Dresden Files. It certainly wasn't Buffy or X-Files caliber, as far as paranormal television goes, but it was great escapism fun with some interesting characters. As I'm likely to do after discovering that something I watched and enjoyed was based on a book, I went out and got the first book in the series.

I read the 300-pages of Storm Front in less than 24 hours, and it was such a relief to read something light after a lot of the books I've been reading lately. The series is about a wizard named Harry - but not that Harry. Harry Dresden lists himself under "Wizard" in the phone book, and basically serves as a private eye. His friends include Karrin Murphy, a police lieutenant who turns to him for help in supernatural crimes, and Bob, a memory spirit who lives in a skull.

I was instantly reminded of the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series; it's told in the first person by a hardboiled character who lives in a world where the paranormal is normal. Luckily, unlike Anita, Harry doesn't engage in insane sex with long-haired men who wear thigh-high boots every 10 pages, so I guess the comparison is to the early Anita books. As a stand-alone novel, it would be rather disappointing, but it's just perfect as a beginning to a series. It sets up the characters and hints at things in their pasts that are sure to be explained more later on. I've got the rest of the series lined up on reserve at the library, and hopefully they will live up to the expectations Storm Front created.

[ibeforem]

This is the first book in the Dresden Files series. I thought it was excellent. It’s funny in a dry, cynical way, and it’s different than other “supernatural” based series I’ve read. There’s still some rules I don’t understand, but I expect those will be explained more as needed. I look forward to the others in this series.