However, all that aside, the book itself is worth reading by a variety of audiences interested in modern supernatural fantasy fiction. The book takes the tone and narrative approach of the classic American detective novel epitomized by Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. However, rather than follow a new Sam Spade or Philip Marlowe down the mean streets of the criminal underworld, Storm Front has Harry take us through a tale of the supernatural underworld. Now, like the classic American detective novel, our protagonist, Harry, has something of a shady past, trouble with the authorities (the wizarding authorities in this case), and lives case to case, and close to the edge of financial ruin.
Despite adopting some of the superficial stereotypes of the genre, before he bends it, Butcher does a great job of establishing Harry as a very likable and interesting character from the start. Also, and just as important, Butcher has a real talent for imagining and explaining very interesting “laws” of magic, both the governing “science” of how magic works and the “social” conventions that Harry skirts the edges of, constantly close to getting in hot water with the authorities of his world.
The book opens with Harry behind on his rent, his profession ridiculed by the general public, and Harry generally in a bad wizardly mood. In short order he has two jobs looming, one to find a missing husband who may have been dabling in the occult, the other to help the Chicago police, for whom he is a “special” consultant, solve a murder that can only have been committed with magic. What follows is an exciting page turner that delivers satisfying doses of thrills, action, mysterym humor and magic galor. Through it all, Harry is compelling, and well drawn. By and large, the story develops due to the motivations of the characters involved (as with a thriller by Greg Rucka), rather than the story developing because the plot needs to go in a certain direction, regardless of any character development (as one finds with Dan Brown or Tom Clancy).
Besides Harry, we have numerous well drawn supporting characters, including several that are obviously going to be established as regulars through the series, including police lieutenant Karrin Murphy, director of special investigations for the Chicago Police; Bob, an air spirit bound in a skull who acts as Harry’s encyclopedia for magic; McAnally, who owns a pub frequented by the magically inclined in Chicago; John Marcone, a leading mafia boss; and Morgan, Harry’s Warden, who is something like Harry’s magical parole officer. None of these characters are shallow or one dimensional, and plenty is left to learn about them that will make reading further books in which they are involved all the more compelling.
This is, however, a first published book, and is not perfect. There were passages that jarred me slightly out of the immersive world of the fiction and made me question whether events would progress in a particular way. However, the snappy prose and enjoyable characters quickly pulled me back in, and I was never really disappointed. If there is one lingering question that I have, it is of the one overtly artificial plot device relating to magic. In Dresden’s world, magic disrupts technology. The more complex a technological object is, the more likely it will malfunction or cease to function in the presence of magic or the presence of Harry. However, while just about every other explanation about magic, how it works, and what it can do flows seamlessly through the narrative of the book, this effect just never settled in for me. Why medieval technology should be fine, but anything from the industrial revolution forward be in danger of major malfunction just never was explained to my satisfaction. The reason “just because” does not sit well is that Butcher does such a very fine job of explaining how the magical world works otherwise.
Still, even with one forced plot device, the book is immensely entertaining, filled with inventive ideas, and as good as any other modern urban fantasy-horror that I have read or seen (e.g. Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Angel). It certainly ranks up there with other books that I have enjoyed, such as The War for the Oaks by Emma Bull, the Blood books by Tanya Huff, or the “Sonja Blue” books by Nancy Collins. Also, others have described the Dresden Files as “Harry Potter” for an adult audience. Certainly Dresden’s world holds potential to be as interesting, entertaining and fun as Potter’s, and also holds the potential for a lot of inspiration for gamers, whether you are looking for ideas about magic for any game or for plots or settings for modern fantasy-horror games.
