Dead Beat
ISBN: 9780356500331
Description
Meet Harry Dresden, Chicago's first (and only) Wizard P.I. Turns out the 'everyday' world is full of strange and magical things - and most of them don't play well with humans. That's where Harry comes in.
Luckily, however, he's not alone. Although most people don't believe in magic, the Chicago P.D. has a Special Investigations department, headed by his good friend Karrin Murphy. They deal with the stranger cases. It's down to Karrin that Harry sneaks into Graceland Cemetery to meet a vampire named Mavra. Mavra has evidence that would destroy Karrin's career, and her demands are simple. She wants the Word of Kemmler - and all the power that comes with it. But first, Harry's keen to know what he'd be handing over. Before long he's racing against time, and six necromancers, to get the Word. And to prevent a Halloween that would truly wake the dead.
Reviewed on 8th October 2016
Zombies are the monster of the week in this, the seventh book about Harry Dresden, Chicago's local wizard for hire. Knock-on effects of the previous books in the series lead to several uglies seeking out the secrets of necromancy, and Dresden is once again sucked in.
I found it quite hard to get into this story. The beginning relies on recalling who a number of people are that are hanging over from previous stories, and continues to introduce new ones to Dresden's gang. Once I'd reached about halfway though the story seemed to liven up a bit and start to draw me in to the point where I was racing through.
One of the standout aspects of this particular story is the way Butcher has littered foreshadowing subtly throughout, and while I picked up on some of it from the classic Chekov's _______ presentation, a lot still surprised and delighted me when it came to the later reveal.
The climax of this one is excellent, and it does continue to build up the complex world of these stories - though I perhaps think I need to consider taking some sort of refresher course before hitting each new entry.
