Book 6), Blood Rites (The Dresden Files

When I first started reading this series, the first thing that came to mind was that this was an Anita Blake clone, only with a male protagonist instead of a female one. After six books, my impression hasn't yet changed much. Despite this, I have enjoyed the series very much as Butcher has managed to match (and surpass in recent books) the bar set by the excellent Laurell Hamilton.

The truth is that I have a problem remembering anything these days. So when you nice people at the store ask me why i say I like the book the truth is the only reason I know I liked it is I look back in my Kindle 7 HD and see I finished it. If I see I stopped after reading 25% or more I didn't enjoy it enough to stick with it.

I enjoyed the book and the others in the series, but $10 seems expensive for a book that doesn't have to be printed, distributed, shipped or housed. There are lots of other ebook options for a lot less.

In reading the series consecutively you keep things more or less straight in your head, but this one was a curveball. It may be #6, but until halfway through it felt #0.5. Pretty clunky. But the ending redeemed it somewhat . Hope #7 is more on track.

Don't waste your money on book 3 & 6! With every book the hero becomes stupider. A stupid person would've done something and improved himself by this time but not Harry. He has to be the dumbest hero ever.
It gets boring to read about the same stupid mistakes
repeated in every book.

Similar to the last couple of novels in the series, the novel half is dedicated to the "case" Dresden is working on (here: curses around a filming studio), and the other half is dealing with the series largest arc of the war between wizards and vampires.

I won't repeat what has been said already about plot, but focus on setting readers' expectations.

*** What to expect
A thriller style tale of a wise-cracking paranormal detective. The pace is rapid as things continually get from Bad to Worse. This doesn't stop Dresden from making bad jokes and flippant comments. The characters are comfortable by now, both old and news ones described with enough depth that engages the reader. It's great to see all of them progress and evolve along the series.

Note that the two plot-lines interweave but aren't tightly related. On the one hand we have Dresden chasing a curse afflicting a filming studio, and in the other line his life is threatened by a vampire resurfacing from book #3.

*** Be aware
You really should read the books in order. While the first few could be mixed a little, as the series progresses it build on top of events and characters from previous novels.
Also, note that Dresden's "chivalry" can come off as misogynistic at times. He's semi-joking about it himself and it is a trope of the genre, but some sensitive readers might find it off-putting. This is particularly noticeable, as the film in question is of the adult variety.

*** Summary
I really enjoyed this novel. Butcher has reached a comfortable style and pace, his characters (even the annoying ones) are drawn well with their own voices and personalities, and the plots hit that exactly right level of over-the-top to keep you on the edge of your seat.

--
Assaph Mehr, author of Murder In Absentia: Togas, Daggers, and Magic - for lovers of Ancient Rome, Murder Mysteries, and Urban Fantasy.

I’ve really been enjoying The Dresden Files series so far. Blood Rites opens with a bang and just kept going. The war between vampires and wizards is still going strong, but that doesn’t stop Harry. He’s got to pay the bills and so he finds himself in another odd situation.

I will say I felt a little lost at the being and was trying to remember who Thomas was, but I think this had to do with how much time between the books before I read. I just forgot some things is all, but I soon remember and was all in.

Blood Rites put’s a lot of the characters into perspective; Murphy goes outside the cop role and tries on the vigilante aspect and Thomas - HOLLY COW I didn’t see that one coming.

As for Harry he’s feeling a little sad in this one, but he gets a few surprise, well we all do. I didn’t expect them and I loved it.

Blood Rites was an action-packed mystery adventure. It’s a turning point for the series and I just have to say, PUPPIES, adorable. Another stunning installment.

Rated: 4 Stars

4.5-5 stars

This was a great story and addition the the series. Harry is hired to keep some people alive that seem to be the victims of a curse. Unexpectedly, this ends up being on the set of a porno that's being filmed right there in Chicago. While Harry is trying to protect everyone on the film, he also has other issues to deal with, mostly having to do with Vampires. Thomas, of the white court, is the one that asked Harry to help protect the people doing the film and this brings Harry into some trouble. Also, the black court vampires are in town, looking to do some harm. Harry ends up being rather busy trying to protect the people on the film while working on finding out who's behind the curses and dealing with the vampires but thankfully, things work out well and Harry ends the story on a good note.

I really enjoyed this story a lot. I love Harry as a hero. He's such a smart ass while trying to be a good guy and do the right thing. He's often taken advantage of and messed with but he manages to come out on top and usually with some unexpected ploy that I wouldn't have been nearly crafty enough to think of. I particularly liked this addition of Harry's story because he finds out he has....wait for it....family!!! It may not seem like much but for Harry, I think this is something that will be very good for him. I'm really loving this series (I would recommend it and it's getting better as it goes) and am looking forward to the next installment. :)

* note - I listened to the audio version of this story and James Marsters did a great job with the narration.

Harry Dresden is back and taking on the most important cases to save humanity. His latest case? Saving a bunch of puppies from demons. Okay, so you take what you can get sometimes, as long as it pays. Fortunately, it leads into another case. A White Court vampire that has helped Harry out a few times wants a favor. Protect a friend. Setting aside that vampires and wizards are supposed to be at war, Harry takes the case. After all, he's not a fan of the council of wizards anyway.

Oh and this friend, he's an adult film producer. Wait, what? But when starlets start dying and nasty spells are the cause, Harry adjusts his pants and dives right in. Our fearless wizard comes up with no shortage of suspects, from vapid actresses, vindictive ex-wives, to, oh yeah, more vampires. It will take all of Harry's skills to find the culprit. Even worse, The vampire friend is hiding something from him. A secret that will shake the Harry's world to the core. Non-stop danger from the moment the director cries 'action'.

Jim Butcher builds on his already rich world with this latest installment. Wizardry and wonton destruction abound. I especially liked this novel, because it introduces two new characters that become formidable allies in later books. The gritty world of the Dresden Files continues to engross urban fantasy readers as the monsters and wizards do battle in modern day Chicago.

I had decided to reread this series, as I felt that my last reviews were not written up to the high standard in which I hold this series. This book, Blood Rites, introduces one of my favorite characters, Mouse, into Harry’s life. This book also adds a little more depth to the White and Black court of vampires. Full warning before reading this book for yourself, this book series is written from behind the eyes of an adult male character and the White Court of vampires, as learned in previous books, feed on emotions, the Raith house feeding on lust.
That said, Harry is offered a job to stop killings happening around a man that Tomas Raith knows. In the line of helping this man, Harry also wants to track down and destroy a group of Black Court vampires that have taken root in town before things get too out of hand while also trying to find a house for a lost puppy from a previous job. The cursed murders continue to happen and, because he knows too much, Harry inevitably becomes the next target. With so much against him, can he find a way to come out of all of it alive and unharmed? Find out by reading.
The Dresden Files is a modern fantasy series taking place in Harry’s chosen home, Chicago. These action-packed mystery books are some of my favorites and are always worth rereading, because many things that a reader may miss or not understand with the first few read-throughs become clearer with each reread.

Note: The previous book (Death Masks, Book 5) is where reading this series out of order starts to do you an injustice. This book does work as a stand alone to some extend, but you will get major spoilers for the previous books in the series and it also pulls in characters we have met before. So I recommend reading the previous books before you jump into this one.

Many years ago, a friend lent me her old Kindle in an attempt to bring me into the 21st century and this book was one of the first books listed and so I jumped right into it not knowing it was Book 6 in this series by some author I had never heard of. I absolutely loved it and went back and read the previous books. Now, finally, I have recently read the first 6 in order and I’m glad I did. Each book definitely builds upon the others and the larger story arc that holds them all together is much more apparent when the books are read in order.

Chicago’s only phone-book listed wizard is about to get pulled into a very odd job. Thomas Wraith, a White Court vampire, has helped Harry more than once and Harry isn’t too sure why. But now Thomas calls in a favor – he wants Harry to help his friend, a movie producer. He believes he is at the center of a curse, the Evil Eye. And since Thomas just helped him rescue a litter of Temple dogs from monkey poo flinging demons, Harry can’t say no. However, Thomas failed to mention that his friend works in the adult film industry. Harry is in for an education!

As Harry digs into the Evil Eye mystery, he is attacked by a vampire. It looks like he has to deal with a nesting Black Court vampire in the area and he suspects Mavra. Harry starts building his team of vampire hunters even as he narrows in on the cause of the Evil Eye. He taps Karrin Murphy for this hunt which is great. She was mostly absent in the last book. He also calls in Ebeneezer McCoy, his old mentor, and Kincaide, the bodyguard of the Archive. This mix leads to some interesting revelations about Ebeneezar and Kincaide. Pretty serious stuff!

Another reason I really enjoyed this story is that it introduces Mouse, Harry’s dog. In this book, he’s just a puppy and he gets snuggles from everyone, whether they be a police detective, a porn star, or a vampire. Everyone loves a floppy-eared pup. There’s also this dynamic between Harry and Thomas. They aren’t quite friends but they do have some mutual trust going on. Yet Harry still wonders why Thomas has helped him out as often as he has. In this book, Harry finds out. It’s pretty intense and we get to see the darker side to the White Court, which up to this point has been a rather mild bad guy organization of incubi.

There’s plenty of Harry’s snarky humor flung about in this book. I recognized some favorite movie references as well. While Harry works the Evil Eye case, he makes some interesting observations about the adult film industry, like how it’s not all that sexy to have someone yelling directions as you get busy. It’s done really well without being raunchy. By the end, Harry has suffered a serious physical injury and he’s also learned some truths that are hard to swallow. While the humor is great in this book, I enjoyed the serious parts more. I definitely feel like Dresden is being prepped by something (fate? a twisted author?) for something bigger.

The Narration: James Marsters is a continued win for the voice of Harry. He also did a Greek accent for the movie producer that was well done. I really liked the screaming of Harry and Thomas as they attempted to avoid the demons in the opening scenes. His regional accent for Ebeneezar was great and his ultra-spooky voice for Mavra was hair raising!

The Dresden Files are getting better and better. I wasn't sure I liked Harry when I first met him but by now, I really do. Yes, the self-deprecating has bothered me before but I guess now I'm getting used to it or he has toned it down a little. I do love Thomas and I'm glad where the story was taken about his character and his family. I hate that Thomas's love for Justina at this point seems impossible and without a solution. Hopefully, when the series ends, Thomas and Justina will get their HEA.

Harry is also just realizing that he's attracted to Murphy and him trying to avoid falling for her is kind of cute. Not sure Murphy isn't hiding feelings of her own. Although, she seems to like Kincaid who's a very intriguing character too.

One thing I missed in this book was Michael and Marcone.
One thing I love-----THERE IS A PUPPY!! I know silly how happy it made me to add Mouse to the ensemble of characters. And it's not your ordinary puppy, no sir. He is going to be a beast for sure! I love how Mister is so dismissived of him.

Bob always has some comedy relief which is very needed with so much tension and so many things trying to kill Harry.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

This was the first one of these books I read instead of listened to, and while it was definitely enjoyable, I do think it lost a little something for me. For one, it seemed less action packed than usual, which is probably partially due to the fact that I read much faster than audiobooks do, so I just breezed right through it.

Still, some great parts. Loved Murphy in this one. Each book I like her more and more, and it was nice to get more of her here. Mouse is freaking adorable. The twist with Thomas was fun, and I loved Harry's sweet thoughts. Didn't see the thing with McCoy coming, and I'm curious to see how that gets resolved. More Kincaid!

No Marcone in this one, but I guess you can't have everything. ;)

This one seemed to have lower stakes, and maybe after the excitement of the past two books, it felt a little small potatoes. IDK, still enjoyed immensely, and I already have the next book on my kindle.

Blood Rites is the book where I realized there was something truly magical about this series. It was weird, funny, serious, moving, and terrifying all at once. Previous books in the series have received a 10 out of 10 but this is the first book I'd give an 11 out of 10.

So what makes it so good? It's hard to describe but I'll start with the premise.

Harry Dresden is hired by the curiously egalitarian and non-sleazy porn producer Arturo Genosa who makes art films (with lots and lots of sex). This is already an inherently funny premise for any longtime fan because Harry has significant hang-ups about sex. It seems Arturo's production is under a curse and it's up to Harry to figure out a way to protect the actors and actresses from being killed. What's great is, it starts with Harry on the set of Boogie Nights and then moves to something which has a profound affect on the series as a whole. It seems Arturo's company is, in addition to having a curse laid on it, in deep debt to the vampire White Court. The White Court vampires are the succubi of the series, subsisting on the sexual energy of mortals but hurt by true love.

In a very clever but kind of surreal idea, the White Court promotes shallowness and artificiality through their massive media empire. Arturo doesn't effect this with his movies but he's a good enough movie producer they want to own him lock, stock, and barrel. Also, a couple of the White Court's Royal Family enjoy working at Arturo's company.

Seriously.

Harry is not a subtle wizard so he's completely at odds with the moves-within-moves intrigue of the White Court. Helping him navigate their machinations, which include everything from catspaws to Judas goats to contract law, is Thomas. Harry's ally from Grave Peril, Thomas is the friendliest vampire in the world. He's also the Prince of the White Court. Unfortunately, Thomas is the exiled Prince of the White Court since his father hates him. Harry has to figure out why Thomas has been helping him: is it because of morality, politics, or a deeper connection he can't even begin to guess at?

This book introduces characters like Lara Raith and expands on others well. We also get a lot of information about Harry's past and relationship to his long-dead (but very powerful) mother. In short, this is just the bee's knees and a book which is the quintessence of the Dresden Files. As Harry will say in a later book, "Yeah, that was that time I helped protect a bunch of porn stars from evil witches and vampires."

How can you NOT buy the book after that?"

11/10

This is my second Dresden Files novel (started out with library copies and this and Storm Front were the only two on the shelves). Ghost Story was checked out...but I find the transition to Harry becoming a dead character a bit hard to take at this point, early on in my discovery of the series, so trying to avoid all post-death novels at this time.

I thought Blood Rites was as good as Storm Front, probably better. It was faster paced, there was much more action and inevitable violence... (The sexual content is really minimal, just allusions for the most part, despite the fact that this centers around Harry being on the set of a porn studio during the course of his investigations...).

I thought this particular book was interesting in how it went into detail about all the different types of vampires - do not know if he had already fleshed that out fully in previous works but its quite creative and intricate here.

Murphy takes a real beating here. Makes me wonder how she became so committed to Harry and the cause, being willing to put herself through all that... Maybe something I missed in novels 2-5...

All in all, my first two experiences of these books makes me want to read them all, at least up to where Harry becomes a ghost! LOL

Harry rescues a box of adorable puppies from flying monkey-demons, with the assistance of Thomas, the vampire. Harry knows Thomas too well not to know he must want something in return, despite his thin excuse of needing a ride home. Cause yeah, wealthy vampires often have that problem, right? Harry’s right, of course. Thomas does want something. He wants Harry to help a friend of his who has a problem that is right up Harry’s alley.

Thomas’ friend thinks someone is trying to kill him. Maybe it’s the couple of mysterious deaths that have already happened around him? Harry agrees to talk to him, and he tells Thomas that if he takes the friend’s case, his price is the truth—he wants to know why Thomas has been helping him. Thomas says Harry won’t believe him, but he agrees to Harry’s terms.

Harry meets with Thomas’ friend, Arturo Genosa, a filmmaker who believes he’s been cursed. Other than by having three ex-wives. Harry agrees to take the case for his usual fee, but in order to do this, he has to stay close at hand, which means he needs a legitimate reason to be hanging around the film set. Arturo proposes making him a boom operator, until Harry confesses he has a problem with most technology. So Arturo makes Harry a production assistant and Harry agrees to be on the set the next day. Imagine Harry’s surprise when he discovers he’s working on a porn film!

While delving into the situation with the porn stars, Harry learns more about himself and his background then he’s ever learned before. Many revelations are made, some of them rather pleasing, and much is explained. Harry has a new sidekick, so to speak, in the form of one of the dogs he rescued who managed to hide away in the Beetle until after the others were returned. For now, Harry’s holding on to him.
I loved the truth about Thomas, and I also loved seeing another side of Murphy. This is one of my favorite books in the series so far, and I look forward to seeing a lot more of this new development.

Another great addition to the Dresden Files, can’t wait for the next one!

Blood Rites is the sixth in the Dresden Files series. This one is filled to the brim with sexy vampire-types. Though, thankfully, not the glittery, teen-angst ridden vampires common in writing these days. For Dresden, it’s the White Court of vampires. These vamps, if you don’t read Dresden, are vampires that basically feed of sex. And if you don’t read Dresden, you need to.
Harry, as usual, is being attacked from all angles and barely saves his neck. This book was action packed, and holds a few interesting surprises.
The series is very entertaining. The characters are fun. And the story-lines keep me wanting more.
Well done, as usual.
4.5 of 5 Stars (rounds to 5)

Sixth in the Dresden Files urban fantasy series about a wizard who also works as a private investigator in Chicago.

My Take
Harry does crack me up! Between flaming monkey poo and claiming to be a stunt double on the porn film set… And I agree with him about bean curd pizza. No sausage? It just ain’t pizza!

Aww, that’s sweet. A porn producer who wants to make tasteful films.

Whoa…all sorts of revelations in this one! Harry’s mom. Ebenezar and Kincaid’s feud. The truth is a hard line for Harry. One that has him repudiating the man whom he’s always seen as his second father. That past of Ebenezar’s? I’m not sure if it actually is his past, as it sounds like it’s a current occupation still. That ain’t the only hard truth in this. Well, besides the truth about Harry’s mum. Oh. Boy. There’s also that shadowy figure that crops up around Kincaid. Eeek.

It’s the usual, for Harry anyway. Rescues; physical, verbal, and emotional ambushes; demons; vampires; and, Harry diving in to the rescue of everyone.

At first glance, Lara’s excuse as to why Thomas is cut off makes sense. Until you think about it. Raith has hated Thomas forever and still gave him money. What’s changed? Strangely enough, Lara does promise to keep Thomas' greatest treasure safe.

Oh, crack me up! I love that last line: “Why did you get large breed Puppy Chow?”

The Story
It’s not enough to battle flying monkey demons and rescue puppies, now Thomas needs help on a porn film set.

And Lasciel’s sigil is the only cool spot on Harry’s hand. Seems the influence of that denarius isn’t being stopped.

The Characters
Harry “Hoss” Dresden is a wizard usually on the outs with the White Council. He toes the line at all times and has a dreadful need to save the world. Mister is his huge cat. Mouse becomes his puppy in this one. The Blue Beetle is Harry’s hard-done-by Volkswagen, the only vehicle that seems to survive his wizardry; Mike is the automotive repair equivalent of Jesus Christ. Bob the Skull is an air spirit with centuries of knowledge and experience who used to belong to Justin DuMorne, Harry’s mentor. DuMorne picked Harry up from an orphanage. Margaret Gwendolyn LeFay was Harry’s mother. Ebenezar “Blackstaff” McCoy is a member of the White Council and was Harry’s teacher after DuMorne’s death.

Thomas Raith is a vampire of the White Court, Lord Raith’s bastard son. Justine is the human Thomas loves. White Court vampires can walk in the sun and can abide holy articles and such, and they feed on emotions. Except for true love. True love, selfless love, when touched, will burn a White Vampire. The dictatorial Lord Raith hasn’t been right for years for all the power he wields over Lara and the rest. Harry has named Raith’s bodyguards, Ken and Barbies. Yup, plural. Bruce is the house doctor. Madrigal is a nasty cousin.

Lieutenant Karrin Murphy offended someone and ended up leading Special Investigations. She’s also a black belt in aikido --- a fact the newbies, like O’Toole (Mickey Malone’s nephew), don’t pay attention to, lol. The men under her include Sergeant Stallings. One of the very few things in life which scare Murphy is her family reunion: her mom, Marion, wants to know when she’ll be seeing grandchildren and Lisa is her little sister, engaged to Murphy’s ex-husband!, Rich, who is also a cop.

Arturo Genosa is a motion-picture producer of porn. Madge Shelly is the first ex-wife; blow-gun Lucille was the second. Stacy Willis was his chauffeur until she encountered those bees. Sheila Barks was a personal assistant. The sweet Jake Guffie, the twitchy Bobby, Giselle, and Emma are some of the actors. Joan Dallas is the actual producer. Silverlight is the studio from which Arturo broke away. Inari is the associate production assistant --- and a Raith, but not yet a vampire. Tricia Scrump, now Trixie Vixen (she got her name changed, *eyeroll*), is the drugged-up twink of a star who thinks she’s all that. The beyond gorgeous and incredibly sexy Lara Romany is an old friend who steps in to help out.

Kincaid guards the Archive, and he’s available for mercenary duties. As long as you pay him. He’s a changeling and has been Vlad Drakul’s right hand for centuries. He was known as the Hound of Hell, or the Hellhound.

Brother Wang from Tibet has hired Harry to recover stolen guardian foo puppies.

Mavra heads up the Black Court, and she’s after Harry. Kong is a monkey demon(s), to be more accurate, a shen, a Chinese demon shapeshifter that can split into more or morph back into one. The Walker is a very powerful demon Harry has encountered before.

The Cover
The cover is DARK with Harry in profile wearing his signature hat and trenchcoat, staff in hand, and wearing his mother’s pentacle. He’s standing in the mist between what looks like two demon dog statues.

The title is how entropy curses are fueled, with Blood Rites.

In the previous book in this series (Death Masks), Jim Butcher lays out four revelations regarding Harry Dresden that promise to be possible pivot points in the ongoing storyline. Using the character of Nicodemus, a demon collaborator with the Fallen, as his conduit, Butcher first provides both the reader and Harry an additional piece of evidence that his mother had been a practitioner of black magic. Secondly, Nicodemus tells Harry that he is not an only child but his mother’s youngest child.

Thirdly, Nicodemus informs Harry that he is not totally human and could border on being immortal. Harry actually misses that part, by the way, due to the pain and agony caused by Nicodemus torturing him at the time.

And finally, in the last pages, Nicodemus tricks Harry into picking up a coin bearing the sigil of one of the Fallen that he has thrown right at the feet of Michael Carpenter’s baby. Quite frankly, it never dawns on Harry to just grab the baby up. Instead, without a holy cloth barrier, Harry slams his hand down on the coin. When he does, a force shoots up his arm; he feels a soul stretching into wakefulness and then hears soft, indistinct whisperings. Oh, yeah – cliffhanger and pivot point all in one package!

Now, in this very next book, those four pivots morph into a fulcrum on which is mounted a catapult loaded with the fiery orbs of truth about Harry’s birth, his childhood and his apprenticeship as wizard of the White Council. And the unraveling of that truth starts out so innocently.

Thomas Raith, a vampire in the ruling House of the White Court, hires Harry to identify and stop the entity that is trying to kill Arturo Genoso, a movie producer who is trying to break away from a big studio on the West Coast and start his own production company in Chicago. From Thomas’ description of the two attempts that have killed women around Genoso, but not Genoso himself, Harry figures an entropy curse is in play. That type of curse is something Harry likes to steer well clear of, but Thomas plays the “I’ve-saved-your-hide-several-times-now-it’s-your-turn” card. So Harry signs on.

The remainder of the novel takes place in a little over 48 hours. But, in that short time, Jim Butcher doesn’t just throw Dresden and the reader the one bone of an entropy curse to gnaw on and digest. He hits us with the whole hog – an entropy curse seeking to kill Harry, flaming purple demon monkeys trying to burn Harry alive, Black Court vampires trying to tear Harry to pieces, other Black Court vampires trying to burn Harry alive, Kincaid and McCoy at each other’s throats in front of Harry, and White Court vampires trying to sacrifice – literally and ritually – both Thomas and Harry.

Then, in the middle of these life-threatening scenarios, Butcher decides to up the ante and releases that catapult, one pivotal orb at a time. Massive deceptions and lies of omission are revealed, one after another, even as Harry battles the vampires and the maker of the entropy curse, trying to keep Thomas, Murphy and himself alive. By the time the final sling of the catapult flies, over three decades of Harry’s life have figuratively gone up in flames. And the literal flames have not been so good to Harry either.

Even by the midpoint of the book, the savvy reader knows that the ramifications of the truths revealed to that point are not such that Harry is going to be able to just take them in stride, say “so be it,” and move on. And by the end of the book, the final slings of the catapult stand to shatter the very backbone of Harry’s existence and sever from it the tenets on which he was raised by his father and McCoy.

Butcher makes you feel the hurt, the betrayal, the rage, the need to replace helplessness with power, and the desire to kill that is now throbbing through Harry’s veins and brain. As you approach the final pages you cannot help but feel that the next book or two will be heavy and dark. And you wonder whether Butcher will, in that time, choose to lose the wise-cracking private investigator who champions human rights or will bring out, instead, a practitioner of the magic that is as black as the glove Harry now wears on his left hand.

*Book source ~ Purchased at Audible

Harry Dresden, Chicago’s only wizard and a private investigator, agrees to take a job recommended to him by White Court vampire Thomas Wraith. Arturo Genosa, film producer, appears to be targeted by an entropy curse and Thomas would like for Harry to protect Arturo & the people on the set and find out who is behind the curse. Since Thomas had helped Harry rescue a litter of Tibetian Temple puppies from a pretty dicey situation, Harry agrees to look into it. Little did he know he would end up with a puppy, working on the set of a porn film and getting in the middle of White Court vampire politics. Some days he really shouldn’t leave his apartment.

Guest reviewers:
A ~ my 16-yr-old daughter
T ~ my 14-yr-old son
K ~ my 13-yr-old son

I think, by far, the most favorite addition to the growing cast in the Dresden Universe is Mouse the puppy. Everyone loves him. There’s news about Thomas that was a surprise, but everyone cautiously likes, Ebenezer and Kincaid are back and still favorites though Kincaid is a mystery that needs solving and Anna particularly liked meeting Murphy’s family though no one liked her sister. They thought it was interesting to see Thomas’s Hunger and the whole bit in the picture gallery was a big surprise.

The fight with the Black Court vampires was a hit and we thought the part where Murphy had to take her pants off was funny. It really is. You’ll see. A & T did not like what happened to Harry during the fight (his injury), but K did. When asked why his reply was: “It looks cool and I know what happens in future books.” Well, ok then. :D

Favorite moments:
A ~ meeting Mouse or any part with Kincaid in it. (Hmmm…)
T ~ the conclusions to any and all fights
K ~ when Trixie died because she was really annoying

Favorite quotes has a tie:
“Everyone stopped to blink at that for a second. I mean, come on. Impaled by a guided frozen turkey missile. Even by the standards of the quasi-immortal creatures of the night, that ain’t something you see twice. “For my next trick," I panted into the startled silence, ‘anvils.”

“An errand is getting a tank of gas or picking up a carton of milk or something. It is not getting chased by flying purple pyromaniac gorillas hurling incendiary poo!” ~ Thomas

The sixth novel in the Dresden Files has our hero, Harry Dresden, the only professional wizard in the phone book, facing a curse that is killing women involved with an adult film. The women are dying in strange, comedic ways and he takes on the job as a favor to Thomas, a White Court vampire he's been pretty friendly with. But as he digs deeper into this mystery, more and more about Dresden's family is revealed. This is all while Mavra, Black Court vampire from Grave Peril, is trying to gun our hero down.

Blood Rites is a busy book that embodies everything that the Dresden Files is about. Lots of revelations, lots of twists and turns, lots of bad guys to take down, and a lot of heart. Dresden continues to be a sympathetic and human hero and his interactions with Murphy and Thomas are just as good as ever in this book.

The action in this book is pretty good though I've rarely commended the series for having excellent action scenes. It maintains a lot of momentum though, and has enough nail biting moments to keep you reading deep into the night.

It's not the best book in the series by far, but it's still a great continuation of a fantastic series.

Best Books in the Series:
1, Death Masks
2. Summer Knight
3. Grave Peril
4. Blood Rites
5. Storm Front
6. Fool Moon

Blood Rites is another great book by Jim Butcher. With every book, Harry grows into his hero status plus an even more powerful wizard. His humanity shines through even stronger in this book. And of course, James Marsters’ narration is excellent!

The central them to Blood Rites is family. Harry has no family or so he thinks. I won’t give away any spoilers but his discovery throws him into complete disarray. He doesn’t know how to react; but in the end, he embraces his new relationships. It is really touching how Harry comes to terms with his new life.

Karin, also, has family issues. In her case, she has lots of family drama. Due to all their family drama, Karin and Harry become even closer friends. They, repeatedly, put their lives on the line for each other. I continue to wonder how their relationship with evolve. At certain points in the book, Harry does show some jealousy which was very amusing.

Thomas just broke my heart in Blood Rites. His relationship with Justine is just so bittersweet. At times, he seems so completely lost. I loved that, in the end, he is able to find someone he could trust and rely on.

I love Mouse. I’m a complete sucker for puppies. I think he is going to make one hellacious watchdog. I can’t wait until he grows up.

Blood Rites is a fun and action-packed book. I love the emotion and the humor that runs throughout it. I can’t wait to start Dead Beat; which I have already downloaded and I’m ready to press play.

This is the first book I've read in the Dresden series. I was both exited and apprehensive when I got this book. I'm a big fan of the short-lived TV series but I wasn't sure if that would translate over to the books as I'd heard there were substantial differences between the two.

I was pleased to find that the book moved at a fast pace. Nearly every chapter ends in a cliffhanger type conclusion that virtually dares the reader not to continue... it's a real page turner!

The story: Chicago wizard for hire Harry Dresden is persuaded by Thomas, a vampire acquaintance, to accept a job on the set of a porno movie in an attempt to find out the cause of several unexplained deaths associated with the film's producer. Along the way Harry begins to doubt the motives of his "friend" Thomas as he encounters things that are way more intense than expected... there are great powers at work. To make matters worse an old enemy has reentered the picture and is looking for a showdown with Harry... making for a full rich adventure full of magic, mayhem and smack downs.

A blurb in the book compares Harry Dresden to a wizard version of The Rockford Files -- that's a pretty good description. Like Jim Rockford, Dresden is perpetually short on cash, at times in over his head, has several "friends" of questionable scruples and seems to wind up taking more than his share of punishment along the way.

I don't read a lot of fantasy novels, although I am a HUGE fan of mysteries, so I found the mythology of Dresden's world a bit annoying and distracting. The whole Black Court, Red Court, White Court thing was a little hard to follow and were it not for several story lines in the TV series that covered some of the same ground I'm not entirely sure I would have been able to follow it all. There was more than one occasion when the explanations of what had gone before (in previous books) slowed the story to a crawl and often the references didn't really give a coherent picture of what the previous events had been or why they were important.

I like the character of Dresden a lot! I love his humor, wise cracks and world outlook. I wish the story had been a more self contained and a little less reliant on his past experiences. If all the books are like this I can see how someone could become addicted to this series... it's fun mix of fantasy and mystery, has a lot of action and the characters are well developed. Not sure it's for me but if wizards, vampires, magic and demons are your thing then you should definitely give it a try.

***This review is of a book I received as part of a free promotional giveaway contest.

This is rather hard to review. Reading this was broken into multiple sessions due to a nasty string of migraines: therefore, it wasn't a straight shot. Please forgive the lack of a coherent review!

After reading the first few books, I stopped trying to expect what the Dresden books would be about. While there is a definite story line, in some ways they all appear to be a standalone. I feel that the beginning of the books are always rather forced and contrived. Wanting to start a book every book right in the middle of action is a sign of an immature writer. For me, it takes a bit to get into a Dresden book. However, usually once it gets going, they are pretty steady and enjoyable. This one was no different.

Butcher touches on Harry's mother a bit more in this book. She is mentioned off and on from the beginning, but usually only in passing and veiled comments from his "Aunt." However, after learning a startling realization, Harry is actually able to come face-to-face with her and make some pretty interesting discoveries. Further, he learns some things about his old mentor, Ebenezar, that shake him to the core. While it is extremely unexpected, I didn't like the revelation. In a lot of ways, I felt it was out of character of what the audience has been shown up to this point. It seemed like a weak plot device, and I'm not sure why he did it.

In this book, you get to see a little more of Murphy and some of her family. Honestly, I wonder if her family isn't more screwed up than Harry's! It was extremely surprising to see Murphy being willing to come with Harry on his quest to kill Mavra and stop the White Court. Even though she is big about stopping the paranormal badies, it seemed a little out of character for her to turn vigilante. However, I did kind of like seeing that side of her. Plus, it was awesome seeing Harry as her "bitch"!

The banter in this book is up to the same level as the previous books. It kept me laughing, even when it hurt too. Kincaid and Murphy made an interesting pair. And, like Harry, I will never forget her fighting off badies in undies with pink bows!

All in all, I did enjoy this book! I loved the puppy and am curious to see how that turns out. Also, it will be neat to watch the new relationship with Thomas grow. So, even though the beginning was forced, I think Butcher set himself up for another few good books.

This is the sixth book in the Dresden Files series of urban fantasies about Harry Dresden, a private investigator in Chicago who is also a powerful wizard. This time around, the start of all Harry's troubles happens when a friend of his, Thomas Raith, a White Court Vampire (there are three kinds, White, Red and Black Court), asks him to investigate deaths on a movie set of a close friend of Thomas. They seem to be accidents, but they are so bizarre that Thomas thinks are caused by black magic.

This book strongly advances the relationship between Thomas and Harry in a fascinating way. As always, the action is continuous, with the thrills continually escalating.

The sound quality of this audio recording is excellent and it is an unabridged version of the book. It is narrated by actor James Marsters, best known for playing the character Spike, a platinum-blond, British vampire in the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off series Angel, between 1997 and 2004. Marsters does an outstanding job on every part of the reading, making listening in that regard a real pleasure. If he had not been a good reader, it would have been hard for me to sit through the full book--bad readers can destroy one's pleasure in even the most wonderful novel. I am extremely grateful for Mr. Marsters's reading talents not just for their own sake, but because experiencing this novel as an audiobook gave me the opportunity to admire Jim Butcher's writing even more than I did before--which I did not think was possible. In my experience of listening to audio versions of books, very few of them can stand up to the intense focus of being read aloud, which is much slower than reading silently to oneself. This relative snail's pace acts to draw attention to every problem of dialogue, pacing and plot.

I am happy to report that under that intense spotlight, I experienced not a single flaw in this book.

I am not a person who often reads a book more than once--too much to read and far too little time. But this book was definitely worth experiencing twice. And owning this recording means I may listen to it far more times than that in the future.

This is one of the best purchases I ever made.

This book starts of with a flying pack of demon monkeys, throwing fiery poo at Dresden. And it just gets weirder and stranger. There are pissy little baby pups, a scourge of Black Court vampires, an investigation that causes Dresden on site at a porn stage, falling poultry used as a indirect fire weapon, killer bees, a dangerous cautionary tale for water skiers, juicy family news for Dresden, a full battalion of vindictive ex-wives, gross and painful permanent injuries, lust-driven psychic vampires and maybe I forgot something in there with this hot mess.

But it is a Dresden train-wreck. We can't look away. We want to, need to, see what's going to happen. How the hell is he going to pull this one off?

There has been so much character development in this series, they start to feel like a family. And in a way they are; Dresden has so many friends gathered by nothing but his need to do the right thing. They trust him, and they look to him for help, no matter how dangerous the need may be. And he gets it in his thick head to tackle these problems as quickly and as brutally he. You'd think by now he learned better. But if he did, he wouldn't be the Harry we've come to loved.

In my opinion, this is the best of the series to date. Again, awesome plot points revealed... and one you will probably have issue in excepting. We're definitely seeing a much larger picture and turning the pages will slowly reveal certain truths.

I know. It's a pain in the rear to write a review well enough and not spoil any surprises. Just just repeat my mantra "In Butcher we trust."

I'm in this series for the long haul. Hope to see you around Jim's corner of the library.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZikvWB48LCQ
Please people with the money, if you buy a new book, include a used one in your shopping cart. That will help the store enormously in their storage, and it can help you too. At some places the price can’t lower to lesser a penny. Take a used book for a 0.01$ anywhere.
It has many usage including, “Cash4Books.net”
Recycle it or Burn it for survival heat. Use two books as spacers to raise your monitor because it’s always better to view at eye leveled to the center of your screen. Even better, send it to donation, any library would take it, or the third world too.
Do not fear a book because it has no teeth!!
When you open your used book, wear gloves if you have to, then you’ll realize, “This book ain’t that bad after all.”
Good read and peace!!
- Ricky

I love these books and am currently reading them over from the beginning before I start the ones I haven’t read yet. There is so much action they are a bit exhausting but in s good way. Harry is a great character, he is the Jim Rockford of the supernatural. The cast of supporting characters is also good. His women are tough and strong not damsels who need to be rescued. Except when they are demons or super bad ass fae. I strongly recommend this book and the whole series.

Butcher's Harry Dresden series is a guilty pleasure of mine - the mashup of detective noir with supernatural / fantasy elements makes for great escapist reading. _Blood Rites_ has Harry working undercover (figuratively, not literally) for a porn producer whose staff and actors are being murdered, with several failed attempts. It motive could be economic as competitors seek to drive the producer out of business, or it could have supernatural origins: enter Harry Dresden, consulting detective.

As Dresden begins his investigation, he is pulled into much deeper waters than just the adult film industry. Political strife within the supernatural world and a price on Dresden's head complicate his work. Butcher does a fantastic job of keep readers off balance, never knowing who Dresden should trust, the story dense with red-herrings and dead-end clues. In terms of mystery writing, it is a fun read. Butcher's dry wit, snappy dialogue and self-depreciating humor with Dresden will certainly keep me coming back, but the story on the whole wasn't as strong, I thought, as the first few novels.

When you first open up Blood Rites , the first chapter seems to read like something out of The Wizard of Oz movie crossed with that song One Eyed, One Horned Flying Purple People Eater as Harry of course is being chased by Purple Flying Monkey Demons which are chasing these Blessed Dogs , though for those who are very familiar with Harry Dresden - we don't really expect anything least dangerous when it comes to Harry - his name and trouble seem to go hand in hand. In Blood Rites , we read as Harry hits the world of Pornography and Erotic Films as he goes undercover to find out who or what is killing the women around film Director Arturo Genosa. He has been hired by Thomas - A White Court Vampire whom we discover their speciality of feeding is on emotions and energy. As Harry goes undercover as the Producation Assistant, we start to wonder if that is a wise idea as we all know what happens when Wizards are allowed near Technology - As the novel continues we witness as strange and odd deaths occur and then we discover the rest of Thomas's family and witness as Harry is thrown wham-bam into the middle of the White Court Family affairs. Though as it is discovered Harry may be closer in bloodlines to Thomas than anyone realised. We also meet other Vampires in Blood Rites as Harry along with Murp, Kincaid and Ebenzer take down the Red Court Vampires. This is also the first novel where Guy readers will be able to imagine and visualise Murph in a dress as she attends her family reunion and what will happen when she discovers the guy her Baby Sister Lisa is marrying is her 2nd Ex-Husband ?
Find out in Blood Rites - the 6th Book in The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher

This one started out slow but I actually ended up enjoying it as it picked up a decent pace mid-way through. Having had ups and downs with this series I was a bit wary when I was already fifty pages in and still wondering if anything was going to happen. I am glad I was pleasantly surprised. Since this book could almost be read as a stand alone and the fact that there are so many of them I won't be doing a recap.

Harry Dresden is a wizard with his own ad in the yellow pages. Frequently he is hired to help people with their magical problems, and this case is no different. Ok, so maybe its a little different considering his employer is an acquaintance of his from the White Court of vampires. And just what is Dresden supposed to do for him? Go undercover on a porno shoot because someone has enacted a curse that is slowly killing off all the ladies on the shoot. He thinks someone has it in for the head guy on the film and is getting to him this way. To make matters difficult there are a couple vampires from the White Court on the shoot as well, and they aren't as friendly to Harry as his employer, Thomas is.

If that isn't enough, Harry knows that some members of the Black Court are in town, and they are trying to kill him. So he decides to take up the offense and attack the vampires in their lair. He enrolls the help of Lt. Murphy, a friend of his, and hires a mercenary as well. Throw in an old teacher of his and things start to look interesting and even up for Harry for once. He's got a pretty good team to go against these dangerous creatures. Things never go according to plan though and between this and the curse at the porno shoot, Harry's got a lot to deal with.

Harry as a character was a bit better in this book and definitely more believable. He loses a bit of the guilt and a bit of the weakness and really starts to stand on his own. He also doesn't say hell's bells as much which is a definite positive. Murphy comes into her own in this book and does a good job of kicking monster butt. I also enjoyed the puppy added to the series as a new pet. Not only is he adorable, but he gives Harry's cat Mister someone to pal around with and have the regular cat-dog relationship with. There are other characters of course, but they play a lower role than Murphy and Dresden in this book. Kincaid the mercenary should be mentioned just because he is a strong character, but at the same time very very mysterious. Despite this, Harry gets along with him ok.

Butcher does a bit better on not being overly descriptive in this novel. There aren't any three page narratives on what Harry is wearing which is good since he is the narrator. The plot was well done as well and ended up pretty exciting. My only complaints on his writing are that it took him awhile to get into this story to make it interesting. He could have easily cut out about fifty pages from the book without the reader missing anything.

I'm actually looking forward to the next in the series which is a vast improvement over my feelings after the previous books I've read of Butchers. So its on to the next and hopefully its just as good or better than this one.

Blood Rites
Copyright 2004
372 pages

Review by M. Reynard 2010

I watched the TV series first, and fell in love. I really looked forward to reading the books, but when I tried, they fell flat. I thought they were poorly written, with a character I much like and predictable plots.

Well, the audio version went on sale, in a buy two get one free, and the I used this book as "filler" so I could get the other two I really wanted.

Then, I listened to it.

Wow, what a difference. The narrator who reads the Dresden books is amazing. The sarcasm that comes through has me laughing out loud. Harry Dresden becomes endearing, quirky and fabulous! The Dresden Files feel like a cross between Harry Potter, Indiana Jones and Constantine (I'm thinking of that movie with Keanu Reeves). The mystical creatures at times are contrived and rather cartoonish, but where I found that at first to be silly and childish, I find rather dark and insidious given the evil inherent in these beings while in the trappings of fairy tales. I think it was the narrator himself who brought these nuances out for me. I have grown fond of Bob and Murphy and Harry and Thomas and the others as the series has gone on. I am almost caught up to the last book, and I will be sad when I have no more to listen to.

Of the first six, this one is my least favorite so far. The plot was a little more predictable, and Harry himself came across as more bitter and depressed than sarcastic. Perhaps this was intentional, but it did not make for as entertaining a read as the others.

However, I have always like Thomas, and after the outcome of this book, I hope to see more of him. I was also glad to see more of Murphy. I like her too, so a little more development there was gratifying.

Once again this is another homerun for Jim Butcher in his Dresden Files series. This time out Dresden is playing sleuth/body guard as a favor to his friend, white court vamp Thomas Wraith. A number of porn stars have been killed via entropy curses which kill their victims in serious accidents. While investigating the killings, Dresden also has to fight off Marva and her black court vampires who are trying to turn Dresden into lunch as well as White court vampires who are also at war with the wizards White Council. This time Dresden has the help of a half human/demon merc named Kincaid, Ebenezer McCoy the Blackstaff (White Council assassin who previously brought a Russian Satellite out of orbit and crushed a Red Court compound belonging to Professor Ortega leaving no survivors), Lt.Karrin Murphy of Chicago PD, Thomas Wraith, a White Court vamp, and a puppy. As Dresden helps a porn producer and his stars avoid nasty deaths, deals with nasty ex wives and fights off vampires he also makes some surprise family discoveries which were great twists to the storyline. This is probably the best Dresden Files book yet. Once again great humor, great action, and surprise plot twists. I look forward to more books from Jim Butcher and recommend this book to anyone and everyone.

t has been a while since I have read any installments in the Jim Butcher series "The Dresden Files", so when I started Blood Rites it felt really slow. In fact I kept putting it down and reading other books.

Book Number 6 in the series actually feels like a "bridging novel". It concentrates more on Harry's personal life, then it does on chasing one particular demon. I think this kind of story is really important to the overall story in the series.

I don't usually put spoilers in these little mini-reviews I do, but I can't resist with this one. I uttered a huge "oh wow" when I read that Harry and Thomas, a White Court Vampire, are related. It makes so much sense now, when you recall their relationship, but wow. Of course it now makes the story interesting, as Thomas has been disinherited by the White Court and is now by his side. It will be interesting to see how the story develops from here, and of course the reappearance of Walker, a demon Harry thought he had banished.

This installment has definitely made me want to read more in the series, and I'm sure I will be settling down to read "Dead Beat" soon.

Harry Dresden, the only wizard/private detective listed in the Chicago yellow pages runs into some family problems in this, the sixth novel in the Dresden Files series. Rather ironic since Dresden is an orphan and his relationship with his girlfriend Susan has hit a serious snag - her being halfway turned into a vampire has caused a few problems. Still Harry has had to keep on taking on jobs in order to pay the rent. As the story opens Harry has rescued a litter of puppies from the demons who had kidnapped them. The mission seemed to have reached a satisfactory conclusion when he returned the pups, even if one had been inadvertently left behind in Harry's car. After all it shouldn't be all that difficult to send it on its way as soon as he got a minute to spare right? What Harry didn't realize was that the simple body guarding assignment for a film director would lead him in the path of the dysfunctional ruling family of the White Court vampires. Harry had met part of the White Court earlier, the vampire Thomas had aided Harry in the past for reasons that Harry could not quite understand. As if that was not enough Harry's lone ally on the CPD, Det. Murphy had her own family problems that spilled over into Harry's life. Harry's mentor, Ebenezar, the closest known thing Harry had to family even arrived on the scene to lend a hand. Before all questions were answered though Harry's world would change in ways that he never imagined possible.

The DRESDEN FILES are a popular series of urban dark fantasies set in Chicago and featuring Wizard Harry Dresden and his efforts to keep the magical world of the Nevernever from spilling into the mundane world. The overall story arc in this series is quite pronounced so for maximum enjoyment begin reading this at the beginning, STORM FRONT and proceed in order.

Harry's friend, Thomas, a vampire from the White Court, asks Harry for a favor: His friend, Arturo Genosa, an adult film producer, believes than an entropy curse has been laid upon him. The women in his films are meeting untimely and intriguingly spectacular deaths, and Arturo doesn't know why. As Harry investigates, he wonders if the studio Arturo left behind could be behind it all. But as his investigation continues, new information comes to light and it becomes more than that.

Meanwhile, Mavra, a vampire from the Black Court is back - and is after Harry. He hires Kincaid to help him get rid of her and recruits his cop friend, Murphy, and his mentor and teacher, Ebenezar McCoy, knowing that he and Kincaid can't do it alone.

Thomas's family becomes involved in Harry's investigation of the entropy curse, leaving Harry confused and wondering if Thomas set him up. However, a soulgaze with Thomas brings forth something that Harry had never known: Harry's mother had been one of Lord Raith's women - the head of the White Court vampires and Thomas's brother. Thomas is Harry's half-brother.

And just when Harry is left wondering if there are any more surprises... Harry learns that Kincaid isn't exactly human. He also learns that Ebenezar is also known as Blackstaff McCoy - the one who takes care of the `ugly' matters that the White Council won't take care of themselves. Ebenezar has done things he's not proud of, including lying to Harry. It was Thomas's father, Lord Raith, who had found Harry's mother, Margaret LeFay, and killed her shortly after Harry was born. Now, more than ever, Harry is determined to get rid of Lord Raith.

Holy crow, did a lot of things come to light in this book. Harry's friendship with Murphy grows deeper, and Murphy learns she has more courage than she thought she had. He wonders if Mavra is gone for good and how he's going to get the funds to pay Kincaid before Kincaid's `deadline'. Thomas is his brother, who has been banned from the Raith House and is now staying with Harry for the moment. Arturo's entropy curse has been put to rest. He is unsure if he'll ever forgive Ebenezar.

As with all the Dresden novels, the magic and action are pumped up, raising this reader's adrenaline. I love how Harry manages to figure out everything, fitting all the pieces together. The mix of friends and enemies are always at the forefront, and Harry's sarcasm comes out more and more. I love his quirkiness, his relationship with Murphy as well as Bob. The author manages to give the reader explanations to rituals and rules, both Black Court and White Court vampires alike; their differences in powers and formalities. But he doesn't go overboard, avoids creating anything formal as to limiting his story line for future novels. Butcher's blend of paranormal/supernatural, occult beliefs and magic creates a world unlike any other - something distinct that you can't compare to other series' in this genre. Bravo, Mr. Butcher!

You can't get better than Harry Dresden. This series is highly recommended to those who like paranormal and sci-fi novels.

If you are a fan of the Dresden Files TV series and are considering checking into the print series, do yourself a favor and start at the beginning. This book is sixth in the series, preceded by, in order:

Storm Front Storm Front (The Dresden Files, Book 1)

Fool Moon Fool Moon (The Dresden Files, Book 2)

Grave Peril Grave Peril (The Dresden Files, Book 3)

Summer Knight Summer Knight (The Dresden Files, Book 4)

Death Masks Death Masks (The Dresden Files, Book 5)

Also, the reality in the books is a little different than the TV series, and you won't enjoy the books if you get hung up on the TV canon. My advice is kick back and enjoy the ride, because Jim Butcher so far has not failed to disappoint. Unlike many series authors, he has sustained the quality and appeal of the series throughout.

The Dresden Files are noir detective novels in the classic vein, with a loner, wiseass private eye narrator in this case based in Chicago. Harry Dresden has an edgy relationship with the police, and between his PI practice and police consulting, is barely able to make ends meet. The twist is that the detective is also a wizard capable of calling fire and, on a good day, repelling bullets.

The writer's challenge is to provide his detective with challenges that he can't solve with a wave of his wand. These tend to be ever-increasing supernatural foes, people problems, and vexing situations that combine the two.

The nominal case in "Blood Rites" is the set of a porn film. The director believes someone is putting the evil eye on his project, so he hires Harry to protect the project. As always in the world of Harry Dresden, things quickly get out of hand.

"Blood Rites" marks a turning point in the series. After writing five books in series, and beginning a second, unrelated series, I suspect Jim Butcher asked himself what would keep the series rewarding for him to write. Harry Dresden had already faced an inventive series of demons, faeries, and other creatures, and pioneered new fronts in witty repartee, but how could the series reach a new level? Butcher chose to take it personal. Dresden started the series as an orphan with no living family. His girlfriend took off for South America to get her vampire infection under control in Book Five. In each book, Dresden comes very close to getting killed protecting civilians from magic. What does he even have to live for? Without spoilers, Dresden gains connections on every level in this installment in the series. There is still no happily-ever-after, and not relationship in his life changes for the better.

Like traditional detective fiction, the Dresden Files is moralistic, with good triumphing over evil (of course, not without cost). There is character development, there is humor in many tasty flavors, and sustained enjoyment for the reader.

It seems our favorite Chicago wizard, Harry Dresden cannot do just one investigative job at a time. He always has to stretch himself, and his magic powers to the limit.

In this book, he starts out by saving some sacred puppies from a bunch of very bad monkey demons. In the process he ends up burning down a building. Not a good way to start the day, but he rescues the pups, and gets them back to their rightful owners, all except for one who decides he'd rather stowaway and stay with Harry.

From here Harry takes on a case involving porno movies. Someone is killing women all around the producer, and is seems they are using some fairly lethal magic to do it. Getting a job on the set and avoiding all the electrical and technical equipment is a problem for Harry. Finding out who is doing the molocchio on the women is even more of a challenge.

His third job involves taking down some nasty Black Court vampires feeding on the homeless and generally making life miserable around the Chicago area.

In this outing Harry has to call on his friends to help him out. We have Kincaid, the paid mercenary, Ebenezer, Harry's mentor from his teenage days, of course Bob the Ghost doing his best to advise and assist, not to mention the Chicago PD Lieutenant Karrin Murphy who is in to help Harry with whatever he needs. Along the way we see Thomas, the White Court Vampire come back to aid and manipulate, but he also reveals many secrets about Harry and his family.

Working against two houses of Vampires, Black Court and White Court is a challenge for Harry. The White Court and especially the House of Raith is in turmoil, and the Black Court is just creating mayhem wherever it can. Not to mention that Harry has to come to grips with some very disturbing news about his mother and his faith in Ebenezer is tested.

Time is running out, and this book shows us some more toys of the trade. I especially liked the paintball gun that shoots Holy Water and garlic. I could use one of them in the mortal world just for general purposes.

Making deals with bad guys is not always a good thing to do, as Harry has learned from previous encounters, but to get the jobs completed, he needs to make deals and hope that even in the world of Magic, those who give their word will abide by it. But as all wizards know, the bad guys, Vampires, Wizards, Fairies, Demons and Ghouls all live for a long time and treaties and pledges can get muddled after a few hundred years.

We will have to wait and see what comes of these truces.

The ride continues for wizard/private investigator Harry Dresden. With his most recent adventure, "Small Favor", blasting its way to the New York Times Bestseller's list, his other adventures continue to grow in popularity. In "Blood Rites", Harry Dresden becomes more than just an intriguing character - he becomes an urban fantasy icon.

Fresh off a case involving demon monkeys chucking flaming poop, Harry is ready for something a bit more upscale than his usual fare. Of course, in usual, twisted fashion, he gets his wish: he's hired to solve a string of accidents on a maverick porn director's latest production.

Just when Harry thought life was getting dull.

Things quickly turn from embarrassing to deadly when Harry discovers he's been sucked into affairs way over his head. Someone has unleashed an entropy curse upon the porn mogul, but it's not attacking him; rather important women in his life. Women are dying, and of course - entropy curses are the worst things to unravel. That's not all, however. Somehow, White Court vampires - succubi - are involved, which of course involves Thomas, a white court vampire acquaintance who's shown an odd affinity for Harry as of late. Hidden there is a family secret that will change Harry forever.

Many urban-fantasies have sprung up in the past several years, but the Dresden Files continues to outshine them all. Harry is a delightfully rough, brusque character of surprising depth, accompanied by a razor sharp wit. Butcher writes with deft and skill, which should guarantee Harry Dresden a long future, indeed.

This was another solid book in the Dresden Files series, and I listened to the audiobook version. The intrigue of the different vampire courts is back in this volume, and we get to see a lot more of the White Court vampires when Thomas asks Harry Dresden, wizard and private investigator, to take on a case for him. Before Harry gets very far with his investigation, Black Court vampires (traditional Dracula-esque ones), try to kill him. Harry works on the case for Thomas, which involves tracking down the source of a ritual curse on the set of an adult film. Meanwhile, he tries to find the lair of the Black Court vampires, round up a posse, and makes preparations to take them down. Many characters from previous books return, and the relationships become more complicated, especially for Harry. I also enjoyed how Harry appears to slipping further into the darker sides of magic, no matter how much he struggles to "do the right thing" and avoid the wrath and rules of the White Council.

After the epic events of both Summer Knight and Death Masks, Jim Butcher switches to a more personal tale for his 6th Dresden Files book, Blood Rites. There is not the imminent threat of Faeriegeddon or Nicapocalypse, but the danger is still just as real and deadly to Harry as ever before.

Blood Rites is all about Family. Harry uncovers a great deal about his family, while adding to it along the way. We are given an in depth look into a slice of life in a family of Incubi/Succubi as we learn more about Thomas and his family. We also meet Murphy's family.

The book is seemingly structured to afford the reader a nice contrast between different families. Not just families of blood, but those formed in the trenches of life and solidified in the face of death. Butcher really details how Family can be found in the "lowest" of places, but even there it is every bit as warm and comforting as it is in the traditional sense.

The basic plot has Harry being tasked by Thomas to protect his actor friends making a porno movie. In return, Thomas finally tells Harry his big secret, why it is he has been helping Harry out over the last couple years.

Also, Mavra, the Black Court Vampire Sorceress, is back in town and gunning for Harry. Yet more fallout from Harry's actions at Bianca's masquerade ball in Grave Peril.

Of course in Harry's world things generally tend to go from bad to worse, so it is as Lord Raith, The White King, and his first in command, daughter Lara (Thomas' family), also show up with hidden agendas.

Kincaid and Ebenezar McCoy make welcome returns (along with stunning revelations about them both), and between the two of them Harry is forced to learn two of the hardest lessons of his life: one physical, one psychological.

While not as epic, or quite as good, as Death Masks, Blood Rites is very satisfying on a more personal level. Reading a 1st person series has its inherent limitations, but it is quite effective at making the reader really feel for Harry. Those limitations also work for the series, as revelations like those we uncover in Blood Rites are satisfying for the reader as much as Harry, because it is information we genuinely did not know. So it is both nice to fill in some gaps, as well as surprising when Butcher drops the big reveal.

I think Blood Rites also has the "sandwich" problem (that the later Proven Guilty also suffers from). That being that while it is very good, it is between two of the best books of the series and two of my personal favorites at that.

But by no means is Blood Rites anything less than spectacular, another just all out action thrill ride through the Dresdenverse, and it even has a dog!

4.5 out of 5 stars

Let me start by saying I'm a huge fan of this series. And while this book was not my favorite it was still significantly better than many other urban fantasy books that I've read and enjoyed. So, Butcher has raised the bar to a very high level of expectations.

If you're new to the Dresden File series, imagine Dick Tracy as a wizard. The protagonist of this novel and series is the unapologetically chivalrous yet lovelorn Harry Dresden, the only wizard in the Chicago Yellow Pages. Dresden, a supernatural gumshoe who lives in his rundown Chicago apartment makes for a fun protagonist. While the series is driven more by a blazing plot than by characters, the characters, too, are multifaceted individuals (for the most part) who learn (or not) from real mistakes. And seriously, who doesn't love a polka-playing Medical Examiner? A sex-feeder who has sworn off sex.... A fairy godmother who wants to turn you into a pet dog and love and take care of you forever. The list goes on...

As always, Butcher's neo-noir style narration is spiced liberally with a warm humor that only enhances the non-stop thrills. He is one of my favorite writers.

Great fun. Outstanding writing. Paced for thrills with no slow spots. Darkly urban, contemporary setting. Magical, colorful characters. What's not to like?

The series is best enjoyed by starting with the first novel, Storm Front.
Storm Front (The Dresden Files, Book 1)

To begin a book with daemons throwing flaming monkey excretions is rather humourous, one of the reasons I rather enjoy this series. A new character is added - a puppy with a sonic scream (he's a Tibetan temple dog), while Harry works on the set of a... Porn Movie? Um, yeah, I can picture his beet red face in my minds eye the entire time.
Three Courts of Vampires - Black Court (think Nosferatu, we want blood and guts), Red Court (Maquerade, Vlad Dracul, dressing gowns and balls, fancy junk, "ve vant yer blude"), and White Court (succubi, incubi, give us emotions type stuff). One of the White Court vamps asks Harry to work on Porn Movie protecting the actors and cast, a hex has been placed over the director and people have been dying all around the guy on his last few films. Couple problems, though, the White Court vamp has a sister, and she's hot (and a vamp), and has a thing for Harry (or could just be taking out a potential enemy). Red Court, Black Court and White Court vampires are also involved in a war, the Wizard White Council is attempting to keep the peace with the Wardens, but they are losing more than they can spare (and Harry's already been approached to take up the Gray Robes, by Morgan of all people). So the Vampires are warring against the Council, the Courts are turning on one another pretty readily, the wizards are barely keeping things in check, and the fear is that anyone can be suspected of anything and presumed guilty automatically.

Another entertaining installment of the Dresden Files series. I don't have much more to say that I haven't said before. This isn't an amazing series, but it's entertaining. I'm not dying to each story, and I don't get antsy to get back to the story when I have to put it down, but it's keeping my interest. I'll definitely continue on with it.

I'm not sure that it is technically accurate to label this latest stanza in the 'Dresden File' series a pleasant surprise, since all of the books have been enjoyable reading. But author Jim Butcher has managed to take a series that was showing signs of being pleasantly predictable and up the level just a bit. Much of this has been accomplished by developing Harry Dresden into something more than a Chicago wizard with an overly developed sense of responsibility (and possible an overactive thyroid). He has developed more of the sense of self-awareness I would expect from a professional wizard, although I would say that Harry's judgment is still has a bit of adolescent about it.

Another part of this growth stems from the fleshing out of the basic Dresden plot, which is Harry in trouble with the wizard's White Council and hunted by the various vampire courts. That hasn't changed much. This time Harry is trying to put a stop to a new Black Court effort to end his life while keeping a deadly evil eye curse from bankrupting a porno film startup company. The latter effort puts Harry at odds with the head of the Vampire's White Court. We get to experience both the delights of the film stage and the wild action of a raid on a Black Court lair.

Butcher makes this come alive by filling in a lot of the blanks about his vampire's society and politics, while stepping up the heat on Harry's relationship with Lt. Karrin Murphy, the head of Special Investigation. Throw in the development of several other collateral characters and you have an action story with interesting characters. This works well, because Butcher seems to know when to back off from the melodramatic and let people behave like people (or vampires) in a serious conflict..

Of course, the usual spookiness and ritual magic are there as always. Magic works in Butcher's alternate reality, and it sometimes works with a vengeance. The author sometimes takes a moment to explain how such things are supposed to work, but wisely, he avoids creating a formal system that would limit story development. Instead he blends magic, supernatural, and the occult as needed to get the right effect. I'm not a purist, and Butcher manages to avoid glaring self-contradiction. Keep in mind that this genre is beginning to get crowded with Harry Dresden's and Anita Blake's. Butcher's stories maintain a distinct identity and style that is beginning to be imitated, which is the best recommendation of all.

Book five of the Dresden Files has got to be the best one so far. The series just gets better as you continue to read. This book saw the return of numerous characters and introduction of some new favourites and bad guys.

The Dresden file books generally start out slow and pick up as you go. Once the plot is set and things start in motion you're on a wild ride with the supernatural and our hero, Wizard Harry Dresden.

Jim Butcher has a special way of captivating his audience and locking you into the book. I have loved this series so far. I also have noticed that the fourth and fifth book had no spelling errors or grammatical ones that I caught, unlike the previous three and their sloppy editing. So it's a welcome change as I hate correcting errors as I am trying to read a story. It's irritating and it's not very professional of the publishing company, in this case, Penguin Books.

This book is a definite 5/5 I can hardly wait to start book six today!

Priscilla

I found Jim Butcher's THE DRESDEN FILES series late in the game, but that's much to my advantage. I'm able to enjoy them one right after the other without waiting for a new release. I listened to BLOOD RIGHTS (Audible version). The narration by James Marsters has become the ideal voice of Harry Dresden (and the series) for me. Supremely well done. The story flows, the magical world continues to expand, and new connections are revealed. It held my attention, entertained, and fully satisfied. I'm a big fan of the series, which I highly recommend.
Sensuality Level: moderate
Language: mild
Violence: moderate

I think there's no question about it: 'Blood rites' is the best in the series so far. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love the whole series and Harry Dresden is quickly becoming one of my favorite male characters. However, this latest book is finally giving some substance to characters who previously were either too good to be true, too bad to actually take seriously, or to sketchy to care. For those who are only now discovering the series: Harry is a wizard who has to make a living in a world that doesn't believe in wizards, and also to discover his past, which is clouded in mystery and violent death. As a private investigator and occasional consultant for a special division of Chicago police, Harry has already had his share of encounters and supernatural adventures in the five previous books. He had to fight a renegade practitioner of the black arts, ghosts, vampires, werewolfs, faeries, fallen angels, not to mention his very own White Council of wizards, for whom his own past (which they seem to know a lot better than Harry) is an almost certain ticket to painful execution.

In this book, Harry has to figure out who is behind an entropy curse hitting actors in a porn movie business, but also to deal with unexpected and not altogether pleasant truths about his past. The action acquires a more interesting, darker side, that promises great character development, not only for Harry, but also for Murphy, who is finally shown to be more than a slightly obsessive fighting babe with no personal life and an inflexible sense of justice. I absolutely loved the plot from the beginning to the end, despite the fact that the author seemed to have forgotten that Harry actually shared a soulgaze with Ebenezar [according to book 4 in the series], which should have prepared Harry for most revelations about his teacher in book 6 - unless I really don't understand how a soulgaze works.

I also hope that Jim won't give in to the temptation of making the series allegedly more 'appealing' by destroying the plot and adding lots of sex, as it unfortunately happened to the Anita Blake series. Although Harry is not getting any and I think the author could take some pity in the future [c'mon Jim, how would you feel if you had to spend a year with only a cat and a skull as company? :)], I really really like Harry just the way he is.

Harry Dresden, Chicago's only professional wizard for hire, burdened as always with enormous doses of chivalry and corny humor, finds himself taking a particularly embarrassing (even for him) case for his vampire maybe-friend Thomas: warding off a powerful entropy curse from the production set of an adult movie, as the women associated with its producer are targeted one by one. On top of that, Harry has to deal with a series of disturbing revelations about his family, and the further assassination attempts of the numerous Black Court vampires with violent grudges against him.

As always, Butcher assures that the novel will provide a fairly easy entry for readers who may not have read the preceding books, but Blood Rites is a reward for longtime readers of the Dresden Files in more than one sense. Beyond the scattered, sly reminders of past misadventures, it continues to flesh out Harry's dark past (including long-awaited details regarding his mother) as well as illuminate several side characters. Particularly satisfying to me were the revelations about the enigmatic White Court vampire Thomas, who, despite all appearances, is not just an ambulatory and unnecessarily handsome dimwit (to adapt his own words). Butcher again delves into the background and society of the book's chief villains, vampires in this case, building upon traditional myths while adding refreshing spins of his own.

The Dresden Files are one of my biggest guilty pleasures, but despite their often-formulaic plots and profusions of cornball humor and stereotypes, I think that their basic emotional power is still undeniable. The particular emotional intensity of Blood Rites was perhaps what made it one of my favorites of the series. Harry is such a likable, charismatic, and sincere protagonist that it's hard not to become involved in his emotional roller-coasters, and he constantly faces real, if somewhat cliched, questions of guilt, fear, and love. Beyond this, every installment of the Dresden Files is an automatic adrenaline high, with climaxes that are guaranteed to be more than spectacular. So whether one prefers drama or action or both, I highly recommend the Dresden Files for anyone with a tolerance for corny jokes and a bit of gore. However, uninitiated readers do run the risk of spoilers the later on they start the series, so it might be safer to start with one of the earlier installments.

When a book is so GOOD it's hard to do a review on it. As I have said before, with each book they are getting better and better. This one has more of a emotional bend to it... Harry's feelings towards Murphy and the family feel that Harry has regarding his mother. I felt that the action when he was working for Arturo and against Mavra was much more realistic. Every book has been full of descriptions but I feel like either I'm getting better at understanding or they are getting better and more detailed. Harry is really a complicated guy but also very lonely, you can feel for him. You know like a best friend! I also felt the jokes are really laughable. The life and times of Harry are continuing and I'm ready for the next chapter. Join me and let's do it together!

Whoa, talk about some major whammies. Just hitting me out of left field with all the things; some answered questions had since early books and others revealed things I never expected. And so many feels regarding one of my favorite characters. Eager to start the next one but need to digest. Plans for a better review to come.

I had burned out a little on this series, but thankfully, there's a cure for that ailment: a fantastic audio production. James Marsters (known by some as Spike from Buffy/Angel) is the narrator, and he does a superb job. He breathed life back into Harry.

Another thing that helped is that this book departs a bit from the giant "save the world" tasks of the last few novels. Harry's looking for a way to pay the bills, so when his vampire "friend" Thomas comes to him and asks him to help his porn-producer friend, Harry finds it hard to resist. Even though the chivalrous side of him isn't very comfortable with learning how porn is made.

But don't worry, it doesn't get very hot and steamy for Harry. Instead, he ends up in the middle of a family squabble turned turf war, and he's connected to it more than he ever expected.

I'll definitely be continuing the series on audio. I can't resist a great narrator.

Butcher's back on top of his game, serving up a hard-hitting mix of magic, monsters, mayhem, and mirth in Book Six of the Dresden Files. Blood Rites isn't as labored as Death Masks or as slow-moving as Summer Knight, harking back to the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink exploits of Grave Peril. Harry Dresden's in fine form, firmly planting his clod-busting stompers where angels fear to tiptoe, and compulsively cracking wise every feisty step of the way.

The bulk of the action-and it's pretty steroidal stuff-is crammed into the space of three days. The basic plot comprises two intertwined storylines. Three, counting the puppy, but he's more a combination of comic relief, future stage-setting, and probably-unintended red herring, dropped into the Blue Beetle's backseat and out of the story entirely for a hundred pages before inexplicably resurfacing in Harry's apartment. Continuity, continuity. Never mind, he's cute anyway. So's the puppy.

So, two storylines. First, White Court vampire Thomas asks Harry to seek and destroy a suspected entropy curse stalking Thomas' movie-producer friend. Then, before Harry even meets his new client, he learns the hard way that Black Court vampire Mavra is in town, hot for his blood. Literally. When the producer turns out to be a porn king, and Thomas turns out to have far more ties to the case than he let on, and Harry ends up eyeball-deep in the private family business of virtually everyone involved-including, quite unexpectedly, himself-it only adds to the general pandemonium.

Be warned: most of the main characters have figured in previous Dresden cases, and Butcher wastes minimal words on back story. Harry's partnership with police lieutenant Karrin Murphy is developing nicely, whether she ultimately replaces ex-flame Susan or not. Hired gun Kincaid, who barely registered in Masks, is shaping up as an unfeeling assassin to cheer for, though readers may find that his revealed past takes some of the fun out of his behavior. Best of all, Butcher hasn't forgotten that even the prettiest people-eater-male or female-is creepy, dangerous, and fundamentally not-human. With continued fleshing-out, his trio of vampire courts grows increasingly less likely to please hard-core undead sensualists or traditionalists, but his creations make thrice-damned, triple-threat, bloody righteous monsters by any other name, so why sweat the technicalities?

For Harry fans, Blood Rites scores big. The fast pace and light storytelling touch play to Butcher's strengths, making it easier to overlook pesky little writing lapses (not knowing how few days until Saturday, or how many films Genosa has shot, or what "née" means; taking off a coat twice in three short paragraphs, then spacing out on the garish shirt underneath; getting the Beetle back from the mechanic, who never had it in the first place; to mention a few). At the same time, there are enticing glimpses of the dark wings beating ever more strongly about the edges of Harry's soul. He and readers get substantial new chunks of his past along the way, too. Great game!

Blood Rites (2004) is the sixth urban fantasy novel in the Harry Dresden series, following Death Masks. In the previous volume, John Marcone grabbed the Shroud from Nicodemus and jumped off the train into the river. Michael Carpenter attacked Nicodemus and was overwhelming him, but then Nicodemus pulled a gun and shot Michael several times through his breastplate. Harry temporarily overcame Nicodemus and got Michael off the train.

Marcone pulled Harry from the river with the Shroud. After that, Harry didn't remember anything until he woke up in Charity's guest room. Marcone still had the Shroud. By following the gang boss around the city, Harry finally learned why Marcone had commissioned the theft of the Shroud.

In this novel, Harry is running hard down the abandoned school hallway with a box of puppies in his arms. The old school is on fire, but not because of him. Three monkey demons are chasing him, throwing gobs of flaming monkey poop at him and starting fires all along the corridors. One puppy keeps climbing up and barking at the monkey demons.

Once Harry drops the box and the puppies fall out. Harry scoops them up and starts running again, but the little notched-ear pup has been left behind. As he stands growling at the monkeys, Harry turns back, gathers him up and starts running again. Finally he gets outside the building and runs toward the Blue Beetle.

A larger version of the monkey demons bursts out of the doors. The other three monkeys ram the large demon and are absorbed, making the large demon become still larger. This entity spreads his wings and takes off, buzzing the Blue Beetle. Harry yells at Thomas to start the car, then dives in the passenger side and stuffs the box of puppies into the back.

The flying monkey throws incendiaries at the Volkswagen. Thomas hangs onto Harry's leg as he hangs out the door and blasts the monkey. Then Harry has Thomas stop the car and blasts the demon right between the eyes. Scratch one demon, at least for a little while!

Harry passes the box of puppies on to his client, but fails to notice the notch-eared pup under the seat. When he finds the pup, his client has already left for Tibet and is unavailable. Harry decides to keep the pup for a while until he can make some other arrangements.

In this story, Thomas asks Harry to talk to an erotic film producer who seems to be suffering from a curse. Arturo is Greek and has three ex-wives. His female associates are dying in strange ways. Harry wonders if the man has been cursed with an entropy spell, but also considers an Evil Eye curse. He finally agrees to talk with Arturo.

Harry reports to work the next day at the makeshift studio. As a production assistant, he is basically a gofer. At least he will be able to observe the crew and sense the curse first hand. That morning, Harry senses an evil magic rising near him and tracks it to a staff restroom. Another woman has been badly hurt and only saved from death by Harry's timely intervention.

Later, Harry finds out that Lara -- one of the actresses -- is the older sister of Thomas. She is a vamp in more than one sense of the word. She exudes sexuality, but what would you expect from a White Court vampire?

This story involves ancient Greek witchcraft and modern contract law. Harry begins to understand the motivation for the murders, but not the means. He suspects that an experienced and talented sorcerer is behind the curse, but is otherwise clueless. He starts checking out Arturo's financial circumstances.

Highly recommended for Butcher fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of exotic magic, strange deaths, and a stubborn wizard.

-Arthur W. Jordin

No sooner does Harry Dresden escapes from one problem than he jumps into several more. He has agreed to a case Thomas, White Court vampire and incubus, wants him to solve. Various people who work at an independent adult film production company have died with what appears to be dark magic. The film producer thinks that someone is doing this to compromise his work. Now Harry has to work undercover and find the person responsible before more people turn out dead. To make matters worse, the Black Court of vampires want to get rid of him, he has made a deal with a no-nonsense killer, and his mother's past is revealed. And all of this goes on around the same time he reluctantly takes on a pet puppy. There are many twists throughout the novel.

I loved all of the interesting twists and turns in this installment. The reader finally learns some things regarding Harry's family. That is my favorite part of the novel. I also liked the fact that this offering centered is more or less on Thomas. I never thought much of him during past books other than the fact that he seemed like a fun vampire. I enjoyed the twists regarding the aforementioned character. Speaking of characters, there are several new ones in this book. I liked succubus vampire Lara and the other members of the film production. They brought a great deal of entertainment to the plot. Kincaid struck me as an Edward-type character (from Anita Blake) in which you don't know whether he's good or evil. The aforementioned character was in Death Masks, but he was further developed in this one. And I loved the twist regarding Thomas. He has become quite a compelling character. And then of course there are the old favorites, like Murphy and Bob. I also loved the language. The narrative and dialogue get funnier as the series progresses. I like how Butcher adds humor into the mix. Blood Rites is the best Harry Dresden novel to date. This series is right up there amongst my favorites. I look forward to picking up Dead Beat next month.

This is the sixth book in the Dresden series. Harry Dresden is Chicago's only practicing wizard investigator and is listed in the yellow pages. He's young, single, and good-hearted. A vampire friend (there are three kinds of vampires, Red, White and Black Court) wants him to investigate a case for him. A movie producer is being cursed, and the women around him keep on dying in strange ways. As usual, Harry jumps right in, is chivalrous and heroic to the end, and there's plenty of action on every page. Demons, puppies, vampires, police, mysterious assassins, wizards, succubi, it's all there. However, this book was different from the previous five because at the end of the book, Harry and his life had changed forever. This series used to be frustrating to read because each book would end with very little changed about the character or his circumstances, like a sit-com. But with this latest installment, there was more heart, non-stop action as usual, and new relationships being formed, so that it was more like an exciting installment of a dramatic series. Butcher writes very well, there's no mad clap farcical world (Terry Prachett or Christopher Moore) or weird angst - Harry's just a regular guy with bad luck days - just that his bad lucks tend to include demon assassins, homocidal succubi...

I've been enjoying this series thus far, but this installment really brought it! The porn star murder mystery had barrel-of-laughs written all over it, doubly so with Harry Dresden on the case. BLOOD RITES put a lot of the characters' roles into perspective; Murphy tries being a vigilante on for size, Ebenezar is not what he seems, and Thomas—I did NOT see that one coming. This book was a turning point for THE DRESDEN FILES, and... PUPPIES!

Harry Dredsen becomes a consultant to a porn film company about the killings of the people around the producer. People keep dying around him and he doesn't know why. Harry thought it had something to do with another business trying to muscle him out of the business or he thought it might be one of his ex wife's. in this book. Harry meets a white court vampire named Thomas who was the one who asked Harry to help out a friend knowing that Harry wouldn't let innocent people get hurt. The white court family seems to have some kind of scheme in this book. An a truth that you will never believe has been revealed in this book. Read and find out what it was.

I bought an audio of this book. My experience was quite different than reading it. James Marsters' narration made the events livelier than me just making up voices in my head. Whenever Harry took a job, he would always get himself in deeper trouble but managed to survive and become even wiser. A trait of his that I admired. I was happy that Harry had finally found his long-lost family. I enjoyed this book, because the story evolved on family values/ties. Moving on to the next installment.

This book opens with a trademark Harry Dresden move: fleeing a burning building. It's the fault of the giant monkey demons who are hurling napalm pooh. Harry races to his car, which has been eaten by mold demons...With a chortle of laughter, the reader settles in for another wild ride in Chicagoland as imagined by Jim Butcher.

Harry gets to live every boy's dream: he's hired to help out on the set of a porn picture because the director thinks someone has cursed him. In previous books the bad guys popped up with such monotonous regularity one could mark one's page with them. There's more focus and a greater sense of urgency to this plot.

BLOOD RITES is the sixth in the series but it is the first to link strongly to the previous books and the first to explore Harry's past. Harry was given a little more depth in book five, but in this book, without any break in the action, Harry learns things he didn't know and confronts unpleasant truths about his mentor Ebenezar McCoy. I don't want to give any spoilers so all I will say is that Harry helps out his half-brother and gets adopted by a puppy. The ending is solid and as happy as anything ever gets for Harry, but certain elements provide great foreshadowing and sent me racing down to the bookstore to get the next one. Thanks, Jim!

Thomas, vampire of the white court has helped Harry in the past and is now calling in his favours to get Harry to investigate a lethal case of evil eye happening on a friend's "adult" film set. It seems a simple request - stop the hex and find the bad guys.

Then the Black Court vampires hit town and start attempting to kill Harry - he's target no.1 and the vampire-wizard war is still on. Like all the other books in this series, this is novel moves along at a quick pace with poor Harry getting bashed by one set of bad guys after another. Harry also finds out family secrets from an unexpected source that will change his life, and the way he views the world forever.

These continue to be well written mystery-action and magic novels that build on one another. While this could be read alone, these books are best read in sequence as Harry's reactions make more sense when you understand the implications of his past cases. I'm very much looking forward to the next book in this series.

I have thoroughly enjoyed all of the books in this series. But, frankly poor Harry didnt really seem to have a life until this episode. He may have lots of power as a wizard and certainly lots of adventure in dealing with the "dark side", but something was definitely missing. As a dog lover myself I was delighted at the addition of "Mouse", not to mention Thomas the vampire. I liked Mouse immediately as a puppy with attitude. Somehow these additions provide a needed softening of Harry's edges and relieve some of the depression and dissatisfaction at the end of the other stories. I am also happy about the further rounding out of Murphy's character and the underlying possibilities between her and Harry.

I hope all of this means further continuation of the stories and further developments of the characters. I enjoyed this book the best of the six I have read so far and am looking forward anxiously to new additions to the series.

I've been hooked on this series from book one Storm Front and there these books just got better and better. After re-reading Death Masks and finally excepting Harry and Susan's break-up that I took really hard, because I thought they were so good together. Harry finally finds out more about his family and secrets about his mother that he never knew. Things also heat up for Karin Murphy a detective and Harry. Also he gets to fight Vampires and finds out that he has a brother who I won't tell who he is. I enjoyed the flying Monkeys and his new family member, a dog? I highly recommend this series and I'm anxious for the next book in the series called Deadbeat. I also hope that Jim plans to bring Susan back she prove to be a valuable friend and allie to Harry in the future. Read this series,but start with book one because all his books build from his previous ones.

As the only wizard who outed himself, he has more business than he can handle even though many people do not believe that Harry Dresden performs real magic. White Court Vampire Thomas, who feeds on human energy instead of blood, has done Harry many favors over the years without asking for anything in return. So when Thomas finally needs Harry's help, the wizard drops every thing to assist his pal.

Porno movie producer Arturo Genosa has opened his own production company, but someone cast an entropy evil eye spell that kills the women around him. Harry is to protect the females while also discovering who is casting such a powerful and deadly spell forbidden by the Council of Wizards. Complicating the situation is the return of the bloodsucking Black Court vampire Mavra, who wants Harry dead. Since she has magical powers, she might succeed in drinking a bloody toast at Harry's corpse.

The sixth Dresden File is the ultimate amalgam of fantasy, horror, and mystery similar to the best works of Laurell K. Hamilton and Tanya Huff. Harry suffers plenty of physical and ensorcelled trauma, but keeps on fighting as he believes in his cause. He also realizes that he really likes a certain pain in the butt Chicago police lieutenant so that in spite of the mundane and mystical assaults he feels pretty good about his life. Jim Butcher provides another triumphant tale that will garner him more readers wanting the next Dresden file.

Harriet Klausner

<u> Blood Rites> is the sixth of the Harry Dresden series books written by Jim Butcher. Harry Dresden is a fictional character, a wizard who works on paranormal cases in Chicago as a private detective. He has a wry sense of humor, sarcastic banter, and a host of unusual characters that are friends that he calls to help him when he needs help on a case.

In this case in book #6 Harry is hired to find who is sabotaging a movie being made. This book is chocked full of action, vampires, twists and turns. It is enthralling...very hard to put the book down! The sub-plots are woven into the main story very artfully.

The Good: Very, very entertaining. Harry does Thomas a favor by working on an adult film set in order to protect someone. Couple that with seeing a lot more of Murphy and this book held my attention the entire time.Some great surprises and reveals in Blood Rites, as well as a lot more Harry history we didn't know anything about.

The Bad: Harry acquires a puppy. And gives him a really bland, unimaginative name. You'd really expect more from a wizard with a rather fun vocabulary.

This is my second Dresden review. I’m still sick. And I’m still having a blast going on adventures with Chicago’s most well known wizard. Hopefully the crud that got me will go away soon, but at least I can be grateful I’m not facing down a lord of the White Court while dealing with flying demons and family squabbles. Oh. And puppy-sitting. Because those suckers chew on everything!!

I didn't realize that the book series was the basis for the Dresden Files TV show. Silly me. I was watching some reruns of the show and was surprised by its short shelf life. I started reading the novels since I found out and now I'm hooked. The idea of a wizard investigator is very interesting and the author did an amazing job with incorporating fantasy in the modern world. I love the nonstop action from beginning to end.

Blood Rites is another great addition to the series. I'm looking forward to more exciting wizard adventures and antics. In this story, there was more information about Harry's mother and Thomas which helps the reader understand more about the characters.

This book has it all: mystery, crazy magic and of course, the humor. Getting ready to read the next book...

Jim Butcher, Blood Rites (Roc, 2004)

Been trying to figure out what to say about this one for just about forever now, and I've come to the conclusion that I can't really say anything about it I haven't said about the first five Dresden Files books. It's fun, it strains credulity, it's formulaic, it's pretty well-written, and if you're already hooked on the series you're pretty much guaranteed to enjoy it. Why do you need a review? If you're not already hooked on the series, go back and start from the beginning, because it'll make a whole lot more sense when you get to this point. Once you do, though, you'll have a good time. *** ½

Fast action, great characters and an intriguing couple of plots. Thomas is finally explained. And a puppy arrives who becomes a major character in the later series. Great Read with wonderful character developments.

I was so happy when I finished Blood Rites, because even six novels into the series, Jim Butcher managed to put something new and unexpected into it. Instead of just making bigger, badder bad guys, Butcher takes a side step and comes up with something unique, and a little bit titillating. Harry Dresdon is called to work on the set of a porn film.... Not only that, but called into it by his "friend" Thomas, the vampire. We get to see a glimpse into the inner workings of the White Vampire Court (sex vampires!) as well as exploring Dresdon's own links to the magical world and his mysterious past. Oh, and there's also that whole thing about the Black Vampire Court trying to kill him...

This was a very good effort. I would not call it the best so far but its right up there.

Watching the Want to Be White Knight deal with a Porno kept me smiling all the way through the book.

And you would think that a porno set would have more porn than this one did. LOL

Blood Rites is the 6th outing for the wizard Harry Dresden. What is missing from this series is good editing [cut from the same mold rather than cut from the same cloth is just one of many failures], character depth, an interesting story line[s], a new plot structure [this one is getting old], an emotionally mature protagonist [his attitude to the sex industry actors makes the skin crawl], and a sense that one’s time was well spent with the book.

Setting all of the technical problems aside, this was a mildly diverting story. Almost certainly YA readers [hopefully these will be teenagers] will enjoy this read, and as long as it is they and they alone that are burrowing through this series it will be worth their time. Readers at the post-University level will have, hopefully moved on to something more substantial.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars.

Blood Rites is the 6th addition to the Dresden Files series and it doesn't disapoint. How can any book that has flaming monkey poo be bad. Yes flaming monkey poo, but that's the kind of off humor that makes this Series great.

Blood rites has everything that is needed for a great read: a tall dark wizard, handsome and sexy vampires, a cute little puppy, and people generally trying to kill each other all the time. Whats not to love?

I'm serious if you want to escape reality for a while this is a good book to pick up, don't worry if you haven't read the previous books in the series, Jim Butcher does a fantastic job of getting new readers up to speed without annoying the faithful followers.

Harry Dresden is not your ordinary PI. He's a wizard. You'd think that would make his life easier. No, his mere presence fries computers. He has to drive an ancient VW Beetle because anything modern won't work. However, Harry has a lot of good friends---Murphy the diminuitive police officer, Mister his 20 pound bruiser of a cat, Bob--a spirit trapped in a skull, etc.

He's got a paying client. Turns out to be a producer of porn movies who's trying to get rid of an entropy curse which he initially believes is directed at him.

Through a wild set of events, Harry ends up adopting a dog, taking on the White Court Vampires (incubi and succubi) and finding a brother. Overall, a great read. Hard to put down.

I really enjoyed this Dresden book more than I had others, and I'm really not sure if I can tell why. Perhaps it's because it helped to clarify the differences between the White Council and the Red and Black Courts, and brought to light the feelings Harry has for Murphy that we all knew were there, but to this point were not vocalized.

I must admit that the first three Dresden books were merely average. What kept me was Butcher's inventive approach to how the magic works and the lovable-ness of Harry himself. But the plots seemed a bit formulaic and having Harry constantly on the edge of death in perilous situations with powers tremendously greater than his own in addition to the fact that he was perpetually terribly weakened... well, that got old quick.

However, starting with Book 4, things changed dramatically and the books became SO much more interesting. Butcher has added in more mythology and magic and Harry's personal life is taking center stage, the storytelling is just so much more compelling.

And Blood Rites in particular has some shocking personal revelations for Harry. I read that bit on the back of the book and thought, "oh yeah, it'll be nothing..." But it was shocking, so much so that I gasped out loud. But the events in the book just bring the reader closer to Harry and bring depth and emotion to the whole story.

I've loved the last three Dresden novels, this one most especially. I'm looking forward to the next one!

I have to say, I really enjoy this series. I look forward to every new episode, and this one was especially rewarding. I'm very glad to report that the quality of this series has stayed consistently high, and Butcher has been able to keep things fluid and interesting in Harry's life without getting either stale or outrageous.

"Blood Rites" had all the wise-cracking and rollicking adventure that I've come to expect in the complicated life of Harry Dresden (Proffessional Wizard). The story was particularly well paced in this book, with an excellent rise and fall and rise again in action. Butcher has a rather large cast of rotating secondary characters, and sometimes they can be a little overwhelming. The balance was perfect in this book. Thomas, Murphy, Ebaneezer and the ambigous merc (who's name is a blank at the moment!) are very well chosen for their roles in this story. They complement and support Harry's journey, meshing seemlessly into both the main and personal story threads.

I was delighted to see Murphy taking a big role in this book. She had some wonderful moments, and I loved to see her working with Harry.

If you haven't read this series, there is nothing to keep you from starting with this newest book. However, there are numerous references to events in previous books, and the entire series is so wonderful, I highly recommend you start with the first book "Storm Front" and read this quality series all the way through. Enjoy!

I really like the way Mr. Butcher has filled out the world of Harry Dresden, introducing us to many people and creatures Harry deals with on a regular basis, as well as characters that only appear in a single book. In this book we learn something rather shocking about an individual Harry deals with on a semi-regular basis. We also witness his continuing struggle with the Vampire Courts and the Chicago PD. On the bright side, the White Council of Wizards leaves him pretty much alone this time around.

If you are new to the series, I would recommend starting at the beginning with Storm Front. That being said, this book is awesome. Please don't be put off by the "similarities" to the Harry Potter books. Having read both, I can assure you the only similarity is in the name and that both use magic. After that they are not similar at all and personally, Harry Dresden is way cooler!!!

While this book isn't my favorite of the series, I am very happy with the fact that Butcher seems to be taking it to the next level and really developing Harry's character. And I especially like the added depth to Thomas, since he's one cool vampire.

My one complaint, and it really is rather groundless, is the WARNING DO NOT CONTINUE TO READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ DEATH MASKS--way Butcher seems to be perhaps moving towards having Harry become involved with the Fallen.

Anyways, read these books!

Wowsers. Mr. Butcher just keeps raising the bar in this series. I found this book to be the most rewarding and tightly-plotted of the Dresden books so far. Lots of questions are answered, while dangling plot threads from two and three books ago are woven back in. And yet, the more that's revealed about Harry's world (and his place in it), the more mysteries arise.

One particularly interesting and insightful bit (especially in a "fantasy" novel with vampires, magic and whatnot) is the commentary on the porno industry and its shaping of human expectations of sexual behavior and relationships for malevolent purpose. Some of the earlier books might be merely "fun reads," but this one tackles some issues that are worth talking about, and does so intelligently. And it does so in a, well, fun read.

Not to mention the characters' growth! Sheesh! Six books of Harry and Murphy, and we're still just scratching the surface. Well, we're a little deeper than the epidermis at this point (might actually be drawing blood, if you'll forgive the analogy), but you get the sense that there's still a long way to go yet before we really get to the meat...

Another great Story by Jim Butcher. It has been said thousands of times, but the Dresden Files are one heck of an addictive read. Great use of humor and real Character Believability make this Series a must read for anyone who enjoys the genre. Can't put it down! Enjoy!

I think Blood Rites has been my favorite of the series, so far. Jim Butcher keeps you on the edge of your seat, as you compulsively keep reading to find out what happens next. I love the unpredictable twists and turns of the story lines. So far, I have thoroughly enjoyed each book, though I think they've gotten better as the series progresses.

I can't say it any clearer than this: you should read every book in this series. Start at the beginning and work your way through to the latest book. If you like fantasy, mystery, suspense...these books will not disappoint. Harry Dresden is an engaging and sympathetic character: funny, determined, intelligent, with just the right amount of angst in his history. And the secondary characters are each equally as interesting. If you've seen the TV series on SciFi channel, you'll love these books. And if you haven't - you should still read these books.

This book series gets better and better as the character development grows. This book Blood Rites did not disappoint when it came to learning and caring more about Harry. You find out more interesting details about the main subject and are more understanding of how he became the person and power he is. Looking forward to what's next, I've got my seat belt on for the ride!

...makes you want to start reading it right away.

I love Dresden, his smartass remarks, self-effacing humor, and chivalry. This particular book has more twists and character-changing revelations than all the rest so far. Loving the developments!

As with all of the Dresden books, Butcher's pacing is rapid and to the point. There was a feeling of him wrapping a story around a couple events and revelations.
No spoilers here, but the forks in Harry's road seemed to be the focus here and the story was almost afterthought. Good read, and a preventative in the series.

Really enjoyed this fast-paced book! The storyline is getting interesting...I'll admit the thing with Thomas kind of threw me for a loop, the whole "Okay, is he really just trying to keep the storyline going?" but by the end it made perfect sense.

I'm also wondering when the hell the tension between Harry and Murphy is gonna break...and where Susan will fit into that....

Keep up the good work! I'm find ing out exactly why so many of my friends love these books!

I think the other reviews sum it up nicely, this book is just the best so far. Jim Butcher just keeps improving as he goes along, and it shows. Harry is definately in top form in this book, I broke out laughing on multiple occasions from the dialogue alone. The plot is solid, and most importantly we finally get some backstory and depth into Harry's life prior to the books. Most importantly I think, this information rather than close doors, just opens up more doors for the future.

I am also glad that finally Murph is getting in on it too, her and Harry going at it together just plain works, something I've been waiting for since the start.

Plus, hey, any book that makes reference to a "Monkey Voltron", deserves some sort of bonus points.

No I'm not a perv. But if I were Bob, that's exactly what I'd say. This is the best Dresden Files novel out of the first 6, and the rest get even better. This has very heavy emotional stuff, though Death Masks had even more.
The action is high octane, the dry humor's not gone, and the role play of the characters is amazing.
'Love this book!

This is the sixth in a series of books that pits Harry against the wizards, demons, and black magic around Chicago. This is a easy read that will sink it's claws into where you want to know if Harry will survive against evil.

While the plot of "Blood Rites" seems rather more light and frothy than the previous book "Death Masks", "Blood Rites" also manages to become significant in the journey of its protagonist Harry Dresden.

It's difficult to take psychic (even perhaps sex?) vampires making porn too seriously, but as part of Harry's emotional journey, the events of "Blood Rites" seem to have some great signficance and appear to have consequences which will linger.

A fun read. Essential to the series with some surprisingly serious consequences to what is a more or less relatively light plot (probably because it deals with Thomas, the amusing vampire introduced to the series in "Grave Peril". In fact, several elements of "Grave Peril" reappear in this book, not as a retread but as a step-forward of the series.)

Jim Butchers books are the reason I still read, or rather Hoover down his fiction. The toughest part is waiting for the next Dresden Files to come along. I also hope he will write more on the Codex Alera series as well. Keeping my fingers crossed.

The book is Harry Dresden (and Jim Butcher) at their best. Vampires, Wizzards, Innocents and not so Innocents all tangled up in a nice mesh of action that is well woven and cleverly resolved in the end.

Finally suceeding in finding enough leisure time to enjoy this book, I can only recommend it to anyone interested in a number of disciplines such as evolutionary biology, military science, gender studies, history etc.pp.
Ehrenreich of course has her moments where the research in fields she is not absolutely adept at could have been a hint more extensive, but overall it is a good read and even hilarious at times. She is dealing with evolutionary theories of man and war in ways that are probably best described as unorthodox and innovative but intriguing and mind-teasing. On more than one occasion I had to put away the book to think it through and came up with the thought of "Ok, not my opinion (as of now), but surely worth a closer look..."
The only real flaw in the otherwise very fine work would be to me the last two pages that are in essence a "call to arms" for peace activism, for which she seems to act as a missionary in her last few paragraphs.
All in all though, I really enjoyed reading through her superbly argumented ideas and reevaluating conservative views of historians and the like.

An excellent series and hopefully on going. Harry Dresden the only Wizard in the phone book cannot catch a break, vampires hate him, demons are after him, his fellow wizards would rather see him get killed then deal with his maverick (but moral) attitudes, and to top it all his only friend is a knight of god who wont shut up about all the swearing!!

I was nerver really much into this type of book, till my good friend read one and recommended them. She liked them so much I read one and enjoyed the story line so well, I got the idea to buy her the set so I could borrow them to read! The set came in perfect conditon, quick deliver and on time for my friends birthday. Will check you out for future purchases!

Happy New Year!

Butcher's Dresden File series starts out Good in the first two books, becomes Excellent by book three, and reaches and sustains Superlative from books 5-13 (so far). Each book introduces or expands on previous characters, and it makes sense to read them in the order they were published. I cannot think of another series (Jordan's Wheel of Time, Eddings, others) that stays strong or gets stronger from one book to the next. Don't bother, though, with Butcher's other series; it's all fighting.

I enjoy "The Dresden Files" books very much! I like how the writer has made Harry a rather "normal" person, which keeps me guessing if he can pull off these great feats until the end! I enjoy books that I cannot quite figuer out the ending and have my face buried in the book, not wanting to put it down

In this latest book our favorite wizard finds out some astounding news about his mother. I won't spoil it for anybody, but I promise it's a doozy of a revelation. The dialogue is as snappy as ever. Jim Butcher introduces some new characters, and hopefully we'll see some of them again. Previous characters are more fully fleshed out. Butcher's portrayal of Harry and Murphy's deepening friendship is as great as ever. Personally I hope they stay nothing more than friends, but we'll see. All in all a terrific book.

Jim's books have never disappointed, but BLOOD RITES raised the bar to Olympic levels ... this is a great book, full of twists, turns, hilarious dialogue, hair-raising suspense, characters you love and villains who raise the stakes to whole new levels. An absolutely first-rate read from an absolutely first-rate author. Can't recommend it highly enough. Go! Read! But be sure to budget a large block of time, because you will not want to put it down ...

With a blend of gore, humor and pathos we learn more of Harry background while he fights the monsters. For those who like woo-woo with their mystery, this is a great series which keeps getting better, and is best read in order.

This book really was the best in the series. Harry was especially witty in this lastest installment and had me laughing hysterically several times. I liked the twists involving his mentor and his vampire associate Thomas(not really a friend because they don't quite trust each other). This is a great read even if you haven't read the other 5, but it helps to get the back story on our friendly neighborhood wizard.

Blood Rites is another masterpiece by Jim Butcher. Where Else can you get Flaming Monkey poo, Assasins, Hellfire, Vampire Porn stars, a dash of Fallen angel and Family all tied up into 2 detective cases and a personal grudge. Its great to see characters from the previous books and the tying up of some lose ends.

Harry Dresden is the man...er wizard. Everybody loves murder mysteries/crime drama. Throw in a little of the supernatural and some humor and you've got the Dresden files. I can't wait to read the rest.

Fast paced,exciting,and humorous. Great read! As usual Jim Butcher brings you to another world ful of adventure,magic and mayhem. Never think things can't get worse than this... Dresden seems to attract pure chaos.

If you are a fan of the Dresden Files books then whatever I write here would be rather superfluous. If however you are not yet a fan of the Dresden Files I heartily recommend them. The books are a mix of noir detective, magic, and wry humor. Other than recommending that you start with book one, I cannot recommend these books any more highly.

Deciding to read a series means finishing all the books, even the ones that bore me to tears. The puppy is the only likable character in this entire book.

If you’re at war with with vampires who steal energy by using sex, instead of drinking blood, it only makes sense to have your vampires own a sex-video operation. Harry is embarrassed half to death working there as a bodyguard, but Bob the Skull wants to come along for the show. Someone is planning murder, but why? And who’s the real target?

There are a few big reveals, and one big non-reveal – Harry can run around like a total brainless idiot sometimes. Luckily, he often takes a few minutes to stop and reflect on why so much crap has suddenly started coming down on him. Even if the reason he stopped running around is because he got beat up too badly to keep moving, he still stops to think. Good move, dude.

A very good read; it's a fast paced page turner of a magical thriller and has some of the funniest moments I've read in a long time.

It's got magic, vampires, prostitutes and flaming monkey-demon poo. What more could you want?

Let's face it how much do you read that IS pulitzer winning anyway? These books, all of them so far in the series, are just good old fashioned fun! Guns, chicks, and magic, what more could you ask for?

I had never purchased from this seller before, but, will happily do so again. My book was sent back from the original mailing address and the seller kindly emailed me and I had it delivered to another address...no problems. What great old fashioned customer service you don't find often. I was very pleased!

This was by far the worst book of the series. After I finished it, I decided that I was not going to continue the series; I was done. I am glad that I changed my mind, because books 7 and 8 were fantastic, Blood Rites was below average. As in all of his novels, Butcher creates great character depth. Additionally, the overall plot (the war with the Red Court, the drama with the White Council, the Nevernever, his involvement with the fairies) progresses in this novel. However, the fact that he uses the set of a porn film for this book was a little over the top. I have problems believing that this is where supernatural beings would wage battle. This novel can't be skipped because of its importance to the series, but I wish it could be.

I couldn't get through my first Dresden novel. I made it about 120 pages and realized it wasn't worth continuing. How anyone can enjoy reading about this buffoon is beyond me. The humor is on the level of the Police Academy movies (and not the first one, the only good one) and the plot unfolds at a snail's pace. Butcher should be forced to read Raymond Carver so he can learn how a detective novel should be written. I gave the novel an extra star because the idea of porno vampires is titillating. Too bad Butcher couldn't match the quality of his prose with originality of the premise.