Ghost Story (The Dresden Files) by Jim Butcher

Just finished with Ghost Story and I'm walking away with a pretty good feeling. It ended how I thought the book would start, and Jim threw in a nice little monkey wrench along the way that I didn't see coming, so that was fun.

All-in-all, while not Butcher's best book, I feel it was still a good addition to the whole.

Not reading any other posts to avoid spoilers, but just at the halfway mark and wanted to put forth my current thinkings.

At first, I wasn't really enjoying it and at this stage, I am still worried about the impact on the rest of the series.

However, I have now got back into it and Butcher's tendency to end nearly every chapter on a mini-cliff hanger has had me pouring over pages.

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Originally Posted by Wulfa_Jones

at this stage, I am still worried about the impact on the rest of the series.

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I know...me too.

Spoiler:

I wonder what Harry will do as the White Knight. He probably can't solve mysteries just for friends and clients...I guess Mab will train him and then tell him to fix problems. I just hope it won't make him too mean/cold. :p

Just finished it. Wow!! Thats all I have to say.

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Originally Posted by msaerfen

Just finished it. Wow!! Thats all I have to say.

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I know ;) Sometimes books just impact me a lot. My first fantasy book was Eragon, and I was basically in a "daze" for a week. Now not many books do that to me, but Ghost Story had the same kind of "epic" feel, to me anyway.

Thought some of you guys might be interested, here's Rothfuss interviewing Butcher, it does contain spoilers for Changes though:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Dh9R_VtWRI

I finished it last night and I loved it. I was a little wary going in on how this one would turn out but Butcher beat my low expectations over the head and pulled it off magnificently.

Spoiler:

I loved Harry's "killer" reveal. I felt like it added more depth not just to Ghost Story, but to Changes as well. In Changes we finally see Harry go over the edge, crossing the line into darkness to protect the people he loves, and in Ghost Story we learn that not only was he willing to cross that line, he was willing to die for it. Let's just say it got awfully dusty in my house when I was reading that. And when he finally see's his daughter. And when we finally see Thomas. Jeez. As a side note, I don't think the Winter Knight thing will last more than a book or two, so I don't expect it to effect the overall series much, much like Lash when she was infesting Dresden's brain.

As far as the book as a whole and Butcher's writing, I think the seams have been showing in the Dresden Files formula for a long time, and for a while (specifically around Turn Coat) it bothered me some, but I seem to have gotten past that and just accepted the books for what they are. They characters are still powerful and moving like almost nothing else I've read, though that's partially because there are so many books the characters have been allowed to develop to extraordinary depths.

Just finished Fool Moon. Only recently discovered 'The Dresden Files' thanks to this site ! Loving the books so far & plan on working my way through all of them. So easy to read & fun. I am struggling somewhat with the Malazan series with sooooo many characters. I finished Fool Moon in 2 days. I'll get to Ghost Story sooner rather than later !

This was the most disappointing of all Dresden books. Maybe because the last several books were so good or Dresden is more entertaining alive than in a ghost form, but it didn't grab me as much as the rest of the bunch. I guessed who shot Harry after Changes (it was actually suggested by someone else on this forum), although the identity of the requester was still a surprise :) My main issue is that the villain was boring and most of the central characters either don't appear or show up for small cameos and don't do much. All in all, it feels like a "filler" installment whose goal is to provide the bridge to the next phase of Harry's career. I do have a feeling I'm going to miss the noir detective feel of the first novels.

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Originally Posted by Siberian

This was the most disappointing of all Dresden books. Maybe because the last several books were so good or Dresden is more entertaining alive than in a ghost form, but it didn't grab me as much as the rest of the bunch. I guessed who shot Harry after Changes (it was actually suggested by someone else on this forum), although the identity of the requester was still a surprise :) My main issue is that the villain was boring and most of the central characters either don't appear or show up for small cameos and don't do much. All in all, it feels like a "filler" installment whose goal is to provide the bridge to the next phase of Harry's career. I do have a feeling I'm going to miss the noir detective feel of the first novels.

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I disagree. It was a big change, of course, but fun. Harry had to try and find a way to still help matters. He also had more time to think, and we to examine him. While parts might be slow or confusing because of this, I absolutely loved the climax. Some powers from different books pop in do their part. It was great to see some of them again. ;)

Spoiler:

I especially liked the archangel bit. For some reason, Uriel is very interesting...I love the conversations. Maybe because I'm a Christian...hmm.

"Fun" is not the issue, I just though it lacked compared to some of the previous offerings.

I decided to start a blog of my own the other day, yeah now I'm a freaking blogger (yuk!), but since I already posted my thoughts there I think I'll just do a magic and transfer most of what is written there to over here using my will:

"After some concerns of whether Borders was going to ship me my pre-ordered book, it finally arrived late last week and spent two nights finishing it up. Regardless of your opinion on the book, it's apparent that it's still quite a page turner.

But once one finishes up reading Ghost Story, it's evident that the book was sub-par in The Dresden Files sequence. Part of the problem is that Butcher looked like he was very conscious of new readers and he was on recap mode on steroids throughout the whole novel, which surely drove fans of the series nuts. In a similar nature, the pacing was out of whack throughout the book due to too many back story scenes and the already mentioned recaps. While that was problematic, the book specific plot was not that engaging or interesting, so it created a perfect negative storm.

Those issues aside, I really enjoyed the book. The worst Dresden book to me is still much better than most Urban Fantasy novels I read, so while disappointed by the book not reaching the standards I come to expect of a Dresden novel, it's was still a very good read for me, and it's still one of my favorite Urban Fantasy reads this year.

Ghost Story was by enlarge a very introspective book as such, the wide awesome cast of characters of this universe get the short end of the stick in scene appearances, which will add to the disappointment to many. Still some minor characters stepped up to the stage and will surely become favorites to some. It balances out. Ghost Story is also clearly a new stage setter, a bridge novel, to what one can consider the second act of the series. As such, it felt like the second book of a trilogy, and those always seem to be the toughest to write and are often the weakest of the books.

The Dresden Files as always been to me about having Harry Dresden as a narrator and it was still an enjoyable read, though expect many mixed reactions to the book. Even so, the stage has be set and now I'm very much looking forward to what comes next, Harry is back and it'll be interesting to see how his recent experiences are going to shape his behavior going forward. New allies and enemies have been made, questions of trust are about, lots of mysteries still left undiscovered to us the readers, and Harry is here to kick some ass."

Yeah, I'm expecting a lot more powerful magic in the next book (Harry's new mentor...might be like his first?).


Maybe I'm such a fan of Harry Dresden that I didn't notice many failings. Ghost Story just felt like a great climax.

I know it didn't end on a cliff-hanger so per say, but it has left me wanting to know what happens next.

How will Harry re-build his life and cope with being the Winter Knight? I'm sure there will be some way out of it, but it will make for interesting reading - Harry having to balance things and the increased power.

The bit with Uriel was interesting. I'm sure he must have know that Mab had Harry's body. I'm sure we'll see something develop there as well.

In some senses, I agree with Siberian. I did feel it was the weakest entry into the Dresden Files series, but it didn't feel like filler. The events in that book are going to have a major impact on the future of the series. The status quo is still broken and a number of key characters have undergone changes (Molly, Thomas, Murphy) that will need to be addressed in future books.

In the end, I still really enjoyed it. The last quarter of the book was typical Dresden - none stop for chapters on end. I think everyone knew who carried out the hit of Dresden, but it was a surprise to see who ordered it.

I can't wait either. :D I hear that Cold Days will be out before 2012...so I hope it's true.

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Originally Posted by Wulfa_Jones

I think everyone knew who carried out the hit of Dresden, but it was a surprise to see who ordered it.

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Spoiler:

I wasn't sure if it was that merc guy or Marcone before reading GS, but yes, it was nice to see that Harry was worried about who he might become, enough to die. Funny how not even himself can kill himself permanently. :P