Book Review: Turn Coat

Last week I finished reading the latest book by Jim Butcher, "Turn Coat". It's the most recent in the Harry Dresden series. You can read my initial review of the series here.

Harry seems to do very little private detectiving these days. He still has the skills, but most of the work he does isn't paying work. The book starts with Morgan, the man who has spent most of Harry's adult life hounding Harry for crimes he didn't commit and looking for an excuse to execute him, coming to Harry's door bloody, wounded and looking for protection. Morgan has been accused of a murder with the only evidence being that after going missing for a short time he was found over the body holding the murder weapon and a bunch of money appearing in a bank account in his name. What basis is that for a case?

If Harry is found to be sheltering Morgan then the lives of he and his apprentice are over. Even so, Harry starts an investigation to find the real killer. Almost immediately he gets attacked by a horrible flying monster called a skinwalker, seeks refuge with some werewolves, and gets one of them killed and another hospitalized. His case takes him along dangerous paths through fairy realms, the night clubs of a breed of vampire to which his incubus/vampire brother belongs, the legal offices of said vampire people (where the skinwalker attacks again), facing mindless summoned demon things with mouths in their hands, to an island where he bonds with the island's spirit in order to help with the pending fight involving the wizard high council, the white vampires, some werewolves, more mindless demon things, and the skinwalker, and finally Morgan's trial in which dozens of wizards die, the guilty party is revealed, and a long chase scene occurs.

The Dresden Files books are different than the TV show inspired by the books. I think the books are better. It's like how any movie based on a series is over the top compared to what they can do in an hour. The books are more like movie versions of the TV show.

You can jump straight to "Turn Coat" but I wouldn't recommend it. I'd read the rest of the series first.