I recently read "The Dresden Files: Death Masks" by Jim Butcher, published in 2003. It is a phenomenal novel, but it certainly is not for the faint of heart. It mixes fantasy, romance, murder mystery, and apocalyptic elements and enthralls you immediately. From the perspective of a wimpy wizard who faces a constant bombardment of impossible challenges, you will discover that you can always overcome challenges, no matter how impossible they seem, though often there is a cost to that success. Harry Dresden is a professional wizard, and as you might imagine it's hard to make a living in a career that few people even believe exists. He also works as a part-time consultant for the CPD (Chicago police department) in the SI (Special Investigations) department. SI is pretty much stuck with any case none of the other departments want, which means any case that won't fit nicely in a report, aka magical baddies. He has a home and office in Chicago, and though they are small, he struggles to pay the bills. This means when a client comes calling offering big bucks he can often get sucked into some pretty dangerous crap. When a client comes calling asking him to find "an old piece of cloth" it seems like a great deal until he puts it together that it is the Shroud of Turin. Harry always seems to bite off more than he can chew, but he never turns away from the challenges he encounters… except when he's running away from giant scary bear demons. His good friend Michael is a knight of the cross, which is a comradery of 3 people deemed worthy of wielding 3 special swords that radiate light. Despite warnings from the Knights to turn away from the client and stay safe, he decides to go after the shroud. Just as usual, his reckless and persistent spirit gets him into trouble, but will what he has gained be worth what is lost and did he make the right choice by going after the shroud? This book is exciting, engaging, and once you pick it up you will find it impossible to put down, but it is certainly not for the faint of heart. I say this because of the amount of gore and vivid depictions of death and corpses. That being said, if you can handle it, that vividness helps to add to the suspense of the plot and almost immerses the reader in the novel. Finally, since the novel is based in our world today, at least for the most part, the way Jim Butcher structures the book makes it seem like magic may possibaly exist, and there may be immortal creatures meandering among us at this very moment. All in all, The Dresden Files: Death Masks is a fantastic book for those who love murder mysteries, surprises, and having the reality they know questioned.
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