Small Favor: The Dresden Files, Book 10

I absolutely love this! I kept hoping you would get Jim Butcher's Dresden Files. James Marsters has done a fantastic job! His snarky humor is spot on as Harry. Would love to see more of the Dresden Files on Audible. *pretty please* In the meantime, I will be listening to it again.

Someone asked me if I caught the Super Bowl on television. I said no, the new multimillion dollar players don't seemed to be anything like me. When I was young, even famous athletes, like Joe Namath, seemed like people you might encounter at your neighborhood bar once in awhile, famous but one of us mugs. This is why I like the character Harry Dresden.

Jim Butcher creates a great character that you'd love to sit down with and have a beer and pizza, just to listen to what he's been up to today. You might run into Harry walking across your street and yell hello while he's out with Mouse. The humanity of the character doesn't dim his powerful, ever growing, powers as a wizard. Butcher does follow an old, 'Sam Spade,' formula, true, but the characters are so good you don't care and find yourself glad of the time it took to read it through.

I am hoping that soon all the Harry Dresden books are here at Audible. You really do need to read them from the beginning in order to not only appreciate the plot you're reading now, but to understand the subplot that flows through all the books. But you can still listen to 'Small Favors' by itself, so grab a beer (or your favorite beverage) some pizza, turn out the lights, and get on a case with Harry.

After I had major surgery in 2005 a thoughtful friend gave me a box of books to occupy my recovery at home. Tucked in the box was the first 4 books in the Dresden Files, as the books are known. To this day I still remember my delight at discovering how much fun they were to read, and still are.

Harry Dresden is a great twist on the two-bit private eye. Like a typical P.I., he packs a gun and he works for peanuts (or sometimes pizza). He also packs a wizard's staff and gets involved with things Sam Spade never imagined.

As the series has evolved Dresden and his world have developed so well and clearly that I know his world as well as my own.

DO NOT judge the books by the Sci-Fi channel series, which did reeketh mightily. This is great!

My only complaint is that this, Audible's first offering of a Dresden story, is book 10 in the series. First time "readers" would benefit from listening to the stories in order, since each, to varying degrees, does build on the stories before.

Hey Audible, PLEASE give us the rest of the stories, unabridged. Thanks for this one.

First, let me say that I was turned on to the hard copy books initially and loved the series from the start. Then I started travelling more for work and was nervous about having them in audio format starting with this book, #8. No need to worry, it was even better than I could have hoped for. James Marsters does a GREAT job of bringing the story and people to life. His intonations, laughs and accents really help to make this an exciting listen. I have actually found myself driving around the block of my customers locations a few times just to get to the end of a chapter for a stopping point. Just like a book you can't put down. I strongly suggest you start with the books in order, now that they are available, to help understand the story development fully. It is good to watch Harry Dresden grow from the beginning and know where the other players come in at and get the background foundation. I am now up to book #11 and they just keep getting better. I rate these books as 5 stars due to the story line and the excellent narration. Well done! I have to agree with another reviewer that says that he can now picture Dresden saying "FOZARE!". I am now the same way and also when Marsters makes the difference in using a small "fuego!" in comparison to belting out a bellowing basso "FUUEEEEGGGGOOO!!!!" It really brings the story to life and sometimes I get chills just from listening to it. This particular book was a great addition to the series. I really liked the ending and Captain Luccios part in it. I just downloaded # 11 and can't wait to get started on it.

Some of us actually take a serious look at the reviews before purchasing. Before you give a bad review and whine about not understanding the story have enough sense to listen the the NINE previous books. Idiot.

The Summer and Winter Queens are having another strange game of 'cat's paw' and our favorite wizard is stuck in the middle again. Small Favor draws on plot threads from some of the previous novels and sets the table for Turn Coat which follows as book 11. Care is taken to explain plots that carry over from another book, at least briefly, so the book stands on it's own, but read the earlier installments to get the full story.

Jim Butcher seems to have few 'disposable' characters, and they become familliar and develop over the course of several of the books, most involved in over-arching plots that do not detract from the main plot of the novel, but continue to neatly build over time. He does hit the pop-culture references pretty hard in this novel, but that's one of the joys of reading modern fantasy that connects so strongly with it's reader base. I am a RPG playing child of the 80's and can't help but love this series.

This is probably one of the more action packed books, with the billy goats gruff, hobbes,not one but two showdowns with Nicodemus and the Denarians, a non-standard assortment of thugs, the Archive and her Hellhound, the captain of the White Council's Wardens, the Knights of the Cross, the Queen of Air and Darkness, and... a donut. Prithee, with frosting of white, and sprinkles 'pon it.

I came to these books as a fan of the narrator's previous work, and I have not been dissapointed. James Marsters rocks hard as Harry Dresden and the suprising array of character voices he portrays in this series. They come to life in his care and I couldn't imagine anyone else portraying them. The only vocal continuity glitch is the change from the normal "John Marcone" voice of previous installments to the one used for his brief appearances here.

Jim Butcher and James Marsters go together like PB&J. As usual the story drags you in and won't let you leave. James Marsters has spoiled me for all other audio narrators. I have listened to a few other books from other favorite authors and found the narrations distracting. The Dresden Files are brought to life through the emotional narration. James Marsters infuses all the nuances of courage, rage, love, regret, hope, loss and frustration that make Harry Dresden so human. A truly amazing raconteur telling an amazingly crafted tale.

Great story + amazingly talented narrator = one of my favorite audiobooks of all time. Marsters is so versatile that you'll swear it's more than just one narrator. The story is fast paced and riveting. This one is worth a listen. I just wish the entire series was on Audible.

There are more books in this series! Please, Audible, make more available!

Harry Dresden, human wizard, gets better and better with each book, each one building on the last til the whole conglomeration is a soap opera with magic. Harry takes lick after lick and comes back swinging, snappy banter and snarks flying with fists and 'Forzare' blows of magic. James Marsters' narration is perfect, his unique vocalizations of each character are consistant with the personalities of each. His Toot-Toot is hilarious, and his John Marcone chilling. As his acting is superb, I would expect no less from this fantastic talent.
Please, I beg again, more!

This is the tenth book of the series and not only is the narration great on Small Favor but as always Dresden Delivers. Do yourself a favor listen or read any Dresden story published. Audible please pick up the first 9!