Skin Game

A Novel of the Dresden Files, Book 15

De: Jim Butcher

Narrado por: James Marsters

Chicago’s only professional wizard is about to have a very bad day in the latest novel in the #1 New York Times bestselling Dresden Files...

As Winter Knight to the Queen of Air and Darkness, Harry Dresden never knows what the scheming Mab might want him to do. Usually, it’s something awful.

Mab has traded Harry’s skills to pay off a debt. And now he must help a group of villains led by Harry’s most despised enemy, Nicodemus Archleone, to break into a high-security vault so that they can then access a vault in the Nevernever.

Problem is, the vault belongs to Hades, Lord of the freaking Underworld. And Dresden is dead certain that Nicodemus has no intention of allowing any of his crew to survive the experience. Dresden’s always been tricky, but he’s going to have to up his backstabbing game to survive this mess...

Reseñas de la Crítica

Praise for the Dresden Files

“Think Buffy the Vampire Slayer starring Philip Marlowe.”—Entertainment Weekly

“Fans of Laurell K. Hamilton and Tanya Huff will love this series.”—Midwest Book Review

“Superlative.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“One of the most enjoyable marriages of the fantasy and mystery genres on the shelves.”—Cinescape

“Butcher...spins an excellent noirish detective yarn in a well-crafted, supernaturally-charged setting. The supporting cast is again fantastic, and Harry’s wit continues to fly in the face of a peril-fraught plot.”—Booklist (starred review)

“What’s not to like about this series?...It takes the best elements of urban fantasy, mixes it with some good old-fashioned noir mystery, tosses in a dash of romance and a lot of high-octane action, shakes, stirs, and serves.”—SF Site

“A tricky plot complete with against-the-clock pacing, firefights, explosions, and plenty of magic. Longtime series fans as well as newcomers drawn by the SciFi Channel’s TV series based on the novels should find this supernatural mystery a real winner.”—Library Journal

“What would you get if you crossed Spenser with Merlin? Probably you would come up with someone very like Harry Dresden, wizard, tough guy and star of [the Dresden Files].”—The Washington Times

Sorcerous fun!

A great installment on the Dresden files. Characters grow and change, adding to the rich world Butcher has built. Harry is faced with an even more impossible task, and finds allies old and new to help him. Throughout, he examines large problems and small, exploring what it means to have power and what to do with it. There are also some completely awesome stand-up-and-cheer moments you won't want to miss!
Long live Sir Harry Dresden!

Oceans Eleven meets Harry Dresden

So this is a very good Harry Dresden novel, and a very good Harry Dresden novel is something to celebrate. Butcher continues to be able to increase the stakes and keep a sprawling plot moving after 15 books, while still giving us characters to care about and even a few scenes that caused my eyes to well up (must have been allergies). Still, this is a very good Dresden novel, following a few that I might consider to be great, hence the four stars, rather than five.

Why? Well, while the main plot of the novel (Dresden in the supernatural version of a classic heist movie) is exciting and propulsive as ever, a few things drag down the book a bit. First, the novel takes a bit longer to get going than usual, and much of that time is spent rehashing philosophic questions that have been more urgently and better addressed in previous books: Harry's friends worrying about him turning bad, Harry worries about turning bad, and so on. Don't get me wrong, these are Big Themes in Butcher's books and Butcher still handles them well, but they are less earned in this novel, and especially the first half, and it weighs the book down a little.

Additionally, the plotting here, while still very good, is missing some of the sharpness of previous books. On the plus side, Harry's personal life advances in satisfying ways. The main story, however, requires even more deus ex machina than usual to resolve itself, which makes some of the cliffhangers a bit cheap (though a couple of the reveals are terrific, and very much in the heist movie theme). Add this to the fact that there are some strange absences from the novel of key characters who you would expect to be in it, and the fact that the meta-plot barely advances in the novel, and you get a Dresden Files entry that, while still fun, may not be quite as vital to the series as the 2-3 before it.

The reading is spectacular, and nothing actually goes off the rails, so I was very satisfied with the book. This may not be the best in the series, but it is still very good, and, obviously, a must for any fan.

Gold.

This book both feel unique from the rest of the series while delivering everything you love about the series.

This is book 15. You must read previous books to enjoy this one. You could jump into the series as late as Book 9... but most consider book 4 the best starting point.

The Dresden Files are FUN again

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, with caveats.

While the book itself is great, and James Marsters will forever be the voice of Harry Dresden, it won't make a lot of sense without the buildup of many of the previous books.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Oddly enough, Butters. Mainly because he's doing what he can to make the best of a situation he was totally unprepared for, and he's doing pretty well at it.

What does James Marsters bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

That's hard to say. The first person narration is so much a part of the performance that when I read anything pertaining to Dresden, it's Marster's voice I hear.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Both. I laughed in several places. I may have even had to fight the urge to clap at a point or two. I'm also pretty sure I came close to crying a time or two. Those manly one tear things that seep out silently, you understand.

Any additional comments?

I'm not a big fan of the Faerie Court stories, and the political games that started back in book, what 8?, have made the series more of a trudge than a romp.

Changes was a good old fashioned monster stomp.
Ghost Story was the start of a buzzkill.
Cold Front continued that, despite the huge battle at the end.
Skin Game brought it back to the glory days of the series. The political aspects were kept to a minimum and we were allowed to just tag along on a classic heist story with a Dresden flair.

It Keeps Getting BETTER & BETTER!

Let me start by saying that I am a sucker for Series Books. I like the fact that I can purchase the next book in a series and pick up where it left off. On that note I find that most Series start to fizzle around book 7ish. Jim Butcher's 'Dresden Series' gets better and better! As for James Marsters, He has captured to voices and does an incredible job on both Male and Female characters. He is in my top 5 favorite narrators. My only advice I would give to someone that hasn't read this Series is this; Get Storm Front and enjoy the ride, don't rush to the end because, the end is just the beginning.
Where the heck is book 16 :-)