The
Harry Dresden novels by Jim Butcher are the epitome of magical-noir. The graphic novels are wonderful additions to this collection. We have added three more stories to accompany
The Dresden Files: Omnibus Volume One graphic novels collection:
Down Town, Ghoul Goblin, and
War Cry.
Harry is a wizard and private investigator who consults with the Chicago Police Department. He has formidable magical skills but his execution could use some spit and polish. Need to track down some black magic practitioners? blood-thirsty vampires? Ancient monsters all set to destroy mankind? Then Dresden is your man...er...wizard.
In
Down Town, Harry and his new apprentice, Molly Carpenter, are trying to end the chaos caused by a power-mad sorcerer hell bent on turning the streets of Chicago into his own private kingdom. Dresden and Molly find out that this usurper has entered into an alliance with big time, bad news mob boss "Gentleman Johnnie" Marcone. Dresden's brash style may not be enough to protect himself and his young charge when things come to a head.
Harry comes to the aid of a small Missouri town being terrorized by Nevernever monsters in
Ghoul Goblin. The Talbot family has been decimated by a terrible curse that has plagued them for generations. In order for Harry to help them, however, he will have to navigate a quagmire of hostile lawmen, menacing town secrets, and an ancient guardian spirit, and not one, but two, deadly carnivores! Will he be able to clear the Talbot curse without sacrificing himself in the process?
In
War Cry, Harry--now a warden for the White Council--must lead a group of inexperienced young wizards against the vampires of the Red Court. The White Council and the Red Court have been fighting a shadow war for a while now, but the Council's ranks have been decimated by the vampire scourge. Harry and his team head to Iowa to protect the scholars of the Vantori Umbrorum haven from the bloodthirsty legions surrounding them.Once there, Harry realizes that the situation is worse than he imagined; much worse. For hidden beneath the haven lies an ancient and terrifying entity that could bring about the end of humanity.
These adventures of the irascible Harry Dresden are sure to delight, entertain, and thrill anyone who love a good mystery, fantasy, or both!
Another Summer Library Program season has come to an end. We started off with a fantastic kickoff party featuring Magic Man Dorian LaChance.
DearS by Peach-Pit
I just finished Neil Gaiman's newest work, The Ocean at the End of the Lane and I must say that I was blown away by this short, but lyrically beautiful tale for adults. Neil Gaiman is a wonderful writer and he excels in creating modern fairy tales. When our story opens, the narrator (who is never named) is visiting his boyhood home in Sussex, England after attending a funeral. Fiftyish and looking for something he cannot pinpoint, he travels down to the end of the lane where he used to live. There he visits the Hempstock farm he thinks he remembers from when he was seven years old. It was there that he met his friend Lettie Hempstock, who, along with her mother and grandmother, tend the farm and its animals. The boy and his father walk down their lane to look for the family car that seems to have gone missing. In so doing, they find the body of their lodger slumped in the seat; an apparent suicide. So, the boy is shuffled off to the Hempstock farm so that the police can do their duty. Lettie shows the boy her "ocean"; a small duck pond behind the house. The boy cannot understand why Lettie calls it this, nor can he understand why she talks in riddles and seems to be wise beyond her years. The reason is that Gaiman has interwoven magic into this seemingly innocuous story about a young boy finding more adventure than he wants. Lettie and her family are not really human; they are ancient beings who look out for the world and raise cows and chickens and help little boys who get into trouble with monsters. Although the boy has great adventures and survives darkness and death, thanks to his friend Lettie, he doesn't remember any of it until he returns to contemplate his life beside the "ocean". And that is what this book is really about; how we alter our own memory as we age to gloss over painful and tragic times and to punctuate those glowing victories. If this all sounds a little confusing, it is. To tell you more would give away the ending and I wouldn't want to deprive you of the joy of reading this short, sweet tome.
Strange Brew is a collection of tales of powerful witches and dark magic, from nine contemporary urban fantasy authors: Patricia Briggs, Jim Butcher, Rachel Caine, Karen Chance, P. N. Elrod, Charlaine Harris, Faith Hunter, Catilin Kittredge and Jenna Maclaine. If you like tales of revenge and magic, witches, vampires, werewolves and wizards, then this collection of stories is the perfect book for you. Edited by P. N. Elrod, each story is approximately 40 pages long and can be read quickly. If you do not currently read some of the above authors, this book is the perfect way to explore a "taste" of their writing, and perhaps be encouraged to read other stories they have written. Sit a spell, open this book and lose yourself in a different reality!
