Murphy!

really enjoying this series the welcome new addition stays I hope. Finding out more about Muphy's background was very welcome & mother Murphy sounds like one hell of a woman. . Loved the story sad funny thrilling & worrisome

4 people found this helpful

Good story but mixed messages

I'm working my way through the series whilst waiting for new rivers of London books as it's on the same lines. When I was first recommended these books I saw that a lot of reviews were saying it's pretty heavy on sexism. That heads up actually helped as I anticipated the issue but this book, book no 6 is too much for me. I know many will think it's over sensitive and I do want to say it's a good story and I really enjoyed lots of parts but I just can't get my head round this being written in 2004 not 30 years earlier! I can get on board with the old chivalry, that's just who he is but he constantly drones on about his respect and love of women whilst objectifying every woman he comes in to contact with. Every woman is a potential conquest unless they are unattractive and then he just labels them as so. Apart from necessary situations ie Thomas, that's not something he feels the need to do for the Male characters. He continues to establish himself as a champion of women whilst calling them bitches and whores. We also get schlong jockey for an adult film actress but the Male actors aren't given the same insult despite one threatening him so perfect time for an insult!. it seems to me that when he insults men it's an appropriate insult for that man but when its women its straight to sexuality. For many it's probably not a big deal and as I said I managed to ignore it in the first 5 books but I found myself rolling my eyes and noticing it an awful lot in this book.

3 people found this helpful

excellent! totally brought to life !

narrated by James Masters. buffy references made me laugh out loud on the train :/

3 people found this helpful

Harry is exposed

In the previous books we have been offered Harry,an interesting but rather 2 dimensional wizard. With this book you finally get to see the man; his back story is peeled off layer by layer to give a richer more complex character. Tantalising glimpses of how is past informs his future are laid out like bread crumbs to follow...

5 people found this helpful

A real low point for Harry Dresden

It's easy to say that this is far from Jim Butcher's best work. Blood Rites sees Chicago's only professional wizard hired to protect an adult film director and his production, while tangling with two vampire courts.

You might think that sounds pretty good, and on its face there's a neat mystery, and some of the signature action sequences that Butcher does best. But, this entire book is held back by Harry Dresden's truly awful personality. In previous books, Harry's so-called "chivalry" was a fun gag, it got him in trouble and he seemed to know it wasn't all that great. in this one though, it's so much worse.

To start with, every single woman in this book is described in *painful* detail, head to toe. There's multiple descriptions of some characters which go on and on about how sexy Harry finds them. Even Karrin Murphy, who has always been a great foil to Harry's neanderthal shenanigans, can't escape it. Murphy gets objectified, physically groped in the middle of a fight scene, and then in what might be the most excruciating part of this book:

Lord Wraith, head of one of the White Court Houses, explains in detail just how much he wants to violate her, how he will break her and how good it will make him feel.

It's gross. It's lazy. It's uninteresting. The white court's whole deal is they are basically super natural sexual predators, and the book handles it incredibly poorly.

As an audiobook, I will say that James Marsters continues to deliver a great performance. It's just a shame the material is so bad this time.

1 person found this helpful

Weakest story so far

Just that. Doesn't grab me as much as earlier books. It was okay but not one I'm liable to recall well

1 person found this helpful

A Deadly Game Of Cat and Mouse.

I've read the previous books in this series and really enjoyed them. The Dresden Files has become one of my favourite reads. The magic and paranormal abilities found in these books feel perfectly credible.

I love the way that the characters in these books are written. They're multifaceted creations that feel believable; they have depth and layers to their personalities. Good or bad, light or dark is an illusion, the reality is actually one of the myriad shades of grey. Aside from Harry, I loved getting to know Thomas and Murphy during this adventure. There are revelations that took my breath away.

Blood Rites was more than a good story, it had everything that I look for. There's a great balance between the various aspects of this story: Mystery, crime, thriller, horror, detective, and the paranormal. Jim Butcher blends the more brutal aspects with well-written humour, love, friendship and hope. This mix helps to keep the story from being too dark and heavy. Blood Rites also managed to surprise me a few times; not taking the direction I was expecting. I enjoyed trying to second guess what would happen next and how Harry would get out of the various deadly situations he inevitably found himself in.

I bought the audiobook format as well as the ebook. However, I found myself just listening to Blood Rites rather than reading it. James Marsters performance was amazing. The pace at which he read the narrative was appropriate for each scene, while the voices he gave to each character added another level of credibility to the dialogue. I feel that James has personified our protagonist. Bringing Harry to life in his narration of this series.

Blood Rites is a gripping book. However, it's part of an ongoing series so don't expect all the loose ends to be neatly tied up. There's no life-or-death cliffhanger at the end. However, although Harry may have won the battles in this book, we're left in no doubt that he'll need to face many more before the war is over. I for one, can't wait to find out what adventures Harry is forced to go on in the next book.

1 person found this helpful

Nice story

Not sure how Harry's going to make it through many more books with the wounds he seems to accumulate.

1 person found this helpful

Awesome

Brilliant entry in the Dresden series of books best one yet. Must read for fans.

1 person found this helpful

another great story

what can I say except another great mystery solved with dresden. perfect performance. I love these books.