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A review by miss_fish
Dark and Stormy Knights: A Paranormal Fantasy Anthology by Lilith Saintcrow, Shannon K. Butcher, Ilona Andrews, Jim Butcher, Carrie Vaughn, P.N. Elrod, Rachel Caine, Deidre Knight, Vicki Pettersson
Picked this up for the Jim Butcher/Dresden short story in it. Have to say, this is the first Dresden series short that is only a solid "meh."
Even Hand is written from John Marcone's point of view. It adds a little overall to the Dresden story, but Butcher maintains the writing style in which he writes Harry (short paragraphs, pauses, fairly emotional) for Marcone, which didn't work for the character. It felt like I was reading Marcone's story as narrated by Harry, rather than in what I imagine to be Marcone's voice.
That said, the story is, as always, a fun moment in Dresden's world. I'm not quite fan enough to remember when, exactly, the Fomor are introduced; this may be an early mention of them. Also a sentence or two that give Hendricks (Marcone's red-headed thug) the teensiest bit more humanity than Harry ever attributes to him.
I read two others in this collection, Shannon Butcher's The Beacon and Carrie Vaughn's God's Creatures. Butcher's story felt like it could have benefited from a few more pages of background story or character development. The characters made some inexplicable decisions that were straight out of a bad action movie.
Vaughn, on the other hand, never disappoints. I have yet to read any of her novels, but her short stories always make me wonder why I haven't. The bios sometimes suggest that the stories that pop up in these collections are based on recurring characters, but I never feel like I'm reading a chapter out of another book. They're complete, well formed, and interesting stories. I suppose it's time I sought out her novels.
Even Hand is written from John Marcone's point of view. It adds a little overall to the Dresden story, but Butcher maintains the writing style in which he writes Harry (short paragraphs, pauses, fairly emotional) for Marcone, which didn't work for the character. It felt like I was reading Marcone's story as narrated by Harry, rather than in what I imagine to be Marcone's voice.
That said, the story is, as always, a fun moment in Dresden's world. I'm not quite fan enough to remember when, exactly, the Fomor are introduced; this may be an early mention of them. Also a sentence or two that give Hendricks (Marcone's red-headed thug) the teensiest bit more humanity than Harry ever attributes to him.
I read two others in this collection, Shannon Butcher's The Beacon and Carrie Vaughn's God's Creatures. Butcher's story felt like it could have benefited from a few more pages of background story or character development. The characters made some inexplicable decisions that were straight out of a bad action movie.
Vaughn, on the other hand, never disappoints. I have yet to read any of her novels, but her short stories always make me wonder why I haven't. The bios sometimes suggest that the stories that pop up in these collections are based on recurring characters, but I never feel like I'm reading a chapter out of another book. They're complete, well formed, and interesting stories. I suppose it's time I sought out her novels.