Small Favor (Dresden Files 10)
by: Jim Butcher

This series just keeps getting better.  The entanglement levels of the various A & B plots become less exercises in plot trickery and more natural outgrowths of the world, yada yada.

This one picks up the Nevernever plot that started off in Winter Knight with the first of his 3 favors for Mab – here she calls in the second.  Again, to aid her works out to his benefit, but at the same time you get the clear feeling that something much bigger is going on with the Nevernever crew  in the background.  I wonder how long until we start seeing whatever that something is?  It could be another angle to the Black Council plot – several clues here point that way… but they could be herrings of a sunburnt hue.

The Denarians plot also picks back up, looping around towards the overarching series plot, as well as seeding the feel with more warring factions.  The various factions and their relationships to each other  a lot of balls to juggle and Butcher is doing it surprisingly well.

Oh, and our resident hopeless romantic (in the sense of “can’t have a relationship that’s not serious) finally goes on a date.  With a much, much older woman.  I’m curious where this one is going, especially since Harry has so many secrets that this other person probably shouldn’t, technically, find out about – and he’s been a decent guy so far with telling secrets to people who need to know them.

OH.  And this thing that’s been foreshadowed for I don’t know how many books now (5?) finally happens.  It involves a sword.   In a good way.

The thing with the goats is entertaining.

I really can’t recommend this series enough for fans of fantasy, supernatural, etc.  Or just someone looking for a fun read.

PS. I miss Lash.

FOUR STARS

The Weird of the White Wolf (Elric 3)
by: Michael Moorcock

Somehow I’m still amused to open my drawer at work to grab my lunch & lunch reading and see the word MOORCOCK in giant letters.  Nothing wrong with a little juvenile amusement, I suppose.

Anyway, yeah, as I implied above, reading this series feels like homework.  It’s amazingly poorly written, plotted, etc. by modern standards, yet it’s an undeniable classic – probably more due to its role in pushing fantasy out there to the masses than presenting an engaging story.

NOW.  In time-period context though… I can see how it would have been much more engaging.  Still, to read it through modern eyes… it’s difficult not to haul out a red pen and start marking stuff up.  There are no characters here, only people moving along preset lines.   The main character however is, somewhat aware of this – one of the more interesting angles to the series.  He does some things pretty much at random, and his commentary indicates that he’s aware he’s not exactly in control of things.  And he’s seeking out the hidden meaning behind all of it, almost like a meta-novel about a character unconsciously trying to break the 4th wall.  Maybe I’m reading a little too much into it, but Moorcock (no matter how poorly written these books are)  is a damn smart guy, and had specific intentions writing things, and that may have been one.  Who knows.

I can see the allure of these books for young boys (I see lots of stuff written about how people fell in love with these as kids – maybe if I had read them then I would have the same nostalgic love for them that I have for Fred Saberhagen’s Sword books that certain people seem to think are crap).  They are not difficult to read.  Most characters, even if they are supposed to have complicated motivations, act simply and predictably.  The hero has a crazy magic sword.  There are only 180 pages.  Each book is generally broken into 3 parts – each relatively separate, making it even easier to read.

I suppose it is also worth pointing out that this was one of the (or the?) earliest anti-heroes in fantasy.

Only for the die-hard, or the fantasy reader curious about his roots – of which I am both.

TWO STARS