After the large scale events of book four, Summer Knight, Jim Butcher goes for a slightly smaller scale in Death Masks the fifth installment of the series. But that doesn’t mean that there is room on Harry’s plate. The war between the White Council and the vampires that Harry kind of started in book three is heating up. A Red Court warlord challenges Harry to a formal duel with Chicago as neutral territory being the prize if Harry wins. He can hardly say no since he will kill all of Harry’s friends and associates if he does.

Harry is also hired by the Catholic Church to track down the Shroud of Turin which was stolen by thieves and traced to Chicago. In hunting it down, Harry finds himself at odds with a group of demons known as the Order of the Blackened Denarius. The Denarians are actually humans who have been possessed by a Fallen angel after accepting a silver coin (there are thirty of these coins, hint, hint).

On top of that, Susan, Harry’s one-time sweetheart, is back in town and still struggling with her semi-vampiric nature; and Gentleman John Marcone appears to be gunning for him as well. As usual, Harry gets by with a little help from his friends Murphy, Bob the Skull, and Michael, along with Michael’s fellow Knights of the Cross Shiro and Sanya.

Death Masks delivers Butcher’s now usual blend of clever plotting, high-octane action and adventure, Harry’s wiseacre humor, and strong characterization. In many ways, it is the meatiest, as well as the most mature thematically, emotionally, and graphically book of the series so far.

Butcher does an outstanding job of developing his characters, the supporting cast as well as Harry. I especially liked the revelation about Marcone, who is a complex and not unlikeable major bad guy. In him, I think we see the kind of man Harry might be were he to give into his darker desires.

Butcher deftly interweaves the supernatural ass-kicking action with quieter, contemplative moments that show the humanity of the characters. There is some pretty serious stuff in here about the responsibility of power, love and loss, faith, family and loyalty.

I did have a couple of very minor quibbles with this book. One is that the Shroud of Turin apparently went missing on the down low. I’m all for suspension of disbelief, but it seems unlikely that the Church could keep such a theft out of the news. I was also left feeling vaguely unsatisfied with the way the duel played out; it was just kind of a letdown. Neither of these detracted any from the book. It was as rollicking of a page turner as any of the books so far and a blast to read. And after a genuine “Holy Crap!” moment at the end of the book, I can’t wait to see what happens next. I give it four and a half tombstones.

Reviewers Note: While any of the Dresden books can stand alone and serve as a jumping off point, it would be to the reader’s benefit to start at the beginning with Storm Front.

Book Stats:

• Mass Market Paperback: 378 pages
• Publisher: Roc (August 5, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451459407
• ISBN-13: 978-0451459404

To purchase a print copy of Death Masks click here.
To purchase a Kindle copy of Death Masks click here.

Books in the Dresden Files series in the order they should be read:
Storm Front
Fool Moon
Grave Peril
Summer Knight
Death Masks
Blood Rites
Dead Beat
Proven Guilty
White Night
Small Favor
Turn Coat

To visit the author’s website go here.
To visit the author’s blog go here.

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