
Newly-cloaked Warden Harry Dresden is asked to investigate reports of black magic in Chicago by his former mentor, Ebenezar. He has barely begun when the Blue Beetle is rammed by a mysterious car and Michael Carpenter’s daughter, Molly (now a teenage runaway), calls, begging for his help. Molly’s boyfriend is in jail for the savage beating of an old man at a horror film convention, but she says he didn’t do it. After a trip to the convention site, Harry agrees with her: it appears to be the work of movie monsters made real.
This adventure eventually takes Harry and his unlikely team (Lieutenant Murphy, Thomas the vampire, and Michael’s wife, Charity) to Arctis Tor, Queen Mab’s stronghold in the faery realm of Winter. All the while, the shadow of fallen angel Lasciel (her “stupid mental sock puppet,” as Harry says) is still hanging around in his head, tempting Harry to solve every one of the gigantic mound of his problems by taking up the coin and embracing her evil assistance.
Proven Guilty
is a dense book that leaves the reader with many intriguing loose ends. It’s a connecting, dark-feeling book; a second act in the tradition of The Empire Strikes Back. War is still raging, Harry has been pressed into a service he hates and that is against his moral code, Wardens and other council members don’t trust him, and Lasciel’s presence is wearing him down (sometimes keeping him from trusting himself).
There’s plenty of humor and action amid the confusion and darker themes of this novel. The character of Charity Carpenter is a bright point. She raises the bar for mothers and tough women everywhere – a lucid, faith-filled Sarah Connor.
Proven Guilty
is a great read and an essential part of Harry’s story. I don’t know how well it would be received by readers new to the series, but that’s okay because no one should be starting with book eight anyway. Important things are best done in order starting with Storm Front
.
Book Stats:
- Mass Market Paperback: 496 pages
- Publisher: Roc (February 6, 2007)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0451461037
- ISBN-13: 978-0451461032
To purchase a print copy of Proven Guilty click here
.
To purchase a Kindle copy of Proven Guilty 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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