Review: Skin Game

Skin Game by Jim Butcher

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



This book was a really fun read, with lots of feelings along the way, too. Harry goes on a job (as usual) and forces along a lot of separate storylines all at once. We get lots of Karin, Michael, and good ole Nicodemus but get no Kincaid (I know, I'm probably the only one that misses him) and very little Molly. After all the happenings of the last book, I guess I thought it would focus more on the aftermath here. Instead, this story is really about Harry and his personal demons (both real and metaphorical).

Harry is being Harry and hiding a little bit on his personal island. Things are still going bad for him when we meet up, although some time has passed. One of the best parts of this book were the witty banter and sometimes random things that Harry seems fixated on (Parkour!). The dialogue and writing are their usual stellar selves. While we don't get any shocking answers in this one, we sure do get some decisions, and hopefully that will lead things in an interesting direction.

I think Jim Butcher has officially broken me as a reader in that when things start going good for Harry, I'm almost cringing as I read, waiting for something really horrible (like Harry dying... again) to happen. Obviously you shouldn't read these books out of order, but this one really felt a little bit standalone when compared with the other ones. It was similar to a road trip book, where Harry grabs a bunch of his friends and does Harry-esque things for a while. This book also gives something that isn't always guaranteed in the Harry universe -- a near happy ending. Yes, there's lots of tear jerking moments with Harry along the way, but I felt pretty good when I finished the book (as opposed to the kindle-throwing rage that sometimes follows finishing a Dresden Files book).

Obviously, if you're a fan you're going to read this book no matter what, but if you're on the fence, go ahead and buy it. It kind of reminded me of the happy go lucky Harry days, before everything was lose-lose choices and everyone died a lot. I'll continue to read this series until its end.



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