My review of Changes was intentionally
short. It was a brilliant book, but one
that I perhaps didn’t have enough time to really get my thoughts out on why it
works. That may be for the best since
its follow up novel, Ghost Story, is an intense character examination of
the fallout from the end of that novel.
Harry Dresden is dead, but the forces that be have pulled him from the afterlife
for one final task. He has to solve his
own murder. This is Jim Butcher’s one
last good old fashioned supernatural murder mystery before the series finishes
shifting focus away from that genre. It’s
genuinely sad to see it go, but Butcher knows just how to escalate the mystery
with so many twists and turns built into the narrative to give the reader one
last bow. Ghost Story opens with
this excellent musing from Harry as he tries to come to terms with his death
and the fact that he is going to be sent back, seemingly immediately after his
death. To help him with this is Karrin
Murphy’s father who is a fascinating look at the man that made Murphy. I cannot tell if Butcher is intentionally using
Jack Murphy to explore the trauma of Murphy, as when we see her in the novel she
is hardened from Harry’s death as a capstone.
Jack does seem to care about his daughter but there is a final discussion
before Harry goes back to Chicago establishing this respect and pride in his
daughter. Harry is also immediately
skeptical of his situation as he already knows what can happen with spirits who
go back to Earth, Dead Beat and White Night are not forgotten (Dead
Beat in particular as we deal with some of the lingering fallout of the Corpsetaker
getting away in that one).
One the narrative gets back to Chicago, Butcher has
pushed Harry to his lowest point. As a
shade, he is unable to access his magic and in typical ghost fashion cannot be
seen, heard, or touched. Butcher doesn’t
make him helpless, he still has his wits about him after all, but Ghost
Story is one final journey of self-discovery. The book ends with Harry back alive, something
that really isn’t a spoiler when you have four currently published sequels (and
several planned others), but Harry has to find himself and stick with himself
if he is to survive the road ahead. The
ending of Changes essentially lost him to Death. There is a point about 2/3 of the way through
Ghost Story where Lea appears and Harry tells her a story in exchange
for three questions, through this he discovers he already knew his killer. The reveal of the killer is masterfully done
and this beautiful parallel to Harry finding himself, stated in the final
chapter when he is alive and in someone’s very particular care. It’s something that Butcher hints and foreshadows
throughout the book which is really the only reason that the reveal works. There is plenty of misdirect for who it could
be and several suspects, both human and supernatural. The story he tells Lea is also vitally
important, it is one of his past and how he ran away from his former tutor
Justin DuMorne. Lea already knows what
happened when he stumbled across her, but there was a significant period of
time in between these events.
This is where Butcher takes the book down a cosmic
horror route. He Who Walks Behind, an
entity of great power has been behind Harry for the very beginning and has
plans. It is, in essence a thing that
sparked Harry’s power and morality, it has been moving things behind the scenes
and is still out there, walking and waiting.
It is perhaps the best single scene in anything in The Dresden Files. This is also the novel that has Harry really
examine what he does to other people.
Molly Carpenter has been on a downward spiral, not dealing with her
grief in any healthy way. She has been
using her power without guidance and has fallen under the influence of the Sidhe,
specifically Lea at Harry’s orders, and this rule of Chicago through fear is
slowly weakening and killing her. Much
of Ghost Story is dealing with this as well, getting Molly to an adult
who can care for herself. The same for
Murphy and Butters and everyone Harry has been touching in the last twelve
books. This is a book of closure because
the series is past a point of no return.
It’s nearly perfect. 9/10.
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