Reviews with content warning for Blood - Fool Moon

I still can't justify why I enjoy The Dresden Files. The main character, Harry Dresden, is sexist in that "I believe in chivalry" kind of way. The writing isn't that good. So many unbelievable things happen. And yet? It holds my attention and I read the books really quickly. I guess Dresden reminds me a little of Anita Blake, another urban fantasy mess I really enjoy and absolutely cannot justify.

The first book, Storm Front, was the "evil wizard" book. Fool Moon is the "werewolf" book. Sure to come are zombies and vampires. While most of Butcher's writing is immediately pretty flat, one thing that does interest me is the mythological breakdowns. Butcher pulled werewolf references and lore from a lot of different cultures to build his characters... and yup, was even cocky enough to tell us all about it in an informational breakdown for the uninitiated. I do like the magic, the recklessness of it. The mythos is interesting.

Know, though, that the plot line was a complete train wreck. There were so many things going on that even Dresden took a step back in the book to recap with his subconscious. In some ways, it was pretentious (as if the reader can't keep track of what's happening!) and in other ways, humorous (so much banter). There were the promised werewolves and a bunch of other things and really, Dresden should be super super super arrested right now, but it's more... convenient to tie things up in an illogical bow, I guess.

Fool Moon is an absolute mess but an enjoyable one. I'm a sucker for punishment, because I'm going on to book three. It's not a book or a series I'd buy, though. Strictly for the borrowing.

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sexualedward's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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the_bookish_rose's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I decided to continue reading the Harry Dresden series by Jim Butcher, which I’m glad I did! Harry Dresden returns in this book to trace down a werewolf variation, and brings his hilarious personality back on the case, though this time without his sidekick from the last book, Lieutenant Murphy. I thought this book did a good job at continuing the same themes from the first book, but I wasn’t as invested as the first book. There were some parts where I wished it would’ve “sped up” a bit, but the werewolf fight scenes were well done and I would continue reading the series (and I’m looking forward to it!).

I would definitely recommend this book in the series if you like the supernatural genre, crime solving, and fantasy.

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lectora21's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

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ggcd1981's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

This is a bit of a rant. Usually I write reviews in my mother language, but when I rant, I do it in English (I have no idea why). First, I want to get something out of the way, the plot of this book is interesting, the mystery is good, the battles (these are small scale) are good. I liked all of that, but I can’t give this book more than 2.5 stars. That’s because the treatment of female characters is not anywhere near good. Yes, there are several female characters, some strong and with strong personalities. This could have been really good, BUT the OBJECTIFYING of those female characters is bad, really bad. I don’t think there were many scenes with female characters in the whole book where their appearance has not been addressed and referenced in some way. Every conversation, conflict, interaction of any sorts involving female characters had some remark about long legs, or sexy lips, or cute nose, or boobs, etc. All of those remarks had ZERO contribution to the scenes. They added nothing to plot, mystery, character, anything. As a woman, through the whole book I was trying to be patient, to let it slide because I liked the story, even if those remarks made me really uncomfortable. But when it came to the main conflict of the book, the culmination of the story, I could no longer ignore it and it pissed me off. It offended me not only as a woman but also as a reader. There was the protagonist, Dresden, finally confronting the antagonists in a desperate battle and through the whole scene Butcher kept making references to a female antagonist’s boobs. Here I was trying to feel immersed in the conflict but the tension was completely undermined by the several boob descriptions. My logic thinking could not forgive that someone faced with imminent death, outnumbered, outpowered, with the lives of others also on the line would have the time and the mind to focus on the opponent’s boobs…several times.
As it is, I can’t give it a higher rating, specially since it was a disappointment for me. I really enjoyed Storm front and I was really intrigued by Fool Moon’s plot. Considering this I will continue with the series in hopes that Butcher’s writing will evolve when it comes to female characters.

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bookswithjk's review against another edition

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mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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