Out Law by Jim Butcher
“In this installment of Butcher’s Dresden Files series, the staff-wielding wizard is honor-bound to return a favor to a crime boss for saving his life.
With the city still struggling to return to some semblance of normalcy after the cataclysmic events of the Battle of Chicago, Harry Dresden is recovering in his ancient Chicago castle (which might have been Merlin’s fortress) when an old adversary shows up at his door: Gentleman John Marcone, Baron of Chicago. Since Marcone saved Dresden’s life in the conflict, the kingpin of Chicago’s criminal underworld asks the wizard to help with a troubled associate who supposedly wants to go straight. The only problem is that the man in question is Tripp Gregory, “one of the more contemptible people [he’d] ever had the displeasure to meet.” Gregory may have ripped off an elderly woman on her deathbed, stealing millions of dollars meant for a children’s charity he’d created and gambling most of the money in Vegas—where he won big. With the IRS and a Mexican crime boss with some demonic firepower hot on the reprobate’s tail, Dresden is tasked with saving Gregory’s life, collecting the millions for charity, and helping a morally bankrupt man transform himself into “one of the good guys.” Butcher checks all the boxes when it comes to satisfying readers’ expectations. The paranormal fantasy elements are on point, including some nightmarish—and memorable—monstrosities. Many familiar returning characters are featured, including Bear, Dresden’s seven-foot Valkyrie bodyguard; his apprentice, Fitz; CPD Special Investigations Captain John Stallings; and Bob the Skull. The author impressively maintains the exciting pacing and intensity throughout, powering the narrative with an abundance of high-octane action sequences. The intricate plot is fittingly complex, connecting Dresden’s redemptive mission with Mexican cartels, the Red Court, and demonic cults…Dresden fans will enjoy this bite-sized supernatural adventure.” — Kirkus
