Book Review: Brief Cases, by Jim Butcher

This is the second collection of short stories in the universe of The Dresden Files.  I remember enjoying the previous collection, Side Jobs, just as much as the books themselves, so I read these as well.  I enjoyed most of the stories very much, but found this collection to be slightly different.  In the collection Side Jobs, the stories all revolve around Harry Dresden.  In Brief Cases, a few of the stories are about other characters in the series.  This made the collection a bit uneven, but still enjoyable.  Some of the stories I definitely liked better than others, and some of them I questioned the reason for their existence.

Here's my rating of each story.

A Fistful of Warlocks

This one was tough for me.  This isn't a Dresden story - the focus is on Anastasia Luccio and takes place back in the Old West, and includes appearances by Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday.  It has been so long since Skin Game came out (waaaay back in May of 2014), I didn't even remember who Luccio was.  This is kind of a "Gunfight at the OK Corral" story, but with wizards and their enemies.  I didn't see the reason behind this story, and it didn't do much for me.  The pace and writing were not like typical Dresden fare.

The Bigfoot Trilogy:  B is for Bigfoot, I Was a Teenage Bigfoot, and Bigfoot on Campus

These stories were great!  It introduces a race that has never made an appearance in the Dresden books - the Bigfeet (or is it Bigfoots).  Each story builds on the one prior to it, and they introduce a great new character, Strength of a River in his Shoulders, who comes to Harry for help at the beginning of each of the stories.  These are well worth reading, and I hope this Bigfoot makes more appearances in the mainstream Dresden Files stories.  It is definitely an interesting take on the Bigfoot mythology.

AAAA Wizardry

This story covers some of Harry's time as a teacher, when he is working with young Wardens.  A suitable story for giving some background information, but no big action - this story couldn't have been very impressive, as I barely remember anything about it.

Curses

This one was a strange tale, involving the investigation of a curse on the Chicago Cubs.  We learn that the Cubs have been losing for so long due to a curse related to a goat.  Harry investigates to find the truth.  The story succeeded in drawing me in, but I have to say I found the ending a little confusing - I believe I had to read it twice.

Even Hand

While Harry does not appear in this story, it is an excellent addition.  One of the central characters is Johnny Marcone.  For a story that doesn't include Harry himself, this one is outstanding story.  We get to see inside Marcone's world, how is organization works, and we learn some very concerning things about him.  This story is an important piece of the Dresden series.

Bombshells

This story focuses entirely on one of Molly Carpenter's missions for the Leanansidhe.  She is still keeping a low radar, and is being taught by the Leanansidhe.  She ends up getting sent on a mission to rescue Thomas Raith, Harry's half brother.  During her mission, she learns that things are not always as they seem - which parallels many of Harry's own investigations.

Cold Case

This story covers Molly Carpenter's first task as the Winter Lady.  Similar to the event of some of the earlier Dresden novels, we get more background on Mab's plans, and more of a glimpse into what the forces of Winter are all about, and it isn't pretty.  Once again, Mab and her organization are involved in things that don't always what they seem to be, and I wouldn't be surprised we are getting some more background that will lead up to some explosive things in future novels.  Mab and her forces are sitting on a powder keg.

Jury Duty

This story follows Harry on a tour in jury duty, which he would like very much to avoid.  Naturally, Harry has to do a little investigating on his own.  This story was passable, but not among the best in this collection.

Day One

This story follows Waldo Butters meeting his first challenge as a Knight of the Cross.  He has been in training and seriously questions his worthiness to be a Knight.  With a little help, he learns he is more worthy than he thinks.  I'm hoping this leads to more overlap with Harry's investigations in future Dresden Files volumes.

Zoo Day

This story has an interesting format.  Harry spends the day at the zoo with his daughter Maggie and his Foo Dog, Mouse.  This story is unique in that it gets told from the perspective of all three characters.  We get some interesting background on what it is like to be a child, and what grown-ups don't remember about it.  This is a bit dark for the first Maggie story, but the style of the story makes up for that.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable collection.  Highly recommended.

Book Review: Monster Hunter Alpha, by Larry Correia

I first came across Monster Hunter International back in 2014.  It was a kind of story I had never seen before, and while it intrigued me, I wasn't sure I would like it - but it was extremely enjoyable.  In 2015, I read the sequel, Monster Hunter Vendetta, and enjoyed it just as much.  After that, I've been involved in reading many other things, and it took me a while to get back to this series.  Monster Hunter Alpha, the third installment, is just as good as the first two.

This time around, the organization Monster Hunter International (MHI) isn't in the picture.  This is a solo story for Earl Harbinger, the leader of MHI.  Earl gets a visit from an old friend who reveals that a werewolf from Earl's past is back in the United States.  It is clear that Earl has a desire to stop this werewolf at all costs for personal reasons.

As Earl tracks down this werewolf, he starts to learn that things are not as they seem, and it takes quite a while for things to become clear.  The danger he encounters is very unexpected, and there are some major surprises as the story unfolds:  Mr. Correia does not disappoint.  The Monster Control Bureau (MCB) also puts in an appearance and they manage to complicate the situation immensely.  Eventually, Earl and the MCB learn that they have stumbled into a plot that could bring about the end of the world, and find themselves trapped in the small town where it is happening.  Unable to reach out to MHI, he must trust in the representatives from the MCB and the local townspeople to help him combat this great evil.  Of course, the members of this small town are not well armed, but they come up with some creative ideas.  And, eventually, we learn that the title means.

The story moves at a great pace, and Earl finds both friends and enemies in unexpected places.  We get a good peek into Earl's past (he has been around for close to 100 years), and what his life has been like as a werewolf, and his struggles to control it.  Each chapter starts with an entry from Earl's journal, detailing his struggle with being a werewolf, and his desire to be rid of the curse and be a normal man again.  We learn many of Earl's abilities as a werewolf, what elements he has learned to control, and which elements he still struggles with - you get a real sense of what it would be like to have all the senses of a dog with you at all times, and you just can't turn them off.  Yeah, you might be able to heal quickly, and it might take a silver bullet to kill you, but you also have such a heightened senses of smell and hearing that it makes it hard to focus.

We also find that the events of the previous two books have a bearing on the story in this one.  One thing I would have really liked when reading Alpha was a refresher on the plot of the first two books - after all, it has been 3 or 4 years since I started reading the series.  I recognized a few names, but I was kind of vague on most of it, and I think it would have been nice to be able to connect the dots in a few places.

Overall, this is a great continuation of the series, and it was fantastic getting a glimpse into the past life of the leader of MHI.  Earl is tough as nails and has no fear.  If you like guns, monsters, guns, action, and more guns, you should enjoy Monster Hunter Alpha.

As always, I'd love to hear from you if you have read any of the books in this series and have enjoyed them as much as I have.  Please feel free to leave a comment.