Small Favor (The Dresden Files, #10) by Jim Butcher

When Mab, the Winter Queen, comes to cash in on one of the favors Harry owes her, things go from bad to worse. And snow won’t stop falling on Chicago. Could the two possibly be related?

Instinct told me that reason had disappointed me more than once, and that it wasn’t thinking in the long term anyway. Over the years, my instincts and I have gotten cozy. pg 57, ebook.

Photo by eberhard grossgasteiger on Pexels.com

Memorable characters from the previous entries in The Dresden Files make a reappearance in this, the tenth book in the series. We get to enjoy the company of Toot-Toot (the pizza-loving pixie), “gentleman” Johnny Marcone and Mab, among others.

Our instincts were a long time in the making, though, and the threats that can come after us now have outpaced them. You can’t outrun a bullet, and you don’t go hand-to-hand with a gunman unless you’re certain you are about to die anyway. pg 79, ebook.

There’s also a major villain from Harry’s past, but I won’t go into details and spoil it for you.

At one time in my life, a shapeshifted, demonically possessed maniac crashing through a window and trying to rip my face off would have come as an enormous and nasty surprise. But that time was pretty much in the past. pg 143, ebook.

I have read a few reviews in which some readers believe The Dresden Files is ridiculous because Jim Butcher puts Harry into situations that he couldn’t possibly survive. But I beg to differ. As the stakes and bad guys increase, so do Harry’s friends and allies. Yes, perhaps the wizard from book one would have been crushed by the baddie in book ten, but they’re both at different places now.

Dare I say it… Harry has “learned” things? Through his nearly constant trials and tribulations, he’s become a stronger magic user, more adept and emphatic? But no, that may be going a bit too far.

The prime rule of combat wizardry is simple too: Be prepared. pg 143, ebook.

At least he’s nailed down his wardrobe game…

Going forth to do battle with the forces of darkness is one thing. Doing it in a pair of borrowed sweatpants and an ill-fitting T-shirt is something else entirely. pg 427, ebook.

One final thought, in the other books in this series, I felt like things were getting worse and worse for our intrepid hero. But, as readers discover in this entry, there may be a silver lining on all those clouds after all.

And all I have to say about that is: it’s about time!

I’ve been adding reviews as I’ve worked my way through this series. You can view the others here:

Storm Front (The Dresden Files, #1) by Jim Butcher

Fool Moon (The Dresden Files #2) by Jim Butcher

Grave Peril (The Dresden Files, #3) by Jim Butcher

Summer Knight (The Dresden Files #4) by Jim Butcher

Death Masks (The Dresden Files, #5) by Jim Butcher

Blood Rites (The Dresden Files, #6) by Jim Butcher

Dead Beat (The Dresden Files #7) by Jim Butcher

Proven Guilty (The Dresden Files, #8) by Jim Butcher

White Night (The Dresden Files, #9) by Jim Butcher

And thanks for reading!