Death Masks

The Dresden Files, Book 5

By: Jim Butcher

Narrated by: James Marsters

The Dresden Files have taken the genre of paranormal mystery to a new level of action, excitement, and hard-hitting magical muscle. Now, in Death Masks, Jim Butcher’s smart-guy private eye may have taken on more than he ever wanted to handle.
 
Harry Dresden, Chicago’s only practicing professional wizard, should be happy that business is pretty good for a change. But he also knows that whenever things are going good, the only way left for them to go is bad. Way bad. Such as:
 
A duel with the lethal champion of the Red Court, who must kill Harry to end the war between vampires and wizards.
 
Professional hit men using Harry for target practice.
 
The missing Shroud of Turin—and the possible involvement of Chicago's most feared mob boss.
 
A handless and headless corpse the Chicago police need identified.
 
Not to mention the return of Harry’s ex-girlfriend Susan, who’s still struggling with her semi-vampiric nature. And who seems to have a new man in her life. Some days, it just doesn’t pay to get out of bed. No matter how much you’re charging.©2003 Jim Butcher; (P)2009 Penguin Audiobooks

Critic reviews

Praise for the Dresden Files

“Think Buffy the Vampire Slayer starring Philip Marlowe.”—Entertainment Weekly

“Fans of Laurell K. Hamilton and Tanya Huff will love this series.”—Midwest Book Review

“Superlative.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“One of the most enjoyable marriages of the fantasy and mystery genres on the shelves.”—Cinescape

“Butcher...spins an excellent noirish detective yarn in a well-crafted, supernaturally-charged setting. The supporting cast is again fantastic, and Harry’s wit continues to fly in the face of a peril-fraught plot.”—Booklist (starred review)

“What’s not to like about this series?...It takes the best elements of urban fantasy, mixes it with some good old-fashioned noir mystery, tosses in a dash of romance and a lot of high-octane action, shakes, stirs, and serves.”—SF Site

“A tricky plot complete with against-the-clock pacing, firefights, explosions, and plenty of magic. Longtime series fans as well as newcomers drawn by the SciFi Channel’s TV series based on the novels should find this supernatural mystery a real winner.”—Library Journal

“What would you get if you crossed Spenser with Merlin? Probably you would come up with someone very like Harry Dresden, wizard, tough guy and star of [the Dresden Files].”—The Washington Times

This is one of my favorite series!

Would you listen to Death Masks again? Why?

I would. This book really checked all my boxes. The characters are great, the plot was well thought-out, the narration enriched the story...what more could I want? I would totally listen to the whole series again...^_^

Any additional comments?

Loved the short scenes with the mischievous Molly Carpenter...too funny :)

Dresden is addictive; James Marsters is fantastic.

Would you consider the audio edition of Death Masks to be better than the print version?

I have never read the print version of Death Masks.

What other book might you compare Death Masks to and why?

I could call the Dresden Files "Harry Potter meets The Dark Tower" or "Dirk Gently does Chicago," but that would be lazy and unjust. The world of the Dresden Files is complete, addictive, and entirely its own.

Have you listened to any of James Marsters’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I enjoy all of James Marster's Dresden performances, and I think that he gets better as the series goes on.

Any additional comments?

I started listening to The Dresden Files a few months ago on a whim and have now flown through the whole series. They are all great!

Dresden - hunts a Relic

WOW! I'm so jealous - Jim Butcher is really hitting it out of the park I wish this was the book that I wrote

Dresden series is great

Would you listen to Death Masks again? Why?

Yes, there is so much going on in this story that you could listen to it multiple times and get a new perspective.

What did you like best about this story?

The growth of the characters

What does James Marsters bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Obviously the voice of Dresden. He is Harry Dresden.

Another great episode

Would you listen to Death Masks again? Why?

Another great story. Got a little lost with the number of characters, but never lost the story line. Excellent suspense and a suprise ending.