Jim Butcher is a martial arts enthusiast with fifteen years of experience in various styles including Ryukyu Kempo, Tae Kwan Do, Gojo Shorei Ryu, and a sprinkling of Kung Fu. He is a skilled rider and has worked as a summer camp horse wrangler and performed in front of large audiences in both drill riding and stunt riding exhibitions.

Jim enjoys fencing, singing, bad science fiction movies and live-action gaming. He lives in Missouri with his wife, son, and a vicious guard dog.

Jim goes by the moniker Longshot in a number of online locales. He came by this name in the early 1990’s when he decided he would become a published author. Usually only 3 in 1000 who make such an attempt actually manage to become published; of those, only 1 in 10 make enough money to call it a living. The sale of a second series was the breakthrough that let him beat the long odds against attaining a career as a novelist.

All the same, he refuses to change his nickname. (from Jim-Butcher.Com)

Books I've Read by Jim Butcher

The Dresden Files

1. Storm Front (Paperback Edition) or (Hardcover edition) or (Amazon Kindle Edition)

   HARRY DRESDEN—WIZARD Lost items found. Paranormal Investigations. Consulting. Advice. Reasonable Rates. No Love Potions, Endless Purses, or Other entertainment. Harry Dresden is the best at what he does. Well, technically, he’s the only at what he does. So when the Chicago P.D. has a case that transcends mortal creativity or capability, they come to him for answers. For the "everyday" world is actually full of strange and magical things—and bost of them don’t play well with humans. That’s where Harry comes in. Takes a wizard to catch a—well, whatever. There’s just one problem. Business, to put it mildly, stinks. So when the police bring him in to consult on a grisly double murder committed with black magic, Harry’s seeing dollar signs. But where there’s black magic, there’s a black mage behind it. And now that mage knows Harry’s name. And that’s when things start to get . . .interesting. Magic. It can get a guy killed. (book description) Personal note: After reading this book, I find that I’m regretting not having ever watched an episode of The Dresden Files on T.V., a series is based on his book series. I enjoyed this book, and I’m glad that it is only the first in a whole series.

2. Fool Moon (Paperback Edition) or (Hardcover Edition)

   HARRY DRESDEN—WIZARD Lost items found. Paranormal Investigations. Consulting. Advice. Reasonable Rates. No Love Potions, Endless Purses, or Other entertainment. Business has been slow. Okay, business has been dead. And not even of the undead variety. You would think Chicago would have a little more action for the only prefessional wizard in the phone book. But lately, Harry Dresden hasn’t been able to dredge up any kind of work—magical or mundane. But just when it looks like he can’t afford his next meal, a murder comes along that requires his particular brand of supernatural expertise. A brutally mutilated corpse. Strange-looking paw prints. A full moon. Take three guesses—and the first two don’t count . . . . (book description) Personal note: This book didn't let me down any more than the first one did. Sure, it had flaws, areas where the plot got a little weak, but it was still a good read. It leaves me looking forward to number 3.

3. Grave Peril (Paperback Edition) or (Hardcover Edition)

   HARRY DRESDEN—WIZARD Lost items found. Paranormal Investigations. Consulting. Advice. Reasonable Rates. No Love Potions, Endless Purses, or Other Entertainment. Harry Dresden’s faced some pretty terrifying foes during his career. Giant scorpions. Oversexed vampires. Psychotic werewolves. It comes with the territory when you’re the only professional wizard in the Chicago area phone book. But in all Harry’s years of supernatural sleuthing, he’s never faced anything like this: the spirit world’s gone postal. All over Chicago, ghosts are causing trouble—and not just of the door-slamming, boo-shouting variety. These ghosts are tormented, violent, and deadly. Someone—or something—is stirring them up to wreak unearthly havoc. But why? And why do so many of the victims have ties to Harry? If Harry doesn’t figure it out soon, he could wind up a ghost himself . . . . (book description) Personal note: Once again, this book delivered despite a few flaws. It is rare for me to read a book and not find at least a few things I don’t agree with, a few places where I would have gone a different direction with the plot. But I know that I couldn’t do anywhere near as good a job of storytelling and I’ll freely admit that. This book was definitely worth the time it took to read it, and I look forward to continuing with the series.

4. Summer Knight (Mass Market Paperback) or (Amazon Kindle Edition)

   HARRY DRESDEN—WIZARD Lost items found. Paranormal Investigations. Consulting. Advice. Reasonable Rates. No Love Potions, Endless Purses, or Other Entertainment. Ever since his girlfriend left town to deal with her newly acquired taste for blood, Harry Dresden has been down and out in Chicago. He can’t pay his rent. He’s alienating his friends. He can’t even recall the last time he took a shower. The only professional wizard in the phone book has become a desperate man. And just when it seems things can’t get any worse, in saunters the Winter Queen of Faerie. She has an offer Harry can’t refuse if he wants to free himself of the supernatural hold his faerie godmother has over him—and hopefully end his run of bad luck. All he has to do is find out who murdered the Summer Queen’s right-hand man, the Summer Knight, and clear the Winter Queen’s name. It seems simple enough, but Harry knows better than to get caught in the middle of faerie politics. Until he finds out that the fate of the entire world rests on his solving this case. No pressure or anything . . . (book description) Personal note: This book is another interesting episode in the life of Harry Dresden. I am enjoying this series, but I have to admit, I feel like there are a few too many loose ends still remaining untied after 4 books. It would be nice if at least some of them could reach a resolution in the next book or two.

5. Death Masks (Mass Market Paperback) or (Amazon Kindle Edition)

   HARRY DRESDEN—WIZARD Lost items found. Paranormal Investigations. Consulting. Advice. Reasonable Rates. No Love Potions, Endless Purses, or Other Entertainment. Harry Dresden, Chicago’s only practicing professional wizard, should be happy that business is pretty good for a change. But now he’s getting more than he bargained for: A duel with the Red Court of Vampires’ champion, who must kill Harry to end the war between vampires and wizards . . . The missing Shroud of Turin . . . 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. (book description) Personal note: In my opinion, this is the best book in the series, so far. Unlike the first four books in the series, I never once found myself wondering if there weren’t a better way to continue the story. Harry’s life keeps getting more challenging, but he’s getting better at dealing with those challenges, too. And Mr. Butcher has come up with some really interesting characters to go up against Harry that keep me wanting more.

6. Blood Rites (Paperback Edition) or (Amazon Kindle Edition)

   HARRY DRESDEN—WIZARD Lost items found. Paranormal Investigations. Consulting. Advice. Reasonable Rates. No Love Potions, Endless Purses, or Other Entertainment. For Harry Dresden, Chicago’s only professional wizard, there have been worse assignments than going undercover on the set of an adult film. Dodging flaming monkey poo, for instance. Or going toe-to-leaf with a walking plant monster. Still, there’s something more troubling than usual about his newest case. The film’s producer believes he’s the target of a sinister entropy curse—but it’s the women around him who are dying, in increasing spectacular ways. Harry’s doubly frustrated because he got involved with this bizarre mystery only as a favor to Thomas, his flirtatious, self-absorbed vampire acquaintance of dubious integrity. Thomas has a personal stake in the case Harry can’t quite figure out, until his investigation leads him straight to Thomas’s oversexed vampire family. Harry’s about to discover taht Thomas’s family tree has been hiding a shocking secret: a revelation that will change Harry’s life forever. (book description)

7. Dead Beat (Mass Market Paperback) or (Hardcover Edition) or (Amazon Kindle Edition)

   Harry Dresden must save Chicago from black magic and necromancy—but first, he must locate the Word of Kemmler. Just as soon as he figures out what that is. It’s all in a day’s work for the city’s only professional wizard . . . assuming he can live to see the end of the day. (book description)

8. Proven Guilty (Mass Market Paperback) or (Hardcover Edition) or (Amazon Kindle Edition)

   There’s no love lost between Harry Dresden, the only wizard in the Chicago phone book, and the White Council of Wizards, who find him brash and undisciplined. But war with the vampires has thinned their ranks, so the Council has drafted Harry as a Warden and assigned him to look into rumors of black magic in the Windy City. As Harry adjusts to his new role, another problem arrives in the form of the tattooed and pierced daughter of an old friend, all grown-up and already in trouble. Her boyfriend is the only suspect in what looks like a supernatural assault straight out of a horror film. Malevolent entities that feed on fear are loose in Chacago, but it’s all in a day’s work for a wizard, his faithful dog, and a talking skull named Bob . . . . (book description) Personal note: I both like and dislike the very episodic nature of the Dresden Files. Each book does NOT take up where the previous one left off, often with months between books. On the one hand, it’s cool to jump ahead through Harry’s life. On the other hand, I feel like I’m missing a lot between novels. Still and all, I really enjoy this series, and this latest installment was no exception. The series seems to get better as it goes on. This is good, since so many series actually go downhill after the second or third book.