Dead Beat: A Novel of the Dresden Files - Softcover

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Jim Butcher is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Dresden Files, the Codex Alera, and the Cinder Spires novels. He lives in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado.

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"The wildest, strangest, best Dresden adventure to date...Butcher's blending of modern fantasy with classic noir sensibilities ensures that there's never a dull moment."-SF Site



Paranormal investigations are Harry Dresden's business and Chicago is his beat, as he tries to bring law and order to a world of wizards and monsters that exists alongside everyday life. And though most inhabitants of the Windy City don't believe in magic, the Special Investigations Department of the Chicago PD knows better.



Karrin Murphy is the head of S. I. and Harry's good friend. So when a killer vampire threatens to destroy Murphy's reputation unless Harry does her bidding, he has no choice. The vampire wants the Word of Kemmler (whatever that is) and all the power that comes with it. Now, Harry is in a race against time-and six merciless necromancers-to find the Word before Chicago experiences a Halloween night to wake the dead...

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Praise for The Dresden Files

“What’s not to like about this series?…I would, could, have, and will continue to recommend [it] for as long as my breath holds out. 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

“Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden series has consistently been one of the most enjoyable marriages of the fantasy and mystery genres on the shelves…a great series—fast-paced, vividly realized and with a hero/narrator who’s excellent company.”

—Cinescape

Dead Beat

“Butcher’s latest maintains the momentum of previous Dresden outings and builds the suspense right up to a rousing conclusion.”

—Booklist

“Horror fans with a sense of humor will be pleased.”

—Publishers Weekly

“A mix of the supernatural and bounding adventure…. A fun-loaded series.”

—Kirkus Reviews

Blood Rites

“Filled with sizzling magic and intrigue as well as important developments for Harry, the latest of his adventures will have fans rapidly turning the pages.”

—Booklist

Death Masks

“Butcher maintains a breakneck pace in Harry’s exciting fifth adventure. This imaginative series continues to surprise and delight with its inventiveness and sympathetic hero.”

—Booklist

“Death Masks is his most assured book yet, a smooth melding of inventive story lines, dark supernatural themes, edge-of-your-seat adventure, strong characterizations, and irreverent humor…. The balance is perfect.”

—SF Site

“Intense and wild, Death Masks is another roller-coaster ride from Jim Butcher, a skillful blend of urban fantasy and noir, sure to satisfy any fan and leave them begging for more.”

—The Green Man Review

Summer Knight

“As usual in Butcher’s books, the action begins on page one and moves rapidly from there…an excellent, and in my opinion powerful, chapter in the Dresden case files.”

—The Best Reviews

“Butcher is definitely among the best. Summer Knight starts with a bang and doesn’t let up…. A very good detective series…. Fans of any kind of fiction can enjoy Butcher’s fun and fast-paced style…. I can’t wait until Harry Dresden is on the case again.”

—The News-Star (Monroe, LA)

Grave Peril

“A haunting, fantastical novel that begins almost as innocently as those of another famous literary wizard named Harry.”

—Publishers Weekly

“Harry is a likable protagonist with more than his share of troubles, and Grave Peril will keep readers turning the pages to find out how he overcomes them.”

—Booklist

“A great supernatural who-done-it…. Few horror, fantasy, or mystery tales get any better than this wonderful plot that smoothly combines all three genres into one novel.”

—BookBrowser

Fool Moon

“It’s even more entertaining…than the first in the series, good fun for fans of dark fantasy mystery.”

—Locus

“Storm Front was one of the most enjoyable books I read last year, and Fool Moon is even better. Butcher keeps the thrills coming, with plenty of mystery, suspense, and edge-of-your-seat action.”

—SF Site

“A fast-paced, fascinating noir thriller.”

—BookBrowser

“A really enjoyable read…. Jim Butcher strikes just the right narrative balance between wizard and wise guy, mystic and mobster.”

—Lynn Flewelling, author of Traitor’s Moon

Storm Front

“A very promising start to a new series, not to mention an unusually well-crafted first novel.”

—Locus

“Interesting characters, tight plotting, and fresh, breezy writing…an auspicious start to an engaging new series.”

—SF Site

“Butcher deftly blends the fantasy and detective genres in this entertaining yarn.”

—Publishers Weekly (review of the audio edition)

“Required summer reading for anyone who likes a few laughs.”

—The Reporter (Vacaville, CA)

“Wish I’d thought of this myself. Try it. You’ll like it.”

—Glen Cook, author of Whispering Nickel Idols

“Exciting, well-plotted, complex, an excellent read…amazingly good.”

—Chris Bunch, author of Dragonmaster

JIM BUTCHER

DEAD BEAT

A NOVEL OF THE DRESDEN FILES

A ROC BOOK

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-one

Chapter Twenty-two

Chapter Twenty-three

Chapter Twenty-four

Chapter Twenty-five

Chapter Twenty-six

Chapter Twenty-seven

Chapter Twenty-eight

Chapter Twenty-nine

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty-one

Chapter Thirty-two

Chapter Thirty-three

Chapter Thirty-four

Chapter Thirty-five

Chapter Thirty-six

Chapter Thirty-seven

Chapter Thirty-eight

Chapter Thirty-nine

Chapter Forty

Chapter Forty-one

Chapter Forty-two

Chapter Forty-three

AUTHOR’S NOTE

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I owe another round of thanks to the usual suspects: The inmates of the Beta Foo Asylum, both long-term and recent arrivals. The Dresden Files’ new editor, the warm and gracious Anne Sowards—are you sure you actually live in NYC, Anne? My agent, Jennifer Jackson, who has been doing ten kinds of running around getting various deals put together, and for whom I am most grateful.

More thanks to my family for their continuing support and love. To Shannon for being who she is, and whose good opinion I would work ten…well, wait, no, maybe three times as hard to keep—okay, okay, five, tops. (Ten would be more hours than exist, babe, and besides, when could I play Halo?) Also thanks to my son JJ, whose boundless energy, enthusiasm, and love are wonderfully intimidating.

Oh, and also for my ferocious furry bodyguard, Frost, who supports my career by frightening away any bad guys long before they get near enough to actually bother me, and by helping me eat any potentially distracting snacks.

Chapter
One

On the whole, we’re a murderous race.

According to Genesis, it took as few as four people to make the planet too crowded to stand, and the first murder was a fratricide. Genesis says that in a fit of jealous rage, the very first child born to mortal parents, Cain, snapped and popped the first metaphorical cap in another human being. The attack was a bloody, brutal, violent, reprehensible killing. Cain’s brother Abel probably never saw it coming.

As I opened the door to my apartment, I...