Not every danger comes in the form of a mega-threat like a Titan. Some predators are a lot cozier…more personal. 

When one such creature threatens an independent tutor, Harry Dresden must shake off the blood and dirt of his most recent battles and rise to the occasion, even when it turns out that the new predator is far more dangerous and connected than first appearances would suggest.

I thought I was done with Harry Dresden when I walked away from the seventeenth Dresden book, ‘Battle Ground’ in 2021. Here’s what I wrote when I set it aside at 55%:

“Ok. I’m done. Done with this book and done with Harry Dresden. This has been nothing but a dirge from the beginning. Then it became filled with pointless death. One death, in particular, I can’t forgive Jim Butcher for, not just because of who he killed but because it was so random and pointless.

I’m sure Harry, at some great personal sacrifice, will win through in the end. I just don’t care any more.”

I’ve been ignoring the Harry Dresden books since then, but I haven’t stayed away completely. Last year, I read the ‘Shadowed Souls’ (2016) short story collection and enjoyed Jim Butcher’s ‘Cold Case’ story. This year, I read the ‘Paranormal Payback’ (2026) short story collection and Butcher’s story, ‘Mister Petty’, reminded me how much fun Dresden’s world could be. So, this week, when I stumbled across ‘The Law’, a Dresden novella set in the aftermath of ‘Battle Ground’ but before the events of ‘Twelve Months’ (2026), I decided to give it a try. It was a slight but entertaining story, in which Harry, in his PI mode, was trying to rescue a damsel in distress (an ex-sex worker who now runs a tutoring franchise with a program for underprivileged kids – can you hear the violins playing?) from her violent, terminally stupid but well-connected former pimp. It was a great setup for Harry to play White Knight. 

Besides, how hard could it be for a powerful magician to intimidate a street thug into leaving the nice lady alone?

Watching Harry’s mounting frustration as he discovered that nothing he tried worked was the first thing that made me smile. 

The second thing that made me smile was the enthusiasm and obvious pleasure with which Jim Butcher narrated this novella. In the introduction, Jim Butcher assures readers that the next novel will be narrated by James Marsters as usual, so ‘The Law’ seems to be something Jim Butcher decided to get hands-on with. He does a credible job, partly because he seems to enjoy his own story so much. 

I’m still not ready to step back into a Dresden novel yet but I think I’ll try ‘Out Law’, this year’s Dresden novella, next.