JIM BUTCHER'S THE DRESDEN FILES: GHOUL GOBLIN

JIM BUTCHER'S THE DRESDEN FILES: GHOUL GOBLIN 

Writers: Jim Butcher & Mark Powers 

Artist:  Joseph Cooper

$24.99, Dynamite Entertainment, 160 pgs.

ISBN 978-1-60690-438-1

Chicago private investigator Harry Dresden is a wizard: a modern-day magician and monster-fighter who tackles cases of a decidedly supernatural bent.  Ghoul Goblintakes Harry from his Chicago hunting grounds to a small Missouri town, where he must solve a series of murders than have plagued the local Talbot family for generations. His investigation complicated by hostile locals, competing monsters, and a nasty case of the flu, Harry's magic alone might not be enough to end the curse haunting the secret-riddled town of Boone Mill.

Ghoul Goblin isn't the first Dresden Files graphic novel, but it is the first original one; previous Dresden graphic novels have been adaptations of the books (also by author Jim Butcher, who co-writes here with Mark Powers). This first foray into original territory is a rousing success, though, briskly-paced and full of exciting, well-drawn action sequences. Some readers might find Joseph Cooper's art a bit cartoonish for a story with pervasive horror elements, but the overall tone of the work is wonderfully evocative of the source material. Also, despite its relationship to the novels' continuity, the story is perfectly accessible to those who've never read Butcher's books.

TIPS FOR LIBRARIANS: Jim Butcher isn't the only well-known prose author to have his name attached to comics and graphic novels. Joe Hill, Charlaine Harris, and James Patterson have also attributed their names to graphic novels (though Hill is the only one to actually script his own comics). If you're tasked with collection development at a library where—for whatever reason—there's resistance to the idea of adding graphic novels, comics by brand-name authors might be the perfect way to start chipping away at that resistance.

READERS' ADVISORY NOTES: Fans of Jim Butcher's popular Dresden Files series will appreciate this book a great deal, obviously (continuity-wise, the events of this story take place after the second novel, Fool Moon), as will fans of horror and fantasy comics. As is often the case, a comic book inspired by a book series is a fine way to introduce prose readers to graphic novels, but don't forget, that's a two-way street! If you've got patrons who read only graphic novels, suggest this one; if they like it, you can encourage them to read Butcher's novels, thus adding traditional prose to their reading table!

CONTENT ADVISORY: Adult language, graphic violence

Review©2014, C. Michael Hall.