If you like the Dresden Files . . .
May. 29th, 2012 08:14 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
theladysnarkydameYou might like Benedict Jacka's Alex Verus books. It's not the most original concept, but it's different enough to be interesting, and I quite liked most of the characters -- even some of the villains.
You can definitely see the similarities to the Dresden books, but the system of magic is totally different. The main character is most definitely not the powerhouse Dresden is -- he is, by necessity, more about timing and finesse than fireballs and raw force -- but they both have dark pasts and trust issues, and they both know the value of being able to run away very fast. There's quite a bit of nice h/c, too, though so far the series lacks a little of the chaotic ridiculousness of the Dresden Files. That might change as the series goes on, you never know.
I'm tempted to say that it's a bit like Ben Aaronovitch's Peter Grant books, just for the wizards-in-London thing, but they aren't really that much alike. Again, the system of magic is totally different, and Grant's police background makes for a very different feel to the way the books unfold. And honestly, I think the way London itself is such a big part of Aaronovitch's books gives them a grounded feel that Jacka's doesn't have.
Honestly, the Peter Grant books are better, hands down, for several reasons, and you should totally read them if you haven't already -- but I enjoyed Fated (the first Alex Verus book) and plan on picking up the second one very soon (maybe tomorrow, if I go down to the Plaza). So try them too! Especially if you like the Dresden Files.
You can definitely see the similarities to the Dresden books, but the system of magic is totally different. The main character is most definitely not the powerhouse Dresden is -- he is, by necessity, more about timing and finesse than fireballs and raw force -- but they both have dark pasts and trust issues, and they both know the value of being able to run away very fast. There's quite a bit of nice h/c, too, though so far the series lacks a little of the chaotic ridiculousness of the Dresden Files. That might change as the series goes on, you never know.
I'm tempted to say that it's a bit like Ben Aaronovitch's Peter Grant books, just for the wizards-in-London thing, but they aren't really that much alike. Again, the system of magic is totally different, and Grant's police background makes for a very different feel to the way the books unfold. And honestly, I think the way London itself is such a big part of Aaronovitch's books gives them a grounded feel that Jacka's doesn't have.
Honestly, the Peter Grant books are better, hands down, for several reasons, and you should totally read them if you haven't already -- but I enjoyed Fated (the first Alex Verus book) and plan on picking up the second one very soon (maybe tomorrow, if I go down to the Plaza). So try them too! Especially if you like the Dresden Files.
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Date: 2012-06-01 06:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-06-02 04:45 am (UTC)