A Restoration of Faith By: Jim Butcher Series: The Dresden Files Book Number: 0.1 Star Rating:

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Synopsis

Harry Dresden has just located the runaway child of a high-society couple, but his partner informs him that the parents are not only refusing to pay but have now reported her kidnapped by perpetrators matching their descriptions. While deciding what to do with the feisty girl, she gets attacked by a troll and Harry is recognized by a cop, leaving him to rely on his wits to get out of a very sticky situation.

Review

Restoration of Faith is a short prequel novella in the Dresden Files series. It's only about the length of a chapter and tells the story of a case Harry worked before becoming a full-fledged private investigator. At the time he and his partner, Nick, ran Ragged Angel Investigations, an agency that searched for missing children. This was an aspect of the story that I really enjoyed, and I thought Harry was very good with the girl he rescued. He seemed to have a kind, gentle side that I hope to see more of in the full-length novels of the series. There wasn't much in the way of magic in this novella, so I'm not sure precisely how Harry's powers work. The battle with the troll was fun, but Harry defeated him using his wits more than anything else. I'm not certain whether he hadn't come into his full powers yet or if his powers simply have limits, but I'm definitely interested in finding out more about this intriguing character. I also don't know if any of the secondary characters in this short story show up again in future books, but I wouldn't mind seeing more of them if they did. Restoration of Faith was my first read by Jim Butcher. It may have been brief, but it gave me enough of a taste of his writing style to know that I like it and look forward to reading more. Restoration of Faith can be read for free on Jim Butcher's website and is also available in print as part of the anthology, Side Jobs.

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