Let's just get this out of the way--there are a lot of similarities between this series and Jim Butcher's Dresden Files. Both MC's are extremely tall, thin, are dark-haired, have questionable taste in clothing (except for Dresden's leather duster--that's just dead-sexy. But we're not here to talk about Dresden's dead-sexy, leather duster!), are sarcastic, use another language for the spells they cast, have magical items that augment their gifts, pull together a motley crew of other gifted, supernatural beings, feed the Fae pizza (although Damian Vesik also feeds them whiskey and cheese), and don't have a complete understanding of their powers. Butcher's Dresden spent his youth in Hog Hollow, MO, while Vesik trained with his master/mentor at a secluded cabin in Missouri. I'm from Missouri, so I'm fine with that--I love reading about places I'm actually familiar with.
Yet, for all these similarities, this is not Dresden. Vesik very quickly, within these three books, faces world-destroying evil, and he doesn't mess around with the angst of wondering whether he's doing the right thing or beating himself up about the innocent victims. He's not cold or cruel, he's just more pragmatic than Dresden. I would say that, whereas Dresden second-guesses himself and beats himself up for his mistakes (and I love Dresden, don't get me wrong, with or without his dead-sexy leather duster), Vesik makes his choices and accepts the consequences, as compared to what might have happened, if he had done nothing. He gives the innocent victims their moment of grief, and then he gives them the respect of tearing to pieces the monster that killed them. I find it refreshing to be in the head of a character, who doesn't drag me through an ocean of angst over how 'dark' his split-second, in-the-heat-of-battle choices make him. Vesik is aware of the cliff edge, but he's not peering over the edge, going, 'Oh, woe is me.'
The plots are good, there are very few grammatical errors (except I seem to remember one past-perfect tense mess-up, but I've read like six books in a row now by authors, who can't seem to grasp the concept, so I might be thinking of another book), and the characters are likable. However, except for Vesik, Zola, and to an extent, Vesik's sister, the characterizations are thin. There was more than one occasion, when I read a sentence in one 'voice,' only to realize at the next line that it was someone else speaking. I also am worried about the longevity of this series, since we're all ready at world-destruction level villains, and we're only on book three. I like to read some 'ordinary' adventures, before we go on to mass annihilation.
Which brings to what I feel is the weakest part of these books--I am never worried about the main characters. In the first book, they conquered the big baddie with a slickly-executed plan that went just as it was supposed to, and I don't think the big baddie even landed a single hit on any of them. Now, Vesik does get beaten to the point of death more than once, but since his fairy friends can and do heal him right up in like ten seconds, the reader realizes after about the second time this happens, that nothing really bad is going to happen to Vesik. Sorry to go back to the Dresden comparison, but, when Dresden takes a hit, he has to keep going, despite the pain, despite the debilitation, despite the knowledge that, if he dies, he's not coming back. That's how you up the stakes, not by throwing a world-destroying demon at the reader in the second book. Don't get me wrong. Vesik is tough; he does keep fighting, even when he's being literally beaten to death, but, like I said, you know he's going to be fine, as soon as a fairy gets to him. I also found the rules of Vesik's magic a little confusing. It seems like he's only using necromancy half the time, while the other half, he just throws around ley line magic like Gandalf. There were also references to other adventures the characters had gone on, so I don't know if there are short stories out there or if it was just to give the reader the idea that it wasn't all conquering world-destroying demons.
Okay, still with me? I threw a lot of criticism out there, so here's what you really need to know. These books are fun to read. Some reviewers said they couldn't even get through the first one, and, honestly, I don't understand that. These are interesting stories, and Asher throws in some really original and interesting ideas and plot devices. If you enjoy books "like" The Dresden Files, you'll probably enjoy these. Just don't expect them to "be" The Dresden Files, because they have different focuses, different voices, and Vesik doesn't wear a dead-sexy, leather duster. :( He probably really can't get one, now, because that would just be another thing like Dresden..... I will definitely be reading Vesik's further adventures, and I encourage you to do the same.
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