I absolutely loved Child of Fire. It's definitely Dresden-esque, especially the early Dresden Files, following as it does the adventures of a down-on-his-luck male protagonist who's on the outs with the magical Powers That Be and hiding a few skeletons in his closet. It's also a well-paced page turner, full of action, written on a grand scale, and very original. There are obvious differences, too - Connolly isn't comic like Jim Butcher, so there's a lot less humor to lighten the mood. And the protagonist of Connolly's book, Ray Lilly, doesn't have the anonymity or obscurity that Harry Dresden did at the start of his series. Lilly is working in a kind of indentured servitude, kept close under the eye of a hostile employer who has every right to kill him should he step out of line.

I ran into some trouble with a few convenient coincidences at the end of the novel, but I loved the way that Ray's relationship developed with his jailor-employer Annalise. I really liked the way that Connolly described magic, its execution and its costs - whenever Annalise was injured, and Ray had to feed her raw meat, I'd shudder with delight. It was just real enough, and just hideous enough, and just strange enough to seem foreign and out of this world. The perfect note for a paranormal.

I can't wait to check out book 2 in the series, which was just released. There aren't enough tough male protagonists in this genre, and I'd be so excited to see another worthy contender step out from the pack.