Dresden Files is one of those series that I continue to read not so much for the stories themselves, but for the potential of the world. There's so many really interesting stories that could be told. And so many ways the stories Butcher is telling could have been made way better with just small adjustments to his decisions on character and plot. The prospect of something good is so tantalising that I keep reading.

For example, in Peace Talks, the idea of the major powers of the magical world coming together for a summit is amazing. I love imagining all the wheeling and dealing and politics that could have been done. But in the event, we get build up and then basically skip the meat of the Peace Talks entirely. Butcher isn't good at writing politics. But I still found the book engaging because it was fuel for my imagination for what the talks could have been.

 

I haven’t read anything after the hiatus. I’ve forgotten so much of the story, and I just don’t have it in me to reread it all. Maybe someday.

I do think it would make a great HBO series though. They could have all the sexy vampires and fairies they want combined with as much gore as they want.

 

I'd say that it probably is, when taken as an overall series. I really liked the first 10 or so books, but as the series goes on, the stakes keep on going up, to the point where it's hard to take it seriously. Harry Dresdan's personality is also an acquired taste, and I think that he gets less likeable the more you read.

 

This is pretty much my take exactly. I'm still a big fan of the first... 12? books (everything pre-Changes), and I like em a lot, but there's a steady decline in quality after that point, most of which has to do with Dresden becoming increasingly stupid and vaguely incel-y, along with the current issue being increasingly less and less compelling.

 

I generally echo a lot of the critiques made in this thread - the increased unlikability, the weird pacing and the choices to focus on odd moments that don't feel like an appropriate climax for the character (I'd argue this really manifested the most on 'Changes' going forward), but I think the key issue ties into a 'be careful what you wish for' paradigm for Dresden himself, where it feels like Butcher has the pressure to continue to ramp up the "epic" and by necessity, increase Dresden's personal power as well.

And that warps the stakes in an odd way - a lot of Dresden Files stories work when he's got credible power and can catch his enemies off-guard, but never take them directly, forcing him to rely on his wits and even then the danger feels off the charts, which is a more appropriate staging for urban fantasy and mystery. An increase in power level can warp the balance between underdog and power player in his own right, and when you feel like Dresden's character hasn't really evolved to match that increase in power, I'm just nowhere near as engaged.

I'm probably one of the few here that really liked 'Ghost Story' because it felt novel (and actually slowed the fuck down, reduced Dresden's power to the point where he had to slip back into relying on his wits), but 'Cold Days' lost me so hard that I've never felt the desire to return to the series. It almost feels like the scale of the stories that Butcher wants to tell has evolved past his skill as a writer, and with less focus on character along the way... there are fewer reasons to care.