The Dresden Files Book Order | 2 Ways to Read Jim Butcher’s Books

The Dresden Files is an Urban Fantasy series by Jim Butcher with a total of 17 published books and host of short stories, graphic novels, and novellas as of the time of this writing. With so many books, what is the best Dresden Files book order?

What is The Dresden Files?

Before we answer that question, it’s helpful to understand a little bit more about Jim Butcher, Harry Dresden, and The Dresden Files.

The first book, Storm Front, was written in 2000 and the idea came about from a bit of dare that Jim Butcher had made for himself. He was attempting to prove a college professor who’d published more than 40 books that her cookie cutter method for writing a book couldn’t produce a publishable manuscript.

Instead of proving her wrong, the opposite was true and The Dresden Files was born.

#1 The Dresden Files Book Order by Medium

This section lists the Dresden Files books in order by length of media. If you’re the sort of person who only likes full novels, not short stories or novellas, this list is for you.

If you’d prefer to see a complete Dresden reading order that organizes everything in chronological order, keep scrolling.

The Dresden Files Books in Order

1. Storm Front (2000)
2. Fool Moon (2001)
3. Grave Peril (2001)
4. Summer Knight (2002)
5. Death Masks (2003)
6. Blood Rites (2004)
7. Dead Beat (2005)
8. Proven Guilty (2006)
9. White Night (2007)
10. Small Favor (2008)
11. Turn Coat (2009)
12. Changes (2010)
13. Ghost Story (2011)
14. Cold Days (2012)
15. Skin Game (2014)
16. Peace Talks (2020)
17. Battle Ground (2020)
18. The Law (2022) (Novella)
19. Twelve Months (TBA)
20. Mirror Mirror (TBA)

The Dresden Files Short Stories

The following two books are short story collections that take place in The Dresden Files world.

1. Side Jobs (2010)
2. Brief Cases (2018)

The Dresden Files Graphic Novels

The following books are Graphic Novels collecting all of the comics written in a particular series. You could purchase the comics individually, but it’s easier (and cheaper) to get the completed collections listed below.

1. Welcome to the Jungle (2008)
2. Storm Front, Vol. 1 (2009)
3. Storm Front, Vol. 2 (2009)
4. Fool Moon, Vol. 1 (2011)
5. Fool Moon, Vol. 2 (2013)
6. Ghoul, Goblin (2013)
7. War Cry (2014)
8. Down Town (2015)
9. Wild Card (2016)
10. Dog Men (2018)

#2 The Complete Dresden Files Book Order

The question then becomes, if you want to read everything in the order they were written, what Dresden Files book order should you follow?

Here is a list of all of the books, short stories, and graphic novels in one big, complete Dresden Files book order.

1. “Restoration of Faith” in Side Jobs (Short Story)
2. Welcome to the Jungle (Graphic Novel)
3. Storm Front
4. Storm Front Vol. 1 (Graphic Novel)
5. Storm Front Vol. 2 (Graphic Novel)
6. Fool Moon
7. Fool Moon Vol. 1 (Graphic Novel)
8. Fool Moon Vol. 2 (Graphic Novel)
9. Ghoul, Goblin (Graphic Novel)
10. “B is for Bigfoot” in Brief Cases (Short Story)
11. Grave Peril
12. Summer Knight
13. Death Masks
14. “A Vignette” in Side Jobs (Short Story)
15. Blood Rites
16. Dead Beat
17. “I Was a Teenage Bigfoot” in Brief Cases (Short Story)
18. War Cry (Graphic Novel)
19. “Something Borrowed” in My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding (Short Story)
20. Proven Guilty
21. White Night
22. Down Town (Graphic Novel)
23. “It’s My Birthday Too” in Many Bloody Returns (Short Story)
24. Wild Card (Graphic Novel)
25. “Heorot” in My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon (Short Story)
26. Small Favor
27. “Backup” in Side Jobs (Novella)
28. “Day Off” in Side Jobs (Short Story)
29. “The Warrior” in Side Jobs (Short Story)
30. “Curses” in Brief Cases (Short Story)
31. “AAAA Wizardry” in Brief Cases (Short Story)
32. “Last Call” in Side Jobs (Short Story)
33. Dog Men (Graphic Novel)
34. Turn Coat
35. “Bigfoot on Campus” in Brief Cases (Short Story)
36. “Even Hand” in Brief Cases (Short Story)
37. “Love Hurts” in Side Jobs (Short Story)
38. Changes
39. Aftermath in Side Jobs (Short Story)
40. Ghost Story
41. “Bombshells” in Brief Cases (Short Story)
42. Cold Days
43. “Cold Case” in Shadowed Souls (Short Story)
44. Skin Game
45. “Jury Duty” in Brief Cases (Short Story)
46. “Day One” in Brief Cases (Short Story)
47. “A Fistful of Warlocks” in Brief Cases (Short Story)
48. “Zoo Day” in Brief Cases (Short Story)
49. Peace Talks
50. Battle Ground
51. “Little Things” in Heroic Hearts (Short Story)
52. The Law (Expected: July 5, 2022) (Novella)
53. Twelve Months (TBA)
54. Mirror Mirror (TBA)

The Dresden Files Books

1. Storm Front

Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden is the only wizard available for hire in the Chicago yellow pages. But it’s not a career that exactly pays well.

Often Harry ends up as a consultant for the Chicago P.D. when something supernatural crops up in the city. Storm Front finds Harry on the scene of a gruesome double homicide that has evidence of dark magic.

While this might mean a good payout for Harry, it also means that there is a dark wizard out there who knows his name.

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2. Fool Moon

Despite the adventure of the previous book, things have slowed down considerably for Harry. As in, he’s getting nothing and things are starting to look dire.

But then under the light of a full moon a mangled body is discovered next to mysterious paw print. While it doesn’t take a wizard to figure out what this means, it will take Harry’s skill to track down this murderer.

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3. Grave Peril

While Harry Dresden has had to face down a lot of supernatural terror in his time as a professional wizard-for-hire, he has never seen Chicago in its current state of disarray.

All across town there are ghosts causing havoc; the deadly, violent kind of havoc. It appears that something is purposefully instigating the spirits. Harry needs to get to the bottom of things, before he ends up dead.

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4. Summer Knight

Desperate times call for desperate measures. That’s how Harry has found himself in this current situation.

Things have reached new lows, so when the Queen of the Winter Faerie Court approaches Harry with a deal, he can’t refuse. Figuring out who killed the Summer Knight and, more importantly, that it wasn’t the Winter Queen should be easy, right?

But in fae politics things are never as simple as they seem, and it’s not long before the pressure mounts.

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5. Death Masks

Business for Harry is finally ticking along at an even pace, but nothing in Harry’s life can stay smooth and steady for long.

Not only is his ex-girlfriend back in the picture with a new beau at her side, but Harry is caught in the middle of the vampire and wizard war, the Shroud of Turin has gone missing, and the Chicago P.D. need his help in identifying a body that is missing its hands and head.

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6. Blood Rites

Harry’s latest job finds him undercover on an adult film set, which should be more enjoyable than it ends up. That’s because the producer is adamant that women in his life are dying because of a curse on him.

Harry only took the job because Thomas asked him to, but Harry doesn’t understand why the vampire cares. Before he unravels the mystery, however, Harry’s life is going to change as he finds out more about Thomas’s family.

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7. Dead Beat

Reeling from revelations in Blood Rites, Harry can’t catch a break in his personal or professional life. Necromancy and black magic are running rampant in Chicago, and Harry is the only one who might be able to save the day.

But only if he finds the Word of Kemmler. The problem is that he has no clue how to find it, or even what it is.

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8. Proven Guilty

Even though Harry has found himself under suspicion of the White Council’s Wardens for years, becoming one is even worse. So when the White Council becomes his latest client, the stakes are high.

He must figure out why monsters from movies are running wild under his watch and then stop them. Failure isn’t an option when the White Council is concerned.

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9. White Night

A murderer is killing lower-class practitioners who aren’t powerful enough to be full wizards. And he’s left Harry a message at one of his latest crime scenes.

As Harry begins to investigate, the evidence points to Thomas as the killer, which Harry can’t believe. As he tries to clear Thomas’s name, however, Harry comes under fire of the White Court.

In a fight against vampires the odds are terribly stacked against Harry, but failure isn’t an option.

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10. Small Favor

One year without being the target of an attempted murder means Harry’s future is looking bright, but then the past comes knocking.

That’s because Mab, Queen of the Winter Faerie Court, is calling in an old favor. It is seemingly just a small favor, but it is one Harry cannot refuse. It’s an old debt that will place him between a rock and a hard place, and test him like never before.

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11. Turn Coat

Harry finds a Warden of the White Council on his doorstep once more, which means things are about to become a lot more complicated.

That’s because Morgan is on the run with an accusation of treason barking at his heels. He needs someone in his corner who is willing to go to bat for an underdog and clear his name. Enter: Harry.

There is a traitor on the White Council that Harry must uncover without getting caught. But while he tries to keep his own neck safe, Harry must protect Morgan too.

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12. Changes

As the title suggests, this is a massive turning point in the series. No matter how much you try to prepare for the changes, this book starts off like a rocket.

Once more the past has come knocking on Harry’s door. This time in the form of his former lover, Susan Rodriguez. Since she departed Harry’s life for South America though, she’s been keeping a secret.

When a member of the vampiric Red Court finds out her secret, they have no qualms about using it against Harry. The dark magic that has been simmering under the surface in Harry is about to be fully unleashed in this epic battle.

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13. Ghost Story

The changes of the last book have left Harry in a bind. But despite being dead, with no magic and no body, Harry can’t escape his responsibilities for the city of Chicago and his friends.

There is black magic swirling around in the shadows, and Harry must execute the perfect magic trick. If he fails, his friends and his soul are at risk.

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14. Cold Days

While Harry may be back from the dead, his troubles are only mounting. As the new Winter Knight, Harry must obey Mab’s every command. And the Queen of the Winter Court isn’t exactly known for being merciful.

Her first assignment for him is impossible. Mab tasks him with killing an immortal.

That isn’t Harry’s only problem though, because there is also a wealth of magic that is growing and threatening Chicago and the world alike. Harry might be back, but his soul is on the line like never before.

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15. Skin Game

Harry’s latest assignment from Mab might just be the worst yet. It goes against every fiber and moral in his being. But as her right-hand man — or wizard — refusing the Winter Queen of the Fae isn’t an option.

So, Harry must help his enemy, Nicodemus Archleone, lead a band of villainous supernatural beings into the Nevernever. There they must steal the Holy Grail from Hades, located in his most secure vault, and somehow Harry must figure out a way to walk out of this alive.

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16. Peace Talks

In an effort to save his city and the world as he knows it, Harry joins forces with the White Council once more. They are preparing to host a peace talk to end the current tensions in the supernatural world.

Harry must ensure things remain civil as part of the security team, but someone is manipulating things. Everything Harry holds dear is under threat and nothing will be the same again.

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17. Battle Ground

The threat of battle can only linger in the air for so long. Eventually things must come to a head, which is exactly what happens in this book.

Battle Ground is just that; the city of Chicago erupts in a battle unlike anything Harry has ever seen before. The stakes are higher than ever and the villains larger than ever before. But Harry is still Harry, and he’s standing ready to meet his new foe head on.

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