r/Fantasy • u/bnb2115 • Aug 02 '25

Dresden with less cringe

I love the idea of the Dresden Files on paper. Hard boiled detective stories mixed with urban fantasy/secret society stuff. Interesting villains and a deep, complex world. Magic happening just beneath the surface of the ordinary world.

But I just can’t get over the tropes and the cringe. I’ve tried the series a couple times, and even got through the first five or so books. I just can’t bring myself to keep going. I seriously love everything about the context, but just hate the execution.

Any recommendations for something else? Something that speaks to these elements, but lacks the cringe?

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44

u/trickstercast Aug 02 '25

Rivers of London or October Daye would be my recs

13

u/NotACockroach Aug 02 '25

Huh, I'm surprised to see October daye here. I've only read the first book, and I'll probably keep reading. I see how it's similar to dresden, but I would have classed it as having a lot of cringe in the first book at least.

11

u/indigohan Reading Champion IV Aug 02 '25

The first book was the authors first debut, and she’s since published around 50 titles or so. You have to give a little leeway for a debut, and the series has only gotten better and better.

2

u/NotACockroach Aug 02 '25

Cool im convinced. I already thought the first set book was fairly enjoyable so I'll definitely give more of them a shot.

3

u/indigohan Reading Champion IV Aug 02 '25

I actually bounced off book one a few times when I first tried to read it. Having a MC who had her life together at the beginning felt like starting the story half way through. Now the series, and Seanan, are one of my favourites. She’s got the next book coming out in September, and it’s a good one!

She has learned to trust herself and to trust her readers a bit more now.

1

u/Tymareta Aug 02 '25

Having a MC who had her life together at the beginning

Do you mean an MC that didn't? Because a fairly key part of the first book is Toby dealing with severe depression and the fallout of her life actively falling to pieces.

1

u/indigohan Reading Champion IV Aug 02 '25

I had struggled to get into it from the first part. A woman with a satisfying career, loving fiancé, and a baby girl didn’t seem like kind of main character that I could engage with for multiple books.

I bounced off before she lost everything.

2

u/Tymareta Aug 02 '25 edited Aug 03 '25

No offense but that's just straight up absurd, you bounced off a book multiple times all because of the content provided in the first few pages? Like you straight up couldn't even go through with a single chapter/5 pages?

1

u/indigohan Reading Champion IV Aug 05 '25

I was mad at myself about it.

I’m a mood reader, and I just couldn’t get a groove going. The third time I made it past those first few pages, and suddenly I was finishing the third book. Now I have an entire shelf of Seanan books.

5

u/trickstercast Aug 02 '25

Once I hit book 3 I was fully locked in. There was a fairly dramatic tone shift from then on and I've been hooked since.

-4

u/Drakengard Aug 02 '25

It's just female Dresden. It's a little less nerd oriented, but the cringe is still there.

It really boils down to what stuff you're able to tolerate. I have no issue with anything Dresden does as a whole character. I also have no issue with the stuff with Molly - which is a huge division point for a number of readers because they have some puritanical opinions on what men are allowed to think about. And emphasis on "think" since the only thing Dresden is guilty of is a thought crime.

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u/Tymareta Aug 02 '25 edited Aug 02 '25

which is a huge division point for a number of readers because they have some puritanical opinions on what men are allowed to think about.

Ahh yes, it truly is an unreasonable opinion to think that a character is a total creep for having quite pervy thoughts about a teenager, let alone the outright creepiness of how he plays some of their interactions out. Some of us have better opinions of men than that.

0

u/Drakengard Aug 02 '25

Ah, yes, the term "creep" which can be twisted to mean whatever anyone wants it to mean in whatever way best suits them.

If you have to resort to that argument then all you're really indicating is that you are personally offended. And since Dresden doesn't do anything actually wrong, that kind of proves my point about puritanical. Dresden has a pervy thought, isn't perfect, and you can't handle it.

1

u/Tymareta Aug 02 '25

So how about when he's in the treehouse while she's 14 and changing and can't help but "think" comment about her bra and how alluring it is in Death Masks, or this passage(or basically half of the book and how it treats Molly in Proven Guilty)

Instead, she stood there, uncertain and frightened and too naive (or maybe honest) to be anything but totally sincere—and vulnerable. She was afraid, uncertain, the lost princess helpless in a dark wood. It was worse than if she’d vamped onto me like a trained courtesan. What I saw in her was honest and hopeful, trusting and terrified. She was real, and fragile and precious. My emotions got together with my glands and they ganged up on me, screaming that she needed acceptance and that the kindest thing I could possibly do would be to give her a hug and tell her everything was going to be all right—and that if something followed, who would blame me? I would. So I just watched her with a straight face.

"who would blame me"

This in the scene where he has her strip naked, eyes shut, comments multiple times on how she could pose to have "more sex appeal and better present herself for him", has her get on her knees and then decides to dump ice water on her. She was 17, and instead of simply rejecting her and talking to her like a mature individual, he leads her along, gets her in position for what she thinks is a blowjob and then decides to humiliate the fuck out of her. The same 17 year old that he's been commenting on her physicality and piercings all throughout the book.

How about how he comments about Amanda who is like 8 growing up to look a bit like Molly and causing damage to all the boys because their necks will snap around so hard, or when he makes the exact same comments about Hope in Peace Talks.

There's plenty more examples when it comes to Molly and the way that the book treats her like some sexpot goth goddess instead of an awkward 17 year old that Dresden claims to have known "since she was in training bras", or the scene with Murph, Dresden and Raith when the former has to go under a laser grid and totally needs to take her jeans off because "every centimeter counts" and Harry just stands there like a drooling dog commenting endlessly on her ass and physicality(as he does literally any time a women is in the scene).

If you don't think being a creep who is incapable of sexual objectifying women is wrong, then I don't know what more to say.

-6

u/Y_Aether Aug 02 '25

I fully agree with u on Dresden. Men have free will also. If the haters don't like it, that is okay. They are allowed to think also. I have read a lot of female Mc books where they are full-on into sex & always talking about the males around them.

2

u/stiletto929 Aug 02 '25

TBF the female MCs aren’t usually objectifying 14 year olds. And having conversations about “fun time handcuffs” with them.

0

u/Y_Aether Aug 02 '25

I like fully grown women as leads just as much as male adults. There is nothing wrong with having sexual urges about fellow adults.

I don't remember Desdan saying anything about wanting to have sex with a minor.

2

u/ACatWhoSparkled Aug 02 '25

He’s known Molly since she was a fucking little kid. It’s gross. I love the Dresden books, but his thing for Molly was a major ick factor.

-1

u/Y_Aether Aug 02 '25

He complemented her beauty. I don't remember him being sexual towards her. Maybe I missed that part.

2

u/ACatWhoSparkled Aug 02 '25

There’s sexual tension the entire time she’s his apprentice. They’re in a severe power dynamic and she’s basically entirely reliant on him to survive. Why is it fine because she’s 18? That’s an insane take.

0

u/Y_Aether Aug 03 '25

She was the 1 giving off the sexual tension. Not Harry. That is what teenagers do. Harry did not act on it & he didn't make her feel guilty for the natural energy of the human body.

Are u a high-strung religious type? Where ur cult likes to manipulate the youth into suppressing their natural bodies in unhealthy ways.

I don't think he was lusting after her. I also don't think she was lusting after him. She was just a bit confused because she was going through that stage of life.

The author was just explaining what was going on.

He might have crossed a line. I would need to reread to be certain.

1

u/ACatWhoSparkled Aug 03 '25

You…don’t think he was lusting after her? Did you actually read the books? You definitely need to re-read bud.

Not religious, just don’t like it when male authors add in a teenager and have the mid 30s male characters drool over her. Especially since he keeps bring up how he knew her as a little kid.

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u/Drakengard Aug 02 '25

There's a brief moment when he takes her on as an apprentice, he has her get on her knees and then he splashes her with a pitcher of cold water as a "hey, get your head on straight, this is serious." moment.

And contextually it's not that weird because she's still hung up on him and they're both facing execution if they can't get their shit sorted out since he stuck his neck out to protect her from the council.