Actually, I didn't read the Dresden files in order as I got my first reads from the library and the books are not always available in order.
So I can't really say how book 1 is if you were to read it in order since I started off from the middle. But I feel that the first book of any fantasy series tends to be more of an "introductory" book; there have been other series where book 1 was blah for me but I became a fan later after reading book 2 onwards. So it might be worth reading a couple more books before deciding whether or not it's your cup of tea (unless of course it's so blah to you that you couldn't continue reading after a couple of chapters LOL)!
I do plan to go back and re-read the Dresden series in order one day, just so to pick up anything I might have miss from not reading it in order.
I'm biased but to me, the Dresden files is definitely worth the read and re-read!
