Near the end of school last year, my daughter told me her friend wasn't going to read my book Spark until the whole series was finished. I was a little disheartened, to say the least. But I couldn't be annoyed with her, because I understood where her friend was coming from.When I find a new book that looks amazing, I'll run through my mental checklist. I'll check the author, because I'll go through fire for a few of my favorites. I'll also peek at the ending--I require my books to have a HEA (Happily Ever After), no matter the genre. I'll read the blurb to see if it interests me. And lastly, I'll check to see if the book is the first in a series. If it's a stand-alone, and most of the other criteria are met, it's going home with me. But if it's a Book One of Three or Five or however-many-books-the-author-has-up-her-sleeve, it requires more thought. I hate waiting and if I read Book One, I'll have to wait a whole year for the next one. Plus, I read a lot and it's hard for me to remember what has happened in the year I've been away from these characters.
I waited with the Harry Potter series, although I did have to wait a year for the last one. I've also played The Waiting Game with other series. Although it requires delayed gratification, I prefer to wait. My memory just isn't what it used to be.
What about you? Do you prefer to read books as they are released? Or do you like to wait so you can savor the series all at once?
Let us know in the comments below!
Ooh, good question, Jill! I'm willing to start a series before all the books are out, but that wait does make cliff-hanger endings that much more painful! I prefer series like yours, where there's reason to look forward to the next book but everything is tied up well enough that I'm not driven crazy by the wait :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Laurie! Cliff-hangers are just horrible, but I wonder if they make the happy ending more satisfying. Hmm, maybe that's another blog post... :-)
ReplyDeleteI sometimes wait, but usually I don't.
ReplyDeleteI know it can be weird when someone tells you they are waiting to read your book until the whole series comes out or not reading it at all for various reasons. My youngest brothers hasn't read any of my books (even though, based on his reading preferences, he would probably like them) because it is too weird for him to read a book written by his sister.
Tricia, siblings can be weird like that. :-) Maybe one of these days he'll weaken. (For what it's worth, my youngest hasn't read mine either, even though, like in your situation, she'd probably like it.) Thanks for stopping by!
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