Ever been in the middle of a really great series that turned BAD?
That first less than stellar installment is disappointing. Maybe it even makes you angry. But is a single bad book enough to make you quit a series that up to that point has been an excellent investment of your time?
NOPE.
But what about when the next book is crap too. And the next . . .
Maybe you aren’t as stubborn as I am, or maybe you have more self-control . . . or maybe you don’t, and you find yourself in the same situation—continuing to buy books from a series that is LONG passed it sell by date.
WHY do we do this?
I combed my Goodreads bookshelves looking for examples, and accidentally stumbled across the (MY) reason instead. It can all be boiled down to one word:
HOPE.
You see, amidst the series I stubbornly continue to purchase despite them having more bad to mediocre installments than good ones, were the series where that gamble paid off. One of them—Mercy Thompson—is even on my Top 5 UF series list. People, I did not like the first two books at ALL. If I had been as overwhelmed with books when I first met Mercy as I am now, I never would have continued the series. But I was bored. So I kept reading, and oh-happy-day, book 3 was pretty darn good. So was book 4, then lo and behold, book 5 was friggin’ awesome.
Gamble. Paid. Off.
Something similar happened with Carrie Vaughn’s Kitty Norville series. I DNF-ed the first book the first time I tried to read it. Kitty was a submissive mess, and I was pretty much disgusted with her character. Then about a year later, I picked it up again b/c bored (<——it’s a pattern). I pushed through the first part of the book, and before the end it became apparent that Kitty was in transition, and left to her own devices, she absolutely wasn’t the reprehensible excuse of a female that she first appeared to be. I kept reading the series, and it took awhile, but Vaughn’s writing style really grew on me. Now I always get around to reading whatever new books she comes out with.
And as one of my friends pointed out to me earlier this week, ALL series have MEH installments. We just ride the wave.
So that’s why I do it. Do you have different reasons? Or even BETTER, do you avoid this entirely (and care to share with the rest of the class your tried and true refusal tactics)?
My name is Jessica and I live in Chattanooga, Tennessee. I’m trying my hand at writing, but mostly I read. My favorite genres are Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, Science Fiction, Urban Fantasy, and the YA versions of those genres, but if there is a book of a different color getting lots of buzz, I’ll read it too, just to be informed. If I’m not reading or writing, I’m probably on Goodreads or Pinterest or baking blueberry pies because I love them.
YES I actually really enjoyed those Kitty Norville reads, a lot of people hated the first book but the ones thereafter were pretty enjoyable! thanks for the reminder, I really should get back into them again!
About the topic, sometimes we’re so invested in the character and the plot that we don’t want to believe that it’s gone wayward, but sometimes that does happen. These days I’m a lot more lenient with giving up a series because of the ever looming TBR.
Jeann recently posted…Blog Tour: Giveaway, Review & Interview for Spark by Rachael Craw
I not only really like the Kitty Norville series, I really like Carrie Vaughn in general. Her Golden Age series is sci-fi/superhero awesomeness, and Discord’s Apple was great too. I need to get caught back up on Kitty too. I’m gonna be like 3 books behind when the new one comes out in December.
And yeah, the more out of control my TBR gets, the easier it is to let go. I’ve also put off starting new series until several installments that have consistently gotten good reviews are out. I think it’s easier for me not to start a series at all than to quit it.
I know exactly what you mean. Especially with book one of a series. There are some really great series out there where the first book is less than “meh”. I always try to push through at least two books before I refuse to move on. The Kitty Norville series is one where I got two books in and stopped, but I’ve been thinking of picking it back up again. Marguerite Gavin, who narrates The Hollows series, narrates those books, which makes me want to give them a try on audio. After your comments above, I think I might need to push them up higher on my TBL list, which seems to be growing exponentially this audiobook month. 🙂
Melanie Simmons recently posted…My Favorite Audiobook Series Giveaway #audiobookmonth #JIAM2014
Yeah, my TBR is NUTS and growing daily. It’s been awhile, so I’m not sure, but I think it was probably 3 or 4 books before I got well and truly hooked on Kitty. The first one was okay after I realized early Kitty was not just Kitty, the end, and I kept reading b/c, like I said, bored, LOL. Hopefully you’ll have better luck with the audio books. Fortunately, these books are pretty quick reads (and therefore listens?), so figuring that out won’t be too much of a time suck.
Usually if I really can’t stand the first book I probably won’t continue, but a few times it was later books in the series that disappointed me and I loved the first one. I had bought the whole trilogy of a particular one after loving the first book, and I didn’t like the other two at all. I guess you’re right, we just want to hope that it gets better, and from experience it has. For me it was the Shifters series by Rachel Vincent. The first book was ok, but they got better and better as I read more and now I love that series.
Kelsey recently posted…Review: The Vanishing Season by Jodi Lynn Anderson
Yeah, I don’t have a hard time quitting if the I don’t like the first book. It’s when I really liked the first (and second, and third) books that I get stubborn. And thanks for the heads-up on the Vincent series. I didn’t like that first book at all either, but maybe I should give it another shot.
I have zero tolerance for bad books, so if I’m reading a series and one book is blech, then I’ll drop the series. I’m not a big fan of series though, and right now there’s only three that I’m actively reading.
Finley Jayne recently posted…{Big Changes are Here!} I’m Totally Revamping My Reading System: Part Three
My life would be so much simpler if I could do that, LOL. Good for you!
Hmm, the Kitty series lost me around book five and I have not been back. Maybe it is time to get back into it again?
I read through a lot of bad Star Wars books not because of hope of anything getting better; only because I wanted to know how a few particular plot lines ended. Wasn’t worth.
Nathan ( recently posted…Tough Traveling â Minions
If you weren’t into it by book 5, then maybe it’s just not for you. I’m pretty sure that I was pretty hooked before that. Maybe you should try After the Golden Age. It’s sci-fi, superhero awesomeness. Or Discord’s Apple, which is pretty cool and mythology based.
And yeah, about half (or more?) the time I don’t think my stubbornness is worth it either. And yet . . .
I have read Discords Apple! In fact, I own it and keep meaning to get it signed as the author lives one county away from me and does a lot in the area.
Nathan ( recently posted…Steampunk Review: ‘Three Parts Dead’ by Max Gladstone
Very cool! I think the only author that lives near me is Cherie Priest, which is pretty cool too, I just haven’t read as many of her books.
Boredom. That’s one reason I continue with a series. Not so much anymore with all the books I have/want to read, but boredom is a THING, man.
Amanda recently posted…Miss the Elusive Memories Release Party? Catch the Replay
Boredom is definitely a THING, and my THING in particular. But you’re also right about not being as much of a problem anymore, b/c too many other books. Now if I could just make myself stop buying the books as well as not reading them, I’d be set.
At this point I actually just drop series that aren’t working for me but I add the next books on my TBR list anyway because of that silly little thing that perches in our soul, HOPE that it gets better. It definitely paid off with the Mercedees Thompson series.. although I’ve had tons of ups and downs with that series.
I guess sometimes if things are not going well, I’ll take a break and them come back to it later. There are some series I refuse to finish because that is how I roll and others, I put off for later and others I BINGE read. 😛
Fantastic discussion post, Jess! 🙂
Rashika recently posted…ARC Review: The Bees by Laline Paull
Thanks, dollface! And yeah, I might take a break from the series, but I keep BUYING the books as they come out. Especially if they’re paperbacks. And I’ve definitely had my ups and downs with Mercy too, but the ups have been . . . up enough . . . to have me completely sold on the series.
And that’s what I’m doing with BDB right now. Sometimes bingeing is the best way to get through it 😉
I do give up at one point, but always too late
blodeuedd recently posted…India Black and the Shadows of Anarchy – Carol K. Carr
Always too late, LOL.
This reminded me of KCole’s Immortals After Dark series. I don’t really think that the first book and the prequel novella was particularly bad but I just wasn’t that interested continuing on until I got my hands on the audiobooks and decided to try it out again because I was bored (this can also be a pattern for me) and I’m really glad I did because the series got better. Not all the books were created equal, I had my top favorites and even though I was really frustrated with MacRieve, that book will not stop me from continuing on this series. I’m not sure I was actually on point here but great topic Jessica! 🙂
Amir recently posted…Audiobook Review: The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet by Bernie Su and Kate Rorick
Book lovers are typically more humanities minded and that means questions and discussions are subject to interpretation and side-topics 😀
I loved IAD instantly . . . but with my reread I’m discovering that no, they aren’t all created equal, and some of my ratings are getting lowered. Still though—LOVE that series.
Haha, I don’t have the same reason as you. It’s not about hope for me. It’s about having a series completed, especially in physical copy. Like, if I bought 2 books in a series of 6 but didn’t quite enjoy it, I will look for sales so I can get the next and finish the series so it doesn’t stay all alone incompleted. I also usually read those sequel, duh, they’re not just for decoration. BUT, if I really hated a first book (or two) I bought, I will get rid of the book(s) so I don’r feel bad about not buying the rest. Usually, I give the books to charity along with some clothes at the same time so I’m not feeling bad. 🙂 Lol, that is my reason but I agree with the hope part too, just don’t quite feel it. This is an interesting post, thanks for sharing! 😀
Lola recently posted…BOOK TOUR: review & giveaway of Carnelian by B. Kristin McMichael
Yeah, that’s part of it too. Goodness knows that’s one of the many ways I’m OCD about books. Glad I’m not alone, LOL.
I try to give a series the benefit of the doubt and at least try the second…and if I saw some improvement in book 2 then book 3…a shot. If it hasn’t grabbed me by at least that third installment then I will usually say goodbye, unless someone I trust really, really well smacks me on the head and says No! You must read I promise it’s worth it.
Traci recently posted…Author Interview ~ Molly Harper ~ Better Homes and Hauntings
Yeah, I don’t have a problem quitting series that start off bad. I have a problem with quitting series that start off really well, and then go bad. I think you’re actually better about giving series a decent shot than I am. If I don’t like the first book, it take a LOT to get me to read the next one.
I completely agree and I do the same thing. I have series of books that I know I will never finish because I tried the first two books and never liked either but yet, I still bought the others in the series. Why? I might be crazy is why but on the other hand, what if? What if I DO pick them back up and then fall in love with them?
What? It could happen. There goes that “hope” thing again.
kindlemom1 recently posted…Cover Reveal and Giveaway: Love and Other Theories by Alexis Bass
EXACTLY. Why?! I have every Showalter Lords of the Underworld book, and I didn’t even finish the first book. And Devon Monk’s Allie Beckstrom series. And a half dozen others. I don’t have the shelf space, and yet . . . *headdesk*
Oh, I don’t know. I think it’s that we want to give the series a second chance. I’ve done that quite a few times. But if I’m never sure… I usually loan it from someone.
Really, I’m not sure. I’m a cheap head when it comes to books – freebies for the win! I’m not sure that’s buying, lol. 😉
Sophia recently posted…The Pressures of Bestselling Books
No, but it’s definitely book hoarding, which I think is another aspect of the “problem.” 😉
Well, I don’t buy bad books – I kinda have to know I’ll be getting quality before I plonk my money down on it, either a trusted author or an ARC I’ve read that I’ve loved and need to get the retail copy. But if your question is why I keep READING bad books, well…like you said, it’s sometimes out of sheer habit! I know exactly what you mean about the Mercy Thompson books too. They weren’t bad – but seriously, the first few were nothing to write home about, considering how there are a lot more noteworthy UF out there. But like you I kinda soldiered on…but I’d gotten them on audiobooks through my library, so that made it easier!
Mogsy recently posted…Tough Traveling: Minions
Yeah, libraries are definitely enablers, LOL. And it’s particularly difficult for me to let go of a series once the author has proven themselves to a good writer. I mean, at that point we know that they’re capable, so maybe this will be the one! *headdesk*
I struggled with this pre-blogging, but now will abandon them. That is not to say that I might not pick them up on sale and give them a go. I just don’t race out to get my hands on them when they first release. Instead I focus on those series that give me that book high I constantly chase.
kimbacaffeinate recently posted…Five Ways to Fall by K.A. Tucker
I’m trying to do that, and it’s becoming easier out of necessity, but I still have a ways to go 😉
Now that I blog i’ve become pretty picky with the books i buy so i dont tend to read as many bad books as i did in my preblogging days but sometimes when a series unexpectedly goes downhill i still continue buying the books because like you said I have hope it gets better. If anything i just read them several months after their release date. But thats it. Also once i have the first few books in a series on my shelf k want the series completed.
Lily recently posted…The Kiss of Deception(The Remnant Chronicles#1):Review
Exactly! We know that the author is capable of writing a really great book, so maybe this next one will be the one to get things back to what we want. Right?! GAH.
I might be a glutton for punishment when it comes to some things but not when it comes to this..LOL I’m less inclined to keep buying a series if it goes bad for me. I might borrow them from the library if I’m curious, but I’m not shelling out money for crappy books! One bad egg is okay, two in a row and I’m dumping the series! 🙂
Lori recently posted…DNF Review: Ghouls Rush In by H.P. Mallory
Good for you, Lori! I’m hoping it’s a breakable habit . . . goodness knows I’m trying, LOL.
I think it would be different if I had more time and was bored and all that. But lately I’ve been too busy and have had very little time to read. So one bad book and I’m through, at least for the time being. But I agree it definitely pays off, especially when the first book in a series is just so-so, but the rest of the series gets awesome (Vampire Academy for example). So I might have more patience for a first book if the world/characters interest me. But if a long series starts to have bad books, I take it as the author is bored with the series too.
Julie S. recently posted…That’s what HE said Thursday- June 26, 2014
That is all very rational. Drat you, LOL. But my problem is HOPE, and HOPE isn’t rational. Would that I could be more like you on this subject 😉
I read a book once that I absolutely hated. If I were writing reviews at that time I would have beat it to shreds.
…I bought the second book in that series directly after the first. I just can’t let mysteries stay unsolved, you know? I almost bought the third after that, but I really had to take a step back and think about the fact that I really didn’t even like these books.
Yep. Me TOO. Why, oh why, do we put ourselves through this?
I’m a smart (cheap) book buyer so when I give up on a series, I abjure it altogether. Now for bad first books, I shamelessly return them to Amazon (thank god for that!), keeping it won’t be a smart purchase LOL
Braine Talk Supe recently posted…Year 3.4: Burned by Tara Sivec + Love Letters & Giveaway
Oh yeah, if it’s a crap book, and I bought the kindle version, I’ll shamelessly return it too. It’s paperbacks that are mostly my problem. Sigh . . .
YES JESSICA!!!! I’m the exact same way. I just keep thinking to myself “this series is bound to get better, things can only go up right? And I want to be there when they do.” And thus I keep on buying the books waiting for the moment when my stubborn hope for series improvement is validated. Glad you stuck things out with Mercy, that’s definitely one of my favorite series as well!
I’m glad I stuck it out with Mercy too. Even if that series will forever be my shining beacon of hope that continually leads me astray, LOL. BUT clearly I’m not the only one 😉
Oh! I have shamed myself by reading so many Goodkind books. It was before I found online resources to get recommendations. And then I just kept reading trying to figure out why it was so highly recommended (by someone IRL, that I no longer listen to 😉 ). I know better now. I don’t have time to keep reading books that I wonder how they can be so bad. I can completely understand giving a series one or two books leeway if you have previously enjoyed it though. You can’t help by hope.
Lisa recently posted…Tough Traveling – Minions of the Dark Lord
Yeah, I stubbornly stuck it out through several Goodkind books too. I had to call it quits when Richard’s serial killer brother showed up though. That was just a bit too much for me. And yeah, I’m having less trouble with this now b/c of Goodreads, and recs from like-minded people, but the old series keep putting out new books, and . . . well, they have to end eventually, right?
The first and second books are usually now make it or break it for me. It is normal for the first in a series to be a 3 star for me and then the second being way strong especially if it is a debut. So I’ll give them another shot for them to build things more. If it’s still a 3 at that point the past two to three years I’ve been doing catch and release and just letting those babies go.
Unless I really really have some sort of attachment or curiosity and feel like there is going to be a turn around. now a days though i have no problem with giving up after two books. I used to finish everything but now I just don’t have the time I have to keep in the know on newer stuff and some stuff just isn’t worth continuing.
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Yeah, I’m pretty much the same there. You might even be kind than I am. It’s when the series begins well that I have a hard time letting go. And by “hard time” I mean grimly refuse to quit, LOL.
I think that one of the reasons that we do this, besides hope, is because in order to appreciate the great books, we need to buy and read the bad ones. It may be a waste of money if you ask me, but we book readers, are masochists, in my opinion. Sometimes the pain of reading a bad book makes us better readers and reviewers.
Dre recently posted…Review 181 : The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu
I can definitely agree with the masochist part, but I don’t deliberately read terrible books. I stumble across them enough accidentally, LOL.
+JMJ+
This is an easy question, though my answer is kind of sad. I keep buying bad books because there are no public libraries in my city and my friends don’t read the same books I do. It’s a good thing I’m a bit of a bibliomaniac, because I can justify every purchase to myself! =P
But there have been times when I disliked an installment so much that I realised the author and I would have to part ways. The last time that happened, I gave her another chance with the next book, got disappointed again, and then read all the spoilers for the one after that–which convinced me I’d hate it, too. In general, when I stop buying, I stop reading.
Oh, that is sad 🙁 But good for you, being positive about it. Sometimes the collections of books we gather make us happy all on their own.
And I have been strong enough to quit a few times. I think . . . mostly, I’ll just quit for awhile and then binge-read the new installments all at once, hoping for the best. *headdesk*
Oh, yes! Hope is a big thing with these. Like.. You see the potential of what it could be and hope it turns out that way.. someday. It was the same for me with Jennifer Estep’s Elemental Assassin series as it was for you with Mercy. I have left some series though and that was simply because.. well, they’re not for me. I can live with a little more meh installments if I feel like it, but there are a few series that you can just tell that they won’t be for you no matter what. Great discussion, Jess!
Siiri recently posted…Review: Coming Home by Priscilla Glenn
Leaving a not-for-you-series is something that I don’t struggle with either. It’s when the books START out good, and then mid-way through the series, it all turns to crap. That’s when I cling like a barnacle.
I give a new author/series 2 chances. If I’m not hooked by then I’m done. An old favorite I might make a little more leeway but not by much. After a dud I’ll pick up the next one and try. If that one’s a dud I may pick them up again at some point but I won’t rush to buy release day and will likely wait until I find it at the used or thrift stores. My tbr pile is way too long and funds not big enough for series that aren’t totally doing it for me. I’m probably missing out on some good ones here and there but I’m okay taking that chance 🙂
anna recently posted…Devil’s Game (Reapers #3) by Joanna Wylde
I’m pretty much the same with series that start out bad. Actually it’s rare that I’ll pick up a second book when I didn’t like the first one. But a good series that turns bad three books in? That I have a hard time letting go of.
Oh yes – it’s definitely hope! Though I have to say, I don’t tend to have the same hopes early on in a series – it’s only after I’ve come to love characters that I let hope conquer a not-so-great installment. Case in point for me is also the Mercy Thompson series. I actually loved the first few books. But Rivermarked signaled a downward move for me. I actually LOVED that book because I love the Native American folklore – but I wasn’t giddy about the change in Adam & Mercy’s relationship and I missed the pack. The next book – Frost Burned – was just ok. It just didn’t grab me like the earlier books had – but I was NOT giving up on Mercy! And what do you know? Night Broken jerked me back to attention. So hope paid off. And that’s why I don’t give up on series that I’ve loved. But if I’ll give up on a series if the early books don’t grab me – though I do try at least 2 (if it was ok, not bad) before I give up on any series. Awesome post!!
Berls recently posted…Book Blog Walkers Check-in 26
See that’s exactly what I’m talking about. If a series starts off really well for me, then I just can’t quit it. I have no problem abandoning a series that starts poorly for me. That’s why Mercy is such a strange situation—ordinarily I would never have kept going. But when a author has proven to me that they’re capable of writing excellent books . . . I just keep hoping the next one will be the one to turn things back around.
I can’t help it. And I think you nailed it — I HOPE the next book will be better. I HOPE that magic will reappear. I even give second chances to series where I DNFed the first book. Possibly, I’m a hopeless case when it comes to books.
Mary recently posted…Multiple Mini Swarms: Paranormal Romance
If you’re hopeless, then I’m hopeless too. Maybe we should start a support group, LOL.
Totally agree with this post. I do know what you mean about the Kitty series. I think that is my favorite part is how much she transforms throughout the series.
Melissa (Books and Things) recently posted…Smexy Reads: Eternity and a Day by Aline Hunter
And she does continually evolve. Have you tried any of Vaughn’s other books? I’m particularly fond of Discord’s Apple and After the Golden Age.
I think all series tend to have those books that we just can’t stand and want to throw out the window. However, it is worth sticking with a series that was great up until that book because it could just be that book. If there are 2-3 bad books in a row then I will consider dropping a series. A lot of times I just lose interest because it is hard to keep up with the series go out to book 25!
Alexa recently posted…Deep Green Promo
Yes, series with 20+ books are hard to keep up with, but there are only a handful of those. It’s the rest that give me problems. Even after 2 or 3 bad books in a row, I have a hard time letting go b/c STUBBORN.
You hit the nail on the head! HOPE is the exact reason I carry on. I hope the next book is better and the author sort of brings it all together or something drastically amazing happens. I still really want to try Mercy Thompson – good to know it pays off from book 3 🙂
Great post Jessica 🙂
Chene Sterckx recently posted…Audio Book Review: The Drive-By Wife by Mike Wells
It really does. Book 3 and onward is just fantastic in Mercy Thompson, and the spin-off is fabulous as well.
Oh great post, Jessica and I can totally relate to it. I’ve been starting some series and then the sequel turned to be everything but amazing but still I rarely ever give up. There is always that HOPE that one day you’ll feel that awesomeness from the previous books. Great post! 🙂
Tanja recently posted…Cover Reveal: Just as You Are by June Stevens
Exactly. You and me both, Tanja. And thank you 😉
This is a very good question Jessica! For me I guess it depends on how invested I am in the series or how much it seems to drag along, even if the books aren’t exactly bad…
I gave up on the Anita Blake series cause they got weird, I don’t mind me some nice steamy action, but when the book is just unbeatable bad guy that gets beaten by Anita and most of the books is all about the sex and how it controls her… nah, not my thing!
I gave up on the House of Night series because things just seemed to get more and more twisted and half of the twists and complications seemed just to happen to stretch the series one more book at a time… I feel like I want to know what happens, but I can’t be arsed to read more books!
Series that I’ve continued despite not being 100% happy about the final books? The Sookie Stackhouse books, since book 8 or 9 I felt like more things were thrown in willy nilly and characters changed their behaviour from previous books, that and Eric was becoming a bit of a powerless jerk, but I was invested in the series and decided to continue, to my disappoinment in the final book, so meh!
And a series that I’m glad I continued even if a pair of books were a bit more meh? The Chicagoland Vampires books! There was a bit of a slump with a pair of the middle books, but the latest ones I’ve loved and I’m very much eagerly awaiting the next!
Pili recently posted…Saturday Pages: The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin!!!
YES, to the Sookie decline. I kept reading too and for the same reasons, and Eric kept becoming more and more of a self-involved JERK. Even in the beginning of the books, you knew he had jerk potential, but he was the one who looked out for Sookie while Bill did stupid Bill things. Towards the end, it seemed like only Eric-the-jerk remained, and that just sucked. And I get you about the Chicagoland Vampires too. I just binge reread them a few months ago, and yeah, that slump was bad, but thankfully, it’s picking up again. Which is what I always hope when I continue a series. It just seldom works out that way, LOL.
I don’t think I can relate much to this. I do a very bad job at following series books. I haven’t even continued those I loved. So I can only imagine that continuing something I hate would be some sort of miracle. I think the only time this would happen is if I bought the entire series before reading it. I tend to do that because I hate waiting. 😛
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LOL, Francine. While I wish I didn’t waste time on series-gone-bad, I can’t imagine NOT reading the new installments of the series I love as soon as they’re available. I can see how you wouldn’t be able to relate to this one 😉
A boring first book isn’t necessarily a deal breaker for me as long as people tell me it gets better.
I have quit several series though because I just can’t handle bleh books and watch it all go downhill.
I quit BDB (for now anyway – I *may* get back to that one), the Merry Gentry series, Sookie Stackhouse after book #10, Gena Showalter’s LotU and a few more.
I used to get twitchy thinking I was missing something but when I cave I just end up wanting to throw the book so quitting seems healthier lol
I can maybe keep reading a series with a boring first book if I have the second one immediately at hand. If it’s the first book in a brand new series, with a year-long wait for the next one . . . yeah, I rarely read book 2 under those circumstances.
I quit BDB for now too. I did that a few years ago as well, LOL. I read that series in fits and starts.
And yeah, that does sound healthier. Way to be 😉
If I read a first book in a series and love like wh0a, the next move is to get all of the books in the series, and read then whenever I get the time :)) I am quite OCD about collecting things, lol, and if I love the first book from a series I will have the urge to “collect” the entire series. Need I mention I often end up not reading them for maybe years? :)) I suck.
But if I don’t love-love it, just like it, I go on a book-by-book series. If any of them falls under the 3 reading experience rating, I will drop the series with no regrets, most likely. Maybe if I see rave reviews of some future books from peeps whose opinion I value, I’ll pick it up again.
Short answer, there is no escape from book hoarding :))
Livia recently posted…Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
ME TOO. To ALL of it. I have the first 6 (at least) books in Kat Richardson’s Greywalker series and Devon Monk’s Allie Beckstrom series, and I’ve only read the first book of both of them, and didn’t like them all that much. OCD 1, Jessica 0.
No escape, LOL.
Because of the waiting pile of books in the read pile I am learning to say goodbye to series a little easier when they aren’t working for me. The first series that comes to mind is the House of Night series. It still pains me a little that I have most of the books on my bookshelf and the set isn’t complete but I just can’t read anymore of the series. So…I may hoard the series but still not read it. 😉
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I have to admit it’s getting easier for me too, but more out of necessity than any kind of personal growth, LOL. And yes, I do still tend to hoard the books, even when I haven’t read the series of YEARS . . . sigh 😉
I’m not really familiar with the books you’ve mentioned, but all I could think about, while reading your post, is my experience with the House of Night series. Full disclosure: It didn’t get any better, but I keep reading it anyway until I got fed up and drop the series altogether. It took me 7 books to realized that. Ugh. Same goes with The Vampire Diaries and The Immortals series by Alyson Noel. Double ugh.
I rarely give up on books, but now I’m learning not to sacrifice myself just because I’m bored or has nothing else to read especially when it comes to a series I don’t like. I’d rather not read than subject myself to that kind of torture.
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I quite House of Night too, and I never read past the original Vampire Diaries books (that I read like 10 years ago), and I’m pretty sure I quit The Immortals after the first book, so I feel your pain.
And yeah, it would definitely be better to call it quits than to keep suffering. Here’s hoping it sticks this time 😉
I generally will abandon a book series if one book is bad. I haven’t found that it gets better from there. In fact, if I’m halfway through a book and it’s gone bad, I’ll often either abandon it or skim through the rest of it. Of course, if I’ve purchased a book, I’m far less likely to abandon it than if I’ve gotten it free! Something about that financial commitment.
Yeah, I can’t do that, regardless of money spent (or not). It would be nice, but my curiosity gets the better of me, and that dang hope again. Turns me into a sucker more often than not though 😉
I’m not sure that I’m quite as forgiving as I think I am BUT I did really try with Abbi Glines. I’ve read several of her books and there hasn’t been one I liked and I certainly don’t want to use the word hate buuuuuuuuuuuut…if the shoe fits? *shrugs* Everyone kept telling me to hang in there and that it would get better. And the heroine’s were ALWAYS poor and waiting for the rich hero to come and rescue them. I’m not a fan of the Cinderella syndrome. Anyway, long story short…I kept buying her books until my hope fizzled out…
This was a great question to ask fellow readers! 😉
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Yeah, sometimes you just have to accept that your reading preferences are different than some of your friends. Thankfully, when that’s happened to me, I can usually narrow it down to a specific genre. I have a lot of friends that I’ll take UF recs from but not contemporary romance, and vice versa. My problem is when I get stubborn and refuse to quit something that is obviously not getting better. I’d be happy if I could just quit it for awhile, LOL. *shrugs* I am my own worst enemy, LOL.
We keep hoping that books will get better. That is why I rarely dnf books. I usually hope that the book will improve. That happened with Splintered by A.C. Gaughen. I really wasn’t enjoying the book, but I forced myself to finish it and still didn’t like it which is hard because everybody loves the book.
Yeah, it’s especially hard for me to quit a book/series that EVERYONE loves too. I convince myself that it has to get better, and it’s all downhill from there. BUT it does gets better just enough to keep me doing it, LOL.
I used to read these books about a vampire queen.. Betsy (http://maryjanicedavidson.net/vampire-romance-novels/betsy-the-vampire-queen) they started out soooo good and then just fell apart. The author even apologized at the beginning of the last one I read when I finally quit. I thought .. if the author knows they are bad that is sad. I held on though for a long long time.
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Wow. That is bad. I’m still clinging to Anita Blake. It’s one of those series that I wait for the paperback (and thank goodness of that), and I usually wait a few years letting them collect before binge reading them. BUT this last book . . . it was the first really good one since the series started to turn for me . . . and things like that are what keep me buying, LOL.
I think hope is a big part of why we keep going. And if there’s SOMETHING we like or are curious about, you kinda wanna know how things turn out. I LOATHE the Shifter series by Rachel Vincent, for example (although I love her YA), and I specifically cannot stand the heroine, but I liked one of the two love interests, so I kept going to see how things turned out. Dumb, because that ship didn’t sail. I told you the heroine was infuriating.
Also, I was a lot more patient before I was a blogger. With access to more books, I put down stuff a lot faster than I used to.
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Yeah, I’m less patient now too. The problem (especially with new series) is that I’ll buy a first installment, fully intending to read it, but for some reason that never happens, and before I know it, the next book is out . . . so I buy that one too . . . and pretty soon I have an ENTIRE series that I’ve yet to read. And if I don’t like it . . .
And I’ll have to give Vincent’s YA a shot. I hate the heroine from her Shifter series too, but I’ve heard good things about her YA, and I’m pretty sure I have a few Soul Screamers already . . . b/c that’s what I do, LOL.
I think I continue buying it because I’m stubborn and want the entire series. If it gets bad early on, I won’t do that but the ones were I’ve read 3/4ths of the series then it turns bad I’ll continue in hopes it gets better lol
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Me too. Hope and stubbornness. Stubbornness and hope, LOL. I quit series that are bad from the beginning too, but series like Sookie? Sookie I stayed with until the bitter end.
It’s hope or sheer insanity depending on the author. I think I usually give my favorite series 2 book warning, then I’m gone, baby, gone. The exception is LKH. I’ve no clue why on earth I can’t stop reading her, but there it is. I swear after each book, I won’t read the next one, but I always do 🙂 The ones I stopped though have been Christine Feehan, Chloe Neill, Faith Hunter, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Gena Showalter, Lara Adrian, Kelley Armstrong, Rachel Caine, P.C. Cast among others… mostly because I outgrew what they could offer.
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I can’t stop reading LKH either, LOL. I think it’s b/c we KNOW that she can write seriously awesome books, so we keep willfully believing, “just one more, and it will all be worth it.” I’ve stuck with Faith Hunter and Kelley Armstrong and am happy with those decisions, but honestly Jane Yellowrock has been one of my favorites from the beginning, and there was no way I was giving up on Clay 😉