Trixie Belden was the first series I started collecting and I still have those books years (and years and years and…) later! We were a struggling immigrant family in Toronto but my dad somehow found a way to buy me a book every month. He carried around a list of all the different series I wanted to collect and dutifully crossed titles off as be bought them. Adult me now understands the sacrifices he made in order to purchase those books (he often went without lunch in order to save money) and I am so grateful for the way he encouraged reading throughout my childhood.
Fast forward decades and I’m still a voracious series reader. I love spotting connections between books, revisiting a favourite setting and getting to meet up with fave characters again. There’s a special kind of thrill that comes from following along with a series!
The reason series are on my mind this week is because Audible is having another mega sale (ends tonight at midnight, I think.) I mean, serious discounts, like 80% off! I spent hours going over my wishlist and clicking everything under $4 into my cart until it was so full that Audible wouldn’t let me add another book! That’s when I noticed my total was $170 and I realized I needed a purchasing strategy. 🙂 So I narrowed my shopping list down by concentrating on specific series, completing ones I’ve already started and buying the complete set of others. It was agonizing decision making and took the whole week. I also weeded out any books that I could get on hoopla. I finally made my modified purchase on Friday and my audible wishlist dropped from 23 pages to 14 pages! My TBR has grown rather drastically!
Anyway, so all this got me thinking about series and readerly quirks connected to series readings and whether there’s such a thing as series etiquette so I thought it would be a fun conversation starter.
Are you a ‘pick a series book at random’ reader or a ‘read the books in a series in order’ reader?
I used to be a random reader unless it was a continuous series but ever since I got into cozy mysteries I find I need to read the books in order. That’s especially true for continuity series as they can have plot and character development carry over from book to book. But if it’s a series where each book can be read as a standalone (like Love Inspired Suspense books for example) then I’ll mood read them in any order.
Do you wait until all the books in a series have released before beginning the series?
This idea had never occurred to me but I have run across some bookstagrammers and booktubers who actually do that. Even if an author only releases one book a year in a series. They will buy the books when they come out, but wait until the last book is published and then they’ll binge read the series. That’s just….mindboggling to me! I would never have the patience or the shelf-control 🙂 to wait that long, especially for a book by a favourite author!
Mind you, I’ve come across new-to-me series where all the books have already been published and I’ve found it quite fun to read the books back to back. I’m working my way through a fun cozy mystery series this way – The Deputy Donut Mysteries by Ginger Bolton – and I have to admit it’s fun not having to wait between books, especially where the slow burn romance is concerned!
How do you feel about multi-authored series?
I’ve enjoyed a few multi-authored series, usually in the contemporary rom/com genre. I like the continuity of setting and the overlapping characters and getting to see former heroes and heroines live out their happily every afters in the background of the next book.
One of the most ambitious multi-authored series I have read is the ‘Falling for Summer’ series published in 2024. Seven books set on the same island during the summer months so, in essence, each romance is happening at the exact same time and the authors were very clever about the way some key scenes overlapped. It’s hard to explain, but definitely would have been a great binge reading kind of series. I think the books released about every two weeks or so.
I picked up the rest of the ‘Only Magic in the Building’ books in the audible sale. I’ve read the first two out of eight and am excited to complete that series soon. Yay!
Do you have a preference for the type of series? Theme? Genre?
I have to admit, I love a good romantic suspense series. Especially where the common thread is family, siblings, say or an elite team of law enforcement that have a found family feeling. And I adore Irene Hannon’s Hope Harbor series, where the setting is very much a beloved character I get to visit in every book.
GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:
US and Canada – paperback or ebook – winner’s choice
International – ebook if you have a US Kindle account
Do you have a series you are trying to complete? Let us know the title and author of one of the books in a comment and your name will be entered in this week’s giveaway. If your name is drawn, that’s the book you will win.
Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday August 15 2026
Kav's Best Reads 
My library has the fourth and final book of a series I read several years ago by A.J. Pearce. I ordered all four and reread them ~ I am now 3/4th through the last book I hadn’t previously read. My favorite genre, historical fiction, this series follows a “Woman’s Friend” magazine staff during WWII in England. ~ The series I would like to continue is book 2, Carry Me Away by Dorothy Adamek, Crabapple House Publishing, November 5, 2019. Kathleen ~ Lane Hill House lanehillhouse(at)gmail(dot)com
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Yay for libraries who stock a full series. So often, especially with older series, I’ll find books missing. Guess the book got lost or worn down and the library doesn’t replace it. I think I know that series you’re reading — Emmy Lake Chronicles? I didn’t even know there was a fourth book! I like the agony aunt twist to the war era setting – so many details about regular life in England during war time. I read Dorothy Adamek’s first book in that Blue Wren Shallows series. I thought there were only two books but now it looks like there’s a third as well! Good luck, Kathleen!
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I’d love to be able to read a series in order, but that doesn’t seem to work very often for me. Usually, I get the chance to read a book, love it and then look to see what other books are in the series to add to my wish list. For that reason, I don’t care for cliff hangers. I love a series with connecting character and character development, but prefer for books to have the capability to be read as standalone books. More than likely, even if I had a whole series in front of me, I wouldn’t be able to read them straight through. With book obligations from other sources, there would always be a book here and there that I’d have to read in between there somewhere.
Wait until they are ALL out??? Outlandish – for me any ways. 😊
Series by multiple authors can be fun IF the author mesh. I agree with you on the continuing of characters and being able to see each one’s story, while still getting glimpses of past characters and seeing how they grow in the background.
My three favorites are romantic suspense, K-9 and Amish (like The Amish Romance Birthday series).
If I were fortunate enough to be selected, I would love the opportunity to win a copy of K-9 ALASKAN DEFENSE by Sarah Varland. It is in one of my favorite type (K-9) of series (and one I’m loving) and by a new to me author. I would consider that a double win. 😉
Thank you so much for the chance!
Have a blessed Sunday and may it hold some fun reading time.
2clowns at arkansas dot net
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I don’t mind reading a series book out of order if it’s a standalone style book. Like you, I’ll dive in with whatever book I’m able to get at the time. We readers need to be versatile. And your mention of cliff hangers reminds me that lots of ‘early’ (for me anyway) Christian Fiction did cliffhanger series. Especially historicals. Totally not a fan. Often it would feel like the second book was just a filler until they could get to the epic conclusion. And who wants to wait that long to find out what happens? An exception to cliffhanger series is Terri Blackstock’s ‘If I Run’ series. The heroine is in continuous peril and off running at the end of book one and two and those books released al year apart. It was agony waiting but the stories are so good. And a mystery element for each individual book got solved so there was some reader satisfaction. That series would make a great binge read!
I know, right? How could you wait for all the books to be released? Especially when you own the current ones? It boggles the mind.
I think it must take a lot of work to create a. seamless multi-authored series where the individual stores are intricately intertwined. I’m not sure if the series I’m about to dive into is that kind — Only Magic in the Building – or if it’s just a touch of magical realism that binds the series together. Guess I’ll find out soon. 🙂
Ohhh, yes!!! K-9 series are the best. You’re reminding me to check and see if my favourites have new books coming out. It’s been awhile for some of them. Good luck, Kay!
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I love reading a good series. Typically I stick to single author ones, but Sunrise has had some good multi-author sets come out lately that I’ve enjoyed. I usually can’t stand to wait until the entire series is completed before delving in, unless I somehow got behind in my TBR pile. As for getting behind, the book I need next is At Morning’s Light by Lauraine Snelling. The third one is coming soon, and I need to read the second!
THhnks!
kathrynlvossATgmailDOTcom
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I think Sunrise Publishing only publishes series and they don’t stop them at three books either. I think their multiple authors series are overseen by established authors who have either written the original series or created a new series and written the first book. That must help with continuity and getting all the characters and setting details just right. Good luck, Kathryn.
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Oh my goodness, Kav! Your father was a hero in more ways than one, sacrificing his own needs for you and setting you on the road to a lifelong love of books at the same time. That just melts my heart!
I’m surprised audible limited your buying cart. I wonder if you could have totaled out and then made a new order. Readers are always trying to figure out ways around limitations, haha.
Never have I ever waited for a series to be completed to start reading. I’ve heard of these paragons of self-control but I’m not one of them. It can take 2-4 years, or more, for series to complete. By then book one can lose its appeal. That’s a no from me.
I’ve enjoyed some multi-author series with the continuity of setting and characters, but I don’t always feel compelled to read every book. For example, if I’ve read an author before and didn’t connect with their writing, it would not bother me to jump their book in the series.
My preference for series is determined more by author than by genre. I have a good number of favorite authors on my read to zero list so by default I read all their series. To name a few, romantic suspense authors would by Lynn Backburn and Dani Pettrey. Contemporary authors would be Becky Wade and Liz Johnson. Historical authors would be Karen Witemeyer and Elizabeth Camden. Biblical fiction authors would be Connilyn Cossette and Tessa Afshar. Irene Hannon and Susan May Warren are two prolific authors in a category of their own who write both contemporary and suspense.
Then there are the new favorite authors like Jorgia Yates. I’ve read all the books in her Hightower Security Series except Deadly Force. As you know, I skipped that book because of the sensitivity warning, but I really want to complete this series. So, I’m taking the plunge and putting this on my August list, eek!
Thanks for the interesting topic and giveaway Kav! tracey14567 atgmail.com
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I know — my dad was the one who took me to the library every week as well. He was tickled pink when I graduated from library school.
I was shocked about audible limiting my cart too — just as well though considering the checkout amount. Bwahahaha! Hmmm – I like identifying readers who wait until all the books are out before reading the series as ‘paragons of self-control’ even though I think it’s a waste of restraint. Snicker. Save your self control for the second helping of pie and be a glutton for books is my motto.
Oh, yes, I’m with you on the skipping over some books in a multi-authored series. I’ll do that if it’s a trope I don’t enjoy, like secret babies or love triangles. This is the first time I’ve gone into a series completely blind – I either bought all the Magic in the Building books or tagged them on hoopla without checking the storyline or even author. Gasp! So far Courtney Walsh’s is my favourite out of the two I’ve read. I really loved how she used the magical realism to advance her plot. So cute and fun and oddly believable.
And yes, good point about following authors into series. So many CF fiction are in series. Most of the authors you mentioned are mine too except for the biblical fiction, but I’m working on that. As to Susan May Warren, I’ve give up on trying to keep up with her!
Ohhh, you’re doing something daring in your reading this month! I have the first Hightower Security book – Collison Course, I think?, on my TBR for August too.
Do you want to add a series book in the giveaway, Tracey? If not, happy reading!
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Yes, please enter me for Deadly Force. I already have a weeks worth of reading planned out. Thank you!
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Ah, I wondered if that was your choice, or if you were just planning out loud. 🙂 Good luck, Tracey!
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It’s taken some mental fortitute to realize I don’t have to reread every book in a series (in order) if I’m only feeling like a particular book in the series, though almost inevitably I end up going back and reading the earlier books anyway. But for the most part I am a “read the books in order” kind of person, and usually I’ll reread the most recent book in series just before a new one comes out. I’m more hesitant to start series that aren’t a collection of stand alones, simply because I despise cliffhanger endings. So if I have the asssurance that each book actually ends satisfactorily, I’m much more likely to read it.
It’s only a two-book series, but I’m still needing complete Karen Witemeyer’s Patchwork Family series with More Than Words Can Say.
rdalquist AT gmail DOT com
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Yikes, you’ve reminded me that there are readers out there who actually re-read every book in series before reading the new release book. That’s serious series dedication! I was definitely more of a series random mood reader until I started reading cozy mysteries. Now I’m obsessive about reading them in order and that has spilled over into my Christian Fiction reading too. 🙂 I’m not a fan of cliff hanger endings mid series as well — it feels like a cheap trick, especially if the next book doesn’t release for a whole year. That seems to be a fantasy thing especially. Good luck, Rachael!
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I’ve read all of SW Fisher’s 3 book contemporary series—Sister’s Island, Cape Cod, & National Parks, all of Colleen Coble’s Sanctuary series, & all of Nancy Mehl’s series. But any more than 3 books in a series I can’t keep up with so I pick & choose according to description . . . Susan Sleeman, SM Warren, Christy Barritt, & Lynn Shannon (I do enjoy romantic suspense!) However, I do keep up with Irene Hannon’s Hope Harbor series. Must reads for me!
I also read all of Julie Klassen’s, but wait til next book releases. I don’t have the patience to wait til they all release & then binge read them. Not on Nancy Mehl’s launch team for Book 3 in her Erin Delaney series bc I felt I couldn’t as though I couldn’t fulfill all the duties of a street team (health reasons), so will need to purchase it this go round. IDK if this counts bc it releases Aug 18, but my choice would be:
Fatal Finale by Nancy Mehl
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Erase one of those “I couldn’ts” from that last sentence. lol Also I meant to tell you happy Sunday, Kav, and thanks for the giveaway! This PC is so intimidating. grrrr
dianalflowers at aol dot com
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The thing about Irene Hannon’s Hope Harbor series is that even though it’s long (thankfully!) you could easily pick up the books in any order so there isn’t any pressure to frantically keep up…other than the fact they are all fabulously unputdownable so why would anyone want to wait?! 🙂
Binge reading is fun, but not if you have to wait three years for all the books to release. Julie Klassen only releases one book a year! I can’t imagine waiting that long. I find veteran authors know how to ease a reader back into a series in the next book so it’s easy to remember things like characters and setting etc. Fatale Finale can count for this giveaway – it’ll be releasing the week after the draw, so right around the time I’m ordering the books for the winners. Good luck, Diane!
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Loved the sweet story of your Dad buying you those books! I would like to finish a series so I need to read The Bachelor Spy by Pepper Basham. Thanks, Kav. jacsmi75 at gmail dot com
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You and me both! I just checked out a copy from the library so I’ll be reading it soon. Good luck, Jackie!
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I love a good series! Especially sibling/family series. I normally just read them as they come out.Although, since I’ve started listening to many more audiobooks, I find myself reading books from a series, not necessarily in order, just what’s available through my library on the Libby app. So far I haven’t run across any of that I felt so lost in reading that I needed to go back and find the other earlier books in the series.
I would love a copy of A Seaview Christmas by Julie Klassen. it is a Novella that goes along with her On Devonshire Shores series. Does that count?
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I got hooked on sibling/family series when I read the O’Malley series by Dee Henderson. One of my favourite was to connect a series. Love that On Devonshire Shores series and A Seaview Christmas was a treat. Won’t be long before our Reader’s Choice Week selections will be peppered with Christmas novels! 🙂 Good luck, Patty!
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Trixie Beldon books were the first series that I started collecting too! I love the story of your dear dad sacrificially buying books for you, Kav! That so touched my heart! My father was a very gracious, loving, & giving man as well. Thank you, Lord, for wonderful fathers!
I just started Susan May Warren’s new series, The Hunt for Alan Martin! I’m in the throws of “North”, Book 1, and let me tell you, right off the bat you hit the ground running in this book! So intense! I love it!! I have Books 1 & 2 checked out through Kindle Unlimited. Book 3 just came out! Sadly, they haven’t put it in the Kindle Unlimited library yet. So, I am going to
choose “South” Book #3 (The Hunt for Alan Martin series) by Susan May Warren as my pick.
Thanks for this fun discussion, Kav!
Oh, I found out who in the world Alan Martin is?! He is a spy, assassin, and global terrorist that they are hunting throughout this series. 😀
Alison Boss
nj(dot)bossman(at)gmail(dot)com
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Yes, loving, giving fathers can make a real difference in a child’s life – especially ones who encourage reading! 🙂 I love that your first series collection were Trixie Bedlen books too! Susan May Warren’s books are always intense and action packed. I’ve given up trying to keep up with her releases.Ha — I am glad to hear that Alan Martin actually has something to do with his series namesake! lol He sounds like an overachiever bad guy! lol Good luck, Alison!
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Kav, absolutely loved hearing how your dad would often skip lunch so he could save money to buy a book for you. What love!
I like to read a series in order if at all possible. I’m actually reading the Mitford series again (not quickly mind you, just throwing one in very occasionally) so my pick for the draw is My Beloved, Jan Karon’s new one published in 2025. But I’ll be honest, if I win it and since it’s the last in the series, I doubt I’ll wait to read it until I get to that spot! It’s the only one of the series I haven’t read yet and since it’s a Christmas book, I’ll want to read it this Christmas 🙂 Thanks for another fun opportunity, Kav!
ckbarker at gmail dot com
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Father memories are precious, aren’t they? I get the feeling that the Mitford series is the kind that needs to be read in order. Still on my reading bucket list. Bwahahaha! Good luck, Cheryl!
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I used to only read a series when I had all the books, and then I’d read them back-to-back. I still mostly do that with older series, where all the books have been published or there’s only one left to be released. However, with some of my favorite authors, I have started reading their books whenever I get them, whether they’re part of a series or not. 🙂
One series I’ve started but haven’t finished yet is Regina Jennings’ Fort Reno Series, “The Lieutenant’s Bargain”.
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The first series I began collecting was the Nancy Drew mysteries. I wasn’t close to having them all. When my daughter was young we added to my collection (that became hers).
I like to read a series in order. I read them as I aquire them unless I know that the first book is a cliff hanger. Then I wait until I have all the books so I can read them all at once instead of having to wait several months or a year for the next one.
I do pretty well completing series. One series I would like to begin is Joanna Davidson Politano’s The House on the End of the Cliff series. I need book one, The Life She Forgot.
pmkellogg56[at]gmail[dot]com
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I enjoy binge reading a completed series. I’m currently reading the Skymar series by Pepper Basham. I’m caught up on the The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson. Those thousand plus page tomes were a bit of a challenge.
psalm103and138atgmaildotcom
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If a series is fully released, I do wait until I have all of the books available to me before beginning to read them. Otherwise, I’m fine with reading them as they release.
One book that is the last one I have left to get in a series and I’m DYING to read is The Raveling from Tamara Leigh’s Age of Faith series😍
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I usually read a series as they come out. I can’t wait! Lol
A Cry In the Dark by Jessica Patch is the only book I need to finish the FBI series. And it’s the first one! Lol I kinda read that one out of order.
sarahdar0801ATgmailDOTcom
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I usually always try to read series books in order, but that doesn’t mean that I’m always successful! That’s one reason I genuinely appreciate when the book covers clearly state which book in a series it is! I know in one series I read the second book first, then the third, next the prequel, and finally the first book! 🙂 I usually do prefer to wait until all the books in a series are out, but in the last few years I’ve not been able to wait that long. I can remember waiting two years to finally read the complete Sunrise at Normandy Series by Sarah Sundin all in a row. Then being excited that her next “series” were stand alone novels! 😄
One series I haven’t finished yet is Liz Johnson’s Georgia Coast Romance, A Dazzle of Diamonds.
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First off, your Dad is a sweetheart to buy you Trixie Belden books and miss lunch! That is a series I never got the opportunity to read. Maybe because I was a huge Nancy Drew fan? What age group is Trixie Belden for?
Are you a ‘pick a series book at random’ reader or a ‘read the books in a series in order’ reader?
I am also a mood reader so, I have been known to randomly pick up a book without realizing it is a series. Once I realize that, I usually check to see if I can get the first in the series and if I can’t right away will usually set it aside to read in order. However, if the author notes that it reads well as a stand-aline, then I may just plough through and read it out of order (not often, though). I won’t read a Becky Wade, Nancy Mehl, or a T.I. Lowe series out of order (I’m in the middle of The Carolina Coast Series by Lowe). Those characters can be major or minor characters in the next book of the series.
Do you wait until all the books in a series have released before beginning the series?
No, I read them when they are released or in the trillion year decade it takes the library to order a book. (Granted, those holds on all of the ordered books ALWAYS come in a huge deluge).
How do you feel about multi-authored series?
I honestly don’t think I’ve read many of those. Only an anthology that Jaime Jo Wright was in, Secrets Along the Shore and it was just way too long. Now I would definitely be interested in the series by Susan May Warren and Tari Faris because Susan’s heroes are so swoony. I think Tari has the romance part well covered.
Do you have a preference for the type of series? Theme? Genre?
I’m with you, definitely romantic suspense. And to think that I had you pegged as a mostly cozy mystery kind of gal!
Now that I’ve written an entire page here, I’ll choose The Life She Forgot by Joanna Davidson Politano. She is one of my read to zero authors.
perrianne (DOT) askew (AT) me (DOT) com
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I don’t usually wait until a series is completely released until reading it. I do a lot of reviewing for some of my favorite authors, so I read them as they’re released. Most of the authors release one book a year, so if it’s a series I can still (mostly) remember enough about the previous book to be able to pick up with the story. Also, most series books I read are complete in themselves without a huge carryover cliffhanger. They will usually have previous characters in cameo spots in the new book.
My favorite genre is historical fiction, so a good share of the series I read are from that genre.
I’ve occasionally read a multi-author series, and I enjoyed them. It’s fun to see what the different authors do with their stories.
I have a couple of Sarah Eden books I need to catch up on. I haven’t read her book, A Fine Gentleman, so I’d love to read it.
whthomas13 at yahoo dot com
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I still credit The Baby-Sitters Club for really getting me into reading! My grandpa would buy them for me every week and I still have over 100 of them. I WILL keep them forever. LOL!
Do you wait until all the books in a series have released before beginning the series? I only wait to begin the series if I know it is one of those series where each one is a cliffhanger that leads into the next book.
How do you feel about multi-authored series? I like them, especially if a fav author is part of the series.
I still haven’t finished Becky Wade’s latest series, so I’d choose Uneasy Street for the giveaway! Have a great day, Kav!
Jolene – iwant2save34 at gmail dot com
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