Happy Friday, BookishFirst Readers!
Do you ever read series out of order? If so, which series?
I try not to, but sometimes it just happens. I read Thirteen before realizing it was the 4th book in a series. Thankfully it worked as a stand-alone.
Rare occasions. I did read the Dirk Pitt by Clive Cussler series out of order. Started with Sahara instead of the Mediterranean Caper.
If it’s a standalone series and only one of the blurbs appeals to me, then yes. If it’s a series with an ongoing plot, then I can’t read them out of order.
Not intentionally. Then luckily most times the books are standalones
I’d rather read a series in order, but sometimes I haven’t. A sign of a good writer is when their series can be understood and enjoyed even if read out of order. This is true, in my experience, of Harlan Coben, who has been writing his Myron Bolitar series for many years. It looked like he stopped for a while there in favor of a new series for young adults, but Myron has appeared again, I’m happy to say.
Another series by John Connelly seems like a good one. I read a book in the middle of the series and had no trouble understanding it.
No, I don’t think I could even if I tried.
I try not to nut sometimes I read a book not realizing it’s part of a series. Other times, someone recommends a book and I’ll read it. If I like it, I’ll go back and read them in order.
Only the Detective DD Warren series by Lisa Gardner. Other than that no. If I pick up the book and it sounds interesting (this usually happens when I’m buying used books) i’ll still buy it and just wait until i buy the first book to see if i like it or if i can make it up to that book. I do this with used books only as that is an inexpensive option.
No, I cringe thinking about it! Lol
I have often read series out of order because I read so many books. The largest one that comes to mind is Christine Feehan’s Ghostwalker series. I fell into it after reading the 4th or 5th book and then went and tracked down the rest.
A while back I read Four Blind Mice before realizing it was in the middle of the Alex Cross series but continued on to read The Big Bad Wolf AND London Bridges before finally deciding to go back and start at the beginning of the series. 
I prefer to read series in order. There have been times when I started reading a current book to find out it was part of a series. I would then look up the order of the books and start reading from the beginning. There have been times when I was disappointed with the first book but kept reading the series which did improve as it went along.
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I try to avoid series
I’ve done it. I knew how Twilight ended before it began. I try to not make that mistake again but sometimes it just happens.
part of the time I read books out of order because I find that the books I read out of order pull me in faster and I get confused on what’s happening so it makes me want to read the previous book(s) to know what I missed.
Never. I feel you miss out on the work building and are lost.
Sometimes - especially if it’s a romance series and the main characters change with each book.
When it comes to companion series, ESPECIALLY romance, I do it all of the time! They are written as standalones and if I buy a random one in a series I will read it out of order if I’m interested in it. There are many really long running romance series that are difficult to actually figure out the series order any way.
I read the Kinsey Millhone Alphabet Mysteries Series by Sue Grafton out of order and that worked out just fine. I have also read the Commissario Guido Brunetti Mysteries by Donna Leon out of order. In both series, each mystery is a standalone. There are occasional references to previous cases, but it doesn’t impact understanding the book you are reading.
Two excellent mystery series that should definitely be read in order are the Russ VanAlstyne/Clare Ferguson series by Julia Spencer-Fleming and the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series by Louise Penny.