Pet Peeve Resolved!

How many of us have been standing in the bookstore or library trying desperately to discern which book is next in a series only to be thwarted by a sale sticker or barcode? And what is up with some of the insane publishers who do not feel like adding a numeral to the cover? Then you look inside the jacket and try to figure it out. It’s no help! Finally, we pull out our trusty phones and head to a reputable bookseller website or Goodreads only to accidentally have a spoiler pop up! Can you tell this is a pet peeve of mine?

Recently, one of my followers, Ann, suggested I read the new Bryant and May. I adored the first two in the Peculiar Crimes division so I tried to request it from the library. I was shocked at how many had been written that I had missed. I could not tell at all which was the newest without scrolling through pages of covers and synopses. Finally, I Googled, “Bryant and May books in order,” and there across the top of my computer screen were all the books with their publication date.

But, wait. Why doesn’t this work on my phone? Possibly, it is because my phone is stupid. Or, its me (also quite possible when technology and I cross swords). All I knew is that there must be an easier way.

Ta-da! There are whole websites and people (angels) devoted to letting the general public know which book comes next in a series. I found three great websites that are now my go-to devices when the 20% off at Barnes and Noble tries to keep me out of the loop.

The first, orderofbooks.com, is a fantastic site. I had a little trouble on my first visit finding the search section but it is right there at both the top and bottom of the right sidebar. Technology wins again! I really like that I can search by character or author or book series title.  This is particularly helpful when you love one series an author writes but not another. This was the most complete and searchable site I have found thus far. If you are looking to purchase the book there are links next to the title that will take you to Amazon. Dangerous…

The second website is from the Mid-Continent Public Library in Missouri. It is specific to Juvenile series and sequels and lists all the books alphabetically by series title, subject, book title or author. There is no search option. But since it is extensive, has multiple avenues to find your series and is specific to juvenile books it is an excellent resource. Some of these books I didn’t even realize were a series!

Finally, I found another fellow blogger out there fighting the good fight against reading books out of order – Graeme at BookSeriesinOrder.com. He lists the books in order by character or author. His site isn’t searchable and, interestingly, the authors are in alphabetical order by first name. But, he has those handy dandy links next to the books ready for purchasing from Amazon.

Now I am ready. Never again will I read something like, “After the death of the character you loved in the book you didn’t read yet, the story continues…”

Am I the only person who has this problem? How do you figure out which book comes next in the series?