Sunday Book Coveting... Auto-Buys

Friday I finished Fire by Kristin Cashore. The review will be following on Tuesday. Anyway, I am in love! I considered Graceling one of my favourite reads so far this year, but you can consider Fire on that list now, too! I read an ARC of the book, but I have to mail it back to its owner. That's okay, though, because I have had Fire pre-ordered for a while now! So, you know that I am not very impatient for book three, right? It's torture that I have to wait until next year sometime! It is tentatively called Bitterblue. I am so looking forward to it!

Obviously, Kristin Cashore is now on my 'auto-buy' list. My list has had a great year, I must say. I discovered Carrie Ryan this year with The Forest of Hands and Teeth, so you know that I will be getting a copy of the companion book as soon as possible next year. I also read Fables for the first time this year and I already have the next two releases pre-ordered.

It makes me think about my other 'auto-buys'. Alice Hoffman and Anita Shreve used to be on that list, but I don't buy them anymore. Some authors have been on my list for a long time: Isabel Allende, Douglas Coupland, David Adams Richards, Carol Shields (now deceased), Madeleine L'Engle (now deceased), etc. When those authors have new books out, I am there! I am big on Canadian authors. I buy Lori Lansens, Mary Lawson, Donna Morrissey, and a few more automatically. They are not as prolific as the ones I mentioned before, but they are really coming into their craft.

Then, there are the authors that I always plan to have on my auto-buy list, but they take a while to come out with a new book. Audrey Niffenegger is an example of that. I consider her first book one of my favourite reads of all time, so I am excited about her new book. My problem is I am really excited about a new book by an author that I love, but then it takes me forever to read them! Wally Lamb and Keith Donohue are two examples. I have their new books sitting on my TBR pile, but I enjoyed their first books so much, maybe I am worried about not enjoying these ones as much? It's different with a series. You buy the book wanting to know what happens next, but with standalone books it is a totally different experience that you are not really sure what to expect. Just because an author is on my auto-buy list doesn't mean I have loved everything that they have written, but I still hate for that to happen. I try to wait until my expectations are a bit low and then read the book. If I read it right away, I am too excited and then it might not live up to it. Does that make sense?

Then, there is my beloved fantasy... Patricia Briggs is a must-read, but she is actually relatively new on my radar. You would never know it considering how much I go on about her. There are a lot of fantasy authors that I buy when they have a new book, but that doesn't mean I am actually caught up with them: Robin Hobb, Terry Goodkind, Jack Whyte, etc. I figure that the books will be there when I am ready for them. It makes me feel better knowing that I have complete sets, I guess. Then, there are trilogies or series that I am caught up in and am impatiently waiting for the new book. Sara Douglass is an example of this. I still have plenty of books by her to read, but I want to read the last book in her most recent trilogy and it is not out until next year! Oh, and publishers, I have the pretty hardcovers of the previous two books and they MATCH, so you better not change the style. That drives me crazy! Take Maria Snyder for example. She is an auto-buy. I have her first two books in matching hardcovers, but then the third book was only released in paperback. So, her new trilogy (so far) matches the last book in her first trilogy, but it doesn't match the first two books. That drives me crazy. You want to change the covers? Great, but wait until there is a matching set first. I am not buying them again because I know that is what you want me to do...

These are just the authors that come to mind. James Rollins is the author I consider my 'guilty pleasure'. He's a bit out of my normal range, but I love his books. I consider Amazonia to be one of my favourite books of all time. Why? I have no idea because he is not the best writer ever and he does romance terrible, but I love him anyway...

So, this is a lot longer than I planned and there are still authors not mentioned that I could mention... I tell you, I don't really buy books anymore. I just buy my auto-buys... Some years, that's actually quite a bit!

How about you? What are your auto-buys? (Because, you know, I totally need more...)