I LOVE A SUNBURNT AUTHOR (a.k.a. Bronz Blog)

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Thoroughbred Legacy

As soon as I saw a promo for the Thoroughbred Legacy mini-series, I knew I would have to check it out. Even though I don't usually read Silhouette Special Edition, this is about horse-racing and a mystery and, according to the blurb I read, a range of locations from Kentucky to Australia to Dubai.

I've been a sucker for a horse story ever since I could read -- or perhaps ever since Black Beauty made its mark on my horse-loving psyche -- and this one sounds as though it's tailormade for me.

I just hope it's well researched because I'm such a zealot when it comes to getting the horsie bits. And, yes, I know that is all kinds of wrong because I could name a zillion special interest areas that I have no authority in.

Only other trouble is, I don't know where to start the series. There are, count them, FOUR Thoroughbred Legacy books released in July.

Do not tell me I have to buy ALL FOUR to ensure I have the right BOOK ONE, but I can't for the life of me see any identifying of which book comes first. And it would really irk me to have to buy all four only to find that the series is not for me.

Anyone else think this is a slightly odd marketing idea? Or perhaps it is marketing genius, allowing readers to get hands on all books in the series quicksmart instead of having to wait months to build the entire collection. It's very easy to miss a book or two when they're released one book at a time over 6 months or even a year. Hmmm.

Desire has done the same with the first two books in Michelle Celmer's new trilogy. Both books released in June, but the stories are not told on a parallel timeline. One book precedes the other, but how is a reader to know which comes first? Would that bug you, finding you'd picked up and read the second book first? It would me, but then I know I'm ever so slightly anal about such things.

PS: This is a 12-book series, with 4 more scheduled for September and the last 4 for December.

Labels: horses, Silhouette Special Edition, Thoroughbred Legacy

posted by Bronwyn Jameson @ 10:32 AM

Comments:

Bron I think "Flirting with trouble" is the first book, the series launch is mentioned with this book and an excerp of it in the May desire US books. I guess it will have the next part to read in that book and so on. Hope this helps.

posted by

Avi J : 2:00 PM

Yes Bron it would and did bug me that I didn't know which was the first book and I did not buy any partly because of that. The idea of having four out per month is a good idea but which is first????

posted by

Ellen : 1:58 AM

Hi Bron, I hate reading stories out of line too. It drives me crazy when I order a book and no where in the description does it say it's in a series and then when it arrives find out it is and it's the 3rd or 4th.. I love Horse stories as well and this series sounds really good.

posted by

Dena : 3:36 AM

:giggling:

Move aside, Bron, I'll be "slightly anal" right there with you.

Yes, it would bug me endlessly to have the second or whatever instead of the first in a series, because regardless of how often an author tells me that each of the novels stands alone and can be read in any order, my mind demands that I read them in order.

As far as a marketing strategy... well, if no one can tell which one is which, many obsses... erm, anal reader such as ourselves would probably have to buy the whole kit and kaboodle to ensure we get the first one.

And it's true that it's easy to miss one or more books in a continuity when they are released every month or even--aaaaggghhh!--every other month.

But I wonder... If one caves in and gets the four of them at once... it there anything inside the books to let one know which one is the first, etc? 0_0

posted by

azteclady : 3:43 AM

I don't always read a series in order, but I would like to know which book is first and so on.

posted by

Jane : 5:08 AM

I rarely manage to read a series in order. The only good thing about that is I've gotten to reread some very good books! I don't understand putting four books out at the same time without making the order perfectly clear.

posted by

Susan : 6:17 AM

I hate reading a series out of order with the Celmer ones I went by number. I think thaty would be what you'd have to do with this too. The lowest numbered book would be first I assume.

posted by

Christa : 11:29 AM

Hey Bron

I'm anal like you, need to read series in order and if I somehow stumble on it halfway through I have to go back and try and find the rest.

posted by

Just Nicki : 2:05 PM

Avi, thanks for that. Definitely sounds as though it's the launch book if it's the one excerpted. I will order Flirting and start there.

Ellen, exactly! Although I see that Christa has come forward with a brilliant logical answer -- they should, by rights, be numbered sequentially. Of course. Now, why didn't I think of that?!?! (rhetorical question.)

Dena, another horsie fan. Yay.

Soooo glad to hear I'm not the only "slightly anal" one here, and that others get bugged by reading out of order. I also get bugged by missing a book in a series altogether -- HAVE TO read them in order.

Azteclady, my thoughts exactly on the marketing angle. They have our number, LOL.

posted by

Bronwyn Jameson : 9:15 PM

I just checked those four aren't numbered like the rest of SSE that month. so I guess the number logic goes out the window

posted by

Christa : 11:12 PM

Wow, Christa. They really do want me to buy all four. *g*

Bron

posted by

Bronwyn Jameson : 12:07 PM

I won't read a series until I get them in order AND all of the series. This is because I usually have to go back and re-read the other books in order to get the storyline and that annoys me.

I agree with needing to get the books in order but for some reason they've stopped numbering a bit of the series which bugs me to no end. Can we start a petition about it? *grin*

posted by

J. Fitzgerald : 10:06 PM

This post has been removed by the author.

posted by

J. Fitzgerald : 10:06 PM

It certainly wouldn't hurt to let HQ know that the non-numbering is a major annoyance. I shall make a note to mention it at RWA National, should the chance arise.

Bron

posted by

Bronwyn Jameson : 11:03 PM