Hurry Up and Wait and Wait and WAIT

I have been sucked into the frenzy twice already this year.

My initiation was with the final book in the Fever Series. I was hungry for answers. Waiting for them anxiously. As soon as the book was in my hands I devoured it in less than twenty-four hours. Curiosity done. Then again, so is the series. All that build up for a quick finish. Sure, re-reads happen, but nothing is like the first time.

Then came March and much anticipated and well-hyped release of Lover Unleashed, the next installment of the Black Dagger Brotherhood novels.  Can you say De ja vu?  I took down this one in less than 24 hours and damn, it was over again and avid readers of the series are already talking about the next in the series!

So where does that leave me and those of you that do the same? Lying in wait for the next 364ish days until the next book or reverting back to read what you already have again. Speculating, scavenging and insatiable, right where publishers want us.

This little conundrum, the “Hurry Up and Wait” situation, is both good and bad. How wonderful is it to be so immersed into a world that you wait with bated breath for more of it?  On the other hand, devouring something so quickly once the wait is finally over only leads to, guess what? More waiting and waiting and waiting…

There is also something to be said for the build up leading to certain disappointment. When you get too wrapped up in the hype it can pave the road to a let down.  There is a lot of pressure on the author (producer, director, screenplay writer) to deliver, especially for the final book in a series or in the case of a book that has a crucial turning point for the characters. Little nuggets of information can lead to mad theorizing and some may get attached to their own theories. What happens when those theories are off center or not even anywhere in the ballpark? For some that can mean a let down. I try not to speculate so much, try being the operative word.

I am attempting not to get caught up in this vicious cycle moving forward. I want to try to steep myself into the world while I can, revel in it a little before I set in for another wait. Part of the beauty of a story is the slow unfolding, the coming together. Some things, like a good book, are meant to be savored.

Okay, maybe not the first time through.

Just sayin.