Jane Cousins - AUTHOR

You know who I mean. Once upon a time any book by this author was on the top of your must buy list. You clicked on the pre-order button without a second thought - even though the countdown days until publication were still in the triple figures.

Then something changed - sometimes it's gradual, other times it's a blatant slap in the face.
But now your finger hesitates over the pre-order button. You double checked other people's reviews. Maybe the fault lay with you.

I can think of a plethora of series where it took me several books to wean myself off of what was once a fantastic series.
Charlaine Harris's trueblood series comes to mind. I still haven't read the final two books but I should have stopped long before then.
Even now just the thought of how far off track that series veered leaves a nasty taste in my mouth.

Letting a series go - when you are immersed in the world and invested in the characters - is as difficult as any break-up.
What about if you were just going through a rough patch? The classic - it's me, not you scenario.
But what if it is the author? And no matter how many second, third or fourth chances you give them - the love has gone.
Just when do you stop investing - and by this I mean literally continuing to spend your hard earned money on this author?

Can you just say no? Cut the cord and move on, without looking back?
Without re-reading the first fantastic three books in the series and mourning, wondering where it all went wrong?

I'm going through similar trauma with two authors at the moment. The first is Laurell K Hamilton - unsurprisingly, I think.
The first nine books in this series were ground breaking and she evolved her main character 'Anita' with a believable arc.
Now both the character and the series are a bit of bad joke. The sex... god the never-ending (BORING) sex - at the expense of the storyline has finally doused the last of my good will for this author.

And the second author - well, this has kind of shocked me to my very marrow. But it's Jayne Ann Krentz (under all her pseudonyms)
For me, JAK, was one of my fave authors from my teens. In fact, of all writers I'd have to say JAK was the ONE, who inspired me to put pen to paper.
But the last few years, the interchangeable characters, the lack lustre plots, the absence of that spark that made anything written by JAK great - has gone - for me at least.

But breaking-up is a hard thing to do. It would help matters if there were new authors to fill the void. But I've been so often burnt of late I must admit to being a little series-shy.
What if I invest, grow to love the characters and it all goes horribly wrong again?

The answer is simple to all my problems - the library.
Where I can continue to wean myself off of those authors that have 'done me wrong'.
At least it will spare me the bitter pill of continuing to pay for lack lustre efforts. And sooner or later I intend to totally break the habit and stop reading these authors.

And in the meantime I intend to put myself out there and try a few new authors.
Have library card - will borrow.