Discussion: A Million Series, No Time

Yeah, my TBR is pretty legendary.

Recently I've felt a little weary of series because I know I don't have time for all of them. I feel torn because if a book is a standalone, I'll often find myself wanting more of the characters but when it's a series, I never keep up with the next books. The only series I actually kept up with and finished were the Hex Hall series and the Unearthly series. They're both some of my all time favorites but lately, even when I like the first book, I won't pick up the second one because there's always another series I'd rather start.

This happens a lot at bookstores. I'll be looking around and I'll see the sequel to a book I enjoyed but end up buying the first book in a new series instead. I feel like I already know that world and I want new worlds. But I've been sticking more with contemporary since most of them are standalone books. I also get a little frustrated because some books don't even need sequels yet there they are, being released a year apart.

I know a lot of us (especially book bloggers) suffer with this (Mel talked a little about this in her post, Life of a Reader) and I want to know how you deal with it. Do you keep track of the series you want to finish during the year? Do you keep track of their release dates and stalk the stores? I need a new system to help me out next year because I really do want to finish/continue my series.

This gif relates how I feel about series so accurately. When I hear of a new series I feel like throwing everything but then I pick the book up and add it to my infinite shelves. You can't expect me to just LEAVE IT THERE.

Here are just a few of the ones I want to continue:

       
   

I could sit here ALL DAY and the list would be infinite but there's no time for that (I need to go pick up a sequel)! What do you think? Do you like all the series coming out or do you feel like there should be more standalone books? What first book have you loved but still haven't read the rest for lack of time?