The year was 2019. I was looking for a beach read, and someone recommended what they described as "the best book" in a small-town romance series. I grabbed it without checking whether it was the first book. Reader, it was not. It was book four.
I could follow the plot. The romance worked as a standalone. But every few pages, characters would reference events I hadn't witnessed, inside jokes I didn't understand, relationships whose history was mystery to me. The hero's sister was apparently married to someone from a previous book, and their banter assumed I knew their story. The heroine's best friend had drama with a guy at the local bar that everyone seemed to have opinions about. I was reading a book set in a world that existed before page one, and I was an outsider.
When I finished, I did what I should have done from the start: I went back to book one. And suddenly, everything was richer. The sister's marriage was earned through her own book. The best friend's drama had context and stakes. The small town that had felt like a backdrop became a living community where I knew everyone. I wasn't just reading a romance—I was visiting friends.
That experience made me obsessive about reading order. And after years of maintaining this obsession, I've developed what I believe is a comprehensive philosophy about when and why order matters in romance.
Why Romance Series Are Different
Romance is unique among genres in how it handles series. Unlike mysteries, where each book typically features a new case that stands alone, romance series usually feature interconnected characters whose stories build on each other. Today's supporting character is tomorrow's protagonist. The friend who offered advice in book two gets her own love story in book five.
This creates something special: a community that develops across books. You don't just get one couple's happily ever after—you get to watch an entire social network find love, support each other through struggles, and build lives together. The wedding at the end of book one becomes a scene in book three where characters reconnect. The baby born in book four becomes a flower girl in book seven. Time passes. The world grows.
But this richness only works if you've been there from the beginning. Without that foundation, you're constantly playing catch-up, missing references, and failing to feel the full weight of moments that should be meaningful.
Types of Romance Series Connections
Not all romance series handle interconnection the same way. Understanding the type of series you're reading helps you know how much order matters:
Tight Series (Reading Order Essential)
These series follow a closely connected group—siblings, best friends, or coworkers—where every book features characters who appeared prominently in previous books. Think of the Bridgertons, where each book features one of eight siblings. By the later books, you've accumulated so much family history that starting anywhere but the beginning would be disorienting.
Loose Series (Order Preferred but Flexible)
These series share a setting and some recurring characters, but individual books stand more independently. Small-town romances often fall here—characters from previous books appear at the local diner, but you don't need their backstory to enjoy the current romance.
Thematic Collections (Order Optional)
Some "series" are really just books published under a common branding, sharing a theme but few actual connections. A "Billionaire Bachelors" series might feature completely unrelated billionaires with no crossover. These can truly be read in any order.
My Reading Order Philosophy
After years of experimentation and many reading order mistakes, here's my approach:
When in doubt, start at the beginning. Even if books can technically be read alone, you're almost always better off experiencing them in publication order. Authors designed them that way for a reason.
Pay attention to author notes. Many romance authors include notes about reading order in their front matter. Take their advice—they know their own series best.
Embrace the backlist. Found a book that sounds amazing but it's book five? Buy it, but start at book one. The delayed gratification makes reaching that book sweeter.
Some spoilers are acceptable. In tight romance series, knowing who ends up with whom is less of a spoiler than it would be in other genres. We know there will be happily ever afters. The journey is what we're reading for.
I built Reading Order Books because finding and maintaining reading orders was taking too much of my time. Every major romance series is catalogued here with specific guidance on how the books connect. Use it. Your reading experience will thank you.
— mrod