Quote:
Originally Posted by issybird
Jon, I think everyone's aware that some choices aren't first in a series; the number is prominently displayed in the title. People have different opinions on that and will incorporate that information into their decision-making process.
Of the two, I think Aaronovitch is more problematic. I accept Charlie's word that Stabenow is a standalone (again, people make up their own minds about how they feel about that), but my sense is that the Aaronovitch very much isn't a standalone, which would make it a much harder read for someone who mightn't have read it when the club did.
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I've not yet read the Stabenow book, but I've read some and none of them were standalone except the first one. After that, nope. This one is also not standalone. But, the real question, is is it self-contained?
This post by DiapDealer explains standalone and self-contained very well. Standalone is used incorrectly for this book.
As for the Aaronovitch book, it was nominated because the previous month the book club read the first book in the series and that would have been a perfect time to read the second book. I am reading the second book and it does help to have read the first book. Aaronovitch does not recap.