I agree, reading books in order is a MUST for me. So much that if I see a new book that looks good I have to check to make sure and find out if there are others in the series and if so, where that book falls. If it's 2nd or 3rd, I will buy the first books and read them before even looking at the one that first caught my eye. If I see it's 8th or 9th, I might not even buy it at all. I know that's sort of naughty, but it's just one of my pet peeves.