Which Authors Do You Buy in Hardback?

[Perpetual Man]

Something Alc posted in another thread made me think:

In this day and age, with three or four major formats available, and the price going up depending on which format you like, which authors do you find yourself buying in hardback?

(The formats are Hardback, Trade paperback, paperback and digital).

Obviously when you read (or in my case buy and stick on the too read shelf) as much as some of do on the Chrons, money pays a factor, so which authors rise to the top and get the hardback treatment, or don't you buy hardbacks at all?

 

[AnyaKimlin]

The only new hardback I have on my shelf is a few years old and Kathy Reichs wrote it. It was a disappointment and not as good as her previous so I have never done that again.

I did pay the full Kindle price for the Casual Vacancy - the hardback would have been cheaper but the bus fare to the nearest Tescos with it would have cost me £6.50.

 

[Perpetual Man]

In my case there are quite a few, which is probably a bit idiotic, but there you go:

Robin Hobb
Terry Pratchett
Peter F Hamilton
Patrick Rothfuss
George R R Martin
Robert Jordan
Brandon Sanderson
Steven Erikson
Ian C Esselmont
Guy Gavriel Kay
L E Modesitt (Only the Recluce books)

And the odd one or two by new authors, on the chance I a:really like them and b: They might become worth a lot of money.

 

[BetaWolf]

Never at full price. I like for the format to be the same for a series, for display purposes.

I do think that Tolkien is somehow better in hardcover than regular ol' paperback--but that might be because I first read him while carrying those big tomes around back in HS, before it was cool.

 

[AnyaKimlin]

I read my books too often for them to be ever worth anything - they look well read. I do have the likes of Jane Eyre, Oliver Twist, Heidi, Secret Garden, Little Women etc in hardback but none of them were new or were gifts or came with a magazine.

If you like hardbacks it is not idiotic. I bought the Kathy Reichs one because I was totally blown away by her previous books and couldn't wait for the next one. Just realised I also bought Order of the Phoenix in hardback as well.

 

[HareBrain]

Though you might think I'd buy everything in HB, the only ones I can think of that I will definitely buy are the next GRRM and the last Thomas Covenant book, just because I'll be too curious to wait (and I don't have an e-reader).

My bookshelves would feel wrong without a hardback set of Tolkien, though.

 

[Perpetual Man]

Though you might think I'd buy everything in HB, the only ones I can think of that I will definitely buy are the next GRRM and the last Thomas Covenant book, just because I'll be too curious to wait (and I don't have an e-reader).

My bookshelves would feel wrong without a hardback set of Tolkien, though.

Well Tolkien goes without saying, from the Hobbit to the History of Middle Earth...

And I forgot about Donaldson...

 

[Rodders]

Alastair Reynolds, Iain M. Banks and Peter F. Hamilton without reservation. Oh, and Star Wars novelisations for my collection.

Of the books i have read, I would like to get Neal Asher's Technician in Hardback and Dan Abnett's Warhammer 40K hardbacks.

 

[Matteo]

None. I wait for the paperback or buy second-hand (which means old, oop, SciFi stuff that is in pbk).

On the other hand, I do have a very nice LOTR set of seven hbks; but that was a gift. Also, when I bought my wife a copy of The Hobbit some years ago, I bought the hbk version.

So, another "vote" for Tolkien in hbk.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

Okay, please bear in mind I am married to a bookseller who gets good discount and is an utter book nerd. (There are more books than food in this house.)

Recently bought Hardbacks - we have a couple of Practhetts -- I had some signed ones until a couple of years ago when we were broke and sold them for a pittance, I dread to think what they're worth now -- Val McDermids, I've just ordered Dark Eden before it becomes unavailable in hback, a Marian Keyes, a Peter Hamilton, a couple of Kings. There are loads more I can't think of right now.

Collectible hardbacks (I'll go genre only, because we have a pretty lovely collection of collectable Irish plays and poetry) -- I have the collector's edition The Stand and Salem's Lot, LOTR boxed set, Hobbit illustrated edition (it's very nice, was brought out for one of the anniversaries), His Dark Materials, C.S. Lewis - Out of the Silent planet trilogy - in nice collectors' editions, Narnia, Ray Bradbury's shorts (a nice Everyman edition, I like it a lot), some of the Harry Potters (about 6 of them, some an anniversary reprint, 2 of them first editions, but late books), Robota by Scott Card.

I does like my hardbacks, apparently. (But again, I get them for about the same price as the paperback.)

 

[steve12553]

Sale priced or used price. there's rarely a book I want bad enough "now" to pay full price for a hard back. My library has an irregular look to it but I'd rather had more of the right ones than less of the "nicer" ones.

 

[Montero]

None. I wait for the paperback.

 

[Steve Jordan]

None. If it isn't in an ebook format, I'm not buying it.

 

[Parson]

One only, David Weber.

But after buying a Kindle, I find the idea of buying an actual bound book to be slightly off. (I have about a thousand, but for reading you can't beat an ebook!)

 

[ratsy]

I have a few nowadays, some similar to yours Perp

Robin Hobb
Brandon Sanderson
Peter V Brett
Joe Abercrombie
Raymond Feist
Brent Weeks
Patrick Rothfuss

I have quite a few Hardbacks now, some mixed with paperbacks. Typically I will start an author, read all of the paper backs and when I get caught up, I order the Hardback new when it releases. I am not too worried about my collection matching. Good thing for me I don't worry too much about the cost of books. I sacrifice other things so I can spend what I want on reading.

 

[Dream Walker]

I have quite a few hardbacks from the best seller lists. The larger retail places always have them on sale for far cheaper than the paperbacks.

 

[Rodders]

One only, David Weber.

But after buying a Kindle, I find the idea of buying an actual bound book to be slightly off. (I have about a thousand, but for reading you can't beat an ebook!)

I get you, but every now and then i'll come across something outstanding and i'll want a hardback to add to the library.

 

[clovis-man]

Alastair Reynolds, Iain M. Banks and Peter F. Hamilton without reservation.

Ditto on the first two. But I've scratched Hamilton from my must read list, so no hard covers.

 

[elvet]

Not all new releases I buy are available in hardback, but I'll count them anyways.
Guy Gavriel Kay
Joe Abercrombie
Robin Hobb
Stephen Donaldson
Brandon Sanderson
Michelle Sagara West
G.R.R. Martin
Steven Erikson
Ian Esselmont
Iain M. Banks
Mark Lawrence
Neal Stephenson
K.J. Parker

 

[Lady of Winterfell]

Well, now that I have a kindle, I will probably buy less hardcovers. If it is a book I want the day it comes out (for example, the upcoming Scott Lynch book), I will probably buy whichever is cheaper - the ebook or hardcover. (bit off topic but just as a personal preference, I prefer to read paperbacks.) If I didn't have a kindle, I can only think of 3 authors I would buy the hardcover for:

George RR Martin
Scott Lynch
Patrick Rothfuss

However, if it is a library booksale or used bookstore, I will buy anything that looks interesting because the price is right.