Hating when a series goes hardcover.

It seems inevitable for most bestselling series these days - you know, the dreaded day you are notified that the next long awaited book in the series is to be released in "Hardcover".
Almost as if someone somewhere believes they are doing you a favour.

From an author's perspective, I can only assume this is a major goal to achieve. Recognition of their success, popularity and a helpful bump up into the next income bracket.

From a reader's perspective - I don't know about you but when a series goes hardcover, I kind of feel as if I am being punished for some reason.

The cost being the first problem. If I don't want to be hit by spoilers or a plethora of oversharing reviewers - I am expected to shell out the big bucks.

Next is the size. My house and bookcases have only so much room. A hardcover edition of a book seems like such an investment - one I may only ever end up reading once, but will be stuck storing for the rest of my life.

The excruciating wait - the cycle of book releases seems to go on for eternity when hardcover releases are added to the calendar - sometimes followed by the trade paperback release and then FINALLY the mass trade paperback.

The drop in quality of the product - sometimes it feels as if the author is on the verge of winding things up, or they have just quite clearly run out of fresh ideas and enthusiasm for their series - when they are tapped by a publishing company to go hardcover.
Nothing hurts more than shelling out for a hardcover only to discover it is a poor or inconsistent addition to the series.
Oh, let me count the series where this has happened - Laurell K Hamilton, J.R Ward, Christine Feehan, Jayne Ann Krentz under all her pseudonyms ( and don't even get me started on the mis-match release dates of her trilogies from differing publishing companies). Darynda Jones has gone hardback - just when her wonderful Grave series has developed a distinct wobble.

Weirder still when a series goes hardcover - I start finding I have gaps in my bookcases. Mainly because I borrow the hardback version of a book from my local library - and once I've read it - well, what's the point in then buying the mass paperback version? I've generally moved on by that point.
Weirder still - when an author goes down the hardcover release path I find myself too often suddenly disenchanted by the series - Oh, I'll still borrow it from the library if I stumble across it - but I don't go out of my way to reserve it.

So to all those authors standing firm - to Gini Koch, Jennifer Estep and a host of my other favourite authors - please don't jump on the hardcover release bandwagon. Because I'm afraid if you jump on... I'll probably end up falling off.