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Kathleen McCormick
The thrill of starting with Autumn is to catch all the call backs to characters and events in the 4 other seasonal novels. But start with Summer and then read the others. You have such a treat in store! There are common themes in all the books that you'll pick up on regardless of the order you read them in, and while they stand on their own, it is amazing how much they have in common and how many characters reappear. Enjoy!
Mary-Louise Ryan
All four books follow different characters so its not essential for plot, I will say that it will elevate your reading experience if you have read the other books, but I don't think there is a specific order that is best. It might give you a different/better experience reading in different order, whichever you decide its a delight and once you being reading Smith you'll be happy there is so much of her work to devour!
Teresa
I would start with Autumn and proceed as published. One of the joys is the layering and discovery. We care about the relationships and each book adds depth and backstory. There are some scenes in Summer that are profound "aha" moments that wouldn't have hit as hard if it was read first.
Darkloom
I've just finished the series, read in publication order. I agree with the other two comments. Also, one of the themes of the series is time, and how fungible it is. So if you read the books out of order you will simply have another experience of it, and no less wonderful.
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