Wednesday 27 February 2013

Opinion: Finishing Series - The Problem

So I have a confession. I'm pretty awful at finishing series. Or even getting on to the second book in a series. Even trilogies stump me, despite there only being three books! For this post I've decided to delve deeper into why I just can't get through all those series I've started.

Firstly I wanted to point out how much I enjoy reading series. It's not that I hate finding out a book is the first in a series, or that I don't enjoy the experience of becoming invested in books over a period of time. Most of my all time favourite books are part of a series or trilogy and that excitement of waiting for the next book to be released is one of the best things about reading. I recently read this post written by Laini Taylor (author of Daughter of Smoke and Bone) on her blog which brings up some really great points about writing and reading series. It's definitely worth a read as I think series create a whole lot of discussion from readers and bloggers (including this post!) and I just wanted to reflect on the positivity of series and that this isn't an anti-series post. It's just a "I'm a reader with a problem!" post. So enjoy!

Problem 1: I like variety. This is probably one of the biggest problems I have when it comes to finishing series. Whenever I finish a book I'm usually craving a completely different genre to read next. Sometimes you've just had enough of supernatural or vampires or dystopia and need a change of scene. That means I don't often go straight from one book in a series to the next.

Problem 2: Library books. I get so many of my books from the library and there's nothing like the crippling disappointment of realising they have the first book in a series but not the second. I've suggested books before and had the library order them in, but if I did that for every single series I started I'd be bankrupting them for sure. Even if the library has the sequels it can take a while before they're available, thus creating that gap between the first and second books in a series. Plus if I borrowed the first book in a series from the library then I'm reluctant to buy the second, because then I own a random book in the middle of a series and it doesn't feel right...

Problem 3: When the sequel isn't released yet. I think I can be forgiven for not reading the next book in a series if it hasn't already been released. The problem is, when the sequel is released I might not always be in a position to buy it - either financially or because I have other books to read at the time. Maybe I should getter at planning for these book releases!

Problem 4: There are so many series! And I am so behind with all of them so in an attempt to keep up with the rest of the world I keep starting as many of them as possible so I have some vague idea of what people are talking about when it comes to each one. I almost feel relieved when a book is a standalone these days! I know I won't be getting behind or commuting to yet another series.

Problem 5: I like discovering new things. This is my favourite part of reading and blogging - discovering new books. So if I end up with a choice between a shiny new series or trying to finish an old one, I end up choosing the new ones.

Problem 6: I'm indecisive! This is one of my biggest flaws in everyday life, and of course it becomes a problem when choosing books. As you'll see from the list below I have a huge amount series/trilogies I've started so choosing which one to try and finish/make progress with is so tough!

Do you have difficulty getting round to finishing series? Do you prefer standalones? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments! Also, here's a list of series and trilogies I've started but am yet to finish. Which would you recommend I catch up on first?

Series/trilogies I've started and need to catch up on!
Evernight series by Claudia Gray
Chaos Walking trilogy by Patrick Ness
Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter
Immortals series by Alyson Noel
Legend trilogy by Marie Lu
Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer
Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan
Caster Chronicles by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
The Fox Inheritence series by Mary E Pearson
Treadwell Academy series by Caitlyn Duffy
Hidden Gem series by India Lee
Virals series by Kathy Reichs
Artemis Fowl series by Eoin Colfer
Dust Lands series by Moira Young
Hex Hall series by Rachel Hawkins
Soul Screamers by Rachel Vincent
Uglies by Scott Westerfield
Flynn series by Sophie McKenzie

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