Monday, May 15, 2017

Never-Ending Series: Yea or Nay?


There are so many book trilogies and quartets out there.  But what about those series that just seem to go on forever?  There are lots of them, but here's three I've been reading:

Inspector Gamache by Louise Penny
This mystery series is currently at 13 books!  The books follow Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, head of the Quebec homicide division.  There is some carryover between the novels.  Many of the characters are the same, whether it is Gamache and his team or the residents of Three Pines, where many of the stories take place.  The books often refer back to events from previous installments, but for the most part, each mystery is its own. 

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
Outlander began as a time-traveling romance between Jamie and Claire in the Scottish Highlands and is at 8 books right now (although Gabaldon may be wrapping things up).  When I first started the series, I loved the premise and was looking forward to the love story and adventures in 18th century Scotland.  However, by the second book, practically everything had changed - from the time period to the location.  I kept reading even though it wasn't quite what I imagined anymore.  Over the course of several books, dozens of new characters have been added with new storylines in different times.  In addition, the tone of the books for has changed; it's less of a romance and more sweeping epic. 

The Shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella
The Shopaholic books are getting more outlandish as the series progresses.  At first, it was organic, following Becky as she met her husband, got married, went on honeymoon, and had a baby.  Although still entertaining, the later books are becoming more strained.

I have mixed feelings about never-ending series.  I think it works well with a mystery series; we get the comfort of the same characters but each book feels new.  With other types of series, it's interesting to see how the author will broaden the story, but it doesn't always work.  Sometimes it can feel forced, or it can just get overwhelming.  It makes me wonder what the endgame is, or if the author even has one in mind.

And then there's the commitment factor.  If you can get in at the beginning of the series, it's not so bad - but you may have to wait a long time, maybe even years, for the next installment.  Even for the most ardent fans, this is rough.  And if several books have already been published, it can be hard to make that decision to start such a lengthy series.

Do you read any series that just seem to go on and on?  Or do you avoid those kinds of series?  Why do you think they work, or not?



18 comments:

  1. I do think that longer series can work, although there are also cases where it just feels like the series starts dragging or turns into a different feel than it once had. Oh and longer series can be so hard to stay up to date with and easy to fall behind. I do usually like mystery series as you get to spent time with the same characters and familiar settings, but each books till has a different story as well. I also have read series where I felt glad they ended when they did as else they probably would've felt too long. I mostly find those long series daunting to start, even though they can be good. I prefer to start series when there are only a few books out yet.

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    1. Yeah, it's definitely easier to start if there are only a couple books out. I started the Gamache series not knowing how long it was, and it was intimidating!

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  2. The longer the series, the more likely I am to avoid it. I’m sure that some long series are amazing, but a lot of times, the series gets saggy or bloated. I don’t have time to read a bunch of “meh” books. I’d rather read short, tight series.

    Aj @ Read All The Things!

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    1. Exactly, I do like a solid beginning, middle, and end. Long series can just start to wander a bit.

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  3. I don't think I've ever really read a longer series than 4-5 books. Although, I have started Game of Thrones - I'm on book 3 and sometimes I get a little lost. There are the main point-of-views, but sometimes all the new characters and places can get really confusing. Luckily, I've already watched the show so some of it is already understandable for me. As for Outlander, I love the show, but I haven't read the books yet. I can totally see how you felt differently about book 2 because I wasn't happy with the time change in the show hahah. The only other series I can think of is the Shadowhunter books. I gave up on those because there's just too many timelines, connections between characters, what have you, it got overwhelming.

    Interesting discussion!
    Molly @ Molly's Book Nook

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    1. Thanks! I've read the Game of Thrones series, and you're right, it does get really confusing trying to keep everyone and everywhere straight. Outlander has also gotten overwhelming - the books are sooo long, and then she'll refer back to something that happened literally thousands of pages ago, and I'm like, what?

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  4. I actually just got the first book in the Inspector Gamache series. Detective ones don't bother me much with length. I think other novels can get stale. I would love to read Outlander but not only is it a long series they are super long books and I can't.

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    1. Yeah, I'm pretty deep into the Gamache series, and it's different than say Outlander or Game of Thrones. The cast of characters is not huge, so it's much more manageable.

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  5. I definitely have mixed feelings about series that just go on and on. I love the Stephanie Plum series but by about book 12 or 13, I was kind of over it because the books became pretty formulaic and predictable. But then with with a series like Harry Potter where new and exciting things were always happening, I feel like I could have easily read book after book and never have gotten tired of it.

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    1. Yeah, it definitely helps when the story is always evolving, and at least Harry Potter had an endpoint in mind.

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  6. Definitely nay. For mysteries it might work well, but I don't read mysteries. I read sci-fi/fantasy. And I like series in which each book has it's own goal/story, but the series also has one big overarching goal/story. And the longer series often don't have that, they just kinda meander. Also, longer series are overwhelming when you haven't started them yet, plus I usually can't afford them! And as much as I love series and getting to stay with the same characters and get to know them more and more, I'd get tired of them eventually with most series. Like, I'm usually ready for a series to end by the time I get to the final book. Even series I love, I'm sometimes ready for things to be wrapped up.

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    1. I agree with you, I like when series have a definite overall storyline and are working towards a specific endpoint. I'm kind of getting a little frustrated with Outlander because I'm not sure where it's going. Jamie and Claire are in their 60s now, but they show no signs of slowing down, and Gabaldon just keeps adding more and more characters and storylines.

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  7. I used to LOVE ongoing series but then I got caught up in too many and most start to feel like slog after awhile so I tend to stay away now.

    For What It's Worth

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    1. Yeah, I haven't read too many of them, for just that reason. It starts to feel like that's all I'm reading!

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  8. I don't mind ongoing series for certain things, but there's definitely something to be said for a clear cut duology or trilogy - there's a beginning, middle and end and a wrapping up of arcs that's always satisfying, and as you say - sometimes the neverending series type gets outlandish.

    I was reading the Stephanie Plum books but I've taken a break around 15 or 16 books in - while good entertainment value they also became a bit monotonous and I was ready for more structure and fantasy. I'll go back to them when I need light and fluffy and fast reads. :)

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    1. Book 15 or 16?? OMG, how long is this series? Monotony can definitely become a problem, especially if the genre is formulaic (like mysteries sometimes are). But it's nice to know you can rely on an author or series when you need a particular kind of book.

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  9. I don't think I can read a series longer than 7 or 8 books. That's about when I quit on the PLL books. And I never went past book 1 of the Princess Diaries because I saw how that was never-ending. I think the exception are series books for kids where each book is completely separate from the other books-- where it's either about completely different characters, or the story is completely wrapped up in each book. Books like-- Fear Street, The Babysitter's Club, SVH.

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    1. Yeah, I can definitely see how it could work for children's series. They get to follow the characters but the story is different in each one. For adults, I think we're more focused on the actual plots and we can kind of tell when things are getting stale.

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I'm so glad you stopped by, and I would love to hear your thoughts! Comments are always greatly appreciated!