Back before I started blogging, finishing a book series was easy.
But then I started blogging, and I ended up with millions of other books to add to my TBR pile. With everyone focusing on recent and upcoming releases, it’s so easy to forget about older books that deserve some love.
Today, we’re going to dive into my library and Kindle wishlist and dig up some deep dark secrets, aka what book series I should actually finish.
Sometimes we abandon a book series because of shiny new books. Who doesn’t want a shiny new thing to take photos of and hug? There are plenty of book series that I’ve abandoned, though, so we’re going to go with just a few.
Exposure and Terminal by Kathy Reichs and Brendan Reichs
I first got introduced to the Virals series back in late middle school and was automatically hooked to the idea of werewolves (shifters?) and experiments. I especially loved the mysteries the Virals had to crack in each book in addition to figuring out what really happened to them. While I recall one of my reviews saying something about a love triangle happening, we’ll see if that actually happens.
The Midnight Star by Marie Lu
While I didn’t enjoy The Young Elites, the second book was much better and Adelina has slithered her way into my heart. She’s evil and dark and I just need closure for the series.
Plus I need to find out what actually happens to Adelina. Does she die? Does she take over the world???
The Revolution of Ivy by Amy Engel
I read the first book back in 2016 but completely forgot about writing the review. 🙈 In my defense, 2016 was a bad year for me and I abandoned reviewing some of the books that I read. If I did write a review, I usually did a crappy job and I know full well it showed in my posts.
Frost Like Night by Sara Raasch
What is with me abandoning trilogies after the second book? I adored Snow Like Ashes back when it first released, along with its sequel, Ice Like Fire. Like The Midnight Star, I’m hoping to finish this at the very least for closure from what could potentially be one of my favorite love triangles.
The Winner’s Kiss by Marie Rutkoski
The trilogy tragedy continues with The Winner’s Trilogy, bookwyrms. I keep saying I’ll get around to the last book in the series but I never get around to it. Whoops.
Note: I’m also aware of the problematic issues that have been pointed out by other reviewers, but I do want to have some closure with the series.
The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan
Plus every other book that he’s written based on the Percy Jackson universe… I tried The House of Hades in audio form and it took me a long time to get through it. Since 2009-2010, I’ve been devouring each of the PJO books one by one as they released, but after The Mark of Athena, I waddled off to other books.
I think secretly my subconscious is saying I’m growing out of the series? I tend to get tired when a series goes into multiple spin-offs.
Spear by Realm Lovejoy
I suddenly remembered the Le Fay series the other week while crawling around Kindle Unlimited for books to read. Apparently, I didn’t get beyond the second book and forgot about the series entirely. Let’s just say it was a time because I forgot almost everything that happened in Henge and Sword. I’m hoping I’ll get through Spear before my Kindle Unlimited deal ends, finishing the series.
(Side note: by the time this post goes live, I already finished Spear but I can’t be arsed to remove the book from the list.)
Ruse by Cindy Pon
I read Want back in 2017 but later chose not to write a review because I didn’t feel like it. But I adored Jason Zhou and his friends when I read the series and since this might be a duology… I want to finish the series. Unlike the other books listed, though, Ruse isn’t out yet. (PLUS IT’S SET IN SHANGHAI WHERE MY MOM HAILS FROM? I’m here for that.)
Let’s talk, bookwyrms: What book series have you not abandoned yet? Do you plan on finishing them?
Sophia started blogging in February 2012 for the hell of it and is surprisingly still around. She has a GIF for nearly everything, probably listens to too much K-Pop and is generally in an existential crisis of sorts (she's trying her best). More of her bookish reviews and K-Pop Roundups can be found at The Arts STL.
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Frost Like Night Will BREAK your heart!!!!!! D: <3 I read Ice Like Fire last year and finished Frost Like Night in January and it's one of my FAVORITE series! <3 <3 <3 It was such an amazing conclusion! I hope you like it when you get to it! 🙂
I didn’t finish The extended series of the Percy Jackson world either. I got got up with everything that was released (The Son of Neptune I think) and then never picked up any of new books. I don’t mind one or two spinoff series if they are short, but at some point there becomes just too many books and I don’t have that much time to give to one world!
I read more books that have companion novels than straight up series. There are definitely some series I hope to read (I haven’t even started) and others that I have started and need to finish or at least get up to date – like I read the Diviners and Lair of Dreams, but now I need to read the third one.
-Lauren
The Virals sound pretty awesome. Werewolves and experiments works for me!! 🙂
I have quite a few series left unfinished, but one of the biggest issues is that I lost interest in many of them while waiting for the subsequent books. I did read The Midnight Star, though, and I cried. Good luck with all of these.
That first line, damn! I used to have my reading together before blogging too! Now it’s just an endless TBR list that’ll be the reason for my untimely demise.
It’s already my demise, LOL. I’m just rolling with it into the abyss.
I didn’t finish The Winner’s Curse either!
Oh I hear you Soph, I’m terrible at finishing off a series and have just abandoned most of them now. I figure if I haven’t read them by now then I’ve probably lost interest. The Young Elites is a series I haven’t even started yet and Snow Like Ashes, I liked book one but didn’t bother to continue with those either. I did read the entire Winner’s trilogy though and enjoyed it. I can understand with Rick Riordan. I loved Percy Jackson and also the Trials of Apollo but have struggled with all his other spin off series. For me, I just felt like they’re missing the Percy type humour.
Not finishing series because I’ve forgotten what happened in the books I’ve already read is one of my greatest vices. I’m trying to make a more conscious effort to read them closer together but there’s only so much time in the day!
I’m about to start Want, it’s coming to me in like two weeks, and I found out about Ruse and was like ‘how do I always pick series books?!’ I have so many series I need to finish and that was so painfully clear when I looked at my tbr today bahaha. I hope you get to finish these, as long as they’re enjoyable! If any of the next books/final books aren’t enjoyable, kick them to the curb says I! Haha it’s been fun seeing people’s lists of series they haven’t finished, mostly because it makes me feel better, so thanks X’D
Ah, I did read the Winner’s Curse but I didn’t continue with the trilogy and have now forgotten what happened in it! Though, I do hope that you get around to finishing the trilogy!
Oh, I get what you mean about House of Hades. I didn’t like that book very much but I got through it because I needed some closure.
Hope you are able to finish all these series soon! xx
I am horrible about series! Before I started blogging, I actually read mostly standalones — so in some way I am only recently dealing with this issue. Focusing on series I need to finish that are fully published:
1: Shades of Magic (ugh, just Conjuring of Light to go)
2: Vicious (Vengeful is 1/3 read)
Everything else I think is not finished yet, actually? Maybe? IDK
Although I haven’t started them yet, at some point I am going to try The Young Elites series and the Blood of Olympus series. I did read the first book in The Winner’s Curse series but I didn’t like it… so even though the covers are gorgeous I just can’t convince myself to go DD: I haven’t abandoned the Infernal Devices series or Four from the Divergent trilogy. I will get back to them!
ha ha – this is a good point! I did the same thing with Top Ten Tuesday – books where I need to finish the sequels. And you make a good point – I need to finish them before I forget what was going on in the previous novels!