I have a major case of the series blahs.
I’m reading Atlantis Awakening by Alyssa Day. It’s a good book. It’s the second in her Atlantis series. I read the first book, Atlantis Rising, in a day. I’ve been reading Atlantis Awakening for three days and I’m not even halfway through yet. When I started thinking about why I was watching Days of Our Lives instead of reading AA, I had an epiphany.
I am invested in way too many different series as it is. Adding another one to the mix isn’t sitting well. Like every series, Alyssa Day has created a character that readers will by dying for, but whose story will be withheld until he “does what he needs to do”. I just don’t know if I can wait for yet another book to come out after years of waiting.
Why do authors feel the need to do this?
In Lara Adrian’s Breed series, she’s releasing Rio’s book next year. This is the guy who, in the first book, found out that his mate betrayed the Breeds and then (if I remember right) she died by his hand. That is one tortured mofo. My point here is, she’s not waiting years to release his book. For whatever reason, she’s accepted that her readers want to read about Rio and has proceeded accordingly.
It seems that Sherrilyn Kenyon has created this fad w/ Ash and other authors are following suit. I am extremely invested in the Dark Hunter series and can not wait to read Ash’s book. Yet I’m hesitant to get that invested in any additional series. Even Tohr of the BDB fame is beginning to turn me off.
So what do you think? Are there too many ongoing series for your taste? Have you not started a book because it was the beginning of a series? What series are you the most invested in?
I’m WAY over series books right now. The only series I’m still invested in is the In Death series. Otherwise, I’ve pretty much given up all of them.
I loved Alyssa’s AA more than AR.
No, I’m not through with series. I am trying to cut the number down by not adding new authors how write series.
I love the interaction of seeing familiar characters when reading a series.
The series I have most invested is would the the In Death.
I hadn’t thought about it until this post, but you know I think you’re right. I am getting series-ed out. To take on a new series, it’s like I need to drop one of the others or there are way too many authors and characters to keep straight. Like Holly and Ann, I’ll be keeping up with the In Death series for sure.
Well, series that have the same main character (I think they’re called serials?) bother me… but I’ve always been that way.
What really irritates me is when an author is too heavy-handed in dropping many teasers and purposely fanning a reader’s interest in a secondary character (setting up for a future book) by the end of the book you think that it’s set-up so surely that character’s book will be next then you find out that it’s like 5+ years of other character’s books before that one will be written. Lora Leigh (whose writing I love) does this and it’s so incredibly frustrating!!! i hate that about her writing style. I’m too impatient I guess.
I think it’s all in the execution. When I feel the sequel baiting, that irritates me. When characters who don’t really need to be in the book are introduced because they’ll have their own book later on, that annoys me. But something like Nalini Singh’s Psy/Changeling series gets it right for me–the romances are central, and the unraveling of the external plot enhances the romance. I don’t feel like her characters are on puppet strings. I also don’t feel like she’s planning to write a book about every single changeling, Psy and human introduced. What a relief! *lol*
There’s a book that I recently read, which was discussed in a blog somewhere (I can’t remember what and where), but someone commented that she was surprised that there were no planned books for some of the sequel-worthy characters. I’m glad. The expectation for authors to write sequels can be great, but it’s good to stop when you’re ahead.
And finally, I wish authors would consider multiple series instead of drawing out one series indefinitely so that all their favourite characters get books of their own (and in the meantime, keep adding more characters to the mix). When the external plot arc is resolved, there’s always the possibility of a new but related series. I’d love more of those.
I’m not burned out by series, but I’m definitively trying to learn how to let go of the ones I don’t like anymore… as in stop buying. Sigh. I’ve succeeded with the Stephanie Plum, but not the Dark-Hunter 🙁
and I agree with Ange and Kat. What definitively annoys me is the sequel baiting. I think that some series right now are still worth to try and investing and I’m not ready to give those up though…
“Sequel baiting”
I love that. How appropriate that is.
I love the In Death series and consider myself heavily invested in it.
Sherrilyn Kenyon I will stick with until I read Ash’s book. After that, I’m not sure I’ll have the desire to continue.
Nalini Singh is also one of my favorites. I just hope she continues releasing every 6 months.
Ange, I completely agree with you.
What a great way to put it, “Series’d out”, yeah I think I’m falling into the category at least with Paranormals.
I was completely comitted to JR Ward when she said in the begining only 7-8 books but now she’s claiming every freaking vampire in the BDB’s getting a book, hello? do I hear Sherrilyn Kenyon? I can’t be bothered.
And speaking of the Queen drag -SK after Ash, that’s it nothing more.
Now Lara Adrian, I think’s been seriously overshadowed by the kenyons, wards etc. She’s got a kickass series and I can’t wait for Tegan and Elise’s book coming out next week.
This is a great series and although similar with the 6 or so vampires with 1 baddy -the storyline is unique and she’s actually got a real villain who plays a central role.
At least its not as bad in the historicals, there’s quite a few authors coming out next year with just triologies.
I cut my teeth on huge, epic, doorstop fantasy books that came in trilogies and series. But I don’t think a series works so well in romance for a lot of the reasons people have mentioned.
Also, it took me months and months to start the In Death series. I love it, but the idea that I’m only on book 2 of 29 or whatever number we’re on is pretty daunting, so I’m glad they’re fast reads.
I think for me I need to be invested right from the beginning. I only really got into reading romances seriously a couple of years ago, so I missed the beginning of Christine Feehan and Sherrilyn Kenyon’s rise to popularity. In the former case, I’m not sure how many more Carpathians I’m going to be able to take, so I’m OK with the fact that I missed that party. And SK has so many spin-off series that my head spins, and no matter how hard people try to explain how her series works, it seems like way too much to get invested in as a relative newbie. Especially since I’ve already given my heart up to Eve and Roarke. 🙂