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Books for Thought is where I post a discussion topic related to books, reading, writing, or something pertaining to one of the three. I hope you’ll join in, and discuss today’s topic of

putting off finishing a series

Sometimes, I really love a series. And sometimes that love shows itself in the fact that … I won’t finish said loved series.

The PRIME example of this is the Heartland series by Lauren Brooke. I started this series in primary school. I was probably about twelve. I sped through them, and eagerly pre-ordered the final book through the Scholastic catalogue (which was like the bible to me in primary school, seriously. Those things were AMAZING). I’m 22, and I still haven’t read the last book. Because I didn’t want the series to end. I didn’t want that time of my life where I was reading that series to end. And I didn’t want there to be nothing new in that world for me to read. But that is TEN YEARS of procrastination. My god, I can’t even believe myself.

Chewie laugh

(source)

A series that I am currently putting off finishing is the Healer series by Maria V. Snyder. I really loved the first two books in this series, but I just can’t really bring myself to read the last one. It’s like I need there to be that last book to read when I know I need something I love – because I know I will love it. This is Maria V. Snyder we’re talking about here.

I’m also putting off reading the rest of Jessica Darling series, because the first book is one of my all time favourites, and the second book is perfection in the fact that everything ends well. I don’t want to read the rest of that series because I don’t want that perfect ending of Second Helpings to be tarnished. And I also haven’t heard the greatest things about the rest of it. So I am le scared. But I know I’ll probably get around to it one day. Maybe.

So I DO put off finishing series, but these three are all for different reasons. Because I’m diverse like that.

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What about you? Have you ever put off finishing a series? Which one? Why?

sig-chiara

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Posted on: March 17, 2016 • By: Chiara

13 Responses to I Don’t Want to Finish That Series

  1. First of all, I have to agree that the Scholastic catalogues were the absolute BEST THINGS OUT. And now I can just appreciate it from a marketing perspective ;)

    But I can’t say that I put off finishing a series. I guess it’s also because I read a lot of contemporary, and more often than not they’re standalones. I can sympathise with not wanting it to end, though!

  2. *clutches chest* oh dear those Scholastic catalogues. THEY WERE MY LIFE. I recall spending so many afternoons combing through them and circling all of the books I wanted to buy (inevitably, far more money than my parents were willing to spend on yet more books, why can’t our daughter just play with dolls like a NORMAL CHILD)

    But I digress. ;)

    I have found that I actually tend to speed through & binge-read series – but I put off finishing singular books that I adore. Currently I have two books sitting on my nightstand which I have been reading for about… two months, I believe? Both are gorgeous, but I just can’t bring myself to finish them. I don’t want them to end, ever.

  3. I don’t think I could put off reading the last book in a series I loved. Everything would just feel so unfinished!

  4. I read and loved the first Jessica Darling book – I really do need to read the rest. I tend to procrastinate most series because I just don’t have time to fit them in. I don’t really mind finishing series…I mean, Harry Potter is probably my one TRUE LOVE when it comes to series, you know? I totally read that last book the night it came out without sleeping until it was finished. It’s sad to have the end, but I don’t think I could have waited for HP. For other series, I don’t really keep up with most of them as they are released, so it’s either a massive binge read or I just read them as I can. :)

  5. Anissa says:

    I haven’t read any of the series you have on there, but the one series I enjoyed and haven’t been able to finish is the Lux series by Jennifer L Armentrout… Mostly because I don’t remember what happened in the second last book and I don’t know… I loved the series but can’t/don’t wait to finish it.

    Great post! :D

  6. Jennifer says:

    WOOOOAAAAHH Ten years are a lot of time. And here I thought I procrastinated too much in ending a series xD But I understand the feeling. Parting from something you love is hard, and holding on to that last book is like holding that one last step through the door. I haven’t read Four by Veronica Roth, Beautiful Redemption by Garcia and Stohl, and Of Neptune by Anna Banks, because of that. Not ten years, but yeah. I don’t want it to end </3

  7. Valerie says:

    I RESONATE WITH THIS POST.

    Last year, I finished NO SERIES. None. None at all. And that was weird to me because didn’t I read 100 books last year? And none of them was a series finale? I guess I put those off because I don’t want series to end. Even now, I’m putting off Winter because 1) it’s 800 pages and 2) it’s the LAST LUNAR CHRONICLES BOOK and I’m like notttt

  8. Hmm, I don’t often have these same concerns — although I ran into the last one with The Winner’s Curse! I absolutely, absolutely loved the ending of the first book, decided not to read the second, but everyone raved over it so I tried, and I kind of regret that decision because I didn’t like the second book much? *shrugs* I normally do finish series I want to finish, but I often decide not to read on for some reason or another — and I’m pretty much immune to cliffhangers now (although I do get rather irritated by them), so I kind of just forget to read the rest of the series. *shrugs*

  9. Kayla says:

    I put off Maria V. Snyder books all. the. time. But I don’t understand why, because I know I’ll love them so much! I haven’t finished The Darkest Minds trilogy because I’m afraid I won’t like the third book. I haven’t read the sequel to The Fifth Wave yet because I loved the first book so much that I don’t know if it’ll live up to my expectations. It’s so bad! :(

  10. I’m terrible at putting off final books in series because I don’t want them to end. But also I put them off because I like to binge reread the first few books again before reading the last one which means the only time I have to read them is holidays really.

    The Healer series was one I put off but I did finally get to it last December! It was good. There are many other series that have been sitting on my TBR shelf for years, like Finale by Becca Fitzpatrick (I’m scared I won’t enjoy that story/ characters now I’m older) and The Forever Song by Julie Kagawa (I have no idea why I’m putting this off. Probably just not in the right mood for it??).

  11. The Scholastic catalogues were EVERYTHING. EVERYTHING, I tell you. I can’t comment much on this because I’m not someone who does this at all. Although, I’ll buy the next book in the series when it’s released but then I won’t read it for MONTHS because I get this completely unnecessary anxiety about reading the next book in a series, especially when it’s the last (which explains why I still haven’t read Winter).

  12. Liza Barrett says:

    Typically I’ll inhale a series and just WANT to get to the end because I want to get to that “happy ending” that I know will probably never happen. However, there ARE a lot of times that I WILL stop reading a series by a favorite author. I’ve discovered (truly, this was an epiphany, and I’ve not idea why I didn’t notice it earlier) that I like series that DO have an end. I’m a huge fan of the macro plot, and I really struggle to continue to love a series once it seems like it’s never-ending and doesn’t have a strong thread unifying all of the books. Typically, I get a sense of whether I feel like it’s going to keep going somewhere or not around book 7 or so, and that ends up becoming my “quitting” point.

    Also, I had totally forgotten the Scholastic catalogs, but those things really were amazing. That’s how we used to order most of our books.

  13. Romi says:

    10 years of procrastination. I’m gonna slow clap you right outta this place, Chiara. *slow clapping begins* But seriously. That is a. something I want to wear on a t-shirt/have as a print because it’s a mighty fine statement and obvs is hilarious, and b. and quite the achievement. Think of your LEGACY. I do kinda understand what you mean, though, although I would tend to go the other way and finish the series, have the whole experience, just so I know what happens and how it all ends and I know the story forever and ever. And sometimes I’ll regret that, because the ending isn’t as grand as I would hope, and sometimes I won’t. And I can never be sure. By the time you’ve invested love and cherishment and all your emotions into something, putting that end bit of faith in it… finishing it and knowing you can’t go back once you’ve read that last page, it’s kinda huge. *spirals into bookish despair* The things we do for the series’ we love, eh?

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