Top Ten Tuesday: best / worst series enders

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every week they post a new topic that the participants come up with a top ten list for.


This week is about the best and worst endings to series, and I'll give you some of both plus another category. It's actually kind of hard because there are many awesome series that are still ongoing or that are finished but I haven't gotten to the end of them yet. To be honest, the number of series I can't use because I still haven't read That Last Book makes this really hard >.<


Best series enders

Curse Workers series, by Holly Black

I know, you must be sick to the death of me blabbing about it in my TTT posts. I just really liked the ending, though I sure wouldn't mind more books about Cassel and Lila ;) 

Wicked Lovely series, by Melissa Marr


I really like the structure of this series. Books 1, 3, and 5 are about the 'main' couple while book 2 and 4 follow secondary characters but still relevantly figure into the whole thing. Book 5 just ties it all up nicely and I was satisfied with where the characters ended up.

Night Angel Trilogy, by Brent Weeks

I read the whole thing in a about a week and it's just... epic. The characters come so far and develop so much and the scope of it all is just... wow. I wouldn't have minded a bit more of an aftermath but I actually like that there's some openness at the end.

Soul Screamers series, by Rachel Vincent

I was really scared of how it would all end and it was certainly different from what I expected. I really liked it though. There was enough pain to make it all seem worth it but not so much that it left in me in book trauma.

Iron Witch trilogy, by Karen Mahoney

This is a really cool mixture of fairy lore, alchemy, demons, and romance. The ending rounded it off well and left me with a feeling of catharsis. This series is not getting enough love...

Demon's Lexicon series, by Sarah Rees Brennan

SRB's writing is hilarious. But she can also make you feel allll the heartache. Well, my heart was definitely sore by the end of the books, but I think the ending was realistic while still ending on a positive note.


Worst series enders

Mockingjay (The Hunger Games), by Suzanne Collins

This seems so harsh. I don't think I disliked this ending as much as many others did, but I just... the whole book wasn't really my thing. I don't remember it all that well because I only listened to it as an audiobook once, almost 2 years ago. But I think the first one was by far the strongest in the trilogy.

I dunno, there are also a couple other series enders I felt kind of indifferent about, or I'm not sure if they count because there are spin-offs. Off the top of my head, I can't think of an ending to a series I really hated.


Series enders that were 'bad' because I wish there was more


Anna Dressed in Blood, by Kendare Blake
On the one hand, I like that it's a duology. On the other hand... somehow I got this feeling of unfinished business. I wish there was more. Or maybe I just want to go back into Cas' snarky brain.

If I Stay / Where She Went, by Gayle Forman

Again, not sure if this belongs in here. The ending was realistic and gave the reader a good idea of what Adam and Mia's lives might be like from there onwards. But I think Forman could just as well write another book that shows them 2 or 3 years down the road.

The Infernal Devices, by Cassandra Clare

Now don't get me wrong. I liked Clockwork Princess. It made me cry more than once. But that epilogue... mpf. I liked the first part of the epilogue but then it was just all too... neat. It was really close to feeling cheating (not relationship-cheating), like having your cake and eating it too. Maybe I was just braced for more pain? Maybe I just want more Tessa / Will? I really enjoyed the glimpse of them I got in the 4th installment of the Bane Chronicles. And I know there will be several spin-offs more. But just... it won't be the same.


So... that's that. Do you have any glaring disagreements? Fist bumps? Also, link me up to your own posts so I can slam my head into my desk because of all the obvious choices I forgot about ;)

Teaser Tuesday: Ink Exchange, by Melissa Marr

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!


It's been a very long time since I did one of these! But this week's TTT topic is just too hard, and I am FINALLY, after about a year of wanting and meaning to, re-reading Ink Exchange! It was my first Melissa Marr novel and I figured out that it was book 2 in the series a couple chapters in, but I just couldn't stop reading anymore. The re-read now, knowing what I do about book 1 and the rest of the series, is very interesting and enjoyable :)

Don't know the Wicked Lovely series? Have some Niall and Irial, two of my favorite characters. This is from Niall's perspective.

He realized now, though, that no matter how carefully he'd guarded his secrets, he'd been transparent to Irial. If the Dark King could read his emotions, could taste them, he'd known of Niall's weaknesses each time they'd met. I've been exposed to him the whole time. Irial didn't shame him for it. Instead he held out the same acceptance he'd offered centuries ago - and Niall didn't, couldn't, reply.
Irial said, "It's been a long time that you've been living for Keenan, paying back some perceived debt. We are what we are, Niall, neither as good or as evil as others paint us. And what we are doesn't change how truly we feel, only how free we are to follow those feelings."
Then he slipped away into the crowd, dancing with mortals as he went and looking every bit like he belonged there among them.
- Ink Exchange, pages 252-253 (bold emphasis is mine)

About Ink Exchange

Release date: April 24, 2008
Publisher: Harper Collins
Format: Paperback,  352 pages

Unbeknownst to mortals, a power struggle is unfolding in a world of shadows and danger. After centuries of stability, the balance among the Faery Courts has altered, and Irial, ruler of the Dark Court, is battling to hold his rebellious and newly vulnerable fey together. If he fails, bloodshed and brutality will follow.

Seventeen-year-old Leslie knows nothing of faeries or their intrigues. When she is attracted to an eerily beautiful tattoo of eyes and wings, all she knows is that she has to have it, convinced it is a tangible symbol of changes she desperately craves for her own life.

The tattoo does bring changes—not the kind Leslie has dreamed of, but sinister, compelling changes that are more than symbolic. Those changes will bind Leslie and Irial together, drawing Leslie deeper and deeper into the faery world, unable to resist its allures, and helpless to withstand its perils. . . .


What do you think of my teaser? Have you read the series? I love how dark and sensual and unapologetic it is. It's one of my favorite fairy serieses because all the courts are so distinct from one another but they need balance to coexist. And I love the characters. Saying goodbye was really hard.
What are you sharing teasers from this week? Link me up!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I wish could have had Sequels

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every week they post a new topic that the participants come up with a top ten list for.


This week's topic is about books that were complete stories, but we wish we could have read more about those characters or set in that world.



Holly Black - Curse Workers Trilogy
I miss Cassel. I miss Lila. I just... I really miss that world. It was different from everything else in YA or Urban Fantasy that I've read so far. The ending was great... I just wish I could have seen more.



Melissa Marr - Wicked Lovely series
I love the world, I love the characters. I thought I was over it but then I read the anothology of her fairy stories where there are a couple short ones about side characters and there was that ache again... I need more of Seth and Ash and Niall and Irial *sigh*



Sarah Rees Brennan - Demon's Lexicon trilogy
Same as above. I'd love a short story or novella taking place a couple months after the ending. Just to see where everyone's at.



Brenna Yovanoff - The Replacement
Perfect ending. But again, this book moved me and tore me up inside so much. And I'd just like to have a glimpse at the world and see how things are going. I miss it. I miss the writing and the emotions and what it all evoked in me.



Poppy Z. Bright - Lost Souls
I'd love to read more stories about Steve and Ghost and maybe to get a glimpse at Nothing and what he's up to. And just... more of the writing and the images it created in my head.



Stephen King - The Dark Tower
I will never forget that world and its characters. Never. So when the Wind Through the Keyhole came out I was so excited. I got it many months back but somehow I couldn't bring myself to crack it open yet because I'm also a bit scared. Soon though. Soon I'll be with Roland and Jake and Susannah and Eddie again.



Kai Meyer - Die Fliessende Königin
This is a trilogy I read when I was 13. And re-read a couple times. The world building is fantastic! It's set in a magical Venice at war with the Pharao. There are stone lions coming to life and thieves and magical mirrors... in short, it's magical and amazing. And over. But there's an English translation called The Water Mirror, if you want to check it out. The link above goes to that one.



Katja Brandis - Kampf um Daresh
No translation of this series (I think). I devoured both the original trilogy and the spin-off. I still want more. Amazing world building, great magic, great characters. I simply disappeared into this stories but I've read all there is and now it's over :(


Charlotte Brontë - Jane Eyre
Have you never wondered what happened with her and Rochester later? No? Tsk.



Laura Resnick - Chronicles of Sirkara
I read the first two books in German and thought the series was never finished. Many years later I found out that there was a third book! It just wasn't ever translated and it's out of print. I bought it used off amazon ^^ So worth it! The world building still haunts me often though and I remember the characters often.


I'm sure a lot of people will point out books to me that I could have included. But to be honest, there are SO many series that it was actually hard to find stuff that was a) a standalone or b) a finished series without a spin-off that I had c) already read all installments of and liked so much that I craved more despite it having a nice ending.
So. have you read any of the books/series I've included above? And what are your books you can't get enough of?

Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Book Covers Of Books I've Read

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every week the participants post their top ten to a specific topic.

So this week is about favorite covers of books we've read... and it's soooo hard to choose!!! So much pretty! I'm sure I will forget something totally obvious and want to bash my head into the wall because of it. Ahem. Anyway, here goes in no particular order...




I imagine Varen to look just like that. I love that the models wear clothes the characters wear in the book. And I love all the writing on the image - it hints at Varen's mysterious notebooks.
As for Fragile Eternity, the butterfly looks just that - fragile. Frozen. I also adore the font! And it was one of my favorite books in the seris :)


Black City was a book I wanted to read for a whole year before it came out. The wait was agonizing. I love that shatteredrose, the font, the colors, the city in the backdrop. It's perfect.
Throne of Glass - so badass! The clothes. The hair. The daggers!! The colors and font. The UK cover is just so much better than the US one.


Masque's cover is even more beautiful in person because the paper has a shimmer to it that isn't visible on the screen. The colors, dress, and parasol fit perfectly. I love it!
Dearly, Departed is another parasol cover I love. The colors are perfect and again, it fits the actual content. I also adore the font!


Splintered's cover is just so vibrant!!! The colors are even deeper when you see them for real, and I love how there are so many details you only start to notice as you read the actual story.
With Chantress, the combination of the colors, her hood, the font, the tag line, and the thing she's holding in her hand intrigued me.


I have very mixed feelings about hte Fallen series, but I love the covers. Torment is my favorite. It looks eternally cold and mournful and you can just see the inner turmoil of the girl. It's stunning in its simplicity.
Something Strange and Deadly is another one you have to see in person because it shimmers so prettily! The model looks really close to how I imagined Eleanor and I think the detail of the cogs and wheels in the background is awesome.

Nevermore, by Kelly Creagh
Fragile Eternity, by Melissa Marr
Black City, by Elizabeth Richards
Throne of Glass, by Sarah J. Maas
Masque of the Red Death, by Beathany Griffin
Dearly, Departed, by Lia Habel
Splintered, by A.G. Howard
Chantress, by Amy Butler Greenfield
Torment, by Lauren Kate
Something Strange and Deadly, by Susan Dennard

This was really hard! I thought there would be less pretty dress covers and more graphically interesting ones but those are mostly covers from the TBR pile. Also, it's hard to separate my feelings of the story from those of the cover. There were many books I love whose books are pretty but just not quite awesome enough to make the list.
Anyhow, here are some runner-ups from other books I've already read:



Wither, by Lauren Destefano
In the Shadow of Blackbirds, by Cat Winters
The Pledge, by Kimberly Derting

With Wither, it's that the cover fits so perfectly! Also, mostly I chose it because the inner design of the book is so special and gorgeous! In the Shadow of Blackbirds was fantastic and I love that the cover photograph appears in the book, along with other copies of actual photographs from the time period the book is set in. The Pledge is so gorgeous, and what I think is special about it is that the word is juxtaposed on the image again and the texture is different from the rest of the cover. You feel the words when you trace them.


Oof. Alrighty, what do you guys think of my choices? Anything that is glaringly absent? And please leave your links, I can't wait to see what covers you chose and find new things to drool over ;)