June 26, 2018: Series I’ve Given Up On/Don’t Plan to Finish (Submitted by A Book and a Cup)
I don’t like to DNF (did not finish) or abandon books, but sometimes books and whole series just aren’t worth the effort.
Eight Series I Abandoned:
- Clan of the Cave Bear – I read the first two and then realized these were just going to be full of excuses for cavemen to have sex. PASS.
- Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever – First a wholly unlikable protagonist who in the first novel rapes someone, then in the second has incest with the product of that union. Yes you read that right and that is why I will not be continuing the series.
- The Air Awakens – I just recently read the first two books in the series which came highly recommended, but instead of the sword and sorcery fair I was expecting, it was more like a CW Teen drama.
- Ocean’s Justice – I. Just. Don’t. Like. Rape. In any shape. In any form. Even if it’s the female protagonists who is the offender. Read the first one, then immediately deleted the second off the Kindle.
- Mary Poppins – There are four of these books. I just can’t believe that. Mary Poppins is not likable enough to really fill one book, let alone four.
- The Mortal Instruments – I freely admit the urban fantasy is not my thing, but so many people recommend this series and when I read it they were just coming out with the TV show and it looked interesting. Through out the entire book I kept think that Clary was pretty much dead weight, the story was happening around her. It kept repeating in my head that Buffy did it better.
- Avalon Series – The first one is a pretty good book and some would call it a classic, but then the second and third books pretty much repeat the same plot. Somethings just aren’t meant to be recycled.
- Fablehaven – Something about this book just rubbed me the wrong way. It was too dark, too occultic and aimed at small children, which I didn’t like.
Bonus Series I Finished But Wished I Hadn’t:
- The Dark Tower – After seven books and an incredible build up I was expecting more. The ending just really disappointed. However, the first book is one I would recommend to any fantasy reader.
- Rama -The first book is a science fiction classic and one I highly recommend. The rest get steadily worse and by the end I was like; “what did I just read?” I was so disappointed by the ending. It’s possibly the worst end to a series I’ve ever read. Read the first book and then stop. You don’t need the rest of the story. In this case, leaving the rest to your imagination is a good thing.
What are some series you gave up on? Or series you finished but wished you hadn’t? Let me know in the comment and leave me a link to your Top Ten list.
10 replies on “Top Ten Tuesday #41: Abandoned Series”
I remember starting The Mortal Instruments series years ago. I just couldn’t get into the first book!
I forced my self through it… hoping it would get better by the end.
I abandoned Mortal Instruments, too. It should have been a 3 book series. No need for any longer.
Glad to hear I’m not the only one!
Aw, sorry you didn’t love The Mortal Instruments! I’m halfway through and enjoying it a lot more than I expected to but it’s one of those series that I can 100% understand why it isn’t for everyone. 🙂 The only other series on my TBR is Air Awakens, but I’m kind of going into it hesitantly – it’s not very high on my list.
I was so excited to find that the Air Awakens 5 book set was available on the Kindle Lending Library (Since I don’t use KU) and then was pretty disappointed that it was more drama than fantasy.
Oh heck, Clan of the Cave Bear. I loved that series as a teen – the sex didn’t bother me and I was so enthralled by the Ice Age society. But somewhere along the journey I grew up some and I never picked up book 5 (all I remember is getting to a scene that was like Ice Age Mean Girls and trying not to throw the book across the room).
And honestly, they were always soo slooooow. I studied archaeology and I’m so intrigued by using the Ice Age society and so much of the detail we know from the record, but looking back at it now it was awfully dry. And repetitive. And the sex scenes were pretty awful.
No regrets.
I loved the Ice Age society parts, but I agree to the repetitive part too. Thanks for stopping by my blog.
Despite all the hype, I don’t see myself reading the Mortal Instruments books. I watched the film (and enjoyed it) and have seen some of the TV show, and that has met any curiosity I’ve had about the stories.
Thanks so much for visiting Finding Wonderland. My apologies it took me this long to circle around to visit your blog. 🙂
I haven’t watched the movie or seen the TV show, but I think I might try to some day. I kinda like the Shadowhunter idea, maybe it’ll play better on the screen than the page. Thanks for taking the time to comment back!