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Do you prefer novels to have a happy ending?
I once read a romance novel when I was a teenager and it did not have a happy ending. I was extremely upset bc I wanted the characters to be together. Since that day I have never read any kind of book that does not have a happy ending. I think with any genre the books should always have a happy ending, the good guys defeat the bad guys.
I do have a soft spot for un-happy endings. Sometimes they're so refreshing.But sometimes they're devastating :(
I also like to read books with happy endings... I mean, that is why I read mostly, because I want to feel happy. But it also depends on the genre. Horror or dystopian I expect a bad ending, but a romance simply must have a HEA.
Not necessarily, depends on the genre. Many real life stories don't have happy endings. I think we might all prefer them, but, it's not how life works...B
It all depends on what you consider a happy ending. So what do you consider a happy ending? :)
Endings that leave an open ending, as in, open to interpretation are equally as good as a happy ending. Perhaps an ending that makes the reader think or calls something into question!
I don't dislike happy endings, but I really can't stomach the REALLY happy endings. You know the ones where whole plot lines have to twist in order to make sure EVERYONE gets one. This is especially true in romances. Fall in love, sure. But if the last 10 pages is dedicated to the giant ring, sappy proposal, have may baby, bla bla bla I just cringe. More than one book has been ruined for me like that.
Yes, I like for there to be a happy ending. I read mostly romance novels, so that's sort of expected. I do prefer they be somewhat believable though. I hate the ones where one minute there is this huge issue, and then five pages later it's swept under the rug and everything is all roses.
Sadie wrote: "I don't dislike happy endings, but I really can't stomach the REALLY happy endings. You know the ones where whole plot lines have to twist in order to make sure EVERYONE gets one. This is especiall..."Totally agree - which is why I avoid reading romances.
Vardan wrote: "It all depends on what you consider a happy ending. So what do you consider a happy ending? :)"I suppose I mean one that gives hope for the future, where good wins over bad. A friend told me she'd never read a book that didn't end happily, which is what got me thinking about the issue.
My instinct is to say that yes, I prefer happy endings but occasionally it is nice to read the opposite as they're not as predictable. Having said that I am always left heart broken when the people don't end up with the ones I want them to!!
not necessarily. It becomes monotonous and unreal that way...
I agree. I dont like feeling depressed. I want a happy ending with vengeance for the evil and all good things for the heros. That s why I like Jane Austen. I did not like the novel GONE GIRL precisely because it had an open ended creepy ending.
Must have HEA absolutely. Real life is hard enough I read to escape. I remember reading a romance book back when I was a teenager and it had the heroine dying in the end in childbirth and the hero being sad and never finding someone again. What the hell kinda ending is that!? For years afterward I would read the endings of books first so not to be manipulated by an author that way again.
Julie wrote: "Must have HEA absolutely. Real life is hard enough I read to escape. I remember reading a romance book back when I was a teenager and it had the heroine dying in the end in childbirth and the hero ..."My beta reader read a romance once where the hero got shot two chapters from the end. It totally ruined it for her. If there isn't an HEA, then it shouldn't be labeled a romance.
I like a book to at least have a positive, or hopeful, ending. It doesn't have to be sappy. I hate that literary fiction these days seems to require the death or unhappiness of a main character at the end.
I agree. I like a happy ending; yet, when I do not get a happy ending, at first, I want to scream and then say, "What the..." However, unhappy endings make you dwell on the book longer to come up with a reasonable answer to the plot. What is the author trying to say to me or society. If I get what the author trying to say, I may weigh it stronger. Yet, then again, I may not.
A great question. I like both, it depends on what the story needs to feel complete. I enjoy tragic endings that cause a deep emotional response, it's more real. Then again, for a different story, the HEA is a must. I don't like predictable, and if I can't guess the way a story's heading - I love it even more. Romance is my favourite, but I like - believable. By stating that a story is traditional / non-traditional, takes away the element of surprise, happy or sad. Though I understand people want to know prior to reading. Does it make a difference if reader is aware of a sequel? The promise of more.
I enjoy the non-traditional if there is a good reason for departure and the promise of more. If it is a stand-alone book, I would prefer a traditional happy. :O)
It depends greatly on the novel.
For me, it depends greatly on the genre of the book, if it's a thriller or a mystery, then I don't necessarily expect a happy ending. So if the book doesn't end well, I don't mind it so much. However, if I'm reading a romance, then I am expecting a happy ending so if I don't get one, then I can be quite gutted.
I remember reading a historical romance novel where the hero died at the end, and I sat there looking at the book with an expression of "What the....??" on my face for at least 10 minutes.
I remember reading a historical romance novel where the hero died at the end, and I sat there looking at the book with an expression of "What the....??" on my face for at least 10 minutes.
First of all, if it's a series I like each book to end with something intriguing or mysterious. Something that makes me want to read the second book. Basically, I want a good feeling at the end of any book I read. Who wants to read a book when at the end of it you think - wow, that's depressing! It's the same with movies. If the movie ends badly, I walk away kind of sad and depressed.
I like a hopeful, positive ending or Im not happy after I read the book, especially if Im reading for entertainment.
I like novels with an optimistic ending, if nothing else
In my honest opinion, happy endings are too common.Today we live in a world where stories are given stereotypical Hollywood-style "lovey dovey" endings. And for the most part, it can potentially ruin the book. Hollywood is boring, clichéd and outdated. In my eyes.
Books which leave the reader hanging in deep thought, a cliffhanger where the possible endings are only limited by the reader's imagination, in my opinion, engages more interest in the book. It prompts readers and fans to discuss the book in social circles and theorise possible endings. Those social circles will catch the interest of other readers, who may purchase the book to check it out for themselves. Humans, being very curious creatures who since the beginning of time seem to enjoy asking endless questions, will then want to buy the author's next book for the next mysterious ending.
Other than those, I also enjoy books which do not have a happy ending. After all, real life isn't all butterflies and roses. In this era we are suffering the effects of recession, debt, social change and the threat of constant war. Books which reflect on these will most likely reach out to the readers more, because they have some sense of the current real-life world enclosed within them, helping the reader to actually feel "in the story".
In books and movies, generally, the hero saves the world in the end and gets the girl. Or the stereotypically stressed office clerk finds the love of her life in unusual circumstances and lives happily ever after. Same old, same old. Yawn.
Kill them off in the end. End the world. Give humankind no hope for survival. This is what people want to read these days, according to the readers that I have spoken to. Dystopia novels are the ones topping the charts right now - Hunger Games, Divergent Trilogy... even Orwell's 1984 and Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 are picking up the sales again.
As for a romance that doesn't end happily, other than Romeo & Juliet which everyone knows, - look at the ORIGINAL 'The Little Mermaid' by Hans Christian Andersen, before Walt Disney got his hands on it and before Hans' editors changed the ending to make it "less traumatic for children". In the original version the mermaid found it excruciatingly painful to walk on her new legs and her tongue was cut out (in exchange for the legs because she had a beautiful voice) so she couldn't talk. The prince ends up marrying someone else instead of her, so she is given a knife to kill him with. But she doesn't go through with it and commits suicide.
Conclusion
Happy endings: Cliché. Boring. Usually unrealistic.
Cliffhangers: Thought provoking. Gets people talking about the book.
Unhappy endings: Uncommon but not cliché. Unexpected shock value. More likely to be realistic.
-- Scott A. Butler
I prefer endings that make sense for the characters and the journey they are on. A happy ending for its own sake is just as much of a tragedy as an ending that leaves the reader wondering where the rest of the chapter is.
Tinath Zaeba (Tizzy/Titly) wrote: "It depends greatly on the novel."Same for me.
Great question! I think most people enjoy a happy ending, but is it a requirement for me to enjoy a book? NO!Real life happens and not everything has a happy ending. I book that always has a happy ending is too predictable to me. I like when books are a bit sad, but not exceedingly gory or depressing. I couldn't get past 50 pages of Lovely Bones because of the gruesome plot.
I just read Patron Saint of Liars and I loved it even though it did not have a happy ending and I did not "like" the main character. It was well-written, deep and I the other characters made the book a good one.
I think it's pretty ridiculous to expect every book you read to have a happy ending. I don't need to author to tie up every loose end and make everyone happy, it's just not always realistic.
Wow, thanks to everyone for their great comments! I'll write a blog post in the near future on this topic.
I don't mind how they end - as long as they leave me thinking..... Honestly, I enjoy feeling hopeful at the end of a novel.
I feel the same way Roma. I used to long for a happy ending in a book or movie, and would get so disappointed if things didn't work out. But, now I don't mind closing a book at the end and having that feeling of sadness, if you want to call it that!
To me, it completely depends on the book itself. I love endings that make me think, and many of those are unhappy. If it's an ending that makes sense to the story, it doesn't matter if it's happy or not.
For Romances, a happy ending is a big requirement. It's pretty much brain candy for me.For other genres, its kind of up to the story and what constitutes and happy ending. It's not a book, but for those who saw Gravity, was that a happy ending? (view spoiler) I was satisfied. Anything else would have seemed forced/dishonest.
If the book makes an impression on me and leaves me thinking about it for days afterward, I'm okay with unhappy endings. I don't mind of characters die or other bad things happen if it makes sense within the story world.
The concept of living happily ever after is a pleasant thought; however, it is not realistic in all circumstances. I prefer novels to be realistic and believable. If all turns out well in the end, that's fine; as long as the circumstances leading up to the happy ending are not contrived or unbelievable. I personally do not believe in miracles.
I am ok with an ending that is not happy but I am not ok with an ending that is rushed or incomplete. Sometimes it seems like an author runs out of words or gets tired of the book they are writing and they end the book without tying up all the loose ends leaving the reader unsatisfied with a book that is otherwise a great read.
I love happy endings, but I don't want the author to give a book a happy ending if it seems forced. If there really is no perfect solution to the problems characters face, that can often be used as a wonderful plot tool in itself. An example would be the Hunger Games. I do want endings to have a decent amount of resolution though, or else I will end up feeling really unsatisfied.
One of my favorite authors was the ancient Greek playwright Euripides. He made a point against forced happy endings by digging his characters into real, seriously dangerous and thought-provoking situations, and then purposefully ruining it all by utilizing a "deus ex machina" (literally a god appearig out of nowhere to make everything right again) that completely resolved the conflict within a couple of pages. An excellent stance against forced happy endings.
Im satisfied as long as the ending is a realistic one and follow the logic of the story. I hate when writers basically ruin a good plot just to put a every-one-is-happy-everything-is-perfect kind of ending or a really long epilogue of the same type. I dont want it to be predicatable. I want it to seem real...
Agreed, the ending HAS to be realistic. Since most of the books I read have a lot of conflict (paranormal, fantasy, etc), my favorites tend to be bittersweet endings.For example, I HATED the ending of Twilight. It built up to this big thing, then deteriorated, like air slowly being let out of a balloon...
Then again, I don't like practically all my favorite characters dying either. Like Harry Potter -.- Don't get me wrong, the ending was good overall. There was just a little too much death.
Guess it depends what you mean by 'happy'. I like an ending to be satisfactory in terms of coming up with a resolution rather than a dash to tie up all the relationship threads so everyone ends up okay.
Thanks to everyone for their contributions! I've now done my blog post on this topic. You can find it here:http://www.maggiejamesfiction.com/blo...
Got in on this late, but wanted to comment. I agree with Jackie, satisfactory might be better. While I prefer the conventional "happy" ending, I also find that even sad or bittersweet ending are good if you feel satisfied.
Not really. I wouldn't have liked The Fault in Our Stars even half as much as I do now if it had a happy ending. I like HEAs but only if they are realistic. The books that don't have one leave a lasting effect on us. For instance, if everyone had survived in Mockingjay, we wouldn't have had those awesome alternate endings. In fact, people would just have been like, yeah, the Capitol lost, no big deal.
Okie wrote: "I prefer endings that make sense for the characters and the journey they are on. A happy ending for its own sake is just as much of a tragedy as an ending that leaves the reader wondering where the..."Yes, I think the ending has to be the one that has grown naturally out of the characters and their experiences...
At the end of Knut Hamsun's HUNGER, he abruptly gets a job on a boat and leaves Christiania...in a way, this is a triumph as he is escaping the place where he was so miserable, but the reader perhaps doubts that he is going to necessarily have an easier life at sea.
I like happy endings, especially when the characters have gone through bad times. I also think sad endings can work well. It's up to the author to decide, I guess.
Happy endings are always nice but the occasional sad or surprising kind are enjoyable to me. If I read nothing but happy endings I get bored. Surprises sometimes makes the best books.
Jessica wrote: "Happy endings are always nice but the occasional sad or surprising kind are enjoyable to me. If I read nothing but happy endings I get bored. Surprises sometimes makes the best books."I like how you said that Jessica. I feel the same way and need the diversity. Whether it's happy or sad, I also like true ending where the author lets the readers know whats happened to the characters.
I like endings which resolve most things, but not all. I want to feel like there's more to the characters' lives and stories beyond a nicely ribboned ending, happy or sad.
I like books with a happy ending. Assures me that it'll all be ok at the end. I also like books that have an open ending as it lets the reader's imagination take a guess on what happens at the end.
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Scott A. Butler (other topics)Maggie James (other topics)
Maggie James