Focus on Reading - Week 14 - Let's Talk About Series

[Booknblues]

What do you look for in a series?
What types of series do you read?
What keeps you reading a series?
What are some of your favorite series?

[Book Concierge]

I'm not real big on series, in general. But there are a few that I love
The No 1 Ladies Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith - 1st book:

The Miss Julia series by Ann B. Ross - 1st book:

The Harmony series by Philip Gulley - 1st book:

The Chet & Bernie series by Spencer Quinn - 1st book:

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I usually get tired of the characters after about 4 or 5 of them and quit reading, but I'm still enjoying the books in the above series. (Finished Harmony and have re-read a couple)

[Patricia]

What do you look for in a series?
- I think the plot and the theme of the book

What types of series do you read?
- Young adult and middle-grade

What keeps you reading a series?
- When the first in a series of books seems interesting and I'm interested to read another series.

What are some of your favorite series?
My favorite series is The Lemonade War by Jacqueline Davies

A Boy Called Bat by Elana K. Arnold

Front Desk by Kelly Yang

Sheets by Brenna Thummler

Smile by Raina Telgemeier

Heartstopper: Volume One by Alice Oseman

[Ellen]

I enjoy reading series quite a bit. I look for a strong lead character that I can root for and want to spend time with for, sometimes, quite a few books.
Mostly I read mystery series but I have enjoyed a few others.
Some of my favorites starting with book #1:
Sworn to Silence by Linda Castillo
Iron Lake by William Kent Krueger
Open Season by C.J. Box
Open Season by Archer Mayor
Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear
At Home in Mitford by Jan Karon
any series by Michael Connelly and Harlan Coben

[Robin P]

I like series for the same reason I like long books, you get to spend a lot of time in a world. Not something like Agatha Christie, where Poirot never changes, but a continuing arc where the character and their cast of sidekicks develop over time. I like an interesting setting, so usually I read historical mysteries or romances. Some of my favorite series are (starting with book 1 is a good idea as a way to list them, thanks, Ellen!)

What Angels Fear by C. S. Harris (Regency mystery)
Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear (post WWI, except now it is up to WWII, and as I keep saying, I can NOT read anymore books about Nazis. I also didn't like what the author did to Maisie halfway through the series!)
Murder on Black Swan Lane by Andrea Penrose - Regency mystery
The Heiress of Linn Hagh by Karen Charlton - Regency mystery - I didn't realize I had so many of these. They are far from the Regency romances, much more of the underclass
The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R King- Sherlock Holmes and his much younger American partner - early 20th century
Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor - time travel, adventure, romance and humor
Dog on It by Spencer Quinn- modern detective stories narrated delightfully by a dog
Her Royal Spyness - 1930's England with humor
The Cold Dish by Craig Johnson - modern Western mystery, great sense of place and wonderful side characters, although I am halfway through and things seem to be getting darker

YA
Bloody Jack by L A Meyer
The War That Saved My Life (only 2 books but terrific for any age)
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe - also only 2 books but I'd sure read more

For most of these, I use audio, and a big part of it is hearing the wonderful voice of George Guidall, Katherine Kellgren, Jim Frangione, and others each time I enter their world. For the "Aristotle and Dante" books, the narrator, who is outstanding, is Lin-Manuel Miranda!

[Rachel N.]

I love series and I know I read a lot of them. I like spending more time with characters and seeing them develop. Two mystery series I enjoy that haven't been mentioned yet are:

A is for Alibi-Kinsey is a PI in the 1980's. The series began in the 80's and the author aged Kinsey in real time so it remained a retro look at the 80's

Bootlegger's Daughter- in the first book Deborah Knott is an attorney is North Carolina.

[Jgrace]

My audiobook addiction runs in parallel to the many series that I follow. When I'm listening, I like recurring characters with a predictable story arc. The voice artist can make or break a series for me. I've read, in actual text not audio, the first 3 books of Louise Penney's Armand Gamache series because I didn't like the audio performance. But that's very unusual for me. Most of my ongoing detective fiction are audiobooks.

I won't even try to count all fo the series that I follow, let alone list them. But:
I just finished A Line To Kill which is the third book in a mystery series by Anthony Horowitz. He features himself as the bumbling Watson to an abrasive private detective. Lots of fun.

Even better fun, The Thursday Murder Club series. So far only two books published. Can't wait for another one.

And later this month I'll be spending time with Davina Porter as she reads the newest Outlander book Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone.

[Theresa]

Great topic to discuss! I have been a crime fiction reader all my life, and a reader of historical and contemporary romance as well for most of my adult life. Series of all types have and continue to form a big part of my reading.

I read every kind of series, I think:
- a finite series like a trilogy where a world and story is told in several books but has a beginnning and end.
- a community-based series centered around a town or a family or a group of some kind or even an office/place of business (i.e. a university).
- a specific person centered series - usually a detective or an amateur detective who in book after book solves a murder or other mystery. There is often some overlap with community-based series because some non-central characters repeat and there is some evolution and sense of time passing.

What I look for in a series depends on the series type. If it is a finite series, I look for a complex plot that requires much to reach it's conclusion, plus interesting setting and characters. If I'm caught up at the end of the first in such a series and curious about what happens next, I read on. Two examples of recent finite series that I may never finish -- Broken Earth Trilogy by N.K. Jemisen The Fifth Season - I seriously doubt I will read the other 2, just not for me- -and A Discovery of Witches series -- 2nd book so dropped the plot and irritated me I may never read the third.

What I want in a community-based series is vivid portrayals of whatever the community is -- whether a town like Fool's Gold, CA in Susan Mallery, or a family like the Cynsters in Stephanie Laurens.

Probably the specific person centered series makes up the bulk of the crime fiction I have read and continue to read. It is the cornerstone after all of cozy mysteries. Probably a third of these see no real evolution to the main character or characters - Poirot is just Poirot. But most written today see some growth and evolution of the 'detective' both personally and in their lives. I do enjoy that.

Favorites: Well, a large number of those mentioned are on my list. I'll add a few that have not been mentioned by me or others already:

Dublin Murder Squad Series by Tana French - these actually are a blend of community and specific person centered.

Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, Happy Holisters -- all got me started as a serious reader and are definitley all specific person centered series. Add to these Rex Stout's Nero Wolf.

Joan Hess Maggody Series
Charlotte MacLeod - all 3 of her series
Carolyn G. Hart - Death on Demand - series
Martha Grimes - Richard Jury series starts with The Man With a Load of Mischief - series titles are all English pubs - often real ones.
Ashley Gardner - Captain Lacey regency series - first is The Hanover Square Affair
Andrea Penrose - Lady Arianna/Chocolate series - starts with Sweet Revenge
Kate Ross - Julian Kestrel series - first is Cut to the Quick

Finite series:

A Game of Thrones
LOTR
Murderbot *
A Dead Djinn in Cairo by P. Djèlí Clark*
Harry Potter

*These may not be so finite...

I don't often abandon a series completely - there may be a long hiatus before I pick it up again but I do continue them eventually. Usually I have stopped just because I've been really busy or distracted by other types of reading. Or both. But 2 series I abandonned in total irritation: the Aurora Teagarden series by Charlaine Harris and the Stephanie Plums by Janet Evanovich.

[Theresa]

Note: I've rapsodized plenty of times elsewhere over the Studly Men and Hunky Dog and other romantic suspense series I love. I did not repeat them here.

I also didn't mention that I am very fond of thrillers and adventure type series as well, even if they are less a 'must read the next' than those I listed -- and my response was getting too long. Some of those authors:

Lee Child
Nevada Barr
Michael McGarrity
Dana Stabenow

I also fogot to add all the series by Lindsey Davis set in Ancient Rome. And Elizabeth Peters Amelia Peabody historical series set in Egypt - first is Crocodile on the Sandbank

OK, I can stop now. I could go on for a very long time. Another reason I get behind in series...there are so many!

[Robin P]

I miss the website FictFact where you could track your series, there is one called Bookseriesinorder.com but I haven't checked it out much.

[Jgrace]

Robin P wrote: "I miss the website FictFact where you could track your series, there is one called Bookseriesinorder.com but I haven't checked it out much."

I'm with you, Robin. I miss FictFact.
I've been using https://www.fantasticfiction.com/
It's organized by authors, but that does allow me to keep track of series and I get notifications if a new book is added to an ongoing series.

[Theresa]

I too rely heavily on Fantastic Fiction to track series - doing by author doesn't bother me at all, but you can search author and title as well. I also like that it shows publication year and alternate titles. So much by really popular authors or ones that have been made into a movie under a different name, is being republished, this site helps me figure out if I read it or have it in TBR already.

It is also a great site to use when challenges have you reading a book by someone with your first name or a book title starting with the letter X, Q, or Z for example.

[Joy D]

What do you look for in a series?
I look for detailed description of a time and place (or world-building), a character you can root for, a complex storyline, great top notch writing. I also prefer books that are not cliffhangers so the individual book needs to have a satisfying resolution, even if it continues to the next book.

What types of series do you read?
I am generally not a fan of series. It feels like an excuse to keep selling books. I typically read the first book and never pick up another.

What keeps you reading a series?
The series needs to keep up a high level of quality (great writing, complexity of plot, character that learns or grows over time, an authentic feeling if historical).

What are some of your favorite series?
My all time favorites are:
- Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
- Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

Some very good ones I have finished (or plan to finish):
- The Regeneration Trilogy by Pat Barker
- His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman
- Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells
- The Border Trilogy by Cormac McCarthy
- Thomas Cromwell Trilogy by Hilary Mantel
- The MaddAdam Trilogy by Margaret Atwood
- The Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini
- The Henry Family by Herman Wouk

Some unusual series I plan to start or continue:
- The Bosnian Trilogy by Ivo Andrić
- The Warlord Chronicles by Bernard Cornwell
- The USA Trilogy by John Dos Passos
- The Seasonal Quartet by Ali Smith
- The Transylvania Trilogy by Miklós Bánffy

Non-Fiction:
-The Liberation Trilogy by Rick Atkinson

[Joanne]

Thanks for tip on FantasticFiction! I have used their site but never knew I could track there-YES! another way to spend time on the computer😂