My choice is the Harry Potter series, which you heard each of us weigh in on back in April. I chose HP because I consistently liked all of the books, even though the tone changes drastically from Sorcerer's Stone to Deathly Hallows. It does so gradually, getting a little more serious with each book.
I also love HP because it feels like you know these people. Like you could just strut right up to the Burrow and Molly Weasley would sit you down and make you lunch. As fantastic and magical as the story is, it feels more real than a lot of books out there.
And as much as I want to agree with the rest of the world and say that we need more HP books, I think the series is a good length. It spanned Harry's adolescence, told the story that needed to be told, and didn't overstay its welcome. (Though I'm convinced that this is partially because anyone paying attention within the first few chapters of Sorcerer's Stone knew there would be exactly seven books, so we knew what to expect all along, at least length-wise.)
I have a million and one series' that I've read over the years. And there are a TON that I love (Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, The Hungers Games. The list goes on.) But there's one that I really adore, and has actually been around awhile.
I know there's a lot of controversy over The Vampire Diaries. And, to be perfectly honest, I haven't read past book six (The Vampire Armand.) But, they're REALLY good, those first six book. We already know my feelings on book five.
If nothing else, you should read the first three books. You grow so attached to Louie and Lestat (ESPECIALLY Louie. I LOVE Louie.) You really get a great feel for the characters and Rice makes you fall in love with characters in such a short amount of time. It's uncanny and takes a lot of talent.
I know that she kind of got a little crazy and a lot religious, but there's a reason that The Vampire Chronicles sold so well and are still a big deal, almost 40 years later.
(A side note: I am unaware as to why we didn't have a vampire tag before today. Goodness knows we've talked about them enough.)
I know there's a lot of controversy over The Vampire Diaries. And, to be perfectly honest, I haven't read past book six (The Vampire Armand.) But, they're REALLY good, those first six book. We already know my feelings on book five.
If nothing else, you should read the first three books. You grow so attached to Louie and Lestat (ESPECIALLY Louie. I LOVE Louie.) You really get a great feel for the characters and Rice makes you fall in love with characters in such a short amount of time. It's uncanny and takes a lot of talent.
I know that she kind of got a little crazy and a lot religious, but there's a reason that The Vampire Chronicles sold so well and are still a big deal, almost 40 years later.
(A side note: I am unaware as to why we didn't have a vampire tag before today. Goodness knows we've talked about them enough.)
My vote is for Harry Potter as well, but, I will also throw in The Hunger Games as a close second. The Princess Bride is probably my favorite non-series fantasy. Also, what would you consider The Night Circus? Historical fiction or fantasy? Either way, that has fast become one of my favorites. The line is very blurred to me about what is fantasy and what is historical fiction. I would give a shout out to the book A Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare, because I enjoyed reading it, however, upon discovering that she is a massive plagiarizer, looking at those books makes me sad, and I will never read her stuff again.
ReplyDeleteI actually was contemplating a Scott Westerfeld series (The Risen Empire) but it's only two books long so I'm not sure that is classified as a SERIES, per se.
DeleteIt was actually kind of a coincidence that both of our picks ended up being fantasy books (though I would argue that vampires have become their own genre at this point.)
We classified The Night Circus as "fantasy" because, let's face it, it's about magic. Generally I think of Historical fiction as a book where you can pin point where in time it is, even if the events in the book might not be true.