Let's Discuss: Series That Didn't Deserve Cancellation

 

So I feel like I might have talked about this once upon a time. A quick search did bring up my talking about different series that were cancelled and my devastation over them. Since I'm in one of those moods again, I thought I'd revisit it. 

Series That Didn't Deserve Cancellation

I feel like by now, we all might have at least one series we ADORED and then publishers decided sales weren't good enough and effectively cancelled them. There would be no last book...because I swear just about EVERY cancelled series of mine was on the LAST BOOK! And the authors had their reasons for not self-publishing the final book of the series...even if they announced at one point in time that they would. It's painful. Like extremely painful as a reader to hear that the author just didn't love a series of theirs like we did. I feel like a lot of authors might have lost their love for the story, and true, I wouldn't want them to not write their heart into a finale, but it still hurts knowing that characters' lives will forever remain hanging in the balance. Will they live, will they die...questions we'll never have answered.

You all know by now, my #1 series I still cry over is the Intertwined series by Gena Showalter.

Our boy Aiden, was legit about to go back in time to change the course of events!! TIME TRAVEL! We had other characters who were all separated for their own reasons and not knowing how they all get back together or if they get back together killed me. Gena had written a summary of what she wanted to happen, but it's since been deleted from her website.

What KILLS me even more is that the publisher redesigned the covers...for a series that they cancelled! Why redesign covers if you weren't wanting Gena to write a finale? I mean, I admit, I had a small twinge of hope that maybe the finale was upcoming, but that was ages ago that all this happened.

My second series I died when it was cancelled was the Spirits and Thieves series by Morgan Rhodes

Now my memory has really been shot with this one as I can't quite remember how things ended in the second book. There were cliffhangers to be sure. But yeah...I just remember falling in love with this series and being so into the characters. I loved that it was a crossover of sorts with the Falling Kingdoms world. I don't believe we ever got the chance to have the characters come face to face, whether that would've happen is something we'll never know.

My final pick is Jenna Black's Nightstruck series. I think this was meant to be a trilogy because alas, I again can't quite remember how the cliffhangers went with the last book but they were HUGE!

What I remember about this series was basically nightmares were coming to LIFE! Like literally, your worst nightmare was a living thing that was running around the streets causing terror. It started as something that happened at night, but soon they took over the daylight hours as well. If my horribly spotty memory recalls it was ending with the heroine, Becket doing something decidedly dangerous...and likely stupid in order to save what friends and family she had left. Which I think something was happening to her neighbors and such too. She and her crush were among the few left standing. Damn...this series was AWESOME! And yet, my memory is so clouded now. 

It's odd how my memories over these later series is a bit muddied yet I can remember clearer details over the oldest of these series. It could possibly be my own coping mechanism. After losing one series that I constantly talked about those last minute moments are clear in my head. In order to not have to have endless tears over more series I think I made myself NOT talk about their loss so I wouldn't remember them as well.

I always had hope that one day these series could return. I remember having a series that was cancelled and yet, 6 years later, the finale was written and published and it was oh so wonderful! Well, Jenna's series hit the 5 year mark and Morgan's is at 6 and Gena's is even longer. It seems official. These series will not be revived. There will be no answers, there will be no happy endings. Just because an author will say things would've ended happily ever after, doesn't really do it for me. I mean, it's a nice gesture, but at the same time...would it? I've had series that didn't end happily ever after and they were the series finales. So who knows what kind of endings these series would've had.

 

Have you ever had a series cancelled on you that continued to haunt you over the years? I still have these books on my shelves. I haven't had the strength to pull them off and set them in a box to make room for new series. It's hard to let go. It's hard to move on without that closure, you know? Am I crazy or is this completely normal for a reader?