Continuing A Series After The Author's Death

The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy, The Wheel of Time and The Millennium Series, all have something in common (besides being on my bookshelves); after the death of their authors, someone else has continued the series. Why does an author feel compelled to do that, finish someone else's series? Is it love? Why does a publisher go ahead with this? Is it money? Is it also love?

Though all these series are in my home, I haven't read them all. The Wheel of Time is my Hubby's. I'm not sure if I'll read it one day or not. I want to, but the books are huge! I have read The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo and recently The Girl Who Played With Fire (finally), but not The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest. I don't know why, I suppose I just haven't gotten around to it. I have read the five Hitchhiker books and loved them. Was I a fan of the ending? Not necessarily, but it felt like an ending; it was complete. When I heard about Eoin Colfer's book And Another Thing, as a continuation, I was excited and hesitant. I managed to pick it up (a long time ago - my son was an infant) at a charity book sale. It still sits unread on my shelf.

I've been thinking about this lately. I've also been making an effort to read the books that have been on my shelf for a while, like And Another Thing.  I'm so hesitant to read it, but I want to and I want to love it.  I'm concerned that my expectations are too high. I know Hitchhikers isn't for everyone, but I loved it. What if I hate this "sixth" book?  Would it ruin the series for me? Would my ire be worse than normal? Am I over thinking this?

What do you think about authors who continue a series?  I know I mentioned The Wheel of Time, but that was a different case, right? From what I understand, the series was clearly not finished and Brandon Sanderson worked from Robert Jordan's notes. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.  That is not the case with Millennium, as the author is creating a completely new work, not using the partially finished manuscript Stieg Larrson's girlfriend controls (not that I expect anyone to ever have a chance to finish that novel).  I don't know if Douglas Adams left notes for another book.  Did Eoin Colfer write a book to give himself and fans a better ending to the series? I thought the end of Adams' fifth book was pretty final.

I should just read them, right? No? Do I want to read David Lagercrantz's The Girl in the Spider's Web? I don't know. Yes and no.  If I ever decide to read The Wheel of Time, I will read the books written by Sandersen. That case is different, right? I would go into the series knowing it would be finished by someone else. I finished Hitchhikers years before Colfer wrote his book.  I started reading Millennium as a trilogy. I love reading, and I want to give authors a chance. My fear is that they will change how I feel about Larsson and Adams' work. Though at the rate I'm going, it'll be years before I get around to reading these books.

What A Surprise! Top Ten Books I Thought I'd Like MORE/LESS Than I Did

This week The Broke and The Bookish want to know what are the Top Ten Books I Thought I'd Like MORE/LESS Than I Did.  I decided to split the list, 5 each.  They're in no particular order.  Hopefully my ramblings are understandable.

I thought I'd like MORE:

(aka, Disappointed)

1. Heavenly Date and Other Flirtations, by Alexander McCall Smith - Everyone seems to love Smith's No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency books.  I'd heard such good things about them. When I saw a copy of Heavenly Date and Other  Flirtations not only did I pick it up because of Smith's reputation, but I love short stories and I liked the title.  I was sadly disappointed.  I've since read another of Smith's books, a novel, not No. 1 Ladies, and also didn't really like it.  He's not a bad writer, just something about his style doesn't appeal to me.

2. Girl meets boy, by Ali Smith - Girl meets boy is a book from the Canongate Myth Series.  Up until this installment, I had enjoyed each Myth book.  They're all by different authors, so perhaps there was bound to be one I didn't really like.  It's a slim 149 pages, but it took ages for me to get through.

3. Undead Reckoning, by Mike Slabon - I was really looking forward to this self-published zombie-fantasy novel.  I've been getting more into zombies (perhaps blame Walking Dead) and I want to support self-published authors and Slabon seems like a genuinely nice guy.  I really wanted to love this book, but sadly didn't.

4. The Sweetness At The Bottom Of The Pie, by Alan Bradley - Why do people love The Sweetness At The Bottom Of The Pie?  I expected to love it too.  They synopsis, what other people were saying, all indicated to me that I would enjoy the book.  I found Flavia so irritating, I just couldn't handle it.

5. Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen - Unlike the other books on this list, I really liked Pride and Prejudice.  I loved Lizzy and Darcy; all the characters were fantastic.  It's a great story.  I read it after I read Sense and Sensibility, which I loved.  The way people spoke about Pride and Prejudice, I expected to love it more than Sense and Sensibility and that just didn't happen.  So while I still enjoyed it, I didn't love it the way I expected.  Right now, Sense and Sensibility is my favourite Austen.

I thought I'd like LESS:

(aka, Pleasantly Surprised)

1. The Casual Vacancy, by J.K. Rowling - So many people were complaining about The Casual Vacancy.  It wasn't Harry Potter, it was long, it was boring.  If you went in expecting it to be like Harry Potter then yes, you'd be disappointed, but I knew it wouldn't be.  I read the synopsis.  More than one it was mentioned that this was a book for adults.  It actually reminded me a bit of a Stephen King book.  I really liked it.

2. The Deception of Livvy Higgs, by Donna Morrissey - I knew I'd like Livvy Higgs, I just didn't know I'd love it!  I could seriously gush about it, but it would probably be simpler to read my review.

3. Living Dead In Dallas (Sookie Stackhouse #2), by Charlaine Harris - I read the first book in the series, Dead Until Dark and liked it.  I didn't think it was spectacular, but I had a box set and figured I'd eventually get to the rest of the books.  A while later I read Living Dead In Dallas and that was the surprise   Book 2 hooked me into the series.  I read five books in about two weeks, which is pretty fast for me.  Then, I borrowed book 8 because I just had to know what happened next. (I'm not going to talk about the most recent books.)

4. To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee - I figured Lee's novel would be okay.  There would be some historical/societal/social stuff, but I didn't know.  I didn't know how amazing this novel really is and why EVERYONE should read it.  Everyone.

5. The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy: A Trilogy in Five Parts, by Douglas Adams - My hubby told me to read it.  He usually only reads fantasy, but here he was trying to get me to read sci-fi.  I didn't know how awesome  Hitchhiker's  was.  I want to re-read it.  Multiple times.

Where Are We? Top Ten Settings I’d Like To See More

I was very interested by this week's topic at The Broke and The Bookish.  They are asking what are the top ten settings we'd like to see more.  I think I'd have an easier time answering the top ten settings I never want to see again.  I've read some pretty sad, tragic, amazing, I-would-never-want-to-go-there books.  Too much dystopian maybe?

In no particular order:

1.  Narnia – I know it’s never going to happen, but I can wish, right?

2.  Saskatchewan – Seriously.  Richard Ford did a great job (in my opinion) at portraying life in rural Saskatchewan and I found it really interesting.

3.  Montreal – I have always loved visiting Montreal, but I don’t know if I’ve ever read a book set there.  Any recommendations?

4.  The Universe of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – I know Eoin Coffer wrote a book continuing the series.  I have that book, but I’m nervous about reading it since I loved Douglas Adams’ series so much.

5.  Tropical Islands – Again, any recommendations?  I read a lot of books set in cities and the country, but nothing on an island in recent memory.

6.  An Office – Does nothing interesting ever happen in an office?

7.  The North Pole – Just because.  It would be different from anything I've read.

8.  The Desert - See # 7.

9.  Alternate Realities - I like the "What if?" question.  What if some big, significant event didn't happen, how would that affect the world we live in now?

10.  Hotel Rooms - Maybe this is because I just read 1408.

What settings would you like to see more?  Anywhere you've never read about?

It’s Hot Out Here!

It’s been a while since I participated in a Top Ten Tuesday, from the Broke and The Bookish, but I saw this week’s topic, Top Ten Beach Reads and started listing off books in my head.  There are more than ten here.  Most of the books I’ve listed are actually series.  They are in no particular order.

1. The Hunger Games series, by Suzanne Collins
2. The Harry Potter series, by J.K. Rowling
3. Twilight series, by Stephenie Meyer
4. The Southern Vampire/Sookie Stackhouse series, by Charlaine Harris
5. The Undead series, by MaryJanice Davidson
6. Wither and Fever, by Lauren DeStefano
7. The Legend of Drizzt series, by R.A. Salvatore
8. World War Z, by Max Brooks
9. Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, by Gregory Maguire
10. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series, by Douglas Adams

What will you be reading at the beach?

Don’t Stop! Top Ten Books To Read In A Day

Some of these Top Ten Books are to Read In A Day, because they are quick reads.  Others are for one day reading because it's difficult to put them down.

1.     The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins - You could potentially read the whole series in a day.

2.     Dead Until Dark, by Charlaine Harris - It's easy to fall for Sookie and Bill in one day.

3.     Undead and Unwed, by Maryjanice Davidson - Decide if you love Betsy or can't stand her craziness.  I love her and you can decide in a day.

4.     Confessions of a Shopaholic, by Sophie Kinsella - You can get excited and feel embarrassed with Becky.  Go through this fun Chick Lit adventure easily in one day.

5.     Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, by J.K. Rowling - It's been so long since I read the first Harry Potter book.  It would be nice to sit back and take in Harry's first adventure in just a day.

6.     A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Houseinni - It would be a long, emotional day and you might cry at the end, but this book is so difficult to put down.

7.     The Gum Thief, by Douglas Coupland - Coupland's writing is so fluid, it is difficult tear yourself away; you want to know what is going to happen to these characters.

8.     Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams - So good and fun and I think it would be easy to read in a day.

9.     The Helmet of Horror, by Victor Pelevin - I read this in a day by accident.  It was such an easy read, I was sitting with my hubby and the next thing I knew it was done!

10. The Penelopiad, by Margaret Atwood - An easy, potentially one-day read, for any Atwood fan.  You really want to know what happens to Penelope in end.

Except for The Helmut of Horror, all of these books took me more than a day to read.  It's been a long time since I've had the kind of time where I can just sit and read my time away.  But if I was without the children, maybe on a vacation or something, I could read any of those books in a day.

Thanks to The Broke and The Bookish for another great topic.

I Want More!

First my post published before it was ready, then it was deleted altogether.  I also can't get rid of the background...  This post did not go smoothly...


The Broke and The Bookish really made me think this week.  I wasn't sure if I could make it, but here are the Top Ten authors I wish would [have] write[n] more. Except for the first book, they are in no particular order.

1. Harper Lee - She wrote one of the best books of the twentieth century, To Kill A Mockingbird. She's in her eighties now, with no plans to ever write a second book.
2. Lauren DeStefano - Oh, wait...  After I read Wither, I was so sad that there was nothing else by her, now I'm eagerly waiting.
3. Khaled Hosseini - It has been five years since A Thousand Splendid Suns was published, one of my favourite novels. 
4. J.R.R. Tolkien - He wrote some literary criticism and started other things, but nothing like Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit.
5. Emily Brontë - Love it or hate it, Wuthering Heights is an English classic.  It is a dark, moody story and I would have loved to see what else this Brontë sister could have created.
6. Alice Sebold - It has been five years since, The Almost Moon. The Lovely Bones was intense. She' only 48, What's next?
7. J.K. Rowling - How difficult must it be to even begin something new after the massive success of Harry Potter?  I do hear there is something new in the works, but who knows when that will come out.
8. Douglas Adams - I loved the Hitchhicker's series. I should read The Salmon Doubt, my husband owns a copy.
9. Stieg Larsson - I think the only mystery writer I like.
10. Sylvia Plath - The Bell Jar was amazing. She also wrote brilliant poetry, but I can't help that she wrote more novels.


Who do you wish wrote more?

Top Ten Tuesdays: Top Ten Couples in Literature

I’ve decided to again join in The Broke and The Bookish’s Top Ten Tuesdays. The first five couples came to mind easily. The rest took a little thought. Once I had the first four down, I decided to expand and include favourite couples from different genres.



1. Elizabeth Bennett and Fitzwilliam Darcy – Lizzy and Darcy are the staring couple in Pride and Prejudice. They are probably number one on a lot of lists.


2. Elinor Dashwood and Edward Ferrars – Sense and Sensibility was Austen’s first published work. Though in love, Elinor and Edward never let their “sensibilities” overtake them. They use their “sense” instead.


3. Jane Eyre and Edward Rochester – The madwoman in the attic won’t keep this couple apart! Jane Eyre made me love classic literature.


4. Romeo and Juliet – Unlike the first four couples, Romeo and Juliet doesn’t have a happy ending. However, they’ve influenced countless stories about star-crossed lovers.


5. Superman/Clark Kent and Lois Lane – There is no comic couple that has endured the way Lois and Clark have. Their story has been written and re-written countless times. There have been comics, novels, television shows and movies, where even if it isn’t obvious, their love is always there.


6. Wesley and Buttercup – Okay, I haven’t actually read The Princess Bride, but I’ve seen the movie. A lot. My husband has read the book and he says the movie is pretty close. (I will read it eventually.) Wesley and Buttercup are cute and sweet. They fight the bad guy and live happily-ever-after.


7. O-Lan and Wang Lung – I recently read and reviewed The Good Earth. I still can’t even get over what an amazing novel it is. Thought not really in love, they are a partnership.


8. Drizzt and Cattie-Brie – They are a couple that began in 1988 with the Forgotten Realms novel, The Crystal Shard. No matter what genre I read, I appreciate strong female characters. Though Drizzt is the hero of these books, Cattie-Brie provides balance (and she can kick butt in a fight).


9. Arthur Dent and Trillian – They’re not your typical couple. They don’t live happily ever after. The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy takes them everywhere, but they end up back at home. (I have read the five books by Douglas Adams. I have not read the new one by Eoin Colfer. I’m scared to.)


10. Aragorn and Arwen – He’s the rugged hero of The Lord Of The Rings, she’s the beautiful elven princess. There’s no real logic to why they are one of my favourites. Maybe the movie influenced me. I don’t care. They make me happy. (I thought of replacing them with Sam and Frodo. I know they weren’t a “couple”, but they were together more than any other pair in the books.)


That’s it! I considered Odysseus and Penelope, but all that waiting and they didn’t give me the same good feelings. I also considered Layla and Mariam from A Thousand Splendid Suns, but like Frodo and Sam they’re not a real couple. They were more like sister-wives (Big Love/polygamy reference). Anne and Gilbert also came to mind, but I never finished the Anne series, so I don’t know how they end up. There was also Sookie and Bill or Sookie and Eric, but I don’t know which couple I prefer.


I thought this was going to be difficult, but then I ended up with so many options!


Who are your favourite literary couples?

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- Chuck Palahniuk VERSUS Douglas Adams

Vote for your favourite author. I like Douglas Adams, but Chuck Palahniuk gave the world Fight Club.

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- Chuck Palahniuk VERSUS Douglas Adams