Wednesday 2 June 2010

Multiple Series/Same Author

Thanks for the suggestions last week. They will definitely keep my musings topics going for the next month or so.

This week I read a review of Anne Bishop's Black Jewels books - a series that I love. And it got me to thinking why I've never been able to get into the other series she writes. And why this seems to be the case with certain authors but others I can read all the series they write.

Black Jewels is a series I've enjoyed since I read the first trilogy. But I've not been able to get into either the Ephemera books or the Tir Alainn. I struggled through the first Tir Alainn book before giving up. I'm not sure if this is a case of subject matter not appealing or the writing style being subtly different. Is the association with the Black Jewels books so strong that I don't want to get into the other series?

When I was reading the Dark Hunter series by Sherrilyn Kenyon I was never interested in following her other series.

This isn't the case with all authors. I love Kelley Armstrong's writing whether it's the Otherworld series or the Nadia Stafford. In fact I think I'm more eagerly looking forward to the next Nadia book. And I love Lynn Viehl's Darkyn books and also the Stardoc books she writes as S.L. Viehl. Having said that I have yet to start her new Kyndred series though I've heard nothing but good things about the first book and it's been on my TBR pile for a while.

So do you think it's easier to follow multiple series if the authors stick to similar genres? Or does it have nothing to do with that? Are there series that you love and series that you hate written by the same author? Or are you faithful to whatever your favourite author writes?

I have a copy of Dark Thirst by Sara Reinke to giveaway to one poster to this thread. Winner chosen by random number at randomnumber.org on Saturday.

7 comments:

Chris said...

Hmm. I didn't like either the Nadia Stafford books or Armstrong's YA series... Not sure what it is. :)

(And not entering the contest.)

Sullivan McPig said...

I don't think it has to do with another setting but more with characters (for me anyway).
For example: I love the 'last herald mage' and the 'heralds of Valdemar' trilogies by Mercedes Lackey, but in that same setting there are lots of trilogies and loose books I do not like (because of the lead character), while I do love her Elemental Masters series which is a whole different series and setting.

Nastassia said...

I love Anne Bishop's Black Jewels series as well as her Ephemera books, but I don't like the the Tir Alainn series. I also love Lynn Viehl's Darkyn books but I've never read her Stardoc books and I don't think I ever will.I love the Dark Hunter series by Sherrilyn Kenyon, but I really can not read her other series , I tried once because I really love her DH series but I didn't like them. I don't think it has anything to do with similar genres, it's just whether I like story and the characters or not .

Sarai said...

I feel the same way about a lot of authors. Anne Bishop being a key to this. While I love love love the Black Jewels I just can't get into anything else she writes.

So far the only author I've been able to read just about anything they write is Ilona Andrews and Josh Lanyon. Both are fantastic and draw me into whatever world they are writing.

I almost wonder if the Black Jewel's world is just so strong its hard to imagine another world or characters that don't fit with it....

Nicole said...

I don't think my enjoyment of a book/series has anything to do with how many of the author's other works I've liked... though if I like one book by the author, I'm more likely to enjoy another book by the same author because I like the writing style.

To use an example already being tossed around: I love (most of) Kelley Armstrong's Otherworld series, and I like the YA books as well. I like both of these because I like and sympathize with the narrators. The Otherworld books I like least are the ones where I don't like the narrators as much. And I don't like the Nadia Stafford books. Not because I don't like the writing, but because I don't like Nadia much. I guess it's all personal preference.

(Don't enter me in this contest... I already have too many books on my TBR pile for now!)

Li said...

Good topic!

For a couple of authors mentioned, and this may sound harsh, but I think they've peaked, jumped the shark, whatever you want to call it - for instance, I loved Anne Bishop's original Black Jewel trilogy and the early prequel (The Invisible Ring, IIRC), thought Tir Alainn was okay, but Ephemera onwards lacked spark. Same with Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar books - I adore the Last Herald Mage and Arrows trilogies, like some of the subsequent books, but her recent ones really again lack something special, IMO.

Umm... on a different note, Catherine Asaro - I love her SF books, but never got into her fantasy ones. No idea why. I just never gelled with her view of fantasy (the names, especially!), so that was definitely a setting thing.

Agree Ilona Andrews and Josh Lanyon rarely put a foot wrong - though hmmm... I wasn't that impressed with Lanyon's spec fic last year (Strange Fortunes?), but very much liked his recent AU Britain novel.

LesleyW said...

Hmmm - I'm not sure we've come to any definite conclusions. Other than that it depends on the author, the series and the reader.