Only the First

This morning I was scrolling through my Goodreads profile looking at all of the books I have read over the past several years, and I was amazed at the number of books that I don't remember. At all. I look at the title and think, "Did I lie when I added that book? I've never even heard of it!"

It makes me sad that there are so many forgettable books. It also makes me sad that I have wasted so much of my time on those books because, let's be honest, if they were good books, I would remember them. Which means I have read a lot of not-great books in my life.

I have this fear, though, that if I give up on a book, I will miss something incredible. A long time ago, when I was first becoming a reader (I have not always loved reading - it is something I needed to explore and learn), I discovered that very few books capture me in the first 100 pages. Some books take up to 200 pages to earn my affection. For this reason, I usually follow a 100 Page Rule: I will give a book 100 pages before giving up on it. Many times I will read the first 100 pages, then the next 100 pages, and even though the book has not yet proved itself, I keep reading because A) I'm so far into the book that I might as well just finish it or B) I'm worried that something amazing will finally happen sometime in the next 25 pages (admit it, it would be very unfortunate to give up on a book on page 203 when the book becomes amazing on page 217) (but at the same time, I curse the author that takes that long to get to the good parts). It does happen, though - sometimes I keep reading "just in case," and I am rewarded. Such was the case with Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein and Russian Winter by Daphne Kalotay - I am glad I kept reading.

That is all to say that I end up finishing a lot of so-so books just to confirm that they are, in fact, so-so.

But that is not at all what I was going to say in this post (oh, how the mind wanders!)

When I started typing, I intended to discuss my complicated relationship with YA series.

I think we can all admit that there are way too many subpar series out there. I am guilty of reading some of those series, and going into them knowing that they are subpar and enjoying them anyway (hello Infernal Devices trilogy!)

There are other series, though, that have much more promise at the onset, and therefore I set my expectations high based on the first book. They start out fantastic and then plummet into the so-so during the subsequent books and leave me utterly disappointed.

Thus, here are five first books from YA series that I wish had been published as stand-alone novels:

1. Delirium by Lauren Oliver

2. Partials by Dan Wells

3. Blood Red Road by Moira Young

4. Birthmarked by Caraugh M. O'Brien

5. Uglies by Scott Westerfield

Of course they are all dystopian or post-apocalyptic books, and there is obviously some law somewhere that says such books can not be published as single books or someone will be hanged - leading publishers to only offer contracts to authors who agree to write a series even when that wasn't their original intent.

But really, any one of these books would have been good enough on its own with a couple of simple modifications.

And there would be less love triangles in the world!

(Or squares, which one of these series has).

(Seriously! A love SQUARE! For crying out loud!)

So if you're looking for a good book, read those. And then STOP! Don't let the cliffhanger endings invite you in!