
#SixforSunday is a fun weekly meme created by Steph @ alittlebutalot – check out the upcoming prompts here!
Today’s topic: Six heartwrenching endings to a book series
I’ll keep this list as spoiler-free as possible! This is going to be a difficult one to compile – I don’t think I’ve read many series with painful/bittersweet/sad endings – definitely more standalones. Perhaps when a reader has spent years getting to know and love these characters, they’re far less amenable to them not getting a nice ending. (I certainly fall into this camp!)

‘Monsters of Men’ (‘The Knife of Never Letting Go’, #3) by Patrick Ness
Genre: YA dystopian
My memory of reading the last parts of this conclusion to the ‘Chaos Walking’ trilogy is just a feverish blur of hiccuping sobs and cheeks smeared with tears. I still have to figuratively (well, sometimes literally) clutch my chest in emotional agony when I remember it.
‘Wayward Son’ (‘Simon Snow’, #2) by Rainbow Rowell
Genre: YA fantasy
I’m cheating slightly because there’s going to be a third book, but this is the last one as of now and with the way it ended (to be honest, the whole damn book) – ‘Wayward Son’ absolutely deserves a spot on this list.
‘The Amber Spyglass’ (‘His Dark Materials’, #3) by Philip Pullman
Genre: Fantasy (parallel universes)
It’s been, what, seven or eight years since I finished this trilogy? And I’m still not recovered from that ending. I even asked Pullman about it at a talk he gave, and needless to say I remain unsatisfied and rage futilely against the Thread of Fate (aka Mr Pullman).
‘Champion’ (‘Legend’, #3) by Marie Lu
Genre: YA dystopian
Technically this counts as a series ‘ending’ because it wraps up the story arc of the original protagonists (plus it was published six years ago). And my response: one word, Marie Lu. WHYYYYYYY. (I need to read ‘Rebel’ – book 4 – ASAP!)
‘Allegiant’ (‘Divergent’, #3) by Veronica Roth
Genre: YA dystopian (um, is this a trend?)
I was SHOCKED by how this ended. So stupefied, that it wiped my reader brain and I don’t actually remember much else from the series, other than the pivotal scene to which I am cryptically referring. And the one where Tris goes loopy in Book 2(?) after taking some kind of happy pill.
‘Raging Star’ (‘The Dustlands Trilogy’, #3) by Moira Young
Genre: YA dystopian (note to self: avoid dystopian fiction if you want to evade painful endings)
My general state when I remember how this series ended:

Thanks for reading! Have you read any of these? Did we share/differ in our reactions? Let me know below!

Great list! I keep meaning to read Rainbow Rowell’s books. They sound amazing!
Here’s mine http://bookwormsanonymous.blog/2020/05/10/sixforsunday-favourite-endings-to-a-series/
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I’ve only read her Simon Snow books and Pumpkinheads so far (and enjoyed them all), but I really want to read Fangirl too! Thanks for sharing your list 😀
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CHAMPION 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
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I wanted to throw the book across the room!!! I was like NO. UNACCEPTABLE.
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I need to reread that whole series before I read Rebel ….I DONT KNOW IF MY EMOTIONS CAN TAKE IT THOUGH
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AHHH ALLEGIANT RUINED YA DYSTOPIA FOR ME!
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I remember I just sat there in shock 😂 sorry to hear that it ruined YA dystopia for you though 😩
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