If there’s anything we love more than a good book, it’s a good book series! There’s something really amazing about being able to follow a character’s story over multiple stories and get completely engrossed in their world.
In this blog post, Rose from East Grinstead shares some of her favourite book series – and she’s read a lot of them!
Here are her top picks, from duologies to trilogies and beyond:
Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunter series
A perfect blend of demon slaying, angel warriors, betrayal, friendship and romance, spanning The Infernal Devices trilogy, The Mortal Instruments series of 7 books, and The Dark Artifices trilogy, not to mention all the various spin offs.
They are completely binge worthy, with wonderful world building, fantastically flawed characters and a treasure trove of threads interlinking all the books from family lineages to random objects, to demons you thought were done for and somehow manage to stay alive, all while still managing to keep themselves distinctly separate.
King of Scars duology by Leigh Bardugo
Set in a fantasy, Russian-esque world with a Kind determined to save his people while also fighting to save his own sense of self after being brutally tortured – it’s a real page turner. Also, the sequel is out next year!
The All Souls trilogy by Deborah Harkness
Beautifully written, endless historical references and set within the lovely town of Oxford inhabited by witches, demons, vampires and humans – I mean, what more could you ask for?
Crazy Rich Asians trilogy by Kevin Kwan
A very funny set of stories, centring around one girl’s realisation that her boyfriend is one of the richest bachelors going and his family are now descending to meet her. Perfect escapism.
His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman
If you’re a fan of the new BBC series, I implore you to read these! They are lovely, following the story of Lyra and her daemon Pan, and their adventures through frozen wastelands, across rivers by barge with the Gyptians and in battle with the evil organisation trying to force children to grow up too soon.
Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella
A set of stories about Becky Bloomwood, from her young adult life where she’s struggling with money, all the way through various jobs, to getting married, discovering a long lost sister and working for Hollywood. It’s a great read!
Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer
Yes – I know, you either love or hate these books; but I personally much prefer the books to the films. They’re well written and even though the heroine, Bella Swan, can be a little annoying at times, she does stick to what she wants, which is to become a vampire and spend her life with the brooding Edward Cullen. Midnight Sun (the retelling of Twilight from Edward’s perspective) is a huge tome of a book that gives new life to the story by telling it from this angsty, surprisingly sweet vampire who only wants to protect the one he loves, from other threats as well as from himself.
Comfort Food Café series by Debbie Johnson
As the name suggests, these are a total comfort read, easy to pick up and put down and perfect for when you’ve had a bad day and want to curl up with something under a blanket. There are six of them and they are really good, with a different character picking up the narrative in each book yet still having the original characters, so I’d encourage you to give them a go.
This Savage Song duology by V.E. Schwab
Set in a world of monsters and monster hunters, this series follow Kate, a monster hunter, and August, a monster who is doomed to be misunderstood. Great for fantasy fans!
And that’s it – just a few series to keep your reading list going over the next few months! Happy reading!
Have you read any of the books Rose recommends above? If so, what did you think? Let us know by sending in a review, posting in our Facebook group or tweeting us @WSCCLibraries using the hashtag #MidSussexReadingChallenge.
If Rose has inspired you to give any of these books a go, you can reserve any of these titles to collect from your local library by visiting our library catalogue.
The views expressed in this review are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of West Sussex Libraries.
Mid Sussex Reading Challenge 2020 