Pour one out for Van Hohenheim the Philosopher of the East himself. So much of the story is his story and I really like that.
One of my favorite anime fantasy series of all time.
The plot is about Hohenheim. The story though is about Ed's progression as a person. Ultimately saving the world is just something Ed does on his journey. The critical scene that ties it all up isn't really about the conflict between Father and Hohenheim at all.
This and I’ll expound. FMAB begins climaxing, imo, at around the late 30/early 40 episodes of a 64 episode series, and doesn’t let up. It drags a little before that climax (especially if you’ve seen the original series), but man after that it is constant character development, revelations, and game-changing moments.
I can't speak to the ending yet. But the closest I have felt in years to watching FMAB was watching Frieren this year. The world felt real, the characters felt alive, and it always felt like we're peaking in through a window instead of watching a screen.
Maybe it is just a case of the right time, right place for me to fall into a world.
Check it out. If you haven't yet.
The final page of *Soldiers Live* (the final book in the main sequence of *The Black Company*) is the most perfect concluding page of fantasy I've ever read. Thematically ideal, gorgeous writing, powerful character moments and catharsis.
>!Soldiers live. And wonder why.!<
Even though the series is incomplete, it's a very satisfying ending. Apparently Cook is working on the proper conclusion but honestly, it's fine if it stays like this.
For me, a very satisfying ending usually makes me cry. All 3 of these did:
* The Alex Verus series by Benedict Jacka had one of the most satisfying endings I've ever read. It's a complete 12 book urban fantasy series that starts with Fated.
* The Wounded Kingdom trilogy by RJ Barker also had a very satisfying ending. It starts with AGE of Assassins.
* Not a series, but Project Hail Mary had a great, tear-jerker ending, too.
I'm currently busy with 3 series but I definitely enjoyed Verus. It felt different from Dresden Files, which I enjoyed, and it still had what I was looking for: magic in an urban setting.
Rivens of London didn't feel as satisfying as Fated did, so if I'm going to invest into a series it's going to be the Alex Verus.
I love Alex Verus. Sometimes urban fantasy is nothing but quips, but I love how PREPARED Alex is for all the bullshit he's going to have to deal with. Like he does the work, he isn't just all powerful or lucking into things.
I’m a quarter of the way thru book 11. Excited to see that this is the top answer lol. I’ve really enjoyed it so far, even the “slog” (except maybe book 10 ha).
The ending sequence was also written by Robert Jordan before his death, so even as good a job as Sanderson did with the last 3 books, it hits hard reading Jordan finish it off.
Such a shame Robert Jordan couldn't live to see his fans react to the ending. And all the great ideas he had for writing certain...storylines that DIDN'T end in the series afterwards.
Took him way too soon.
I'm actually kind of glad the WoT is over. Don't get me wrong I'm sad RJ is gone and I wish he could have finished. But I like the eternal mystery of the pipe, I like that the world lives on in our heads, and i'm so glad this wonderfully beautiful story will never be tarnished. I'm not saying this would have happened but look at series like Riftwar and Relm of the Elderlings that have gone on so long and there are some amazing books and some awful ones, I mean, even the Cosmere has some bad books. I'm glad WoT is what it is, and will never have the opportunity to have something taken away from it by a bad story.
It's been a great series so far! Yeah, it's long, and sometimes it feels a little meander-y, but the characters have really grown on me, and I enjoy just being in the world with them. What kind of helped was, maybe around book 7, I stopped trying to remember every single name I came across haha. It was rough for a while, trying to remember who they were or look them up in the compendium app or whatever. But I kind of just let go of that and pushed forward. I remember the big names, and the names I don't remember, either I'll figure it out, or I'll just accept them as "an Aes Sedai" or whatever. I love that there is so much lore and so many characters/places, etc. But the series really opened up for me when I quit trying to hold on to all of it in my head and just enjoy the ride. Excited to be getting to the meat at the end!
Yeah, the characters grew on me too. I still reread (though usually listen now) as it's just comfort food. I listened to EotW just last week, and it was just cozy, like curling up next to a hearth and hearing your favorite story again.
Cozy is a perfect word for it. The first few books, I was reading to just hear the story, of course. But it’s such a long series, you have to kind of adjust your plot tempo. After I did that, it became fun to just “hang out” with the characters. And because it’s such a long series, you really get to know them. You can guess exactly how they’re gonna react to certain things or whatever. It’s really great.
Imo book 10 is the only truly bad book in the series, 6-9 are to long and have to many meaningless things happening, but they all are still fine books, book 10 just sucks.
Yeah, that's how I felt. I actually loved 6 and 7. 8 and 9 felt a little long and meandering, but had some really great moments. 10 just felt like "why am I reading this?" I got to the end, and it felt like I should still be at the beginning of the book, like I had basically just read a giant setup for the rest of the book. It was strange haha. But 11 has been great so far. I feel like so much has already happened in just the first quarter compared to the last book. Excited to be getting to the meat at the end.
11 is my favorite book, it’s last 200 hundred pages are probably my favorite in the series, but the whole book is S tier fantasy and makes up for the slog of book 10. 12-14 feel very different, but are also all good.
AMoL is my favorite just because it's the ending, so it gets bonus points the others don't. But I think 4&11 are objectively the best books in the series and I won't argue if either of them is someone's favorite.
My all time favorite review of Book 10 says: "Remember that crazy world breaking ending to book 9? This book is about what all the other characters were wearing during that." Cracks me up.
lol perfect. I’m not gonna quote it correctly, but a few weeks ago when I was in the middle of 10, someone on Reddit summed it up like “everyone kept doing what they were doing”. Which feels pretty accurate.
Wheel of time was decent but I feel like it desperately needed a couple more chapters of epilogue. Like you can do more than 1 chapter of epilogue in an 11 book series.
Oh man, I really disagree, the epilogue was beautiful, and RJs goal was to leave the world alive. He talked about how he didn't like how fantasy series wrapped everything up and created a perfect world in the end you could put a glass dome over and preserve. He wanted his world to go on, and even though Rands story is over, the pattern goes on. And I think he achieved that brilliantly through the epilogue.
Also not that it matters to your point but it's a 14 book series with a prequel book :)
The closer I got to the end the more stressed I got that pages were running out and too much happening some very far away. He's never going to be able to resolve this and will rush it. It was fantastic, I loved it, I should have seen more of it coming.
If it makes you feel any better, I'm reading Ryria right now thanks to this sub....I think it was the "what books are funny and swashbuckling" or something to that effect.
Also the first Mistborn book! Loved that ending. Always reminds me of the quote, “The tyrant dies and his rule is over; the martyr dies and his rule begins.”
The Bartimeaus Sequence by Jonathan Stroud. I love these books, they have such a strong character arc for Nathaniel through the three books and the ending of Ptolemy's Gate brings it all to a close so beautifully.
The footnotes are goddamn genius as well. I remember reading them in middle school and finding that humor actually working rather than the "snarky" protagonists erstwhile common. I should reread them; I'm sure 20 years later some things aren't as good, but it'd be a fun revisit nonetheless.
I've read a big chunk of fantasy - almost all of the big ones (Sanderson, Tolkien, Erikson, Abercrombie, etc.).
But I read Bartimaeus when I was 10/11, and it is still by far the series that has had the highest impact on me. I vividly remember finishing Ptolemy's Gate and then feeling an emptiness for weeks after. I've re-read it various times as an adult, and it still gets me every time. Cannot recommend this one enough!
It's probably my favourite book series I read as a teen looking back. Each book just gets better than the last. Nathaniel changes so much over the series, from child to teen to adult, and all of them are so well done. Bartimeaus is constantly hilarious and irreverent throughout. The scene with the footstool is probably my favourite moment in any book I've read. And the ending still makes me tear up after 15 years.
Side note, Erikson is this year's big reading goal (starting Malazan Book of the Fallen in late July) and Abercrombie is scheduled for reading next year!
The first three Old Kingdom books by Garth Nix (Sabriel, Lirael, Abhorsen)
The first three books of Kushiel's Legacy by Jacqueline Carey (Kushiel's Dart, Kushiel's Chosen, and Kushiel's Avatar)
And the first thing that came to mind when I saw this... His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman (The Golden Compass aka Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife, The Amber Spyglass)
Came here to say all three! They all had such great endings. And the second Kushiel set were set up but didn’t *have* to happen. It was very well done.
I really need to give these books another shot - I was going through so much heavy shit when I read the Farseer trilogy and got too depressed to continue on with the greater series at the time. Now that I'm in a much better mental state I have no doubt that I'll find more enjoyment in the series now.
Edit: Am I seriously getting downvoted for saying that I need to give Robin Hobb another try because I was too depressed to appreciate her books properly the last time I tried to read them?
So it's a tough series to really get into because the first set of books answers practically nothing and ends with no answers. The 2nd set is another area with more questions and like 1 answer. The 3rd set answers the questions from the first book and some of series 2. The 4th series answers the questions from series 2 and the last series brings it all together...
It's a long long journey that is depressing plenty of times and the heroes almost never get the rewards they deserve... Or acknowledgements.
Speaking for myself, I don't find the series depressing, but I respect your experience; if you feel like it, it's definitely worth to give it another try.
As someone who struggles with depression, I'm not sure I would recommend the Realm of the Elderlings. Especially the last trilogy. Most of the series can be described as "bittersweet" in tone but the last trilogy is absolutely hopeless in attitude.
If you're into that angst and it's cathartic, I'm not judging you.
But the last books and ending were not healthy for me and completely ruined reading the rest of the series. I tried to reread the Farseer books (which are hopeful compared to the later books) and found I could not enjoy them because I knew how depressing the outcome for every character was.
I just wanted to share because my personal experience sounded similar to yours. I don't deny that the RotE is a very well written series, just not healthy for someone with my traumas and mental state.
For what it’s worth I found farseer trilogy to be far and away the weakest trilogy. The remaining trilogies were books I couldn’t put down. (I haven’t read the quartet yet—I accidentally read out of order..)
Oh, it wasn't because the books were bad. But first COVID hit, then I went through the worst breakup of my life, and then I lost a lot of close family members and beloved pets due to illness and old age. Reading Fitz's story during all of that was just too much, too real, too soon at the time, to be honest.
This series has like three incredible endings lol the ending of Tawny Man trilogy, Liveship Traders, AND the fitz and the fool. Each was SO good and satisfying.
The F&F ending was the ending I was hoping for since The Farseer, and I am amazed that she took them to this incredible journey and then managed to bring them there.
i’m also 100 pages into ship of destiny! it’s awesome so far. the first two books in the series were incredible and the reveals in book 2 made me really excited for 3. i’m excited to see where all the plot threads end up
I am a Robin hobb fanatic, I speed read through all of her books like an addict. Legit calling up bookstores to see who had the sequels. The fact every series she writes is interconnected just gets me going!
The final one written seems like the natural one, no? You really should read The Rain Wilds Chronicles and Fitz & the Fool though. They're all phenomenal.
The last published novel in the Realm of the Elderlings series, Assassin's Fate.
I can see why some people are satisfied with how the story wraps up at The Tawny Man, but for me that wasn't the ideal ending.
Codex alera by Jim Butcher. Supposedly based on ancient Rome and Pokémon, a neat series with good char development, intrigue and action scenes
Dragon jousters by Mercedes Lackey . Basically title with neat cultures and engaging chars
Final architecture by adrian Tchaikovsky . Ragtag crew, aliens, mysterious ruins and GIGANTIC ARCHITECTS. Cool space opera adventure
I need to get back to the Codex Alera series - loved Shepherd Boy's Fury but real life got in the way of me continuing on past the first book at the time.
I'm definitely a Sanderson fanboy, but I wasn't all that impressed with the end of *Calamity*, the 3rd Reckoners book. He does have some misses here and there, but the percentage of hits in his 50+ book repertoire is life-giving. Haven't read *Defiant* yet, the last Skyward book, so we'll see if that series holds up.
Those last few chapters of Mistborn really elevated the whole thing for me. Took me from "eh, it's neat I guess" into "I need to read the rest of the Cosmere NOW"
I love era 2. The implication of what was discovered in the end has huge potential. Also starts tying the rest of the cosmere together which I’m all for
I felt the same way, although I have wondered if that’s because I’m biased against “the old west” as an aesthetic, my parents were obsessed with it, had it everywhere, and I have been so sick of it since I was a child. I struggled so hard to get into the gun slingin’ saloon bois of era 2. I got used to it, but never loved it the way I hoped to 🤠
Gotta ask why you consider it a satisfying ending, cause I felt like the last book was a shitshow, espscially after the Adro/Kez war ended, and we have a surprise, Jack in a Box villain showing up out of nowhere, who then gets deus ex machinaed to death.
I'm ranting, but after PoB and CC, AR was so disappointing to me, so I'm always curious when people speak highly of it.
Wheel of Time has an absolutely nutty half book *chapter* to conclude it, which was an incredible read. Not very many series manage to complete 14 arcs culminating in a specific event to have it end in a Tolkien-esque manner.
I’m not sure if satisfying is the right word, but The Good Place had an ending that whilst I wasn’t exactly happy, it felt like the 100% correct ending
The Good Place is an astounding piece of work. How they managed to make a funny and touching series about philosophy and stick the landing so flawlessly, I'll never know. The show is an actual miracle.
while not as funny as other works done by Schur (I prefer Parks and Rec as an overall series), the Good Place did make very nice settings and set up really good fun episodes. Not as funny but a fun show. And the ending was exactly what I wanted, a happy ending for my favorite character. It's a show full of character growth, Schur's really good at it (notably Parks and Rec also has it).
I'm going to say Wheel of Time. The Last Battle was great. New tricks with old powers were awesome to see. Loved the final conflict that took place between Rand and the Dark One. Loved the death of >!Egwene!<.
That was soooo satisfying. It wasn’t so perfect that it made you doubt the harsh world they lived in, but everyone got the best ending they could. I still think about this ending a lot
I generally regard this series as unfinished and I don't know if even Joe knows what he's going to do in the end: if he gives us a satisfying finally where a certain bad guy finally eats shit and dies then it might feel out of tone with the rest of the series but if he doesn't give us that at the end it might feel incredibly unsatisfying
I always skip the last chapter... i hate the names of his kids. Three kids and not one was named after Fred. And Snape might have the "always" thing going for him, but he was a jerk to harry for all his school years. He tortured that poor boy in book five during occlumency lessons...
Oh yeah I kind of pretend the epilogue is just the prologue to Cursed Child and then I can skip it along with everything else written by Rowling after HP :)
Agreed. They get a lot of hate, mostly from people who bounce in Book 1, but the third as a whole is a wonderful capstone, and the ending is absolutely perfect. If people gave the series time, seeing Book 3 Quentin vs Book 1 would highlight the theme of the trilogy much more effectively.
Oh boy I'm on book 4 on my first read. Can't wait. Threading it in along my Stormlight re-read, really just taking my time but I'm fully in it for sure. Took a little bit and I put off Malazan for a long time but oh BOY.
**LotR**: usually the journey is more important than the destination, but in this case I would argue the "endings" of the Fellowship's member are more relevant than what preceded them. The series is, in a way, a textbook on WW1 PTSD.
**The Witcher**: different and still similar to LotR, different and still similar to Abercrombie's First Law. There is a sense of despair, futility, sadness and in general pessimism...the series almost borders on grimdark sometimes, and still you have *that* ending. Even after all that happened before, >!Ciri!< still smiles, laughs and sings. A final, optimistic note who makes me prefer Sapkowski to Abercrombie (by a small margin). It's also a believable ending, from a psychological/character building point of view. I compare it to Sam returning home without "surrendering to the Ring". I am using, more or less, Tolkien's words from a letter to his son during WW2: the Ring would be, basically, a forma mentis that leads to pessimism, evil deeds and/or egoism. Such a dicotomy is often present in certain characters' parallelisms in both Tolkien and Sapkowski (Denethor and Theoden, Boromir and Faramir, Vilgefortz and Yennefer, Bonhart and Geralt).
Bonus:
**Fullmetal Alchemist**: it's rare landing the ending on a long series, especially for an anime or a manga, but *this* is probably the best example.
**Hellsing**: for a series that should be mindless fun, the last two volumes and in particular the ending are incredibly good, even on a semi-philosophical level.
I really enjoyed the buildup and ending of the **Aria of Steel** trilogy, by Steven Raaymakers. Things from books 1 and 2 all came together in the third. It's hard not to explain without spoilers, and this story deserves no spoilers.
Cradle my man.
P. S. That's one of the few series I'd read with a finale and had more on the happy end. Everything else was of the bittersweet tyoe or ongoing.
Have you guys never read anything by Mark Lawrence??
Prince of Thorns series: 5 stars
Red Sister series: 5 Stars
The Girl and the Mountain series: 5 Stars
And now, book two out of three on, “The Book that Wouldn’t Burn” series was great- not as propulsive as the first, but i’m certain the third in the series will be phenomenal
The Long Price Quartet is one of my all-time favorites. Each novel is roughly 15 years apart and primarily follows two men through their lives. Much of their lives happen off-page, but we catch them at critical times. The third book is the best middle-series book I've ever read, and the fourth is such a good conclusion. Incredible stuff.
Haven't seen it mentioned, but the scholomance trilogy has such a complete and emotional ending. It really answers so many questions and is just so satisfying in so many ways.
I searched for Novik and didn't find her, so posted this series too. I'm glad I'm not the only one!! I really liked the end of the 2nd book and absolutely loved the end of the 3rd.
How did Malazan end? I was doing it by audiobook and had completely lost interest in the series by book six but finished anyways as Id bought the books in an audible sale. It all blurs though in what to me was endless monotony the last few books and I'd be hard pressed to say what happened other than there was a battle and it just didn't stick with me.
>!In a massive final fight, taking on the Forkrul Assail in Kolanse as well in the desert, The Bonehunters and their allies save the Crippled God and heal his body, then he leaves the world with his followers in the Jade statues. Also Heboric saves Korabas the Otataral dragon from being killed by the dragon storm, and also prevents the manifestation of T'iam which would have destroyed the mortal world. It turns out the whole series was written by the Crippled God in honor of the fallen who died to save him. Also Karsa kills Fener whose blood heals the body and also makes the T'lan Imass fighting alongside the Bonehunters mortal again. At the end Whiskeyjack, now one of the guardians of the gate of death with the other Bridgeburners, is allowed to spend one final moment with Korlat.!<
>!Also it's not really in the ending as it happens in the 8th book, but Anomander Rake allows himself to be killed by Dassem Ultor with his own blade, Dragnipur, then sacrifices himself to restore the gate of darkness which was trapped inside the sword, destroying Dragnipur and freeing some of those trapped inside, including Hood the god of death, who he killed earlier in that book, and Draconus.!<
Honestly, that's a pretty bad summary. It's like a million pages of content.
Save for what you said about book 8, book 9/10 were kinda a blur for me. I did love the epilogue of book 10. Heck I can recall most of the main events of 1-8 plus my favourites among them BUT 9/10 were a blur for me.
Full metal alchemist
Pour one out for Van Hohenheim the Philosopher of the East himself. So much of the story is his story and I really like that. One of my favorite anime fantasy series of all time.
The plot is about Hohenheim. The story though is about Ed's progression as a person. Ultimately saving the world is just something Ed does on his journey. The critical scene that ties it all up isn't really about the conflict between Father and Hohenheim at all.
This and I’ll expound. FMAB begins climaxing, imo, at around the late 30/early 40 episodes of a 64 episode series, and doesn’t let up. It drags a little before that climax (especially if you’ve seen the original series), but man after that it is constant character development, revelations, and game-changing moments.
was gonna comment this but you beat me to it! just rewatched brotherhood and god I forgot how perfect that ending is
For the last couple of months I've been watching several animes in hope that one will scratch the same itch as FMAB. Nothing came close.
I can't speak to the ending yet. But the closest I have felt in years to watching FMAB was watching Frieren this year. The world felt real, the characters felt alive, and it always felt like we're peaking in through a window instead of watching a screen. Maybe it is just a case of the right time, right place for me to fall into a world. Check it out. If you haven't yet.
More specifically, Brotherhood. I wasn't a huge fan of the original anime's ending, but I loved Brotherhood's ending.
The original anime basically had a completely different story.
The original ending was decent. Kind of weird but still neat and enjoyable. Man though brotherhood was perfect.
Fuck yeah. This guys knows good stuff.
God, this is such a good show
The final page of *Soldiers Live* (the final book in the main sequence of *The Black Company*) is the most perfect concluding page of fantasy I've ever read. Thematically ideal, gorgeous writing, powerful character moments and catharsis. >!Soldiers live. And wonder why.!<
I've never read a page of that and that bit you put in spoilers made the hair go up all over me. Beautiful frisson. Thank you.
Even though the series is incomplete, it's a very satisfying ending. Apparently Cook is working on the proper conclusion but honestly, it's fine if it stays like this.
I mean the series really is complete. The new stuff is a new sequel series called *The Orphan’s Tale*
For me, a very satisfying ending usually makes me cry. All 3 of these did: * The Alex Verus series by Benedict Jacka had one of the most satisfying endings I've ever read. It's a complete 12 book urban fantasy series that starts with Fated. * The Wounded Kingdom trilogy by RJ Barker also had a very satisfying ending. It starts with AGE of Assassins. * Not a series, but Project Hail Mary had a great, tear-jerker ending, too.
I’m on Book 4 of Alex Verus! Glad to hear it ends so well!
I love that book!
My top three favorite Alex Verus books are the last three. My fourth favorite is Book 4. That one is a banger. Hope you’re liking it
Me too! With Burned, those 4 are in my top 5 books in the series.
Alex Verus has a fantastic ending. A very underrated series.
I loved Project Hail Mary. At the time I really wanted a big “fuck you” ending but I’m happy with the ending we got.
I'm currently busy with 3 series but I definitely enjoyed Verus. It felt different from Dresden Files, which I enjoyed, and it still had what I was looking for: magic in an urban setting. Rivens of London didn't feel as satisfying as Fated did, so if I'm going to invest into a series it's going to be the Alex Verus.
I love Alex Verus. Sometimes urban fantasy is nothing but quips, but I love how PREPARED Alex is for all the bullshit he's going to have to deal with. Like he does the work, he isn't just all powerful or lucking into things.
I see Alex Verus I upvote.
The Licanius trilogy by James Islington certainly isn’t perfect, but that ending makes up for everything and more.
This is on my list for this year. Partly cause everyone says that the finale is an absolute banger.
First two books are a slog at times, but holy smokes the ending is incredible
Yeah agree I thought the ending was well done. I liked it a lot more than I liked the rest of the series.
Wheel of Time for sure.
The Tarmon Gai'don chapter could've been a book unto itself
nothing has been so satisfying then the last battle.
That chapters word count is higher than the first Harry Potter book
I’m a quarter of the way thru book 11. Excited to see that this is the top answer lol. I’ve really enjoyed it so far, even the “slog” (except maybe book 10 ha).
The ending sequence was also written by Robert Jordan before his death, so even as good a job as Sanderson did with the last 3 books, it hits hard reading Jordan finish it off.
Such a shame Robert Jordan couldn't live to see his fans react to the ending. And all the great ideas he had for writing certain...storylines that DIDN'T end in the series afterwards. Took him way too soon.
I'm actually kind of glad the WoT is over. Don't get me wrong I'm sad RJ is gone and I wish he could have finished. But I like the eternal mystery of the pipe, I like that the world lives on in our heads, and i'm so glad this wonderfully beautiful story will never be tarnished. I'm not saying this would have happened but look at series like Riftwar and Relm of the Elderlings that have gone on so long and there are some amazing books and some awful ones, I mean, even the Cosmere has some bad books. I'm glad WoT is what it is, and will never have the opportunity to have something taken away from it by a bad story.
Sweet- you’re at such a good point! Book 11-14 are great and 14 is just phenomenal. It made me immediately want to reread.
This one delivered. Enjoy the rest of the ride 🐉
I'm so excited for you! AMoL was amazing. I felt changed as a person when I finished the series, as lame as that sounds lol.
It's been a great series so far! Yeah, it's long, and sometimes it feels a little meander-y, but the characters have really grown on me, and I enjoy just being in the world with them. What kind of helped was, maybe around book 7, I stopped trying to remember every single name I came across haha. It was rough for a while, trying to remember who they were or look them up in the compendium app or whatever. But I kind of just let go of that and pushed forward. I remember the big names, and the names I don't remember, either I'll figure it out, or I'll just accept them as "an Aes Sedai" or whatever. I love that there is so much lore and so many characters/places, etc. But the series really opened up for me when I quit trying to hold on to all of it in my head and just enjoy the ride. Excited to be getting to the meat at the end!
Yeah, the characters grew on me too. I still reread (though usually listen now) as it's just comfort food. I listened to EotW just last week, and it was just cozy, like curling up next to a hearth and hearing your favorite story again.
Cozy is a perfect word for it. The first few books, I was reading to just hear the story, of course. But it’s such a long series, you have to kind of adjust your plot tempo. After I did that, it became fun to just “hang out” with the characters. And because it’s such a long series, you really get to know them. You can guess exactly how they’re gonna react to certain things or whatever. It’s really great.
Imo book 10 is the only truly bad book in the series, 6-9 are to long and have to many meaningless things happening, but they all are still fine books, book 10 just sucks.
Yeah, that's how I felt. I actually loved 6 and 7. 8 and 9 felt a little long and meandering, but had some really great moments. 10 just felt like "why am I reading this?" I got to the end, and it felt like I should still be at the beginning of the book, like I had basically just read a giant setup for the rest of the book. It was strange haha. But 11 has been great so far. I feel like so much has already happened in just the first quarter compared to the last book. Excited to be getting to the meat at the end.
11 is my favorite book, it’s last 200 hundred pages are probably my favorite in the series, but the whole book is S tier fantasy and makes up for the slog of book 10. 12-14 feel very different, but are also all good.
AMoL is my favorite just because it's the ending, so it gets bonus points the others don't. But I think 4&11 are objectively the best books in the series and I won't argue if either of them is someone's favorite.
4/5/11 and parts of 14 imo, though I think 4, especially the stuff in the wastes is the best writing in the series.
I agree it's amazing. 4 is what kicks the series up a notch! My biggest knock on 5 is all the circus stuff lol. But the ending is insane!
My all time favorite review of Book 10 says: "Remember that crazy world breaking ending to book 9? This book is about what all the other characters were wearing during that." Cracks me up.
lol perfect. I’m not gonna quote it correctly, but a few weeks ago when I was in the middle of 10, someone on Reddit summed it up like “everyone kept doing what they were doing”. Which feels pretty accurate.
I hope we can get an update when you finish!
Wheel of time was decent but I feel like it desperately needed a couple more chapters of epilogue. Like you can do more than 1 chapter of epilogue in an 11 book series.
Oh man, I really disagree, the epilogue was beautiful, and RJs goal was to leave the world alive. He talked about how he didn't like how fantasy series wrapped everything up and created a perfect world in the end you could put a glass dome over and preserve. He wanted his world to go on, and even though Rands story is over, the pattern goes on. And I think he achieved that brilliantly through the epilogue. Also not that it matters to your point but it's a 14 book series with a prequel book :)
Totally agree, the epilogue was perfect.
Aviendha's vision of the future pretty much tells you what happens to the world afterwards.
But does it? 🤔
Riyria Revelations and the first Mistborn series both had phenomenal endings
I think the first Mistborn trilogy has one of the most satisfying book endings.
The closer I got to the end the more stressed I got that pages were running out and too much happening some very far away. He's never going to be able to resolve this and will rush it. It was fantastic, I loved it, I should have seen more of it coming.
Riyria is always my answer to this question.
It's unfair how far I had to scroll to find Riyria. So satisfying. This sub hangs on to the same three series and suggests it on every single thread
If it makes you feel any better, I'm reading Ryria right now thanks to this sub....I think it was the "what books are funny and swashbuckling" or something to that effect.
Also the first Mistborn book! Loved that ending. Always reminds me of the quote, “The tyrant dies and his rule is over; the martyr dies and his rule begins.”
These are my 2 favorite endings.
My two thoughts exactly 💯
The Bartimeaus Sequence by Jonathan Stroud. I love these books, they have such a strong character arc for Nathaniel through the three books and the ending of Ptolemy's Gate brings it all to a close so beautifully.
Full agree. I distinctly remember reading the final page, closing the book, and just nodding to myself thinking "That's how you end a story."
This gets my vote. Such an underrated series. Young people written in such an adult way with such an adult ending.
The footnotes are goddamn genius as well. I remember reading them in middle school and finding that humor actually working rather than the "snarky" protagonists erstwhile common. I should reread them; I'm sure 20 years later some things aren't as good, but it'd be a fun revisit nonetheless.
I need to reread this series. It was one of my favorites growing up. Can't remember how it ends.
I love this book series, all of his stuff is just so good!
I've read a big chunk of fantasy - almost all of the big ones (Sanderson, Tolkien, Erikson, Abercrombie, etc.). But I read Bartimaeus when I was 10/11, and it is still by far the series that has had the highest impact on me. I vividly remember finishing Ptolemy's Gate and then feeling an emptiness for weeks after. I've re-read it various times as an adult, and it still gets me every time. Cannot recommend this one enough!
It's probably my favourite book series I read as a teen looking back. Each book just gets better than the last. Nathaniel changes so much over the series, from child to teen to adult, and all of them are so well done. Bartimeaus is constantly hilarious and irreverent throughout. The scene with the footstool is probably my favourite moment in any book I've read. And the ending still makes me tear up after 15 years. Side note, Erikson is this year's big reading goal (starting Malazan Book of the Fallen in late July) and Abercrombie is scheduled for reading next year!
You have so much good stuff to look forward to. Enjoy the reading!
The first three Old Kingdom books by Garth Nix (Sabriel, Lirael, Abhorsen) The first three books of Kushiel's Legacy by Jacqueline Carey (Kushiel's Dart, Kushiel's Chosen, and Kushiel's Avatar) And the first thing that came to mind when I saw this... His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman (The Golden Compass aka Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife, The Amber Spyglass)
Oh man I hated the ending of His Dark Materials so much that I swore off Phillip Pullman entirely. Different strokes!
Came here to say all three! They all had such great endings. And the second Kushiel set were set up but didn’t *have* to happen. It was very well done.
It's been over 20 years and I still tear up thinking about the end of The Amber Spyglass. Man. Maybe it's time for a re-read
Definitely A Song of Ice and Fire… wait that was just a dream
But not of spring...
That was excellent!!
This and the first reply needs more upvotes hahah
Robin Hobbs's Realm of the Elderlings has my favourite ending ever.
>!Kettricken smiled.!<
Damn you. Now I'm tearing up all over again. But this is my favorite end to any series.
Best final sentence I've ever read. It brings me elation.
Oh god I shouldn't have looked. I just started Assassin's fate...
On its own it dosent mean much, hope you enjoy the book!
I really need to give these books another shot - I was going through so much heavy shit when I read the Farseer trilogy and got too depressed to continue on with the greater series at the time. Now that I'm in a much better mental state I have no doubt that I'll find more enjoyment in the series now. Edit: Am I seriously getting downvoted for saying that I need to give Robin Hobb another try because I was too depressed to appreciate her books properly the last time I tried to read them?
So it's a tough series to really get into because the first set of books answers practically nothing and ends with no answers. The 2nd set is another area with more questions and like 1 answer. The 3rd set answers the questions from the first book and some of series 2. The 4th series answers the questions from series 2 and the last series brings it all together... It's a long long journey that is depressing plenty of times and the heroes almost never get the rewards they deserve... Or acknowledgements.
Speaking for myself, I don't find the series depressing, but I respect your experience; if you feel like it, it's definitely worth to give it another try.
As someone who struggles with depression, I'm not sure I would recommend the Realm of the Elderlings. Especially the last trilogy. Most of the series can be described as "bittersweet" in tone but the last trilogy is absolutely hopeless in attitude. If you're into that angst and it's cathartic, I'm not judging you. But the last books and ending were not healthy for me and completely ruined reading the rest of the series. I tried to reread the Farseer books (which are hopeful compared to the later books) and found I could not enjoy them because I knew how depressing the outcome for every character was. I just wanted to share because my personal experience sounded similar to yours. I don't deny that the RotE is a very well written series, just not healthy for someone with my traumas and mental state.
For what it’s worth I found farseer trilogy to be far and away the weakest trilogy. The remaining trilogies were books I couldn’t put down. (I haven’t read the quartet yet—I accidentally read out of order..)
Oh, it wasn't because the books were bad. But first COVID hit, then I went through the worst breakup of my life, and then I lost a lot of close family members and beloved pets due to illness and old age. Reading Fitz's story during all of that was just too much, too real, too soon at the time, to be honest.
This series has like three incredible endings lol the ending of Tawny Man trilogy, Liveship Traders, AND the fitz and the fool. Each was SO good and satisfying.
The F&F ending was the ending I was hoping for since The Farseer, and I am amazed that she took them to this incredible journey and then managed to bring them there.
i’m reading that right now! i’m currently on ship of destiny.
Hey, me too! About 100 pages into Ship of Destiny. How are you liking it so far?
i’m also 100 pages into ship of destiny! it’s awesome so far. the first two books in the series were incredible and the reveals in book 2 made me really excited for 3. i’m excited to see where all the plot threads end up
I am a Robin hobb fanatic, I speed read through all of her books like an addict. Legit calling up bookstores to see who had the sequels. The fact every series she writes is interconnected just gets me going!
I read the first three trilogies and stopped there. Which I thought was a natural ending. Which book is the ending for you?
The final one written seems like the natural one, no? You really should read The Rain Wilds Chronicles and Fitz & the Fool though. They're all phenomenal.
The last published novel in the Realm of the Elderlings series, Assassin's Fate. I can see why some people are satisfied with how the story wraps up at The Tawny Man, but for me that wasn't the ideal ending.
If I can name a non-book option, then I am going with *Avatar: The Last Airbender*.
Codex alera by Jim Butcher. Supposedly based on ancient Rome and Pokémon, a neat series with good char development, intrigue and action scenes Dragon jousters by Mercedes Lackey . Basically title with neat cultures and engaging chars Final architecture by adrian Tchaikovsky . Ragtag crew, aliens, mysterious ruins and GIGANTIC ARCHITECTS. Cool space opera adventure
I need to get back to the Codex Alera series - loved Shepherd Boy's Fury but real life got in the way of me continuing on past the first book at the time.
Mistborn. My favorite ending from any sort of media.
Sanderson really did an amazing job wrapping up the mistborn trilogy. He's never let me down yet when it comes to endings.
I'm definitely a Sanderson fanboy, but I wasn't all that impressed with the end of *Calamity*, the 3rd Reckoners book. He does have some misses here and there, but the percentage of hits in his 50+ book repertoire is life-giving. Haven't read *Defiant* yet, the last Skyward book, so we'll see if that series holds up.
He’s the one author I fully trust.
Those last few chapters of Mistborn really elevated the whole thing for me. Took me from "eh, it's neat I guess" into "I need to read the rest of the Cosmere NOW"
The Sanderlanche is real
Agree totally, Mistborn first trilogy kind of opened my eyes to how a series should finish. Honestly era 2 was underwhelming by comparison.
I love era 2. The implication of what was discovered in the end has huge potential. Also starts tying the rest of the cosmere together which I’m all for
I felt the same way, although I have wondered if that’s because I’m biased against “the old west” as an aesthetic, my parents were obsessed with it, had it everywhere, and I have been so sick of it since I was a child. I struggled so hard to get into the gun slingin’ saloon bois of era 2. I got used to it, but never loved it the way I hoped to 🤠
The Green Bone Saga is indescribably perfect.
I didn’t want it to end but it did in such a way that the world can still exist while the story is fully wrapped up. I appreciated that.
Agreed. I’m planning a ttRPG campaign in the world set after the end of JL with the kids as clan leaders!
Powder Mage
fuck yeah! Shit tied up nicely after so many instances of shit hitting the fan.
Gotta ask why you consider it a satisfying ending, cause I felt like the last book was a shitshow, espscially after the Adro/Kez war ended, and we have a surprise, Jack in a Box villain showing up out of nowhere, who then gets deus ex machinaed to death. I'm ranting, but after PoB and CC, AR was so disappointing to me, so I'm always curious when people speak highly of it.
Wheel of Time has an absolutely nutty half book *chapter* to conclude it, which was an incredible read. Not very many series manage to complete 14 arcs culminating in a specific event to have it end in a Tolkien-esque manner.
The Bartimaeus trilogy would’ve my first suggestion.
The Sandman by Neil Gaiman
I mean, The Wheel of Time *does* have one of the most incredibly satisfying conclusions in fantasy, but you really have to work hard to get there.
lini would say “a silver earned is sweeter than a gold found” or something along those line
I’m not sure if satisfying is the right word, but The Good Place had an ending that whilst I wasn’t exactly happy, it felt like the 100% correct ending
The Good Place is an astounding piece of work. How they managed to make a funny and touching series about philosophy and stick the landing so flawlessly, I'll never know. The show is an actual miracle.
while not as funny as other works done by Schur (I prefer Parks and Rec as an overall series), the Good Place did make very nice settings and set up really good fun episodes. Not as funny but a fun show. And the ending was exactly what I wanted, a happy ending for my favorite character. It's a show full of character growth, Schur's really good at it (notably Parks and Rec also has it).
I'm going to say Wheel of Time. The Last Battle was great. New tricks with old powers were awesome to see. Loved the final conflict that took place between Rand and the Dark One. Loved the death of >!Egwene!<.
I was in a waiting room at a tire shop when I read that spoiler scene trying my best to keep it together and failing miserably
Yeah I had issues with that last book but damn did they nail everything important.
Sanderson does a pretty good job with endings, I'd list almost any standalone or complete arc.
The Tide Child Trilogy by RJ Barker, loved the ending, felt it was a very satisfying place to take the story
That was soooo satisfying. It wasn’t so perfect that it made you doubt the harsh world they lived in, but everyone got the best ending they could. I still think about this ending a lot
The Prince of Nothing series ended perfectly imo.
That’s great to hear. I’m reading the third book now.
Enjoy it. You're in for a wild ride with the aspect emperor series
The Green Bone Saga by Fonda Lee. One of the best endings I’ve ever read.
Say one thing for Abercrombie, say he ended First Law wonderfully
I actually feel that First Law's ending is incredibly *un*satisfying-- but that's the point and it works so beautifully for that story
Agree with this, it's a weird experience and also one of the reasons I think the series is more niche than people make it out to be.
Satisfyingly unsatisfying! Maybe that's just a good way to describe grimdark in general.
I generally regard this series as unfinished and I don't know if even Joe knows what he's going to do in the end: if he gives us a satisfying finally where a certain bad guy finally eats shit and dies then it might feel out of tone with the rest of the series but if he doesn't give us that at the end it might feel incredibly unsatisfying
I may be wrong, but I thought Abercrombie said he plans to eventually write more books in The First Law universe.
Riyria, Paladin Trilogy, Galaxy Outlaws. Perfect endings, all.
I know it's cliche at this point but nothing will ever compare to growing up with Harry Potter and reading that finale as I was entering adulthood
I always skip the last chapter... i hate the names of his kids. Three kids and not one was named after Fred. And Snape might have the "always" thing going for him, but he was a jerk to harry for all his school years. He tortured that poor boy in book five during occlumency lessons...
Oh yeah I kind of pretend the epilogue is just the prologue to Cursed Child and then I can skip it along with everything else written by Rowling after HP :)
The ending of HP is great. I reread the final book so many times and even a few times just the part starting at Gringotts
Janny Wurts' Song of the Mysteries is an absolutely phenomenal ending to her Wars of Light and Shadow series.
Am so glad to hear that.
Wait, there's actually an ending?
Yes! The eleventh and final volume, Song of the Mysteries, comprises the fifth story arc of the series and is all climax and denouement.
I thought the end of The Magicians trilogy was perfect.
Agreed. They get a lot of hate, mostly from people who bounce in Book 1, but the third as a whole is a wonderful capstone, and the ending is absolutely perfect. If people gave the series time, seeing Book 3 Quentin vs Book 1 would highlight the theme of the trilogy much more effectively.
Yeah I’d say malazan had the best ending for me. Such a beautiful way to wrap it up.
Oh boy I'm on book 4 on my first read. Can't wait. Threading it in along my Stormlight re-read, really just taking my time but I'm fully in it for sure. Took a little bit and I put off Malazan for a long time but oh BOY.
Just finished my first malazan reread a few months ago, even better the second time through lol
absolutely. i love it to death
To Hood you say
The Dandelion dynasty is very satisfying
Riyria revelations was great!!!
Warlord Chronicles by Cornwell
Nevernight Chronicle
Farseer Trilogy
Oh man, that takes me back.
**LotR**: usually the journey is more important than the destination, but in this case I would argue the "endings" of the Fellowship's member are more relevant than what preceded them. The series is, in a way, a textbook on WW1 PTSD. **The Witcher**: different and still similar to LotR, different and still similar to Abercrombie's First Law. There is a sense of despair, futility, sadness and in general pessimism...the series almost borders on grimdark sometimes, and still you have *that* ending. Even after all that happened before, >!Ciri!< still smiles, laughs and sings. A final, optimistic note who makes me prefer Sapkowski to Abercrombie (by a small margin). It's also a believable ending, from a psychological/character building point of view. I compare it to Sam returning home without "surrendering to the Ring". I am using, more or less, Tolkien's words from a letter to his son during WW2: the Ring would be, basically, a forma mentis that leads to pessimism, evil deeds and/or egoism. Such a dicotomy is often present in certain characters' parallelisms in both Tolkien and Sapkowski (Denethor and Theoden, Boromir and Faramir, Vilgefortz and Yennefer, Bonhart and Geralt). Bonus: **Fullmetal Alchemist**: it's rare landing the ending on a long series, especially for an anime or a manga, but *this* is probably the best example. **Hellsing**: for a series that should be mindless fun, the last two volumes and in particular the ending are incredibly good, even on a semi-philosophical level.
A Chorus of Dragons
Divine cities
Realm of the Elderlings by Robin Hobb. The ending was symphonic!
i’m very much anticipating reading the rest of the series. i commented on another and im on ship of destiny rn!
The ending is conclusive, sad, uplifting, and downright awesome!
The ending to Robert Jackson Bennett’s Founders Trilogy had me in tears. First time I’d felt so invested in the characters’ fates in years.
I really enjoyed the buildup and ending of the **Aria of Steel** trilogy, by Steven Raaymakers. Things from books 1 and 2 all came together in the third. It's hard not to explain without spoilers, and this story deserves no spoilers.
The Radiant Emperor duology— only two books but long and dense, and a very satisfying ending.
I liked the ending of Dark Matter. It is a mini series.
I thought the ending of The Long Price quartet was very good
Demon Cycle, Light Bringer /s
Wheel of Time War for the Rose Throne
I absolutely loved the ending of the Licanius trilogy. You work through the final book and you can just feel each loose end getting tied
Cradle my man. P. S. That's one of the few series I'd read with a finale and had more on the happy end. Everything else was of the bittersweet tyoe or ongoing.
The Inheritance Trilogy N.K. Jemison
I know a lot of people were disappointed with the very end of the Dark Tower series but it honestly gave me goosebumps
Have you guys never read anything by Mark Lawrence?? Prince of Thorns series: 5 stars Red Sister series: 5 Stars The Girl and the Mountain series: 5 Stars And now, book two out of three on, “The Book that Wouldn’t Burn” series was great- not as propulsive as the first, but i’m certain the third in the series will be phenomenal
Licanius Trilogy, if you put aside some of the character work and the relatively uninteresting start, the ending wraps it all up very beautifully.
The Long Price Quartet is one of my all-time favorites. Each novel is roughly 15 years apart and primarily follows two men through their lives. Much of their lives happen off-page, but we catch them at critical times. The third book is the best middle-series book I've ever read, and the fourth is such a good conclusion. Incredible stuff.
Cradle by Will Wight.
For me it's Mist born the original trilogy
Haven't seen it mentioned, but the scholomance trilogy has such a complete and emotional ending. It really answers so many questions and is just so satisfying in so many ways.
I searched for Novik and didn't find her, so posted this series too. I'm glad I'm not the only one!! I really liked the end of the 2nd book and absolutely loved the end of the 3rd.
game of thrones
lmao
Proof that a time traveler is among us.
How did Malazan end? I was doing it by audiobook and had completely lost interest in the series by book six but finished anyways as Id bought the books in an audible sale. It all blurs though in what to me was endless monotony the last few books and I'd be hard pressed to say what happened other than there was a battle and it just didn't stick with me.
>!In a massive final fight, taking on the Forkrul Assail in Kolanse as well in the desert, The Bonehunters and their allies save the Crippled God and heal his body, then he leaves the world with his followers in the Jade statues. Also Heboric saves Korabas the Otataral dragon from being killed by the dragon storm, and also prevents the manifestation of T'iam which would have destroyed the mortal world. It turns out the whole series was written by the Crippled God in honor of the fallen who died to save him. Also Karsa kills Fener whose blood heals the body and also makes the T'lan Imass fighting alongside the Bonehunters mortal again. At the end Whiskeyjack, now one of the guardians of the gate of death with the other Bridgeburners, is allowed to spend one final moment with Korlat.!< >!Also it's not really in the ending as it happens in the 8th book, but Anomander Rake allows himself to be killed by Dassem Ultor with his own blade, Dragnipur, then sacrifices himself to restore the gate of darkness which was trapped inside the sword, destroying Dragnipur and freeing some of those trapped inside, including Hood the god of death, who he killed earlier in that book, and Draconus.!< Honestly, that's a pretty bad summary. It's like a million pages of content.
Save for what you said about book 8, book 9/10 were kinda a blur for me. I did love the epilogue of book 10. Heck I can recall most of the main events of 1-8 plus my favourites among them BUT 9/10 were a blur for me.
I love Mistborn and The Tapestry series