# What Is The Best Book Series Have You Read



## padowd (Jan 14, 2010)

There is a post about book series on this forum and what makes one quit reading them but what I would like to know is what series did you really enjoy and which ones would you recommend. My husband loves Lee Child with his Reacher series and I love Karin Slaughter's Grant County series.


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## Bob Mayer (Feb 20, 2011)

Dennis Lehane's series with his detective in Boston is really good-- Moonlight Mile which came out this year was excellent.


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## Joel Arnold (May 3, 2010)

I love James Lee Burke's Dave Robicheaux series. Also Douglass Preston/Lincoln Child's Agent Pendergast series.


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## Amy Corwin (Jan 3, 2011)

The Flavia de Luce mysteries!
I just adore them and I wish he'd write faster. I can't resist Flavia's morbid sense of humor.
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie: A Flavia de Luce Novel

The only problem is that they are outrageously expensive.


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## Aaron Pogue (Feb 18, 2011)

For serious adventure, you can't beat The Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny. 

For fun, fast, and thoughtful, I go to the Discworld novels by Terry Pratchett.


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## Chris Culver (Jan 28, 2011)

I like Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch series quite a bit, although I wasn't such a big fan of 9 Dragons. I hope his next Bosch is better.  Connelly's  Mickey Haller series isn't bad, either.  

I've only read a couple so far, but I'm becoming a big fan of the Matthew Scudder series by Lawrence Block. Well worth reading from what I've seen.


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## padowd (Jan 14, 2010)

Joel thanks for reminding me of James Lee Burkes Dave Robicheaux series. My husband and I watched a movie on Netflix that had Tommy Lee Jones in it and he played the Dave character and we both loved the movie. I have watched it about 3 times now and I usually don't do that but I love this movie. I think there have been two of his books that have been made into movies. I think Alex Bladwin plays Dave in the earlier one. I had forgot about his books but now I am going to try to find the first one to start reading. I hope they are all on the Kindle but knowing my luck they are not. I think he has a new one coming out soon. Thanks for all the suggestions. It looks like I will be spending more money. I think I am going to have to join the book hoarders club. My husband loves the Joe Pitt Charlie Houston series and the Harry Bosch series although I have not read any of them yet.


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## prairiesky (Aug 11, 2009)

I second the Dave Robicheaux series.  I wait breathlessly for the next in the series.  James Lee Burke is a genius.


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## LaRita (Oct 28, 2008)

I'm a huge series reader.  Have loved Dave Robicheaux for years.  Some of my other favorites are:

Alex Delaware by Jonathan Kellerman
Lucas Davenport (Prey series) by John Sandford
Thomas Black by Earl Emerson
Sharon McCone by Marcia Muller
In Death by J.D. Robb (Nora Roberts)

And for cozies,  Death on Demand by Carolyn G. Hart.

My all time favorite:  Travis McGee by John D. MacDonald.

Mostly, I just love really long stories, so if it's a series I'll probably read it.


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## Frank Marcopolos (Dec 29, 2010)

Although not a Series, strictly speaking, I love Salinger's Glass Family stories. As well as the Caulfield family stories, but they are harder to find.


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## Averydebow (Jan 20, 2011)

I have a soft spot for Brian Jacques' Redwall series.  Can't beat it for simple fun and adventure.


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

Aaron Pogue said:


> For serious adventure, you can't beat The Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny.
> 
> For fun, fast, and thoughtful, I go to the Discworld novels by Terry Pratchett.


+1 to both, especially the first 5-book "Amber" series. (The second 5 -- told by the son of the first series' narrator -- is very good, but not quite in the same stratospheric level.) Pratchett's "Discworld" books have the advantage of each one being a self-contained story that does not force you to have to read them all in sequence.

Unfortunately, Mr. Zelazny's heirs (or whoever ended up with the copyrights) have not seen fit to get any of his works e-published (see my sig).

I'll also give a shout-out to Steven Brust's "Dragaeran" novels, which can be split into two series: the Vlad Taltos stories, and the "Khaavren Romances" (starting with _The Phoenix Guards_), the latter being a sort of prequel to the Taltos series and also an homage to the Dumas "Musketeer" classics.


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## JimC1946 (Aug 6, 2009)

Kim Harrison's The Hollows (Rachel Morgan) series - until she started wandering around. But the first half-dozen books are very good.


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## Carol (was Dara) (Feb 19, 2011)

For fantasy, I like the Farseer series by Robin Hobb. For historical/mystery I like anything by Deanna Rayburn.


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

JimC1946 said:


> Kim Harrison's The Hollows (Rachel Morgan) series - until she started wandering around. But the first half-dozen books are very good.


Hmm...I liked the first book enough to read the 2nd book, but by then I'd had enough of the plot consisting of the protagonist doing things that everyone else told her were bad ideas, and -- lo and behold! - getting into trouble because of it. (Oh, and the constantly being sexually attracted to everyone she shouldn't be if she wants to continue living started to get old for me, too.)

But the writing was decent.


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## Alice Y. Yeh (Jul 14, 2010)

Averydebow said:


> I have a soft spot for Brian Jacques' Redwall series. Can't beat it for simple fun and adventure.


Ditto that. I really enjoyed the Xanth series as well.


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## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

I don't have any single best series, but the ones I re-read are:

Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe series
Zelazny's first 5 Amber novels
John Dickson Carr's Dr. Fell and Sir Henry Merrivale series
Aaron Elkins' Gideon Oliver (the Bone Detective) series


Mike


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## Daphne (May 27, 2010)

padowd said:


> There is a post about book series on this forum and what makes one quit reading them but what I would like to know is what series did you really enjoy and which ones would you recommend.


For my answer on "best series" I should just copy/paste my answer from "when did you lose interest in a series" - I only lost interest in the Poldark books on the twelfth! The rest qualify as "the best". Having said that; do the seven Harry Potter books constitute a series? If so, they get my vote too.


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## Aaron Pogue (Feb 18, 2011)

The Harry Potter series totally slipped my mind, but I should have mentioned it. Those are some well-crafted books.

I only read them under protest. I was given the first three as a Christmas present, and I complained. "I'm a grown man, and a fantasy novelist. I have no interest in reading some children's stories about a schoolboy on a broomstick."

I was wrong.


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## tsrapp (Jan 3, 2011)

"The best?"  Hard to tell.

Some of my favorites, though?

Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar series
Feist's Krondor series
Katherine Kerr's Deverry series
Jack Whyte's Arthurian series (not your usual take on the Arthurian legends)
Jim Butcher's Dresden series
Katherine Kurtz and Deborah Turner Harris' Adept series
Jane Lindskold's Firekeeper series
Harry Potter, of course

And those are just the ones I met before Kindle.

There's only one published series author I've started on with the Kindle (who actually has more than one out on the Kindle, that is), and I've only read one full book and a short story of his, but I'll include him on the list since I've got the rest on my TBR pile
Jon Merz' Lawson Vampire series

And I am eagerly awaiting the publication / ebook release of the next book in the series from three more authors, too
Laura Vosika's Blue Bells of Scotland
Monique Martin's Out of Time
and Prue Batten's Stumpwork Robe

Just to name a few


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## RJMcDonnell (Jan 29, 2011)

My favorite is Nelson DeMille's John Corey Series. The action, mystery, and humor is a winning combination for this ex-NYPD detective, now working as an FBI consultant.


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## Joseph Robert Lewis (Oct 31, 2010)

George Martin's *Song of Ice and Fire*


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## CaitLondon (Oct 12, 2010)

Nora Roberts: Sign of 7
Karen Marie Moning: Fever


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

RJMcDonnell said:


> My favorite is Nelson DeMille's John Corey Series. The action, mystery, and humor is a winning combination for this ex-NYPD detective, now working as an FBI consultant.


I love John Corey, too! Nelson DeMille is a wonderful writer, and he's really gotten it right with John Corey. (When I read "Plum Island," I pictured Bruce Willis playing the part had a movie been in the works at the time. I LOVED the tour of Plum Island, when Corey was such a smart a** with the guide.)

I love the "In Death" series, by J.D. Robb, although I've only read 4 of them so far. (I have to take them slowly or I'll need a second job to be able to afford to buy all 40+ of teh books in the series.) 

I've also enjoyed Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, especially books one through eight or nine. The series has begun to be a bit formulaic and rushed, and I don't want to pay $13 or $14 for the Kindle versions of the newer books.

Another series that I've heard is wonderful is Vince Flynn's Mitch Rapp. I have yet to read the books, but they are on my TBR list.


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## Ben White (Feb 11, 2011)

Discworld, without question.


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## Guest (Mar 8, 2011)

Averydebow said:


> I have a soft spot for Brian Jacques' Redwall series. Can't beat it for simple fun and adventure.


Good call here. I still remember images and scenes from those books, and I was really pretty young when I read them. Thumbs up!


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## Julia444 (Feb 24, 2011)

I loved all of Mary Stewart's suspense novels from the 50's and 60s.  More recently, I just loved the series by the late great Jill McGown--the Lloyd and Judy mysteries.  Always great suspense, always great characterization.

I was so shocked and saddened when McGown died--much too soon.

Julia


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## Margaret Jean (Aug 31, 2010)

padowd said:


> There is a post about book series on this forum and what makes one quit reading them but what I would like to know is what series did you really enjoy and which ones would you recommend. My husband loves Lee Child with his Reacher series and I love Karin Slaughter's Grant County series.


Right off the top of my head, I would have to say Alexander McCall Smith's wonderful series set in Africa, the #1 Ladies Detective Agency. Great cozies, very atmospheric, gives you a warm feeling that good people exist and good will triumph in the end.


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## Joseph Robert Lewis (Oct 31, 2010)

Dan Simmon's *Hyperion *books.


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## Tara Maya (Nov 4, 2010)

Ditto tsrapp's list!


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## RChaffee (Mar 3, 2011)

Terry Goodkind, Sword of Truth!


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## TheRiddler (Nov 11, 2010)

For me:

Harry Potter - just for the number of people it got interested in reading, and in my opinion is excellent from first word to last. I love the way the books 'grow-up' with the ages of the characters, and the whole world is totally believable.

Night Angel: Brent Weeks - does a trilogy count as a series? Brilliant dirty, gritty fantasy work

Dresden Files: Jim Butcher - ok, may not be the 'best' in temrs of writing skill, but this has kept me hooked from page 1. Nice, easy to read.

Alex Cross series: James Patterson. I know there's not much love for JP on these boards, but the early stuff had me gripped


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## TheSFReader (Jan 20, 2011)

I'm quite SF/fantasy oriented, as you'll see in my list :
LoisMcMaster Bujold : Vorkosigan
Jacqueline Carey : Kushiel
C.J.Cherryh : Foreigner

These are the only ones I'll keep on buying Hardcover books for ... Otherwise it'll be ebooks only.


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## J. Carson Black (Feb 27, 2011)

Bob Mayer said:


> Dennis Lehane's series with his detective in Boston is really good-- Moonlight Mile which came out this year was excellent.


Bob - I'm on a Lehane binge! Read Moonlight Mile and then went back to the shelf and grabbed everything I could (library---before I got my Kindle this week!) Read Sacred, and just this morning finished Prayers for Rain. He's a brilliant writer!

I love James Lee Burke's series as well.

I would say it's a toss-up between Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch series and Lee Child's Reacher. Although Lehane is out from behind horses and he's got a clear track now to run them down.


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## MrMiracle (Oct 28, 2010)

All time would have to be Edding's Mallorean series.

The Horus Heresy has dominated my reading for the past four years, though.  It's been a little hit-and-miss since the Black Library's stable of authors tend to range rather widely in terms of quality.


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## easyreader (Feb 20, 2011)

Lord of the Rings-- yes, cliche, but found it when I was a kid and it enthralled me.


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## TaniaLT (Oct 16, 2010)

I love Janet Evanovich's number series with Stephanie Plum, and JD Robb's In Death series. Both strong female characters.


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## J. Carson Black (Feb 27, 2011)

TaniaLT said:


> I love Janet Evanovich's number series with Stephanie Plum, and JD Robb's In Death series. Both strong female characters.


I like Evanovich a lot!


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## nmg222 (Sep 14, 2010)

I'm an avid series reader.  My favorite right now is easily Daniel Silva's 'Gabriel Allon' series.  I just can't get enough.

Other's I'm currently reading:

Author - Character

Michael Connelly - Harry Bosch 
John Sandford - Lucas Davenport (Prey series)
John Lescroart - Dismas Hardy 
Vince Flynn - Mitch Rapp 
Harlen Coben - Myron Bolitar
James Swain - Tony Valentine 
Greg Iles - Penn Cage
Dennis Lahane - Kenzie and Gennaro
Robert McCammon - Matthew Corbett (only 3 books)
Dean Koontz - Odd Thomas
Brad Thor - Scot Harvath

And although the series is complete at 7 books, King's Dark Tower, for me, has no equals.


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## zizekpress (Mar 9, 2011)

Frank Marcopolos said:


> Although not a Series, strictly speaking, I love Salinger's Glass Family stories. As well as the Caulfield family stories, but they are harder to find.


Is the one where the brother jilts his fiancee, and the narrator is stuck in a car with the fiancee's friends/family, a glass family story? The narrative voice in this one, like Catcher in the Rye, is incredible.

The series we like is the James Ellroy 'American Tabloid' trio...the first book is called 'American Tabloid, not sure what the whole series is called. But some readers don't like Ellroy because he writes harsh and in. very. short. sentences.


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## NapCat (retired) (Jan 17, 2011)

Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series
(not available in Kindle format....darn !!)


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

Rabid GRR Martin fan here. In my opinion, NO series has ever come close to Song of Ice and Fire.


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## Vianka Van Bokkem (Aug 26, 2010)

Harry Potter!





-Vianka Van Bokkem


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## Alle Meine Entchen (Dec 6, 2009)

Harry Potter
The Sookie Stackhouse Series
The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice

Those are my top 3 and not nec. in order


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## DYB (Aug 8, 2009)

Definitely "Harry Potter."  And the first 4 of Anne Rice's "Vampire Chronicles."

And while I'm only half-way through "A Game of Thrones," if the rest of the series is even close to it then certainly Martin's series.

My question is: how many books would make a series?  Is 3 a series or just a trilogy?


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## Steph H (Oct 28, 2008)

LaRita said:


> Thomas Black by Earl Emerson


Oh, I think you're the only person I've ever 'met' who's read this series besides me and my mom (who introduced me to it a few years ago). Unfortunately all the older ones aren't on Kindle, at least not when I last checked about 6 weeks or so ago, then there was a 10-year hiatus between books in the series while he wrote other stuff, and then wrote another a couple of years ago that *is* available on Kindle. Good series.

As for me, I'm not sure I can pick a best. I actually much prefer long series over stand-alones, so I have a lot of them. Some that come to mind include --

Lt. Mendoza mysteries, by Dell Shannon [not on Kindle]
Travis McGee mysteries, by John D. MacDonald [not on Kindle]
Spenser mysteries, by Robert B. Parker [some on Kindle]
Pern fantasies, by Anne McCaffrey [most on Kindle]
Valdemar-related fantasies, by Merecedes Lackey [most on Kindle]
Farseer fantasies, by Robin Hobb [on Kindle]
In Death mystery/paranormal (due to being in the future)/romances, by J.D. Robb [all on Kindle]
Harry Dresden paranormal/mysteries, by Jim Butcher [all on Kindle]
J.P. Beaumont mysteries, by J.A. Jance [all or most on Kindle]

That's certainly not all I have, but those are the ones that first come to mind, anyway.


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## Patrick Skelton (Jan 7, 2011)

The C.S. Lewis Sci-Fi trilogy, of course.


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## bordercollielady (Nov 21, 2008)

In  order of my interest:

1) Vince  Flynn's Mitch Rapp series
2) Brad  Thor's  Scot Horvath  series
3) Jeffrey Deaver's Lincoln Rhymes series


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## Aaron Pogue (Feb 18, 2011)

modwitch said:


> I'm a big fan of my fantasy girls, McAffrey, Zimmer Bradley, and Lackey. Love their series - those are what I grew up on, and where I often head back for a comfort read. Currently getting sucked in by LJ Seller's Detective Jackson mysteries.


Have you ever read Patricia McKillips's Riddle-Master trilogy? It's one of my all-time favorite fantasy series.


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## Julie Christensen (Oct 13, 2010)

Come on, guys!  Isn't it Diana Galbodon?  I mean, really and honestly, is there any other series that made you think you'd die if you couldn't read the next one right away?  (Obviously, the younger set felt this about Harry Potter, but...for adults).


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

Julie Christensen said:


> Come on, guys! Isn't it Diana Galbodon? I mean, really and honestly, is there any other series that made you think you'd die if you couldn't read the next one right away? (Obviously, the younger set felt this about Harry Potter, but...for adults).


I haven't read "The Outlander" series yet, but it's on my TBR list. Maybe I should move it up to the top of the list.


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## Iwritelotsofbooks (Nov 17, 2010)

I'm a sucker for Vince Flynn's Mitch Rapp books.  Can't wait for the next one to come out.


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## Julie Christensen (Oct 13, 2010)

Cindy416 said:


> I haven't read "The Outlander" series yet, but it's on my TBR list. Maybe I should move it up to the top of the list.


You won't regret it, Cindy!


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## Dan Ames (Feb 8, 2011)

I'm a big fan of the Stephen Hunter sniper series.  Although, there are a couple of his books in between the Bob Lee Swagger novels, like Dirty White Boys, that are really good, too.


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## Harry Shannon (Jul 30, 2010)

James Lee Burke, Dave R.
John D. MacDonald Travis McGee
John Connelly, Charlie Parker
Michael Connolly, Harry Bosch novels


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## teeitup (Nov 1, 2008)

Thanks for this thread.  I haven't really read many series that I can think of and I printed the thread so I can have these for reference down the road.  I'm in an 11 in 11 challenge over on Shelfari and one of my categories is "1st in a Series" so this will help me get started on that one.


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## William Meikle (Apr 19, 2010)

Crime: Chandler's Philip Marlowe books
Fantasy: Moorcock's Eternal Champion cycle, Roger Zelazny's first 5 Amber novels or Robert Holdstock's Mythago Wood cycle
Horror: Brian Lumley's first 5 Necroscope books
Sci-Fi: Larry Niven's Ringworld series.


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## Andre Jute (Dec 18, 2010)

padowd said:


> There is a post about book series on this forum and what makes one quit reading them but what I would like to know is what series did you really enjoy and which ones would you recommend. My husband loves Lee Child with his Reacher series and I love Karin Slaughter's Grant County series.


Charles McCarry's early Paul Christopher novels stand out as literature, history and spy fiction. Also the novels of the extended family, like The Better Angels (which horribly forecast the rise of Islamic terrorism in American politics). The Last Supper is a huanting novel.

Len Deighton's three trilogies about Bernard Samson is probably the best and most realistic spy series ever written, and also has important historical overtones in the tenth book about the antecedents of some of the people in the 9 books in the main series.


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## William Meikle (Apr 19, 2010)

Julie Christensen said:


> Come on, guys! Isn't it Diana Galbodon? I mean, really and honestly, is there any other series that made you think you'd die if you couldn't read the next one right away? (Obviously, the younger set felt this about Harry Potter, but...for adults).


Try being a Scots man and reading the Outlander books... I think you'd find the experience a bit different


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## Blanche (Jan 4, 2010)

Song of Ice and Fire series.  George R.R. Martin caught me with these books -- hook, line, and sinker.  

I love the utter ruthlessness and gritty realism in the characters and storyline.


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## anguabell (Jan 9, 2011)

One that hasn't been named in this thread yet: Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next series. A bit uneven but a great read for all book lovers.


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