It’s summer, and time for leisure reading. I have several YA fantasy titles in my TBR pile, some of which are the first books in a two-book series, aka a duology. I’ve read of couple of these, only to reach the end of Book 1 to find no resolution, a lot more questions, and a cliffhanger ending. Wait! What? I turn the page expecting more, but no. That’s the end. And I feel so cheated. I’ve paid good coin for this paperback (or sometimes even the hardcover book). I’ve spent hours reading, invested in these characters and their struggles. But I feel as if I only received half a novel.
Well, it is a duology, you say. Yes, and…that means the first book should introduce a major story arc that extends into the second book. That said, each installment should also deliver a story arc of its own. The end of Book 1 should resolve some part of the promise made at the beginning of the book, while furthering progress toward the overarching goal. I shouldn’t feel as if the author just chopped the book in half at “the turn” and made one epic novel into two.
Not only duologies, the second installments of trilogies often have this problem for me as well. The first book will have a complete arc and deliver a satisfying conclusion, but then the second novel will not, instead ending with the dreaded cliffhanger. Call me contrary, but these do not entice me to buy the sequel to find out what happens next.
I’m currently reading Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows Duology. Now this is a duology done well. I thoroughly enjoyed Six of Crows. Bardugo builds a rich fantasy world populated with complex, compelling characters. Although the book concludes with a wicked twist that sets up its sequel, the heist that anchors Six of Crows was brilliant and very satisfying. I’m now about two hundred pages into Crooked Kingdom. I look forward to seeing how this ends, confident that Bardugo can deliver on the full promise of the series.
Can you recommend another duology that you thought was particularly well done? Can you identify a clear arc in each installment, as well as the overarching storyline?