Best of 2013: Completed Series

I feel like there were so many great series that came to an end this year, it kind of made me sad. Don't get me wrong, there are some great new series coming out, but they will be hard-pressed to match up to some of the greats that concluded.

Plus, choosing from those series?  Torture.  I'm not kidding. There's a reason I read the entire trilogy.  If they had been mediocre, I might not have made it to the end, so that right there says something about the caliber of book's I'm having to rank.  Choosing is awful. To make it a bit easier, I am eliminating series that have less than three books.

Just to make things easier on myself, I named the last book in the series (you know, the one that actually made it possible for it to qualify in this category) and not the series itself. Now, in no particular order, here's my personal favorite ending series for 2013.

1. The Bitter Kingdom by Rae Carson

The epic conclusion to Rae Carson's Fire and Thorns trilogy. The seventeen-year-old sorcerer-queen will travel into the unknown realm of the enemy to win back her true love, save her country, and uncover the final secrets of her destiny.

Elisa is a fugitive in her own country. Her enemies have stolen the man she loves in order to lure her to the gate of darkness. As she and her daring companions take one last quest into unknown enemy territory to save Hector, Elisa will face hardships she's never imagined. And she will discover secrets about herself and her world that could change the course of history. She must rise up as champion-a champion to those who have hated her most. Quoted from Goodreads

2. Emerald Green by Kirsten Gier

Gwen has a destiny to fulfill, but no one will tell her what it is.

She’s only recently learned that she is the Ruby, the final member of the time-traveling Circle of Twelve, and since then nothing has been going right. She suspects the founder of the Circle, Count Saint-German, is up to something nefarious, but nobody will believe her. And she’s just learned that her charming time-traveling partner, Gideon, has probably been using her all along.

This stunning conclusion picks up where Sapphire Blue left off, reaching new heights of intrigue and romance as Gwen finally uncovers the secrets of the time-traveling society and learns her fate.  Quoted from Goodreads

3. United We Spy by Ally Carter

Cammie Morgan has lost her father and her memory, but in the heart-pounding conclusion to the best-selling Gallagher Girls series, she finds her greatest mission yet. Cammie and her friends finally know why the terrorist organization called the Circle of Cavan has been hunting her. Now the spy girls and Zach must track down the Circle’s elite members to stop them before they implement a master plan that will change Cammie—and her country—forever.  Quoted from Goodreads

4.  Boundless by Cynthia Hand

The past few years have held more surprises than part-angel Clara Gardner could ever have anticipated. Yet from the dizzying highs of first love, to the agonizing low of losing someone close to her, the one thing she can no longer deny is that she was never meant to live a normal life.

Since discovering the special role she plays among the other angel-bloods, Clara has been determined to protect Tucker Avery from the evil that follows her . . . even if it means breaking both their hearts. Leaving town seems like the best option, so she’s headed back to California - and so is Christian Prescott, the irresistible boy from the vision that started her on this journey in the first place.

As Clara makes her way in a world that is frighteningly new, she discovers that the fallen angel who attacked her is watching her every move. And he’s not the only one. . . . With the battle against the Black Wings looming, Clara knows she must finally fulfil her destiny. But it won’t come without sacrifices and betrayal.

In the riveting finale of the Unearthly series, Clara must decide her fate once and for all.Quoted from Goodreads

5. A Memory of Light by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson

Since 1990, when Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time® burst on the world with its first book, The Eye of the World, readers have been anticipating the final scenes of this extraordinary saga, which has sold over forty million copies in over thirty languages.

When Robert Jordan died in 2007, all feared that these concluding scenes would never be written. But working from notes and partials left by Jordan, established fantasy writer Brandon Sanderson stepped in to complete the masterwork. With The Gathering Storm (Book 12) andTowers of Midnight (Book 13) behind him, both of which were # 1 New York Times hardcover bestsellers, Sanderson now re-creates the vision that Robert Jordan left behind.

Edited by Jordan’s widow, who edited all of Jordan’s books, A Memory of Light will delight, enthrall, and deeply satisfy all of Jordan’s legions of readers.

The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass.
What was, what will be, and what is,
may yet fall under the Shadow.
Let the Dragon ride again on the winds of time.   Quoted from Goodreads

That. Was. Horrible.  Seriously, choosing my top five was like pulling teeth or hitting you thumb with a hammer.  All the ones I didn't choose I feel like I betrayed, and the ones I did, well I keep second guessing whether or not I really like them as much as the ones that didn't make the list.  Here are my honorable mentions, the books that probably could take the place of a few series that actually made my list if I were in a different mood, so here goes: If I should Die by Amy Plum, With All my Soul by Rachel Vincent, The Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare, and Shades of Earth by Beth Revis.