We have all seen the trend that is happening in Romance novels these days. The Series. I can’t even remember the last time that I read a book that wasn’t a part of a series. Paranormals, fantasy, Regencies – it doesn’t matter the genre, all the books seem to be a part of a series. For me, that isn’t really a problem. I like that. I like that I don’t have to say goodbye to characters that I love and have come to care about after I finish a book. I like that a younger sibling or a best friend that we like in one book finds their own HEA in the next book. So this trend hasn’t bothered me all that much. That is until very recently.
While I have no problem with the trend that all books are a part of a series, I have started to see something that I don’t like. Usually, I enjoy a good epilogue. It used to be that the epilogue was a small chapter at the end of the book where we get a chance to peek at the future. This used to be a place that transcended the “series” chronology and jumped forward a few years and let us know that despite what may be happening is the great story arc of the series, this is what is happening with the couple currently. A good example of this would be Lover Awakened by J.R. Ward. At the end of this book, we get an epilogue that takes place 18 months after the book ended and the epilogue is a scene with the main couple, Z and Bella, and it steps out of the chronology of the series and gives a glimpse of the future. I love these scenes. They reassure us that all is well with the couple in the future, they reaffirm the HEA, and they satisfy any curiosity of children that may have been born or events that might have played out off page.
