When characters' in book series lives are threatened, or they leave, or something generally bad happens to them, it's like it's happening to me. I feel it deep in my stomach. I will literally get stomachaches and I will sweat and my breathing will get shallower. I get into books like normal people get into movies. For me, I like to visualize it myself. My mind's eye is pretty awesome--I can picture something with near perfect clarity and that mental image will carry me through the rest of the book (or series). When I've got it, I got it. Same deal with characters. When I've connected with a character in some way, shape, or form, I feel a weird bond with that character. I'm passionate about the "good guys" succeeding and I'm passionate about my loathing for the "bad guys". There are certain book characters that I flinch when I hear or read their name (Bellatrix Lastrange of Harry Potter, for example).
And when books end, especially book series, I go through a weird mourning period. It almost feels like I've lost friends when the final page is turned and there are no more surprises for me. I feel nostalgic.
Yes, I realize how ridiculous this all is. But what you need to realize is that this is what makes me a good writer. This weird, intense love for characters and stories is what makes me who I am as a person as well as a writer. I'm empathetic by nature and that has proved, overall, to be a good thing when it comes to reading and writing. Of course, that has also subjected me to lots of tears over people who do not exist, but whatever. We can move past that.
Anthony Horowitz, renowned British author/play write/screen writer, just finished his blockbuster series The Alex Rider series. Yes, Alex Rider is a fourteen/fifteen year old spy. But not in the "oh-man-I'm-so-awesome-and-love-being-a-spy" kind of way. Quite the opposite, really. It's an intriguing twist on the story we've all heard over and over. There is lots of angst (which I love), tons of details, and very well written. Yeah, they're intensely predictable (Alex doesn't want to go on the mission, goes anyway, learns vital information, is compromised, hears the whole plan from the evil mastermind, almost dies some horrible death, escapes with some crazy but weirdly logical plan, MI6 destroys the threat, Alex is injured in some way, he goes home and vows to never do it again). This happens eight times. He has a care-taker/nanny Jack (an American woman in her late 20s) is always by his side.
*spoiler alert*
In the last book, Scorpia Rising, which was slightly less predictable and had some fantastic twists in it, Jack goes with Alex on a mission. Through a crazy trail of events and one sickeningly cruel plan, Jack, Alex's best friend who knows everything about him, is killed. Sorry to ruin it for you if you were going to read it. The circumstances and the plan easily wins the evil award. It rose above and beyond the call of badness, so much so that "cruel" might even be too light of a word for it. Unfortunately, I knew it was coming. I called it. That's part of the gift/curse of reading so much: I pick up on things that are going to happen. I picked up on Jack's death. I didn't cry--amazingly--but it was just one of those moments where I hung my head and tried to take deep breaths. I wouldn't have had it any other way because it was so masterfully done, but it still hurt.
I'm a nerd. Okay? I'm a nerd.
The conclusion came by Alex going to America to live with family friends and that was the end of the great Alex Rider series.
It's over. I've been following this series since probably eighth grade. That's five years. And now it's just done. Horowitz went out with a bang and the book was great. But it's still sad, you know?
Okay, okay. I'll stop being so emo. I realize I've been like that a lot lately and I apologize. I'll write some happy pieces in the upcoming days, I promise.
And now this blog post is like the Alex Rider series: done.
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