Reading her post got me thinking: what kinds of endings do you prefer? There are so many differing opinions on how books should be wrapped up; that much is clear when perusing reviews and seeing both the one-star and five-star ends of the spectrum.
So: ambiguity or neatly wrapped up? Personally, I think there are perks to both.
Ambiguous Endings
As anyone who's read my bio on the sidebar of this blog knows, I'm a big fan of bittersweet endings. And with bittersweet endings usually comes some ambiguity. Often that mixture between holding back the tears while also feeling satisfied is because you don't know for sure what's going to happen to these characters after you close the book. Do the romantic interests end up with each other later on or not? Will the protagonist reach their goals? Is everyone going to be okay?
I feel like there’s an important distinction between open endings and ambiguous ones. In my opinion, open endings are more out of nowhere. Those resolutions almost seem like the author ran out of steam, tacked on a few paragraphs, and called it an ending so readers could decide for themselves what happened afterwards. That’s lazy. Open endings don't make me think for days after finishing a book about the characters and where they might be. They usually make me stare at a wall in annoyance or do something like this:
But I adore ambiguous endings. Those feel more artistic, where the story is somewhat resolved but not definite, so you can almost imagine the characters living their lives past the last pages of the book. In those cases, I think the author usually knows what happens next, but they don’t lay it all out for you.
I'm not sure exactly why I love ambiguous endings so much, but I know there's something strangely satisfying about the frustration of not being able to be 100% sure about where/how the characters end up. It makes my imagination run wild. I think it's more realistic for resolutions to be imperfect and unsure, which makes the books and the characters feel more real, as a result. It's also fun to take this piece of art the author has laid the groundwork for and be able to fill some of the gaps in yourself. It's not all that different from fan-fiction writers creating new stories to fill in the gaps.
I know ambiguous endings can drive some people absolutely bonkers, but if you're looking for some books that do ambiguity well, I recommend checking out:
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
Sadie by Courtney Summers
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
Tied Up with a Bow
As much as I love leaving stuff up for interpretation, there's something to be said for endings that are neatly resolved. There is an entirely different kind of satisfaction when it comes to closing a book with a happy sigh, knowing exactly what happened to those characters and that everything is going to be Just Fine.
With most longer fantasy series (or other genres, like sci-fi and dystopian), I don't think I'd be content with an air of mystery after finishing the last book. When I've invested that much time in a cast of characters, you bet I want a detailed epilogue telling me that everyone's going to be okay. That's not to say every character has to be perfectly safe, happy, and alive, but there should be a healthy dose of hope along with the inevitable grieving of characters lost during an epic series.
I'm a big fan of the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows epilogue, because after seven books (especially after making it through the behemoth that is Order of the Phoenix), I wanted a glimpse into Harry, Ron, and Hermione's futures. I don't need entire spin-off series necessarily, but at least a few pages to reward dedicated readers for seeing a journey through to the end.
Also, with rom-coms, I need a Happily Ever After. I don't need this with every romance (see my reference to Eleanor & Park and its ambiguous ending above), specifically just rom-coms. The kind of fluffy contemporaries that you read with a cup of hot chocolate or on a sunny beach. There may be a small difference, but that kind of distinction matters to me when it comes to how to wrap-up a love story. Becky Albertalli's rom-com endings, for example, give me all the warm fuzzies.
And, as with any kind of writing, HEAs or other detailed endings can be done poorly. Execution is everything. If the author tries to fit in the resolutions of every single minor character, the ending is going to feel forced and trite. Not everything has to be perfectly spelled out, otherwise it'll feel dumbed down.
Other than Harry Potter and Becky Albertalli books, I think stories that have had good, satisfying endings in this vein are:
The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer
The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
Let's Talk!
What kind of ending do you prefer? Do you like both for different reasons or are you adamantly opposed to one? Leave a comment with your thoughts below!
17 comments:
I agree with you: it depends. I do love an ambiguous ending if it's done well. I have no problems at all not feeling like I know what comes next. And an HEA feels really good after investing a LOT of time into a series. I hadn't thought of it in those terms, but I probably feel largely the same way as you do.
I actually never thought of the difference between an ambiguous ending vs an open ending. I always was like "eh same thing" but omg you'RE RIGHT THEY'RE DIFFERENT!! I like ambiguous endings for sure. I like not knowing everything because it feels like the story is still going when you close the book? I hate feeling like the book ends, the characters lives just stop 😂😂 But I do want SOME closure if there's no more sequels. A bad ending can ruin a really good book unfortunately afhsoghsfhs.
@Dr. Mark
Ambiguous endings are really hard to get right, so if an author isn't going to pull it off, I'd rather they not try at all. I figured you'd feel similarly, too.
@Cait
Right?? One drives you crazy, but the other can be really artistic and perfect for the book! I totally agree! I want books that live on in my mind after I've finished them. Bad endings will totally sour a book I've loved the rest of the way through, unfortunately.
I tend to prefer ambiguous endings, but really? What I want is a good ending. An ending that fits the story best, an ending that is written well. I agree with you that Sadie has an excellent ambiguous ending; I also love the ambiguous endings of The House on the Strand by Daphne du Maurier and The Fixer by Bernard Malamud (even though I like nothing else about that book). But there are some neat, wrapped-up-in-a-bow endings I like as well! East by Edith Pattou and The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne are a couple that come to mind. Great post!
Eleanor | On the Other Side of Reality
@Eleanor
I agree, it has to fit the tone of the rest of the story, otherwise it'll come out of nowhere! Ooh, it's not often I hear people talk about how much they liked the ending of a book if they didn't like anything else. Thank you!
I do love a good ambiguous ending, but the key word here is GOOD. The Dead House? That had a good ambiguous ending. Sleepless? Lost a star because the ending made no sense. At all. And, having read the whole thing in a day, that irritated me.
Ahh I am glad that my discussion inspired your own post!! I am okay with *some* ambiguity. Like, a little. But Sadie, while completely fitting and well-done and appropriate for the book, still make me want MORE ending hahah. I think I am a greedy reader 😂 I am telling you, the ending for Requiem was literally what you described, it felt like the author didn't know how to end it so... she didn't. It was legit mid-war battle and BAM, over. Like what now!? I sob.
@Ivy
Ugh, yes, I will definitely rate books lower if the endings sour the rest of the story for me. A good conclusion is just as important as a good beginning!
@Shannon
Ha ha, your post was so fun to read! I know what you mean about Sadie. xD I loved it even though it frustrated me not to know more, if that makes sense, LOL. But I totally agree with you about Requiem! I remember liking the first books in the series way better.
Great post and discussion! I prefer the "wrapped up with a bow" endings usually, but it really does depend on the story itself. Some stories, because of the plot, the theme, or just the way they're written, lend themselves better towards ambiguous endings. A predictable story with lots of tropes (like, say, a rom-com) that has an ambiguous ending would not work, probably - I as a reader would feel cheated, or would think that the writer was trying too hard to be clever, or just got lazy at the end, or something. A formulaic story needs a formulaic ending.
Mr. King warned me at the end of the Dark Tower on the “neat” ending. Since then I have a strong preference for the ambiguous. I often dream all the possibilities and that is more fun for me. Some are sad and dark others are full of sunshine. Life is messy and unpredictable just like my favorite endings.
I'd like to say that ambiguous endings are okay with me, but I would be lying. They frustrate me, especially when the book has taken me on an emotional journey. Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley is a perfect example--I still think about that ending sometimes.
I like both. And you wrote a short story that got published years ago and what I remember most was what a great job you did with that ending!
@Grace
Thank you! It definitely depends on the type of story, for me. I don't think I've ever really seen a true rom-com with an ambiguous ending. Maybe it can be done, but it's certainly not the norm!
@Maven
I like to let my imagination run a little bit wild, too. There's a totally different sense of satisfaction when it comes to imperfect or bittersweet endings, because it is so realistic.
@Leah
Ha ha, some people just aren't wired to like ambiguous endings. Either way, they do stay with you!
@Jimmy
Thank you! Glad you liked it! Endings are so difficult to write.
Following up. I'm in a book club and last night we discussed East of Eden and turned out that there was consensus that we liked that there were so many things left open in that book. Someone said it was so much better than reading Dickens who wraps up everything nicely with a bow and usually it's a happy ending. We appreciated that life is more complex than that. So I guess I guess I side with open for interpretation.
@Jimmy
That's interesting so many people appreciated the ambiguity (though I think it makes sense), because in general it seems like the not knowing frustrates people!
You know my feelings on this. I love delicious ambiguous endings. That said, you make a good point about the epilogue in Harry Potter. Admittedly, I wasn't a big fan at first, but it's grown on me. Of course I also love The Cursed Child, even though I was nervous about that, too. So perhaps I should open myself up more. I mean, admittedly, ambiguous endings wouldn't be nearly so fun if they were ALL that way.
@Boquinha
I know your feelings so well on this. :P There aren't many books that can pull off an ending as neat as Harry Potter's, but I think that one was deserved after seven books (some of them gargantuan) of investment.
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