10 Books That Should Have Sequels

Happy Tuesday y’all! This week Jana over at That Artsy Reader Girl has decided the theme for the Top Ten Tuesday should be Characters I’d Love an Update On; a where are they now kind of thing. I will admit that I want to know about a few characters: Is Percy Jackson settling into life at Camp Jupiter? What about Annabeth? But I also know that we may get those updates at some point, even if it’s just fanfic. Instead, I decided to twist the topic a little and focus on 10 books that should have sequels.

Now I know some books can’t handle sequels, no matter how hard authors (and publishers) try. But often, I’ve come across a book, and I want to know what happens next. Does the character continue to grow and change? And I wanted to share a few of these books with you.

All synopsis are from Goodreads.

Book 1: Little Blog on the Prairie by Cathleen Davitt Bell

• Genre: Middle-grade contemporary
• Date Released: May 2010

Synopsis

Gen’s family is more comfortable spending time apart than together. Then Gen’s mom signs them up for Camp Frontier–a vacation that promises the “thrill” of living like 1890s pioneers. Forced to give up all of her modern possessions, Gen nevertheless manages to email her friends back home about life at “Little Hell on the Prairie,” as she’s renamed the camp. It turns out frontier life isn’t without its good points–like the cute boy who lives in the next clearing. And when her friends turn her emails into a blog, Gen is happily surprised by the fanbase that springs up. But just when it seems Gen and family might pull through the summer, disaster strikes as a TV crew descends on the camp, intent on discovering the girl behind the nationwide blogging sensation–and perhaps ruining the best vacation Gen has ever had.

What I Want From a Sequel

Did the blog stay viral? Does Gen still feel the same way she did at the end of the summer?

Book 2: A Snicker of Magic by Natalie Lloyd

• Genre: Middle-Grade Fantasy/Magical Realism
• Date Released: February 2015

Synopsis

Midnight Gulch used to be a magical place, a town where people could sing up thunderstorms and dance up sunflowers. But that was long ago before a curse drove the magic away. Twelve-year-old Felicity knows all about things like that; her nomadic mother is cursed with a wandering heart.

But when she arrives in Midnight Gulch, Felicity thinks her luck’s about to change. A “word collector,” Felicity sees words everywhere—shining above strangers, tucked into church eves, and tangled up her dog’s floppy ears—but Midnight Gulch is the first place she’s ever seen the word “home.” And then there’s Jonah, a mysterious, spiky-haired do-gooder who shimmers with words Felicity’s never seen before, words that make Felicity’s heart beat a little faster.

Felicity wants to stay in Midnight Gulch more than anything, but first, she’ll need to figure out how to bring back the magic, breaking the spell that’s been cast over the town . . . and her mother’s broken heart.

What I Want From a Sequel

I want to know more about the quirky town of Midnight Gulch. Is that such a bad thing?

Book 3: A Night Divided by Jennifer A. Nielsen

• Genre: Middle-grade/Young Adult/ Historical Fiction
• Date Released: August 2015

Synopsis

With the rise of the Berlin Wall, twelve-year-old Gerta finds her family divided overnight. She, her mother, and her brother Fritz live on the eastern side, controlled by the Soviets. Her father and middle brother, who had gone west in search of work, cannot return home. Gerta knows it is dangerous to watch the wall, to think forbidden thoughts of freedom, yet she can’t help herself. She sees the East German soldiers with their guns trained on their own citizens; she, her family, her neighbors, and friends are prisoners in their own city.

But one day, while on her way to school, Gerta spots her father on a viewing platform on the western side, pantomiming a peculiar dance. Then, when she receives a mysterious drawing, Gerta puts two and two together and concludes that her father wants Gerta and Fritz to tunnel beneath the wall, out of East Berlin. However, if they are caught, the consequences will be deadly. No one can be trusted. Will Gerta and her family find their way to freedom?

What I Want From a Sequel

I want to know more about Gerta and her family. Was their reunion successful? What about the impact of their actions on the friends they left behind?

Book 4: Girl Mans Up by M.E. Girard

• Genre: Young Adult/New Adult/Queer/Contemporary
• Date Released: September 2016

Synopsis

All Pen Oliveira wants is to be the kind of girl she’s always been. So why does everyone have a problem with it? They think the way she looks and acts means she’s trying to be a boy—that she should quit trying to be something she’s not. If she dresses like a girl and does what her folks want, it will show respect. If she takes orders and does what her friend Colby wants, it will show her loyalty. But respect and loyalty, Pen discovers, are empty words.

Pen makes tough choices, has her friends’ backs, and is done feeling bad about who she is. Old-world parents, disintegrating friendships, and strong feelings for other girls drive Pen to see the truth—that in order to be who she truly wants to be, she’ll have to man up.

What I Want From a Sequel

Where is Pen now? Is she still with Johnny? What about her parents?

Book 5: The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré 

• Genre: Contemporary/Coming-of-Age
• Date Released: February 2020

Synopsis

The unforgettable, inspiring story of a teenage girl growing up in a rural Nigerian village who longs to get an education so that she can find her “louding voice” and speak up for herself. The Girl with the Louding Voice is a simultaneously heartbreaking and triumphant tale about the power of fighting for your dreams.

Despite the seemingly insurmountable obstacles in her path, Adunni never loses sight of her goal of escaping the life of poverty she was born into so that she can build the future she chooses for herself – and help other girls like her do the same.

What I Want From a Sequel

This book is another where I do want a character update. How is Adunni adjusting? Will her louding voice get stronger? Is she helping other girls find theirs?

Book 6: The Lost for Words Bookshop by Stephanie Butland

• Genre: Contemporary/Romance
• Date Released: July 2018

Synopsis

Loveday Cardew prefers books to people. If you look carefully, you might glimpse the first lines of the novels she loves most tattooed on her skin. But there are some things Loveday will never, ever show you.

Into her hiding place – the bookstore where she works – come a poet, a lover, and three suspicious deliveries.

Someone has found out about her mysterious past. Will Loveday survive her own heartbreaking secrets?

What I Want From a Sequel

What is Loveday up to now? Has she found the answers to her questions?

Book 6: Delicious! by Ruth Reichl

• Genre: Contemporary/Food/Romance
• Date Released: May 2014

Synopsis

Billie Breslin has traveled far from her California home to take a job at Delicious, the most iconic food magazine in New York and, thus, the world. When the publication is summarily shut down, the colorful staff, who have become an extended family for Billie, must pick up their lives and move on. Not Billie, though. She is offered a new job: staying behind in the magazine’s deserted downtown mansion offices to uphold the “Delicious Guarantee” -a public relations hotline for complaints and recipe inquiries-until further notice. What she doesn’t know is that this boring, lonely job will be the portal to a life-changing discovery.

Delicious! carries the reader to the colorful world of downtown New York restaurateurs and artisanal purveyors, and from the lively food shop in Little Italy where Billie works on weekends to a hidden room in the magazine’s library. She discovers Lulu Swan’s letters, a plucky twelve-year-old who wrote to the legendary chef James Beard during World War II. Lulu’s letters lead Billie to a deeper understanding of history (and the history of food), but most important, Lulu’s courage in the face of loss inspires Billie to come to terms with her own issues-the panic attacks that occur every time she even thinks about cooking, the truth about the big sister she adored, and her ability to open her heart to love.

What I Want From a Sequel

While I was not too fond of the ending, as it felt too rushed, maybe a sequel could help fill some of the holes left in the rush. Of course, following Billie through New York City as she continues to learn more about food is a great idea!

Book 8: The List by Martin Fletcher

• Genre: Historical Fiction
• Date Released: October 2012

Synopsis

London, October 1945. Austrian refugees Georg and Edith await the birth of their first child. Yet how can they celebrate when almost every day brings news of another relative or friend murdered in the Holocaust? Their struggle to rebuild their lives is further threatened by growing anti-Semitism in London’s streets; Englishmen want to take homes and jobs from Jewish refugees and give them to returning servicemen.

Edith’s father is believed to have survived, and finding him rests on Georg’s shoulders. Then Georg learns of a plot by Palestinian Jews to assassinate Britain’s foreign minister. Georg must try to stop the murder, all the while navigating a city that wants to “eject the aliens.”

What I Want From a Sequel

While I know this book is based on the author’s family story; I still want to know what happens next!

Book 9: Mrs Queen Takes the Train by William Kuhn

• Genre: Fiction/Contemporary
• Date Released: October 2012

Synopsis

Mrs Queen Takes the Train wittily imagines the kerfuffle that transpires when a bored Queen Elizabeth strolls out of the palace in search of a little fun, leaving behind a desperate team of courtiers who must find the missing Windsor before a national scandal erupts. Reminiscent of Alan Bennett’s The Uncommon Reader, this lively, wonderfully inventive romp takes readers into the mind of the grand matriarch of Britain’s Royal Family, bringing us an endearing runaway Queen Elizabeth on the town, and leading us behind the Buckingham Palace walls and into the upstairs/downstairs spaces of England’s monarchy.

What I Want From a Sequel

What happened when the Queen returned to her regular life? Did she remember the lessons she learned along the journey?

Book 10: The Christmas Train by David Baldacci

• Genre: Contemporary/Fiction/Holiday
• Date Released: October 2014

Synopsis

Disillusioned journalist Tom Langdon must get from Washington to Los Angeles in time for Christmas. Forced to travel by train, he begins a journey of rude awakenings, thrilling adventures, and holiday magic. He has no idea that the locomotives pulling him across America will actually take him into the rugged terrain of his own heart, as he rediscovers people’s essential goodness and someone very special he believed he had lost.

What I Want From a Sequel

What happens next? Do they have a reunion on the anniversary of the trip?

And there you have it, a list of 10 books that should have sequels! Have you read any of these books? Are there any books you think should have sequels? I would love to know!

Looking for some more ideas to read? Check out my monthly reading wrap-ups. Also check out some of my other Top Ten Tuesdays posts in my Bookish Lists section.