Joanna’s on a rant about endings 😉
This post is about unsatisfactory endings to novels, where they fall off a cliff. Sarah has posted about problem endings before, as have I, but both were a while ago so I feel it’s safe for me to have another go.
In my own previous post, I was recommending allowing the reader a wallow at the end of a romantic novel. This post probably applies to most novels, including romances, but I’m thinking particularly of crime and thrillers. They fall off a cliff often. Too often, in my view.
To fall off a cliff.
It’s one of Sophie’s descriptions, but I think it’s apt for many unsatisfactory endings.
What, exactly, do I mean by it?
You’ll recognise it when you read it. It’s the equivalent of a jump-cut to “and they all lived happily ever after”.
Or, if you like, the entrance of the deus ex machina to sort all the problems and end the play.
In the case of a crime novel, it’s when the sleuth (amateur or professional), having been struggling to solve the crime throughout the book, suddenly has a eureka moment.
The sleuth might be half-asleep in bed, or driving the car, or staring out of the window but somehow, suddenly, he or she knows the answer.
