Yesterday, Iron Flame was released. For those who live under a social media/news rock–and that is often a GREAT place to be–this is the second book in Rebecca Yarros’ series about telepathic dragons. The first one, The Fourth Wing, was one of this year’s biggest sellers–it has over 105K five star reviews at Amazon! (Our reviewer, Kayne, loved it.)

I am reading Iron Flame–as is Kayne–and we will let you know our thoughts about it later this month. But, I am kinda preparing to be a bit disappointed because… book twos are often let downs. Whether it’s a wolf shifter book by Cate C. Wells, a football story by Susan Elizabeth Phillips, or a hot urban fantasy series where vampires rule Vegas, the second in a series where the first book was AWESOME is often, at the very least, tough to top.

Sometimes, though, book two takes the promise of the first and just knocks it out of the park. Julie Anne Long kicked off her beloved Pennyroyal Green series with the good The Perils of Pleasure. I enjoyed it. But book two, Like No Other Lover is, for me, a vastly superior read. Serena Bell’s Make Me Wilder was a good time but Walk on the Wilder Side is a sheer joy of a contemporary romance. Carolyn Crane’s Against the Dark is a killer romantic thriller but Off the Edge, book two in the Undercover Associates series, is one of my top 50 romances of all damn time.

What other second in a series books are 1) marvelous and 2) outclass their predecessor? Let us know in the comments!