How long should a book be?

[Elventine]

Without having even looked at you book or series I just can't offer an opinion. As what it comes down to is two questions -

1. Does everything in those books really need to be there in order for the reader to follow the story?

2. Have you over written anything?

Only you or/and a good editor can tell you that.

 

[Vince W]

Long enough to tell a good story, but not so long that the reader becomes bored and puts the book down.

 

[Steven Sorrels]

I read a lot of King stories, so 600+ pages is nothing out of the ordinary to me. I personally love huge books, so I can spend plenty of time enveloped in the literary worlds I love. The size of a book has no bearing on my curiosity. As long as it's an interesting subject, your book could be 2000 pages and I'd probably read it.

 

[ACE977]

From the stand point of a casual reader, books clocking in at 600 or 700 pages are intimidating. Simply, people don't have as much time as they used to to sit and take in a massive book. I suppose, however, if you are this far into your series then you have some dedicated readers and are beyond the need for brevity.

+1 IMHO this is the best answer.

 

[thaddeus6th]

Worth mentioning the effect of e-readers on this. A three-inch thick whopper (ahem) won't be as intimidating as it used to be. However, novellas are also more marketable now, and I did read somewhere that book length is, on average, declining.

In the future I'm considering looking at a serial release of a book or maybe an ongoing series. Some way off, but it's something I think could work with e-books.