The Dos and Don'ts of Novel Endings is an interesting article, though some of the points are contradictory. By coincidence, there was a feature on novel endings in the Passive Voice newsletter this morning—I recommend subscribing as it's one of the best writing blogs around:
Last Lines | The Passive Voice | A Lawyer's Thoughts on Authors, Self-Publishing and Traditional Publishing
Generally, with writing advice, there's too much emphasis placed on making the opening lines, paragraphs and pages attention-grabbing. Few experts comment on endings. I've read several novels recently, where I longed for the damned thing to finish, for the author had plainly given up after the climax of the plot and was looking for a way out like a hamster in a maze. A satisfying ending, that also offers some sense of intrigue and continuation in the life of the protagonist will make a reader recall the author's name better than a weak conclusion that dribbles down the drain into obscurity.
I'd suggest that there could be a difference in how the ending of a stand-alone novel ties things up and the way that a story, which is part of a series, leaves a few doors open in bidding adieu to the hero. It's something that I've had to consider in my four Cornish Detective novels, so much so that it's become a long term form of
foreshadowing for my detective protagonist. His state-of-mind at the end of one novel carries over to the next investigation.