Our topic for July is: What makes a novel
memorable? For me, it is the characters every time, no matter what the genre.
I have my preferences, of course. I mostly read
historical romance, and then western romance (historical or contemporary) and
anything and everything in between. I rarely read science fiction, fantasy or
inspirational. Not that I haven’t, those categories just don’t come high on my
list of preferred reading
My most favorite and memorable historical
characters are from Georgette Heyer’s Regency romance Frederica. Freddie is such a managing female! And really, any
heroine in any genre has to be a bit out there for me to be engaged. I have
read many books where the heroine has been TSTL, too stupid to live, and
consequently I have consigned her and the book she appears in back to the
shelf.
Heroines in any genre or era need to have some
element of courage in their character. Whether it is standing up to their
families or the mores of their society, the more courage shown by a character in
standing up for what they want or what they believe in, keeps me reading. Wimpy
heroines need not apply.
Snappy heroines that immediately come to mind,
after Frederica, are any of Jane Austen’s leading ladies. Okay, I’m probably
giving my age away here but I don’t mind. Of more recent years there’s been Janet
Evanovitch’s Stephanie Plum and Tami Hoag’s Elena Estes, also Lisbeth Salander
from Stieg Larsson’s The Girl With the
Dragon Tattoo.
My heroes have to be strong, too, but they can
be strong in different ways. Lord Alverstoke, Frederica’s nemesis, is everything
a Regency hero should be. Something of the bad boy in his youth, but an
athletic, muscular figure whose place in society gives him a great sense of
self within the propriety of his era. That he gradually falls in love with the
aforesaid managing female makes for a delightful character arc as his views
change.
Another of Tami Hoag’s characters, Lucky Doucet,
is almost an anti-hero. A war-damaged vet, Lucky retreats to the dark bayous of
Louisiana. Even though he’s chosen to live this way, he still manages to help people
where and when he can. Love leads to Lucky making his way in the world beyond
the bayou with an unexpected and satisfying twist at the end of the tale.
Though they are two very different types of
character, the one suave and elegant and the other very physical and damaged,
they both held my attention. The more empathy I can feel for the characters, the
more I can identify with them then the more real they become to me and those
are the books I have no problem returning to again and again.
Do the characters that mean the most to me
reflect elements in my psyche? Maybe. Those characters are people that I would
like to meet and spend time with, characters whose values and experiences I could
imagine sharing with them as I would a good friend, might—after all—be just
like me.
See what other authors in our Round Robin group
have to say on this subject:
Judith Copek http://lynx-sis.blogspot.com/
Beverley Bateman http://beverleybateman.blogspot.ca/
Skye Taylor http://www.skye-writer.com/blogging_by_the_sea
Dr. Bob Rich http://wp.me/p3Xihq-I4
Helena Fairfax http://helenafairfax.com/
Marci Baun http://www.marcibaun.com/blog/
Rachael Kosinski http://rachaelkosinski.weebly.com/
Connie Vines http://connievines.blogspot.com/
Rhobin Courtright http://www.rhobinleecourtright.com
Beverley Bateman http://beverleybateman.blogspot.ca/
Skye Taylor http://www.skye-writer.com/blogging_by_the_sea
Dr. Bob Rich http://wp.me/p3Xihq-I4
Helena Fairfax http://helenafairfax.com/
Marci Baun http://www.marcibaun.com/blog/
Rachael Kosinski http://rachaelkosinski.weebly.com/
Connie Vines http://connievines.blogspot.com/
Rhobin Courtright http://www.rhobinleecourtright.com
