Memorable Heroes…
Us romance readers and writers…we love our heroes, don’t we? Beautiful sexy or sexy beast kind of sexy, protector or bad boy, broken soul or the one who is going to be doing all the healing…we do love our heroes.
Some linger with me longer than others, though.
Some heroes that have lingered with me…over and over…
A few of them– (I give snippets for a few of these, but a couple are from ongoing series and it’s hard to nail their awesome down to just one scene.)
Rune from Serpent’s Kiss by Thea Harrison:
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Why? Well, one reason is because of this scene.
Carling stared. Rune was down on his knee again where she had ordered him, but this time she could sense from his emotions that he meant it. He gave full sincere, gracious homage to her. She could see it clear all the way through him, only instead of humbling that insouciant alpha male, somehow it ennobled him with the courtly aspect of a medieval knight. Then she understood what the emotion was that she had sensed from him, because he taught her to experience it again for herself. Desire. He looked on her and felt desire
She tells him to kneel. He does. But she knows he’s not really bowing down to her. So she tells him that and he says it takes more than a command to get him to bow. She asks what it would take…
“A kiss…”
And when they really kiss, this was how he made her feel.
That is a hero.
Another memorable hero? Sean Meridan from Lynn Viehl’s Dreamveil. That guy was…whoa.
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In his book, the guy is raw, hot and dirty. Saying things like, Give me that mouth. And then he’ll turn around and five minutes later do this:
“I want that kiss.” He stepped back and held out his hand. “Stay with me, Rowan.”
This book has one of the ultimate twists…ever. I love it, but Sean’s my favorite part of the story.
Another fave hero, not from romance, but he’s still awesome. Curran. From the Kate Daniels’ series. He’s slightly insane and would do anything for his lady. I love that.
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And although he’s probably what we’d call an anti-hero…he breaks bones, works with drug dealers, he’s still. Well, once you’ve met Terrible, you never forget him. And I love him. Terrible from the Downside series by Stacia Kane
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He’s one of those sexy beasts and he’s just…well. Read the books and meet Terrible. He’s awesome.
And now I have to introduce one of my current heroes, since I’m supposed to be out be out doing the promo bit…let me introduce Toronto. Yes, that’s his name, and there’s actually a reason he’s got that name.
You see, he was found in an alley in Toronto with head injuries, brain all smashed up. He’s a werewolf so he healed the physical damage, but his memories were pretty much gone. He needed to a name to call himself since nobody knew who he was, and he decided to go with Toronto–he kept hoping somebody would find him, know him…something. And he didn’t want to get attached to a real name. Now he’s coming to grips with the fact that those memories are gone for good and Toronto is who he’s made himself. He’s also something of a handful…
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He’s going to be memorable for me because he’s probably the last Hunter. Info about that can be found at my blog, so it’s kind of a bittersweet thing, writing up the guestposts for this book.
A snippet from the book about my smart-ass hero…
He was down there, in the backyard, waiting for her. And damn it. He’d hauled her bike out. Bastard. He was leaning against it, leather stretching over those long thighs, a black T-shirt clinging to his lean chest. He had that blond hair pulled back in a neat tail at the nape of his neck, and he looked good enough to eat. In many, many ways.
Her fangs pulsed.
Lower, much lower, other things pulsed. Because she knew he’d be aware, she figured she’d hide one hunger within another. Standing in the open window frame, keeping her knife hand free, she murmured, “Oh, look. It’s Meals on Wheels.”
He grinned at her. And then he leaped. Sylvia fell back, moving away from the window even as part of her wished she could stand there and just watch him move—
She pulled another knife, but didn’t bother hiding that one. He’d go for the one she’d left in open view, she hoped.
He came through the window, almost silent, a grin on his lips, his blue eyes glinting with humor. That hot, rich scent of his flooded her head and suddenly, she had to swallow. It was that, or start drooling.
“Delivery service.” She waggled her knife at him. “I like that.”
“That mouth of yours ever get you in trouble, Sylvia?”
Seeing as how this is probably the last one, I’d love to send it out with a bang. If you’d like to check out more about the title, you can read a longer excerpt at my site…
Thanks to Fatin for having me…
Shiloh Walker
http://shilohwalker.com/website
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For a chance to win a copy of Hunter’s Rise, just leave a comment below. Who are some of your memorable heroes?
Scarred and tragic but finally redeemed by his perfect mate and made whole by his infant daughter clutching his finger, Zsadist. BDB Series by J.R.Ward.
I have a terrible memory but one hero I do remember is Dane from Linda Howards Dream Man.
Anton is Kate Douglas’ Wolf Tales is an awesome Alpha….. and very memorabe.
I love the ones you choose Siloh! The only one I have not yet read is by Stacia Kane. How about Daemon Sadi by Anne Bishop? He does everything, gives up all the is and holds dear for Jaenelle. And Roarke by JD Robb, I will keep wishing for one of my own for the rest of my life. And not because he is loaded.
One of my favorite heroes is Cord McKay from Cowgirl Up and Ride from Lorelei James. Ian MacKenzie from Jennifer Ashley’s The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie is another good one. John Michael from JR Ward Lover Mine is also another favorite. There are so many!
Don’t forget Barrons!! absolutely memorable *happy sigh*
So many memorable heroes to choose from. I adore Bones from the Night Huntress series. That English accent, and the way he’ll do anything for Cat (lucky girl).
Larissa Ione’s Wraith Seminus when he saves the world. And now he brings it up all the time ;). Then there is Rachel Vincent’s Faythe. She has just stuck with me. What a hard choice she had to make and then to become Alpha too.
Thanks for the giveaway.
Joey Hill’s heroes are always memorable, and of course, Dragos, from Dragon Bound.
Just like in real life, I have a horrible memory for characters names. So, I’m taking notes on the heroes mentioned by Shiloh & all the other commenters.
I love Angel and Buffy from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Please enter me in contest. I would love to read this book.
JD Robb’s Roarke, Catherine Coulter’s Sherbrooke brothers, oh so many great choices out there…
so many good ones, some of which are already mentioned. others include: Adrain (Hawker) Hawkhurst (Joanna Bourne’s books) and Dain (Lord of Scoundrels).
So many great hero’s to choose from, but my top fav is Wraith from Larissa Ione’s Demonica series
Some of the most memorable heroes for me come from the BDB series by J.R. Ward… I mean how can anyone not remember those guys:)
Ash from Sherrilyn Kenyons Dark-Hunters series 🙂
There are some really good broken heroes in the prior responses. I definitely agree with Ash from the Dark Hunters and Barrons from the Fever series. I love a slightly (sometimes seriously) broken bad boy that loves his woman!
Yum, I love Anne Bishop’s Black Jewels males, JD Robb’s Roarke, Maya Banks’ KGI guys, Lisa Marie Rice’s Protectors, Lori Foster’s Mercenaries and of course Shiloh’s guys from Ash, especially Ezra. I am looking forward to getting to know Toronto (-:
Thanks for sharing those snippets…sigh, more books for the TBR pile!
Great list, Shiloh! A couple memorable heroes for me–Sebastian St. Vincent from Devil in Winter; Chris Welsh from Ellen Connor’s Midnight; Colin Byrne from SEP’s Ain’t She Sweet, another Sebastian, this time Ballister from Lord of Scoundrels.
Shiloh, I have to agree with your choice of Curran and Rune. I also like Jonas from Lora Leigh’s Breed Series and Talivar from Allison Pang’s Abby Sinclair series.
Thanks for the chance to win your last Hunter’s book.
Mine would be Bones from the Night Huntress series as he’s been my favourite hero since the first Night Huntress book I’ve read and he still is 🙂
Bones from Night Huntress of course.
Cain from The Outsider by Penelope Williamson is definitely a memorable hero for me. I was rooting for him from the start.
My favorites would be Clayton from Kelley Armstrong’s Otherworld series and definitely Terrible from Stacia Kane’s series. They are probably both anti-heroes but still men who would steal or kill for their women.
Adam Hauptman from the Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs. I have a scene in mind, but I don’t have the book on me…sad. He is gorgeous, powerful, caring and a father. He protects his own, but he allows them to have their own lives.
Charles from Patricia Briggs Alpha and Omega series or Z and John Matthew from BDB.
I love Kleypas’s Harry Rutledge and Sebastian St. Vincent, then Catherine Anderson’s Hunter. 😀
Ash from Dark Hunters series by S. Kenyon is one of my favorites 🙂
Lothaire from IAD and Zsadist from BDB