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Minerva the Bookwyrm Captain
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 Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 12:15 am
Which female characters (from fantasy books as well as other genres) are your favourites of all time? What books are they from, and what makes them worthy of the Hall of Fame? I'm anticipating mostly virtuous ladies here, but feel free to pick a villain if you think she's brilliant enough to earn it!
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Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 5:25 pm
Countess Meliara from Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith is my favourite heroine of all! razz She has long red hair in a braid down her back that she refuses to cut until her mother's death is avenged, which I always thought was inspired. She's very loyal, stubborn, and fiery, for even on the brink of death she literally spits at her tormentors! biggrin She knows how to handle a sword, too. Most authors that make their heroines be warriors wind up making them too butch...at least in my opinion. Meliara isn't like that, though. She strong while maintaining just enough femininity without being too girly. I've never seen anoher author manage the balance in a way that appealed to me more than Meliara.
I like that the person that Meliara loves most is her brother. (I consider sibling relationships very important, and not given enough recognition in books.) She's also far from cliche perfection, as she tends to be quite unreasonable in holding grudges against people when they don't deserve it, and her curves are much smaller than that of all the other women in the story.
Alyanne from Trickster's Choice and Trickster's Queen by Tamora Pierce is brilliant. She has the skills of a spy, which is very interesting, and helps to lead a revolution. Her unique skills are what I like most about her, and her judgement of people.
Sabriel from Sabriel by Garth Nix gets the most originality points. biggrin She gives off this "strong and silent type" vibe, which is highly unusual for a any main character, much less a female one. Main characters are the ones trying to solve the mysteries, so they usually ask the most questions. It's not that she doesn't speak, but it's her general aura. She has this strange calmness about her; she's never afraid. It isn't a typical hero's boldness that makes her fearless; it's an unusual feeling of serenity and purpose. I know that makes her sound religious, but she isn't. It's merely her natural personality.
Dolores Umbridge from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J. K. Rowling s the only villain that ever made me scream aloud at the book in fury. I hardly ever swore at the age when I read it the first time, ergo I was very surprised when I heard "You b***h!" come out of my mouth! lol It was when she made Harry write in his own blood. Every time her name was mentioned after that part I felt my face actually flush with anger even when she wasn't present in the scene herself; reading her name alone was enough to enrage me. Any character that can evoke that much emotion from me certainly deserves to be in the Hall of Fame. Geez, I hate her! twisted
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Minerva the Bookwyrm Captain
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Posted: Fri Apr 17, 2009 9:19 am
Rachel Morgan (The Hollows Series by Kim Harrison)
The heroine of the story, she's completely and totally flawed, and that is why I love her. She's a reckless redhead with a strong sense of loyalty to her friends, such a strong sense that she'd damn her own soul in order to keep them safe. She flies by the seat of her pants and sometimes makes absolutely HORRIBLE decisions in the name of protecting those that she loves. I love her realistic/reckless personality that in a lot of ways reminds me of myself.
Ceri (The Hollows Series by Kim Harrison)
A stunning and refined elven royal whom Rachel rescues from certain death after centuries of demon servitude. She's powerful, composed, practical, calculated, and very much the cunning elven lady of the court. In short everything that I am not, but that I admire in someone who perhaps is not as moral as Rachel, but who shares the same undying loyalty for those that she calls friend.
Elizabeth Taylor (Queen Betsy Series by MaryJanice Davidson)
She's the typical spacey flippant blond whose services can be tactfully bribed by designer shoes. She is EVERYTHING I hate about women, shallow, self centered, completely obnoxious, and just a general all around space cadet. She's a good person at heart, but she's a complete flake and she also happens to be the world's most powerful vampire/the vampire realm's prophetical vampire Queen. Davidson's narration of what Betsy is thinking and the crap that comes out of her mouth has you rolling on the floor in shock and absolute hilarity. The scenarios are sometimes not very plausible but the character herself is a complete and total hoot. A great series to read, especially if you're having the worst day of your life! The books are very short and honestly what I call doctor office novels, just a slim pick me up before a nerve racking situation. If you can get past the weak plot, the one liners will have you shaking your head and giggling in your seat.
Elena (Banned and Banished Series by James Clemens)
As if getting your period wasn't bad enough, this poor girl inherits a magical wit'ch fire power at the same time. In a world where women are forbidden from the magical arts, she becomes hunted by the creepiest and most gut wrenching monsters I've ever seen put to print. Her story is tragic and terrible and everything is always going wrong for her. She loses family, friends, and suffers betrayal after betrayal. Her perseverance is absolutely incredible and the character development by Clemens is amazing. There are no side street characters in his novels, they are all given careful detail even if they die 3 pages later. Her transformation from helpless by-stander to proactive young woman is inspiring.
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Posted: Sat Apr 18, 2009 3:21 pm
Aphrodite LaFont (House of Night Series by PC Cast and Kristen Cast)
Aphrodite, in the beginning of the serie, has a rough exterior and is someone you know you are instantly going to hate. Head of the Dark Daughters and the most popular girl in school, the complete blonde rich girl stereotype. Throughout the novels, Aphrodite gets knocked off her high horse, replaced by Zoey. Through gradual changes, Aphrodite is not who she once was. She still has a rough outside, but after being turned back into a human, she is overall a way better person. I envy how the authors in this book changed her from someone you hate to someone you love without seeming like she change overnight. Plus, she is one of my favorite characters in the series because she is so unpredictable!
Rosemarie (Rose) Hathaway (The Vampire Academy Series by Richelle Mead)
Ever heard girls aren't tough? Rose breaks the stereotype. She is a dhampir, a half moroi (vampire), half-human. Dhampirs have moroi senses, but can go out into the sunlight and have human strength. Dhampirs are trained to protect moroi and Rose is ready to spend her life protecting her best friend, Vasilisa (Lissa) Dragomir (A royal moroi). Rose can beat any one of the guys in her fighting class, yet she is emotional strong. Falling in love with a guy 6 years older then you is a tough job because everyone shoots you down (Not to mention she is gorgeous and some of her guy friends have a crush on her.). Rose proves she is strong emotionally and physcially.
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Posted: Sat Apr 18, 2009 3:41 pm
Hmm I think I need to read that House of Night Series.. thanks for the good ideas! heart
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Posted: Sat Apr 18, 2009 3:46 pm
Hehe, you are quite welcome. biggrin
((Note to self: Think of more people to add to lists))
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Posted: Sun Apr 19, 2009 4:40 pm
Squirrelflight From the series Warriors. I think she is whorthy of being in the hall of fame because she is so loyal. Also she never wants to give up I mean to me she is so noble. I also she would never pick any other clan but her own and she would die for anybody in her clan.
Alice From the saga TWILIGHT I think this because she is so nice and sweet. I mean who wouldn't want to have her as a best friend.
She is so in tune with everything that goes on , and never says anything bad about people.
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Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 7:07 am
Suze and Cricket, I've got to be honest and say that I haven't read any of those books, but they sound good. smile
More people contributed to the male characters hall of fame than this one. Isn't it unfortunate that it's easier to find a good male character than a female one? I guess I'm guilty of contributing to that because when I write original fiction I must admit that I find males easier and more interesting to write since girls are too dramatic.
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Minerva the Bookwyrm Captain
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Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 11:00 am
Minerva the Bookwyrm More people contributed to the male characters hall of fame than this one. Isn't it unfortunate that it's easier to find a good male character than a female one? I guess I'm guilty of contributing to that because when I write original fiction I must admit that I find males easier and more interesting to write since girls are too dramatic.
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 7:24 pm
Egwene from The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. She has nerves of steel, a mind like a trap, and more honor in her left pinkie than most anyone else I've ever seen or read about. It probably also helps that she's uber-powerful.
Granny Weatherwax from Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels. She rocks so much - unforgiving and uncompromising and grumpy, with a soft streak she tries desperately to keep well-hidden.
There's more, but I'm hungry...
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Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 7:14 pm
Anita Blake: Guilty Pleasures by Laurell K. Hamilton
Funny, sarcastic, strong and yet still retains a bit of vulnerability. An easy character to relate to, she’s the kind of person I would make friends with, lol.
Janelle: Black Jewel Trilogy by Anne Bishop
She almost gets raped and everything else and still comes back the victor. Most heroines can come off as annoying at one point or another, but I actually enjoyed her. Her and Daemon were hilarious together, the only woman that could get him so flustered XD.
Tinker: Finder by Emma Bull
she’s an Elf and a mechanic, can’t get much cooler than that, plus she has a great sense of humor.
Donia: Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
A winter girl fey with a wolf companion. She got crapped on a lot through the books and still came back to be a likeable character. Although cursed to be the winter queen’s minion, she knew how to dish it out. (highly recommend this series to all my Elf friends by the way for the content of Fey *wink*)
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