The Most List Part 2

Okay, part two of my list. This time it deals with particular characters. From this it's easy to see who my favorite writers are. The writers of these characters are particularly good at characterization.

The Character I'd Most Like To Take Home, Coddle and Feed Warm Milk and Cookies: Tie-Arturo Llewellyn and Vanyel Ashkevron

Ya’ gotta love Anny Cook. I fell in love with Arturo Llewellyn while reading Dancer’s Delight and have adored him unceasingly since. There is something so noble and dear about him that tugs at my heart strings. The victim of a brutal rape, Arturo has a hard road ahead of him as he comes to terms with his attack, the growing separation between he and his twin and his own sexuality. Yep, wanna hug him and give him cookies.

Aruturo ties with Mercedes Lackey character Vanyel Ashkevron from The Last Herald Mage series who I've loved longer but not better. A thin, lanky boy who wants nothing more than to be a bard, but who lacks the magical ability to be one, he is by birth destined to be the heir to his father’s keep. Pushed and bullied-forced by his father into combat training he is ill-suited for; nothing Vanyel does pleases anyone except his mother and only when he’s stroking her ego. Eventually he is sent away to live with his aunt, Savil an incredibly powerful Herald Mage. While there he finds love that turns tragic, reinforcing for him his own worthlessness. Only when he is finally chosen as a Herald Mage and his gifts unlocked by the tragedy does he find a Companion who will stand beside him all the days of his life.

Yep wanna pet them both, tuck them in bed and tell them everything will be alright.

Most Lickable (er...Likable) Character: Alex Navarro
Janet Davies is responsible for creating the character that could distract me beyond all reason. Strong, quiet and powerful, Alex is introduced in Davies’ book Swift of Heart and gets his own HEA in Last Man Standing. Though I could do without the nipple rings, her descriptions of the man are beyond yummy. And not just the physical. The sense of overwhelming virility and sexuality that Davies creates with her pen would make Alex the subject of any woman’s fantasy.

Heroine I’d Most Want to Be: Bride McTierney Kattalakis

Created by Sherrilyn Kenyon in Night Embrace, and later given her own story in Night Play, Bride is a plus size girl who is the subject of intense passion from one very sexy, very gentle, very loving Wolf. Vane Kattalakis is as drop dead gorgeous as they come. And he’s deadly powerful. Born from parents whose hate of each other goes deeper than the soul, Vane’s magic exceeds any that has been seen by his people in generations. After what was supposed to be a one night encounter, Bride finds herself the mate of this incredible werewolf who adores and desires her exactly as she is. A man who frowns when she orders a salad at dinner and who overrides her weight conscious protests to put a large slice of chocolate cake on her plate. A man who shows up just when she needs a hero, out shows her ex when he starts flashing his cash and then kicks the crap out of him when he insults her. He is devoted and because of his love and a nice little trick of his people, he can never mate with anyone but her. A man who can never be unfaithful, loves you and feeds you chocolate. What more could you want? Oh, if I can’t be Bride, can I at least have Vane’s brother Fury?

Most Desirable Were: Fury Kattalakis
Okay, back to Kenyon for this one. Fury is the brother of Vane and Fang Kattalakis. Since his base form was human at birth, Fury is taken by his mother along with two other littermates when she flees his father whose base form is Wolf. Fury is different than the others and his

family assumes it is because he is the one foretold who will bend the power of the two halves of Were magic into a force that has never been equaled. Only it doesn’t work out that way. He is bitter and caustic with little to no social skills. But his irreverence and his unpredictability combine with his physical attributes –tall, long blond hair with turquoise eyes- to create a Wolf you wouldn’t mind having track up your rug.

Most Intriguing Dark Wizard: Raistlin Majere

Created by Margret Weis and Tracy Hickman for DragonLance, the mage Raistlin is a character that is never boring. Often hated by those around him, the black robe mage serves the darkness, but mostly he serves himself. Born a twin, his brother the warrior received all of his physical strength and delivers him an unwitting betrayal that drives all light from the young Raistlin. His weak body often betrays him, but his impressive mind and unparalleled magic more than compensate. Even his own black robed brethren fear him. His silver hair, hourglass pupils and golden skin set him apart from others, making him immediately recognizable. But what keeps readers reading are the threads of unexpected humanity that surface from time to time. His kindness toward a young gully dwarf, shunned by others as less than sentient, who worships him. His patience toward Tass who has a habit of aquiring others belongings and causing no end of trouble with his childlike view of the world. His humor that surfaces, sometimes terrifyingly, at the most unexpected moments. In many ways, Raistlin is the ultimate bad boy in need of redemption that no woman can ever give him. And readers know it. Raistlin doesn’t want to be saved and never will be saved. But it doesn’t keep you from wondering what if.