Monday, February 10, 2014

Moonless Blog Fest (My Top Ten Literary Crushes)


To celebrate the release of Moonless, Crystal Collier’s new book, she asked several writers/bloggers to consider the question :

 If you lived in a society where arranged marriages were a la mode, whom would you beg your parents to set you up with? Why?

 (Make sure to scroll to the end of the post for Moonless’s blurb, a chance to win FREE books, and links to the rest of the blog fest!)

When Crystal asked me to participate in this blog fest, I had to set aside my ideal *waves at my husband Calvin* and try to come up with a second best.

Here’s my top ten in order from “least likely” to “yep, I’ll marry him”:

1. Odysseus (The Odyssey) Tough, clever, and enduring. But I want someone faithful—I’m not sharing my husband with Circe.

2. Benedick (Much Ado About Nothing) Witty, wealthy, and a notable solider. But he’s a bit too cocky for my tastes.

3. Westley (The Princess Bride) “As you wish.” Perfect. Except too young for me.

4. Mr. Darcy (Pride and Prejudice) Handsome, connected, and a house to kill for. But he’s got no real sense of humor.

5. Peeta (The Hunger Games) Clever, artistic, and single-minded, but also too young.

6. Sir Percival Blakeney (The Scarlet Pimpernel) Money, smarts, and daring-do. But I don’t think I could deal with the foppish part.

7. Edward Rochester (Jane Eyre) Brooding, handsome, and someone who shows tremendous character growth. So he's close, but I don’t think I could get over the near-bigamy issue.

8. Atticus Finch (To Kill a Mockingbird) He’s clever, a great dad, and does the right thing no matter what the consequences. He’s so, so close to perfect, but here’s the thing--if Gregory Peck hadn’t played him in the movie version, would anyone swoon over Atticus? Probably not.

9. Faramir (The Lord of the Rings) Handsome, solid, and selfless. I think he’s one of the most hard-working, self-effacing characters in literature. He doesn’t need the glory—he’s content if he can serve. The only thing keeping him from number one is that I don’t see the smoldering passion just below the surface.

10. Captain Frederick Wentworth (Persuasion). Tender, persevering, tough, and passionate. Yep. This is my guy.
  

In the English society of 1768 where women are bred to marry, unattractive Alexia, just sixteen, believes she will end up alone. But on the county doorstep of a neighbor’s estate, she meets a man straight out of her nightmares, one whose blue eyes threaten to consume her whole world—especially when she discovers him standing over her murdered host in the middle of the night.

Her nightmares become reality: a dead baron, red-eyed wraiths, and forbidden love with a man hunted by these creatures. After an attack close to home, Alexia realizes she cannot keep one foot in her old life and one in this new world. To protect her family she must either be sold into a loveless marriage, or escape with her beloved and risk becoming one of the Soulless.


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Find the rest of the hop below!



26 comments:

  1. I could totally go for Benedick, Wesley or Edward. In a heartbeat,but my Matthew is so much better. =)

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  2. YES x 1,000 to Odysseus and Faramir. (And I think I may have a thing for rugged, intelligent warrior types...)

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    1. Yay! I'm not the only one. I never understood why everyone crushed all over Legolas and Aragorn--Faramir was always a much better man to marry. So when I found a real life Faramir, I married him. :)

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  3. Wow. Great list! Lot's of interesting choices.
    Heather

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    1. Heather, I liked your choice of Malcolm Reynolds!

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    2. Ooh, great choice on Faramir, I always liked him better too! Love all your choices. :)

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  4. That was a nice, well-rounded list. :)

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    1. Chrys, I'm planning to check out your choice of Jared Leto.

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  5. Good list! I especially liked Peeta and Atticus Finch. :)

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  6. Have to say that Odysseus is quite an imaginative choice!

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    1. I'm guessing lots of Ithacan ladies were in love with him.

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  7. Odysseus is a good choice if you want a man who's not at home very much. I chose Mr. Darcy. My giggling in bed would bring out his sense of humor.

    Love,
    Janie Junebug

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    1. Janie, you're right--he would be gone a long time and I like my husband to keep me warm at night. I guess I'll stick with the one I've got. ;)

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  8. Love that you put so much thought into this!

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    1. Jamie, I'm glad you're enjoying it. I had so much fun writing it.

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  9. I picked Westley with absolutely no thought to the fact that he might not want to marry someone 20 years older than him, hehe!
    erica

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    1. Erin, I hadn't thought about the fact that in an arranged marriage, age is irrelevant.

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  10. Loved reading your all your choices! Good choice in Captain Wentworth--gotta love a passionate man!

    http://swordsandstilettos.blogspot.com/

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  11. nope nope nope! I'm going to melt all those men into one just for you :)

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    1. I'm trying to imagine what that would look like...maybe Poseidon or Adonis.

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  12. I could totally go for Faramir. That was a cool list of possibilities.

    .......dhole

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  13. HI, CM,

    Nice to meet you. Dropping in from the fest... new follower here.

    I liked your breakdown. You're obviously a woman who knows what she wants... Good for you!

    All the best to Crystal!

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  14. Love Wentworth - I've got a friend who says he's her favourite Austen hero :) With good reason I say!

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