Please join me in welcoming Daisy Jordan, author of Love Means Zero to Always With a Book! I will be reviewing Love Means Zero tomorrow. Today Daisy guest blogs about the characters we love to hate.
The Characters You Love to Hate
All of my books have hateable characters. Haidin, Aubrey, Natalie, Melanie, Brooke…these are a few that stand out to me. And readers really dohatethese characters. I give out questionnaires to some readers, and in response to the question about which character they like least, I have had responses such as, “Mel…UGH…don’tevenget me started on why I loathe her!” and “I HATE NATALIE WITH MY WHOLE HEART!”
I have also had readers call them “characters you love to hate,” because even though they’re so awful, they are fun to read about, they add intrigue, and people can’t wait to see what they will do next.
I have often been asked whether I hate these characters. The answer is yes, some of them. Others I actually like and sympathize with, because as I write about them, I get to know them really well, and I can see things from their perspectives. So, who do I truly hate, and who do I actually like?
While I love all the drama Melanie brings and some of my favorite scenes in Spin the Bottle are ones with her, there is not much to like about her as a person. She’s jealous, petty, controlling, and she tries to hold onto a relationship I think she knows deep down isn’t right. She may like Todd or even think she loves him for a while, but by the end, I think she would have to admit she’s staying in it because she can’t let Jill win. And when is her and Todd’s relationship really ever good? Maybe at the very beginning, but even then, Mel has some pretty big doubts about it. Overall, she’s not a nice person, and she rarely has good intentions. I don’t like her.
I also don’t like Natalie. She might be my least favorite of all my characters, ever. I won’t spoil Love Means Zero, but she is selfish, thoughtless, and a terrible friend. She really has no redeeming quality that I can think of right now.
I do, however, like Brooke, Haidin, and Aubrey. Brooke, featured in Spin the Bottle, is a sympathetic character, in my eyes. Sure, she’s an outrageous mean girl all through high school, but she gets treated horribly by a guy she loves. It’d be hard for anyone to go through what she does. I am pulling for her, and you’ll see more of her in the future.
Haidin I like because he provides great entertainment value. If he were a real tennis player, I would love watching his press conferences. His past has damaged him a lot, as you learn in LMZ, and while it may not excuse the way he acts, I like the person he becomes after telling Hilton about it. You’ll see more of that Haidin in the next book about Hilton.
Aubrey I also like because of her entertainment value. She’s totally intriguing. If she were a real celebrity, I would follow her with the same amount of interest I follow Britney (my absolute favorite celeb). She’s outrageous, and it’s fascinating.
I’d love to hear your opinions; who are some of the characters you love to hate? From my books or any others?
About the author: Daisy
Daisy can be found online at:
http://www.facebook.com/AuthorDaisyJordan
http://twitter.com/DaisyJordan06
http://myspace.com/daisy_jordan
Thank you Daisy for contributing this great guest post, and thanks to Jaime at Pump Up Your Book for coordinating it.
You got an award: intheforestbookreviews.blogspot.com/2010/10/more-awards.html