Tuesday, December 15, 2015

Brandee's Bookish Babble #9 ~ Unconventional for the Win?


Welcome to Brandee's Bookish Babble. There are many, many similar posts to this one - but basically I wanted a place to discuss bookish and/or blogging stuff and I needed a title. :) So this is my new discussion feature.


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Recently I've read a couple of books with unconventional MCs. Now, I'm a fan of unconventional - those that buck tradition or the societal norms of their time. In this case, I'm talking about unconventional in the sense that the MCs didn't fit society's definition of beautiful. One book was Historical Romance and the other was Contemporary Romance, so it was interesting to see that the standards haven't changed all that much between these time periods. And in the HR, even the Hero was damaged having been scarred by the pox. I met Elizabeth Hoyt, the author of this hero, and she said she was told he was going to be too ugly for readers - they wouldn't fall for him. I ended up loving him! ;) In that same story, the heroine is too old and not what most people would consider attractive. In the contemporary I'm referring to, the heroine was 27 pounds overweight. But she's spirited and smart and fun.

These types of MCs actually draw me into a story rather than turning me away. In many ways, they resonate more. I'm in my 40's so I like older characters. I don't fit society's definition of perfect body either. My point is, I rather enjoy reading about characters who are unconventional - real. That's not to say I don't enjoy reading about the uber HOT boys or the girls who fall for them. I do. I just happen to enjoy them all.


What about y'all? Do unconventional characters draw you in or turn you away?

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Now you know what I think...what are your thoughts??