Under Appreciated Heroes
We all have heroes we love. Heroes that stand proud in Romance Land as the most beloved: John Matthew, Zsadist, Hawke Snow, Sebastian St Vincent, Acheron, Bones, Curran …..and the list could go on!
But what about those heroes that people overlook? Whose appeal is quieter, the ones that are misunderstood, overlooked and under appreciated? We thought we would revive these heroes, bring them to the light again and tell you why we get our knickers in a twist just thinking about them…. Maidens, we give you Under the Covers top Under Appreciated heroes!
Phury from the Black Dagger Brotherhood by J.R. Ward
If you have visited us before you will probably know that we are HUGE fans of the JR Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood series and all the sexy Brothers, especially our man Phury. Often thought of the dud of the bunch, I am here to try and change your mind and open your heart to the wonder that is Phury!
Phury is selfless, beautiful, brave, loyal and a whole lot of fucked up. With his whole life centered around protecting his brother to the point he drowns out his own wants, this noble vampire deserves our love.
But he isn’t infallible, he makes big mistakes, but he also makes sacrifices as well. Without Phury, Vishous and Jane wouldn’t be together and Zsadist wouldn’t even be alive! So sweet Maidens, give the tarnished white knight of the Black Dagger Brotherhood a chance…he deserves it!
Lucas Hunter from the Psy/Changeling series by Nalini Singh
When a series is as large and long as Nalini Singh’s Psy Changeling series, it is sometimes hard to remember the heroes from the distant past, especially the first book. But I believe Lucas Hunter, the hero of Slave to Sensation should be remembered.
Although an alpha of the RiverDancer pack, he is often forgotten in the wake of Hawke Snow, the alpha of his neighboring pack and allies the SnowDancers. But Lucas started this series off with a bang! His sleek seductiveness and marred beauty lured me to the Psy Changeling series and I have been addicted ever since. His warmth and charisma broke the ice around a robotic Psy’s heart; I never stood a chance.
John McKenna from Again the Magic by Lisa Kleypas
You might be wondering….who the hell is John McKenna? If you are then you are missing out! Again the Magic is a prequel to the wildly popular series Wallflowers by Lisa Kleypas, and McKenna is the hero in it. Often eclipsed by St Vincent or Westcliff, he is just as delicious! Dark and intense, he is filled with an undying passion for his heroine:
Aline was his curse, his fate, his consuming desire. He would never stop wanting her, no matter what she did, no matter how many oceans and continents he managed to put between them.
I defy you not to love him! He brims with barely suppressed emotion and his character has leaped out of the pages and straight into my heart. If you haven’t read this book, I recommend you try it immediately! McKenna is waiting.
Adrian Ivashkov from the Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead
Adrian Ivashkov from Richelle Mead’s Vampire Academy series is another hero is who often underappreciated. Adrian has it all – he’s rich, good-looking, has the bad boy devil-may-cry thing going on, he has some flaws (like his smoking and drinking habit) that make female reader’s ovaries work overtime for. But all that is overshadowed by one thing – the Russian warrior god aka Dimitri Belikov!
Richelle Mead really handed Adrian the short stick. Not only does he not get the girl in the end, but he is also used in the process. Adrian gives himself completely to Rose, but he gets a broken heart in return. The poor guy needs a break! He’s got a good heart underneath all that arrogance and no one deserves a HEA more than Adrian does! I’m STILL waiting for the moment he gets what he deserves. Time is ticking, Mead!
Alexion in the Dark Hunters Saga!! 🙂
I loved him!
I totally agree with Fhury, and yes! He is absolutely beautiful in every regard.
I’ll be working a lot in the next few days, so I’m gonna take this this chance and wish you all a very happy, prosperous and healthy New Year!!!
Thanks guys! You sure did a lot to make my 2012 a much fun year!
Nice to have meet you all!!
Yayy! Welcome to the Phury Fan Club!
Happy New Year to you too, love! We adore you!! xoxo
Adam Lazarus from the sabina kade series, tzader from the Belador series, reyn from the immortal beloved series….I’ve no doubt there are many others but these are what popped into m mind….oh and, well, sometimes David from the hollows
Oh yes! You know, I really love Adam Lazarus too! I think more people should give the Sabina Kane series a try. It’s a solid UF series.
I totes agree that Phury gets overlooked. His book seems NOT to be a favorite of the seires.
I think one underappreciated hero would be Nick Gautier from Sherrilyn Kenyon’s series. He, to me, is right up there with Ash.
Aw Nick! I love him, but he does have his YA series so he’s getting some love. I really need to continue on in that series. The first book was enjoyable!
I KNOW, Right?
I have only read book one—and loved it 🙂 Got to see some of the sexy Dark Hunters, too, which is always a plus!
i had no idea that there was a prequel to the wallflowers. must. read. now. i love adrian from va, too! he can be a pain at times but is a good guy underneath.
from dbd i would say that maybe rhage or v are under appreciated. at least in my circle of friends. i agree with phury as well. he has issues but i kind of love him.
Oh yes! Again the Magic is fab! I hope you enjoy!
RHAGE IS MY MAN!! He’s my #1 fave! I kinda of wish more people loved him, but at the same time I want him all to myself :D. I’m so selfish *grins*
so i read again the magic and omg – awesome! i love those stories where people have been separated for a long time and there’s angst all around. one of my all time favorite lisa kleypas books.
yay, rhage!
I had such issues with Phury’s book – it’s been hard for me to see him as a hero when I spent half the book wanting to hit him upside the head….lol
One overlooked hero is Adam Hauptman from the Mercedes Thompson series – he’s quiet (for the most part) but he’s been there through thick and thin for Mercy and loves her unconditionally – he even would have walked away (not happily mind you) if she had chosen someone else. He’s almost perfect:)
ADAM! We are big Adam fans here. We should have added him to our list! Great choice, Maria!
I love the under-appreciated getting some face time. Its hard to categorize for this because it might just be my limited exposure to what lots of people are thinking. I find that Patricia Briggs’ heroes are many times not mentioned when people talk about their favorites- Adam, Sam, Charles, Karen Chances’ heroes- John P, Louis-Cesare, or Mircea and in Jeaniene Frosts’ series I’m still waiting for Tate to get recognized at all as a heroic type. And that’s just the PNR group, but I’ll stop there.
Looks like you and Suz are on the same page. She loves all those series that you mentioned! I’m interested in your Tate pick. I thought he was very interesting too. But IAN! Oh man, I would love to read about Ian from the Night Huntress series.
tate has definite potential but he needs to get over cat and stop acting like a jerk all the time. once he moves and and has his own life, i think he could be a really interesting character.
I love, love John McKenna and Again The Magic is still my favourite of all Lisa Kleypas’s books. Who can’t love a man who says some of the most romantic words ever.
“I want morning and noon and nightfall with you. I want your tears, your smiles, your kisses…. the smell of your hair, the taste of your skin, the touch of your breath on my face. I want to see you in the final hour of my life…..to lie in your arms as I take my last breath.”
It’s a book that can always reduce me to tears no matter how many times I read it.
Carol, that quote is amazing! You make me want to reread it now!
I also have to mention Kev from Seduce Me At Sunrise. There’s that one quote that guts me every single time…
“All the fires of hell could burn for a thousand years and it wouldn’t equal what I feel for you in one minute of the day. I love you so much there is no pleasure in it. Nothing but torment. Because if you could dilute what I feel for you to the millionth part, it would still be enough to kill you. And even if it drives me mad, I would rather see you live in the arms of that cold, soulless bastard than die in mine.”
I had no idea about Again the Magic I so have to read it. I love Lisa’s books
I wish I could love Phury but I could not even come close to finishing his book. I did like the books before his I think all the brothers are hero’s that don’t get their justice. Hot sexy vamps that are the protectors of their world.
Jervaulx from Flowers in the Storm by Kinsale. He’s got all the alpha characteristics, but is dependent on Maddie at the same time.
I agree Phury is beautiful, love his multi-coloured hair but I don’t like him he’s the reason I took a hiatus from this series, he just did not work for me at all!
Oh Lucas! He is still one of my favs of the series. I miss the leopards, they have been a bit neglected as of late. I’d like Vasic to join the leopards!
Phury is just a bit too whinny for me. I am intrigued by Mhurder.
-Amanda P
Where the Night Kind Roam