Top 10 Tuesday

T10T: Characters Who Improved Their Books – Big Time!

April 3, 2018

TTT-Big2

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly blog meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week’s prompt was actually to list 10 likable characters from disliked books, but if I genuinely disliked a book, chances are, I disliked the characters within it, as I’m a very character-driven reader. My friend Julie had the great idea to change this theme to list 10 characters who truly helped me enjoy their books!


Image result for nikolai lantsov

1. Nikolai Lantsov
This sweet royal bean is, by far and wide, my favorite part of the Grisha Verse trilogy. He made me want to complete the books when nothing else was keeping my interest, and I can’t wait for his spinoff. <3
Book/Series: Grisha Verse trilogy


Image result for nimona

2. Nimona
Nimona is the title character of her graphic novel, and while I thought the plot was perfectly fine, honestly, it would’ve been so much less exciting and delightful for me without her! She’s so hilarious and her antics kill me.
Book/Series: Nimona


Image result for damianos captive prince

3. Damianos
Okay, we all know I adore the Captive Prince trilogy, but the first thing that hooked me in book 1 was how much I adored Damianos/Damen’s character. He’s so goodhearted, and strong, and sweet, and I love him to bits.
Book/Series: Captive Prince trilogy


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4. Lada Dracul
My sweet, vicious little Lada. <3 I love the plot to And I Darken, but it would be nothing without her little fangs.
Book/Series: The Conqueror’s Saga


Image result for lucien merwild

5. Lucien Vanserra
This is exclusively for book 1, but I wasn’t sold on Feyre to begin with (she grew on me, though), and I didn’t like Tamlin much at all. Lucien, however, had me from the beginning – I loved his banter and snark, and I still do. <3
Book/Series: A Court of Thorns and Roses


Image result for levi stewart fangirl

6. Levi Stewart
It was really hard for me to get into Fangirl, until Levi became a regular appearance in Cath’s daily life. At that point, I was hooked. He’s so precious!
Book/Series: Fangirl


Image result for the bone season fan art warden

7. Arcturus/Warden
I’ve only read the first book in the series, and while I did genuinely enjoy the plot, let’s be honest… without Warden’s big asshole teddy bear self, it wouldn’t have been nearly as much fun to read. <3
Book/Series: The Bone Season


Image result for thomas cresswell

8. Thomas Cresswell
This one’s a stretch, because I honestly love this series so much as a whole, but I don’t know if I would have given the first book such an easy 5-star rating if I hadn’t loved Thomas so much from the beginning.
Book/Series: Stalking Jack the Ripper


9. Maverick “Big Mav” Carter
This is another stretch, because I would absolutely have still adored The Hate U Give soooo, so much even without Big Mav’s character. That said, he was one of my favorite parts of the book, and I just loved him so much. <3
Book/Series: The Hate U Give


Image result for augustus waters

10. Augustus “Gus” Waters
TFIOS was an enjoyable read anyways, but Gus was the first literary character in my entire life that I remember loving that much. I still think he’s the greatest part of the book, by far, and I just want to protect him. ?
Book/Series: The Fault in Our Stars


Are there any characters who vastly improved their book(s) for you?


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No Comments

  • Reply Shayna April 3, 2018 at 12:45 am

    I feel the same way about characters that you do. I had to change the topic up because I could only think of books I hated because the characters were all so terrible, haha.

  • Reply Michelle @ Pink Polka Dot Books April 3, 2018 at 12:49 am

    I like your twist on the topic!! Levi & Augustus are 2 of the best book guys ever. They were my fave parts of both of those books too.

  • Reply Kelly | Another Book in the Wall April 3, 2018 at 12:51 am

    I completely agree with Nikolai and Gus!!! ?

    • Reply Destiny @ Howling Libraries April 6, 2018 at 7:07 pm

      Thank you! 😀 I love them so much. They’re both so precious! I can’t wait until the Nikolai spinoff!

  • Reply Kay Wisteria April 3, 2018 at 1:16 am

    Augustus Waters ❤️❤️❤️

  • Reply Lena @ The Printed Girl April 3, 2018 at 1:25 am

    I did the same thing with my TTT this week ?
    I also should have chosen Lucien, he made the ACOTAR series so much better indeed ?
    Great TTT ?

    • Reply Destiny @ Howling Libraries April 6, 2018 at 7:08 pm

      Thank you! Lucien is such a precious little character, haha! <3 I really love him so much.

  • Reply Grainne (Darkly Whimsical Reader) April 3, 2018 at 1:25 am

    Lada ??????

  • Reply ChrissiReads April 3, 2018 at 1:49 am

    Aw, I loved Nimona as a character too! Great choices.

    • Reply Destiny @ Howling Libraries April 6, 2018 at 7:08 pm

      Thank you, Chrissi! Nimona is so freaking delightful. I would love to read more graphic novels about her!

  • Reply Annemieke April 3, 2018 at 2:17 am

    I am also more for character driven stories but sometimes there is that one character that I like but they cannot save the whole book for me.
    Nikolai needs all the love. <3

    • Reply Destiny @ Howling Libraries April 6, 2018 at 7:09 pm

      Ugh, yes, been there too! It really sucks when you hate a book so much, even the best characters can’t save it. 🙁 And yes, Nikolai does, haha!

  • Reply Jana ? (@ArtsyReaderGirl) April 3, 2018 at 2:55 am

    I LOVE your twist on this topic! I had a really hard time formulating this list for the exact reasons you did. But… someone submitted the topic through my TTT submission form so I was like… I SHOULD PLEASE THE PEOPLE. You know? lol. I wish I had thought to spin it the way you did. 🙂

    • Reply Destiny @ Howling Libraries April 6, 2018 at 7:09 pm

      Thank you so much! <3 Oh gosh, yes, I can imagine! I bet it can be tough to go through all of the submissions but you do such a great job! <3

  • Reply Jazmin Jade April 3, 2018 at 3:11 am

    Don’t even get me started on Gus, I adored him and will never be the same ?

  • Reply Eve Langell April 3, 2018 at 4:34 am

    I’m a character driven reader too so I get it. I did love Nikolai and also can’t wait for more from him. I also enjoyed Lada and Lucien though like you in book one after that he kinda pissed me off and I have mixed feelings for him. I also love Fangirl and Levi so I’m glad he made it better for you. I have yet to start Stalking Jack the Ripper or The Hate U Give but they are on my list. Great picks. My Top Ten

    • Reply Destiny @ Howling Libraries April 6, 2018 at 7:15 pm

      Oh yeah, I can totally get having the mixed feelings on Lucien after book one! I still enjoy him, but book one was definitely my fave part for his character – well, that and the beginning of ACOWAR haha. <3 I hope you enjoy THUG and SJTR! Thank you!

  • Reply Barb (boxermommyreads) April 3, 2018 at 9:40 am

    Wonderful list. Honestly, Feyre is the only reason I haven’t continued on with that series. She drove me NUTS!. I hope to read And I Darken this month but only time will tell. Thanks for sharing your list!

    • Reply Destiny @ Howling Libraries April 6, 2018 at 7:19 pm

      Thank you! That’s understandable. I didn’t like Feyre until the end of ACOTAR, which was when I started to tolerate her. I will say that I actually enjoyed her fairly well in ACOMAF, though, so if you ever continue it, I hope you will, too!

  • Reply louise ☆ April 3, 2018 at 9:42 am

    Yay for Nikolai! He’s definitely my favourite Grisha character, and the series really picked up for me once he was introduced 🙂 And I also agree with you on Big Mav, he really is one of the best characters in THUG.

    • Reply Destiny @ Howling Libraries April 6, 2018 at 7:20 pm

      Nikolai is so good! I honestly probably would’ve DNFed that series altogether, if not for how much I loved Nikolai and wanted to spend more time with him! And I’m glad you love Big Mav, too haha! 🙂

  • Reply flippingthruthepages April 3, 2018 at 10:13 am

    I haven’t read any of these books except TFIOS, but a few are definitely on my TBR 🙂 Nice list!
    I love the way you have shown the characters 🙂
    My TTT: http://flippingthruthepages.com/2018/04/ten-characters-i-didnt-like-that-much-in-the-books-i-loved/

  • Reply journeyintobooks April 3, 2018 at 10:36 am

    Great post, Lucien is my favourite character in the ACOTAR series ?

    • Reply Destiny @ Howling Libraries April 6, 2018 at 7:20 pm

      Thank you! He’s so precious haha. I really love his and Feyre’s antics in the beginning of ACOWAR.

      • Reply journeyintobooks April 6, 2018 at 7:28 pm

        Your welcome and same I just wish we had seen more of him in ACOWAR ?

  • Reply Cholla April 3, 2018 at 10:55 am

    Nimona is awesome! Excellent list this week, too!
    Here is out Top Ten Tuesday. Thanks!

  • Reply Viki April 3, 2018 at 12:10 pm

    Lucien is on my list too and I love how you found fanart/actor for each one.
    Here is my list: https://fantasyraiders.wordpress.com/2018/04/03/top-ten-tuesday-characters-i-loved-in-books-i-disliked/#more-8132

  • Reply everythingalyce April 3, 2018 at 12:48 pm

    I love your twist on this week’s topic! I’m an extremely character-driven reader too, so it was ridiculously hard for me to think of ten characters for my list – I wish I’d done your twist, too.
    I agree with you completely on Nikolai, and his spin-off is one of my most anticipated releases of 2019: if only it could hurry up and get here sooner.

    • Reply Destiny @ Howling Libraries April 6, 2018 at 7:35 pm

      Aww, thank you! I’ll check your list out, too. I totally agree with wishing the Nikolai spin-off would hurry up. It’s so far away! 🙁

  • Reply emmareadstoomuch April 3, 2018 at 12:51 pm

    i agree so hard on Nimona and Levi that i can almost forgive you on augustus.
    almost.

  • Reply iloveheartlandx April 3, 2018 at 4:31 pm

    I totally agree on Lucien-he was definitely a redeeming factor in ACOTAR for me! I have to disagree with Gus though, for me he was one of the reasons I didn’t like TFIOS. I can’t wait to meet Nikolai in the next Grisha book!
    My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2018/04/03/top-ten-tuesday-153/

  • Reply onespeculiar April 3, 2018 at 4:51 pm

    i love the bone season and warden is one of the reasons why!
    great post 3<

  • Reply anovelglimpse April 3, 2018 at 10:05 pm

    Yay for Gus!

  • Reply Carmen April 4, 2018 at 9:44 am

    You have two of my all-time favourite characters in here, Gus and Nikolai. I can`t wait to get my hands on “King of Scars”. It`s about time Nikolai gets his own book.

  • Reply Lauren @ Always Me April 4, 2018 at 10:46 pm

    Levi, Thomas, and Big Mav are all great. 🙂
    Lauren @ Always Me

  • Reply scribblesandknots April 5, 2018 at 6:56 am

    I love your twist on this week’s topic! I did “characters who deserved better” and I NEARLY included Lucien, I love him.

  • Reply TeaPartyPrincess April 5, 2018 at 1:47 pm

    NIKOLAI! I can’t wait for his spin off either.
    Cora | http://www.teapartyprincess.co.uk/

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