The Bookish Best Of... Heroes & Heroines of 2014

From the reluctant leader, to the dashing hero or heroine that is often abrasive, tenacious and an important character in fighting oppressive regimes or slaying dragons. They're out leading characters and this week I'm showcasing my favourites of 2014, with a few romantic leads thrown in.

Kick Ass Chicks



Saba from the Dustlands Trilogy fights wildly, loves fiercely and has been known to cage fight.
Jubilee Chase is absolutely incredible and worthy of admiration. This second installment of the Starbound series outshone book one, all thanks to Lee and her ferocious heroism.
But the biggest transformation in any series is courtesy of Ruby. The Darkest Minds Trilogy has followed Ruby from fearful captive, to the ultimate heroine that will stop at nothing for justice.

Miss Sassy Pants



Ringer from the second installment in The 5th Wave series, is the ultimate heroine of 2014. She couldn't care less how she's perceived and is a no bullshit book chick to the highest degree.
Maggie is absolutely brilliant and the Disruption series has been the best Australian dystopian series by far. If you want a strong heroine who won't be swayed by a love interest, you'll love this series.
Tella is snarky, sassy and without a filter in Fire & Flood. Victoria Scott isn't afraid to inject humour and sarcasm into her characters and Talla is the prime example.

Give Me a Piece of THAT



Unite Me is pretty self explanatory. Warner is the ultimate hero slash villain that turned readers against the actual male protagonist... What was his name again?
In all his Mothy godness, Unhinged is Morpheus at his naughtiest and we absolutely loved him for it. Listen up Howard, we need Morpheus to prevail or we're gathering with pitchforks.
Prisoner of Night and Fog was one of the surprise reads of 2014. Daniel Cohen is Jewish reporter in Munich during the rise of Hitler's popularity.

The OTHER Leading Man



There is no better sidekick than Kenji. Ignite Me only proves how incredible he is and needs his own series. Ignite, my Kenji, Ignite.
Cole is the bad boy young adult needed. Evertrue didn't do him justice, but both Everneath and Everbound were glorious.
Is there anyone who has read the Under The Never Sky series, who didn't fall in love with Roar? And while we're confessing, who was secretly hoping he'll have his own spin off series too?

Hey! That's MY Book Boyfriend



He's got the weirdest name in young adult, a wanna be rock star with the Bert and Ernie shirt to match. The Summer of Kicks was hilarious and I fell in love with the disaster that is Starrphyre.
I've yet to read Every Word, but Every Breath was phenomenal. Mycroft is socially awkward which readers find endearing.
He's painfully shy and so incredibly lovely. Gabe is not only realistic, but I fell in love with all the characters. The squirrel and the park bench included. It truly is A Little Something Different.

Who have been your favourite heroes and heroines of 2014?
Join the fun and link me up to your post in the comments section.

Next week? The Bookish Best Of...

27 comments

  1. Ooh, I've been waiting for the next installment in this series. :) Very enjoyable post, as always, Kel. :) I haven't read many of these books unfortunately, but the reminds me that I really need to get to The Darkest Minds, Disruption, Unhinged, Prisoner of Night and Fog, Unravel Me, Under the Never Sky and A Little Something Different sooner rather than later...hoping to read This Shattered World and The Infinite Sea this week.

    And Mycroft! <3 Definitely my favourite character on this list. If you found Every Breath amazing, I'm not sure what you'll think of Every Word...it's just fantastic. It exceeded all of my expectations. I need Every Move.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Ebony.

      I'm hoping to start Every Word over the Christmas break, just in time for the finale book in the series to be released. The Darkest Minds is absolutely brilliant, I'd leave that one until last as some of the other titles may be a bit of a let down after reading that type of awesomeness.

      Delete
  2. This series is just amazing, Kelly. You have a brilliant mind. The category names are ace. I mean, "Give Me a Piece of THAT" is just perfection. I wouldn't mind a bit of Morpheus but I don't think I'll fight you on that hahaha ;)

    You've gotten me so intrigued in the Dustlands Trilogy. Especially with the male lead who reminds you of Warner (was this the series?) BECAUSE I WANT THAT! I've been meaning to read Prisoner of Night and Fog for ages and if Daniel falls into that category then I WANT IN :) x Fantastic picks, Kelly <33 x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think we all might need to enter some sort of Morpheus time share. He's almost magical, if not a little mental, so I'm pretty sure he won't mind.

      There's a character in the Dustlands series called DeMalo and he's absolutely delicious. He basically thinks he's god, but from his introduced in book one I was completely smitten. Jess, you have to read it, I think you'll absolutely love the series.

      Delete
  3. Gawd. It hurts me something fierce whenever I think of Adam. It turned me off of anything she'll write in the future. That's how personal I've taken what she's done with him. No joke. When I love, I love fiercely.

    I need therapy.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think it's a case of giving the majority what they want in that case. I think Adam fans were in the minority sadly and even though I loved Warner and the series, I think it was a majority rules type scenario to keep the masses happy. It was a little uncomfortable and weird though wasn't it.

      Delete
  4. YES. This is the first "best of 2014" list I've seen, and I'm SO excited for more of them to start popping up. I can't believe 2014 is almost over, but what with holidays, snow, and year-end reflection, the weeks leading up to New Year's Day are the best of the entire year.

    As for your actual post, I 100% agree about Daniel from Prisoner of Night and Fog. I adore his relationship with Gretchen because she has to overcome so much brainwashing to make it happen, which results in so much character growth. And he's not too bad on his own. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ohh snow! It's on my bucket list to see snow... One day. I hope.

      I hadn't expected to fall in love with Prisoner of Night and Fog, I'm not generally a fan of historical novels, but it had all the makings of a dystopian which I related to more. The oppression, fleeing, revolting against the regime. I'm so excited that it's at least going to be a two book series, hopefully three.

      Delete
  5. You'll have to fight off Cait and me for Morpheus :) I'm terrified Jeb will win, TBH.

    So agree with Maggie. She's one of my favourite characters EVER. Just so sassy. I love it :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've got the same fear Em, and sadly I think it's pretty justified. He's on the cover, he's the straight laced one. I've got a bad feeling we're all going to be pretty disappointed actually.

      She's miss sassy pants personified. Probably one of the sassiest characters in young adult ever.

      Delete
  6. Every time I read one of your post my Goodreads to read list keeps getting longer and longer.
    Although the best of's are freaking my out as I have no idea where 2014 went.
    Awesome Post! Thank You.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Sarah. I know right, where has this year gone!

      I can't believe it's heading towards Christmas already, I feel like I've been hibernating for months and just woken up and missed most of the year.

      Delete
  7. OMG YES TO THIS! Lee is so fierce and I absolutely love the sass and spirit of Tella & Ringer as well. And Warner --> <33 I read Splintered but haven't read Unhinged yet, but that's definitely on my TBR. I have a feeling that when I finish I'll be fighting you, Cait and Emily for Morpheus though! ;)

    Great post Kelly! <3

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We'll have to share him. That pocket Notebooker has called dibs, but I think if we amass in a large enough group, we can force her to hand over the moth.

      I have such a chick crush on Lee. I thought Saba from the Dustlands series was fierce, but Jubilee is just too kick ass to compare.

      Delete
  8. Ooh love these recommendations! I haven't read many of them. this Shattered world has been on my shelf foreverrrr. ;) strong women are like my favorite subject haha. looking forward to next weeks!
    -Dee @ Dee's Reads

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mine too Dee. I love books with strong female protagonists and heroines, it's the main reason I tend to gravitate towards so many dystopians. You rarely find those type of strong females in contemporaries sadly.

      Delete
  9. I love this post Kelly! Totally agree with Ruby and Jubilee being kick-ass, and I loved Maggie's sassy attitude as well. Gabe was also a really cute love interest in 'A Little Something Different' which was a really sweet book. This post has reminded me that there are some books out there which I really need to move up my TBR, like Prisoner of Night and Fog - I love YA historical fiction so that one looks really promising :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You'll love that one Eugenia, and I know how much you love your historical fiction. The characters are brilliant and seeing Hitler as a doting family man and not the monster he's know to be, it's a little creepy. You'll love the Jewish reporter Daniel, I guarantee you'll swoon.

      Delete
  10. I still really want to read prisoner of night and fog! I really think I will enjoy it especially after how much I enjoyed the book thief! Can't wait to see what you think of that! :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I haven't read The Book Thief just yet, but have it down on my summer reading list that I'm going to tackle over Christmas. But from the synopsis, if you enjoyed that, then you'll love Prisoner of Night and Fog. There's a sequel coming out next year as well.

      Delete
  11. Ooh this series is so fun! I agree with Jubilee, she's my favourite heroine of this year with her kickassery and character development. I need to finish The Darkest Mind Trilogy already so I can see Ruby's growth! And what is this hype with Warner?! I want to love him too!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Warner? Have you not met Warner yet?

      Oh Joy, you're in for a heart beating out of your chest, on the verge of panting good time. He's the hottest male character in young adult, probably adult too.

      Delete
  12. I loved the post with the different bookish heroines, those Sassy heroines are definitely so much fun but my favourite is always the kickass heroine. I thought Maggie was a fantastic heroine but my favourite is always going to be Jubilee. There's heaps of books in this list I haven't read yet, but I do like your recommendation for the Summer of Kicks, definitely something I have to read soon!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I absolutely adored The Summer of Kicks. It was so incredibly funny. I love those adorable contemporaries with heartwarming dorks. It's one of my favourites this year.

      Delete
  13. I think I should win an award or something... I haven't read any of these :\ Planning to start the Every series soon and A Little Something Different looks adorable! I'm intrigued by The Summer Kicks, so I'm off to check that one out!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. None at all? Rebecca, we must rectify this at once! The Disruption series is absolutely brilliant, I'd start there. It's a dystopian, but the main character Maggie is the perfect example of a strong and sassy heroine.

      Delete
  14. Most of these are on my to-read list but I haven't read any of them. Crazy, I know! But there are so many I want to read ASAP.

    ReplyDelete

© Diva Booknerd. Design by Fearne.