10 Characters the Author Surprisingly Redeemed

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Today’s prompt was Ten Characters Authors Surprisingly Redeemed (which characters did you not like at first, but grew to love by the end of the book?).

I actually really struggled with this! It was easier to think of characters from TV series than books. And books I could think of with redemption arcs didn’t necessarily begin with characters I didn’t like (such as Atonement by Ian McEwan), and didn’t quite fit the bill.

I got there in the end though – after reaching way back through my pre-blog Goodreads reviews! Some of these are by design redemptions, and some of them are just me prejudging a character based on my preferences!

1 Jaime Lannister in the A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin

This is the first thing I thought of because I absolutely loved Jaime Lannister’s character arc in ASOIAF. We first are introduced to Jaime through the lens of the Starks and his dishonourable reputation as The Kingslayer. A Game of Thrones opens with that whole incest thing and the attempted child murder… Not great.

However, once we get POV chapters for Jaime we learn the real reason he broke his oath and killed the king, and that his reputation is at odds with the hero he wants to be deep down. He goes on the best character journey in the books, and one of the (many) things about the TV series that I hated is that it took this away and removed some of my favourite moments.

Honourable mention to Theon Greyjoy too who also has a strong redemption arc but he’s much more vengeful and hard to like!

2 Clarissa Mao in The Expanse series by James S.A. Corey

This is an odder one but on my reread I have found Clarissa/Melba less antagonising when she is introduced via her unhinged revenge plot in Abaddon’s Gate. The first time I really hated her, but the second time – knowing future books – I could read her a little differently.  While I don’t especially like her (I’m only at book 6!), I think she is an interesting character when viewed alongside somebody like Amos.

3 Queenie in Queenie by Candice Williams

Queenie the character and the book! I found her so frustrating in the first half of the book I almost, almost gave it up. I couldn’t read any more of her self-destruction, of her making terrible choices with terrible men that physically and emotionally abused her. But then the author bring hers around at the right point and I couldn’t stop reading the second half! In the end I loved Queenie and wished her nothing but the best!

4 Sebastian St Vincent in Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas

Sebastian was introduced in book 2 of The Wallflowers series and ended up the villain in a very dramatic and dark turn of events. Then… Lisa Kleypas makes him the love interest in book 3! It’s really baffling to me that she chose to go so unnecessarily far into villainising him. Like he goes full pantomime villain but with forced marriage and rape threats, out the blue! Book 2 could have achieved the same ending without it being quite so extreme.

It really doesn’t make sense that he could ever dream of hurting anybody when you read his character in Devil in Winter. Like Jaime Lannister, Sebastian struggles with the box his reputation has him in but he also uses it as armour. Rather than a careless cad he is actually the sweetest, most supportive and thoughtful of all the Wallflower love interests. There is nothing more romantic than a man providing you with a foot warmer without you ever even thinking to ask for one!

To make it make sense I have to believe that the author really messed up with choices she made writing book 2.

5 Tom Fitzwilliam in Watching You by Lisa Jewell

This was an interesting novel that plays with the idea that you can never know the full story from glimpses of another person’s life. The POV characters make assumptions about seemingly perfect neighbour Tom Fitzwilliam and his family, however several twists and challenge that perspective. Redeemed is perhaps too strong a word, but you’ll finish the book with altered opinions!

6  Jimmy in Dust (Silo #3) by Hugh Howey

Jimmy is introduced in the second book in the series as Solo, and he felt a bit one note crazy and a little annoying. Then in the third book he gets a POV, which includes the heartbreaking story of who he came to be Solo, and he really grows into being my favourite character!

7 Paris Hilton in Paris: The Memoir

I’ve never really had any strong feelings one way or another on Paris Hilton but she caught my interest when she released the documentary on YouTube and she dropped the character to discuss her experience with the Troubled Teen Industry.

This memoir explains so much about her and how she became the “Paris Hilton” character. I found it interesting that she had a reputation as an air head when she’s so obviously a very smart woman. I do find a “hiding in plain sight” story fascinating.

Whatever you think of her (she’s definitely not perfect) I really recommend this for the perspective on the Troubled Teen Industry, and get the audiobook because it’s very much written as her ADHD brain would tell it, and she reads it so well in her real speaking voice! It’s very tough to listen to at times but it’s easily one of the best memoirs I’ve read (second only to I’m Glad My Mum Died by Jeannette McCurdy).

I couldn’t stop thinking about it for weeks. I wrote a thing about it.

8 Captain Wentworth in Persuasion by Jane Austen

This is an understated pick from an understated novel. When Captain Wentworth reappears in Anne’s life nine years after their courtship ended she spends most of the novel wondering whether his feelings have changed. This is complicated further when his pursues a friend within her social circle and she must witness it. He’s not an easy man to read and he avoids Anne as much as she does him which is frustrating at times, but the ending I found suitably quietly beautiful.

9 Charlie in Book of Night by Holly Black

I didn’t love this book, it’s far from perfect (insanely convoluted plot), but I was pleasantly surprised that I liked the character of Charlie a lot more than I expected to from her introduction!

I’m generally wary of the tough girl survivor archetype – it’s great when it’s well written (Jessica Jones, Veronica Mars.. why can’t I think of one that’s not a detective!) but with potential for high cringe when it’s not. A rather on the nose introduction, and the authors publication history, had me worried for basic YA Fantasy level characterisation just aged up (a la A Discovery of Witches) but Charlie turned out to have depth, she is very much not perfect or great at everything! She makes a lot of mistakes, and I liked that. It’s just the rest of the book wasn’t great.

10 Linda in Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley

This incredible YA historical novel tells the story of desegregation in a school in Virginia in 1959 though the experiences of two teenage girls on either side of the the issue of civil rights. Linda is the white daughter of the towns loudest, very racist pro-segregation campaigner, but when she has to work with new black student Sarah the two devlop a relationship and all her world views are challenged. Her POV is at first shocking, and her deconstruction is slow and subtly written in a way that feels realistic.

I read this book in 2016 when it was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal. I had forgotten about it so I’m very glad this prompt caused me to remember it!