You should have seen this one coming … Who is your favorite Male lead character? And why?

Sad to say, I should have seen this coming, but I didn’t till last night. D’oh!

While my heroine came right to me, this week’s question wasn’t as easy. For some reason, Killashandra aside, there aren’t many characters that are popping out in my mind. After a bit of thought however, (and a glance at my shelves) Henry from The Time Traveler’s Wife jumped out at me.

On the first level Henry is unique because of the fact that he time travels uncontrollably. He is always having to adapt to wherever he finds himself, as well as the repercussions of where he finds himself when he comes back. But there is a second layer to Henry, and that is the in-depth portrayal of how he deals with the rest of his life around the time traveling – the death of his mother, his inability to have a healthy relationship, his marriage to Claire, trying to have a child. Then there is a third layer composed of his physical characteristics and actions, the way he always runs, his exhaustion, the toll traveling takes on his body, the way he speak, his sex drive. All of these layers are seamlessly intertwined, providing the reader with a rounded, complex character. The story succeeds because of the strength of character development the reader finds in Henry. He is flawed, he is human, and even at his worst he is a likable character. The reader is drawn deeply to him, and he turns was could have been a very bad premise into a compelling and engaging novel.

_Edited to add_

The Old Man from The Old Man and the Sea. What a book – I can’t believe I didn’t think of him sooner.