Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by the team at The Broke and the Bookish. Today I’ll be featuring some well-loved characters that I just don’t really like, or don’t understand the obsession with. I’m sorry if any of my responses offend anyone. Just know that I’m not judging anybody for their love of a character.
1. The Darkling (The Grisha trilogy by Leigh Bardugo)
I don’t fully understand everyone’s obsession with the Darkling. I mean, I was intrigued by him in Shadow and Bone and was really excited to read more about him, but his character went downhill after that first book. There was hardly any character development and he went from being an interesting character to just being super evil and creepy. For me, his character was just a wasted opportunity.
2. Chaol Westfall (Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas)
I really like Chaol as a character but I was never Team Chaol. In Throne of Glass and Crown of Midnight, I was Team Dorian and now I’m firmly in Team Rowan. I like Chaol’s personality and what he stands for but I don’t really understand why everybody is in love with him. But that’s the thing with ships I guess… we can’t always agree.
3. Jacob Black (Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer)
I feel like this is one that a lot of readers will understand. What was even the point of Jacob Black in that whole series? His character was so unnecessary (New Moon as a book was basically unnecessary) and it would have been a much more enjoyable series if he wasn’t in it.
4. Ron Weasley (Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling)
I’ve never really liked Ron… He’s kind of annoying and wimpy . He’s funny, I’ll give him that, but I would’ve enjoyed the series just as much if Ron wasn’t in it.
5. Mather Loren (Snow Like Ashes trilogy by Sara Raasch)
I’ve been Team Theron since the beginning of this trilogy, but even when Theron’s character went downhill, I wasn’t a big fan of Mather. I don’t really understand how people switched ships. I can understand people jumping off the Theron love boat but just because you no longer like one love interest as much, doesn’t mean that you need to fall in love with the other. It’s not a mutually exclusive thing for me. I dunno… someone please tell me what’s so great about Mather!
6. Charlotte Holmes (A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro)
A Study in Charlotte was a book that I was completely underwhelmed by and it was mostly due to the characters. Charlotte Holmes in this book is a carbon copy of Sherlock Holmes from the BBC tv show. There’s nothing original about her and she’s probably 3000x more annoying that a character should be. I was just completely unimpressed by her.
7. Safiya fon Hasstrel (Truthwitch by Susan Dennard)
This is one that I can kind of understand. I thought Safi was a really strong character but she was so super annoying for most of the book! I didn’t completely understand what was so special about her and she just came across as another badass female heroine.
8. Tarver Merendsen (These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner)
I just wasn’t a big fan of this book overall. I didn’t like either of the main characters and because the character development and romance was such a big part of the book, I ended up not really connecting with it. Tarver was a pretty boring character in my opinion. He was resourceful and strong but that’s all there was to him. I don’t really see what people are going on about when it comes to this book and the romance.
9. Adam Parrish (The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater)
I feel like there are so many people who are in love with Adam from The Raven Cycle and I don’t really see it. He was super annoying in The Raven Boys, and while his character does get a little bit better as the series goes on, I’m still not the biggest fan of him. I don’t really understand his actions or his thought processes and he kind of makes me uncomfortable…
10. Rhysand (A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas)
Okay, this is one that I’m still on the fence about. I can kind of see why people are interested in him and I can also see myself growing to like him as we get to see more of him… but based on his actions and what we did see of him in ACOTAR, I don’t really agree with everybody’s obsession with him. He’s a bit of a dick, if I’m honest.
Let me know if you agree with any of these!
HA! I don’t like Jacob, too! Especially in New Moon. I just hate him! π π π
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I don’t think I even properly read New Moon. Pretty sure I just read the Edward bits at the beginning and end and skimmed the rest!
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Yeah.. it’s the unnecessary part!
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Poor Jakey. Everyone hates him…but me.
I agree that Adam is a little weird.
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You’ve gotta admit the imprinting on a baby was pretty weird…
I can’t fully put my finger on what I don’t like about Adam but…he’s my least favourite of the Raven boys
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Haha! I totally forgot about the baby imprinting thing. I might just have to change my stance on him now.
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Hahaha sorry!
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HAHAHAHA I love your comment on Rhysand. I’m neither Team Tamlin or Team Rhysand. So, maybe I am Team Jenna.
Agree with Jacob Black tho. I guess they made him relevant in the end when he had questionable *instinctual* desires for their daughter? Hmmmmmm.
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WOOOO TEAM JENNA. Okay, I’m a little bit Team Tamlin. I mean, the whole book is about them getting together so I kinda had to root for it. We’ll see how the Hades and Persephone thing goes with Rhys in ACOMAF.
My gosh, the Jacob Black imprinting on a baby thing was so creepy and weird, I can’t even.
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I kind of agree with you when it comes to Adam Parish – luckily he does get better as the series goes on.
Check out my TTT.
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I do like him a lot more now but he’s far from being at the top of my favourites list. Also, I’m scared about what he’s going to do in the last book!
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I have to agree with you about Ron, I could take or leave him really!
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Yeah I don’t really understand when people say Ron is their favourite character… He’s neither interesting nor funny enough to make my list of HP favourites
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RON? NO! I LOVE Ron! I’m SO firmly on Team Rowan now, they’re SO amazing together! I couldn’t really pick between Chaol and Dorian either, but I suppose I would have picked Chaol because he was less cliche.
GREAT POST!
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I dunno. I just didn’t find Chaol as interesting as Dorian. He was kinda just your standard stoic soldier love interest. I’m glad Rowan appeared and changed things haha
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We will have to agree to disagree on Ron. But I am totally with you on Mather and Rhysand.
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To be fair, I haven’t reread the entire HP series since the 7th book came out. Maybe I’ll feel differently about Ron now? Definitely wasn’t a fan of him when I was younger (probably because I was obsessed with Draco) XD
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How can you not like Ron?!? I can understand most of your list – even though I like Jacob compared to Edward, I can get that you don’t like him. But Ron? Ron is the greatest best friend!!
Here’s my list if you’re interested : https://victoriajaynesbooks.wordpress.com/2016/03/08/top-ten-tuesday-40-overrated-characters/
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Ehhhh… Ron is okay. I mean, I don’t dislike him or anything but I would’ve enjoyed the series just as much if he wasn’t in it. And some of the stuff he did later on in the series was super annoying. But I actually haven’t read Deathly Hallows since it first came out so maybe I’ll feel differently about him if I reread it now? I dunno T_T
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Ron was not the best in Deathly Hallows, so if you don’t like him now, the 7th book would not make you like him anymore. For me I think I liked him the least in that novel. To be fair, he is the heart of the trio. Harry was courage, Hermione was the brains, and Ron was the heart. At least that was one person’s interpretation on the subreddit for HP.
I enjoyed Ron in the books. I disliked his character in the movies. They completely ruined him. Gave all his best lines to Hermione and Harry making them Mary Sues. They basically made movie Ron, the butt monkey for jokes and such.
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I can totally see why Ron is on your list. He’s kind of meh. I definitely moved to Team Rowan pretty fast.. But I did like Chaol in the beginning.
Movie Jacob was different.. But I remember book Jacob being like a whiny little kid!!
Great list!
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I didn’t really like movie or book Jacob. I was just firmly Team Edward. I mean, what was even the point of Jacob? He was only there for the purposes of having a love triangle, but it was obvious from the start that he had no chance. And then he creepily goes and imprints on a baby. Cos that is so sexy…
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I always felt like Jacob and Leah could have been a thing based on their weird obsessions with taken people.. The whole imprinting thing was too tidy of an ending. I preferred Jacob when him and Edward actually got along ( the few moments in Eclipse and then most of Breaking Dawn) he was never a serious love interest.
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OH MY GOSH, YES SO SO MUCH TO THIS. I don’t like The Darkling either, or Chaol. Both really don’t appeal to me and annoy me. So glad I’m not alone on this!
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I was expecting to be wowed and completely fall in love with the Darkling but he was so disappointing!! I don’t even understand what people see in him and why they’re obsessed with him. His strange obsession with Alina wasn’t swoonworthy or anything. It was just plain creepy.
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I mean, he’s alright. I imagine he’s attractive, not going to lie there. But he SCARES ME. I don’t want to fall in love with that tbh.
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I don’t like Jacob Black either. Chaol? You don’t like Chaol?!!!!! He’s the only reason I love ToG series. I’m on the fence about Rhysand. If Maas turns this series into a love triangle, I’m done. It’s bad enough that Feyre gets on my nerves.
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It’s not that I don’t like Chaol…he’s just my least favourite of all the men. I love Rowan and Dorian so much more that I don’t really understand when people are crying about their Chaolaena ship sinking. And yeah I agree with you about Rhys. I don’t want SJM to turn this into a Twilight-esque love triangle. If she was planning on a love triangle, why have the entire first book about Tamlin and Feyre getting together, if they’re not going to stay together? Like what was even the point of ACOTAR? (Okay I get the point but still. NO LOVE TRIANGLES!)
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All of those books…and I have read only one or two, I feel ashamed, hahaha. I have to agree about Jacob, he was so annoying and useless in the books!
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What did Jacob even do in those books? Turn into a wolf, show off his abs, play with some motorbikes and imprint on a baby. None of those things were even necessary. She should’ve stopped at Twilight…
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You had me laughing so hard at that, haha. He definitely didn’t bring anything new to the table. That’s too bad, yes, she really should have …
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Agree 100% with you on Rhysand. The only reason why he didn’t make my list is because I didn’t know he had a lot of people into him. Otherwise he definitely would’ve been on there.
Awww, I’m sad to see Ron on your list. He wasn’t my favorite Harry Potter character, but I have an affection for characters like his.
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Haha I feel like the community is split pretty evenly between Tamlin and Rhysand. I was genuinely surprised by how many people shipped Feyre with Rhys. I can see why he’s appealing but… no.
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I know! I’m pretty surprised at how many people are shipping Rhys.
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I completely agree with you about Adam. I love The Raven Cycle series but, especially in the early books, Adam just came across as really whinny in some scenes. I definitely preferred him in Blue Lily, Lily Blue. Hopefully he’ll improve a little more in the last book π
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I hope he does too! But I’m scared to find out what he does in the final book (cos you know that thing that he saw in the forest dream tree thingy)…
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Oh god I feel like the last book is going to destroy me. Part of me hopes that what Adam saw in the forest dream has another explanation, other than the obvious, but a larger part of me thinks it’s probably gonna be much worse than what it looks like.
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It’s probably going to tear me apart. Please Adam! Please don’t be a dick!
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I do feel like Adam has improved since the first book, so you never know, maybe he won’t be a dick in the fourth!
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I’m totally with you on The Darkling! He’s just too much of one thing for me.
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Exactly! He could have been a really complex and interesting character but then he kinda just fell flat.
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I didn’t like These Broken Stars too much either, it reminded me too much of The Under the Never Sky trilogy…
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I haven’t read Under the Never Sky but I’ve heard lots of good things about it! Sci-fi isn’t my genre in general (even though The Lunar Chronicles is probably my favourite series ever) and These Broken Stars was just really meh. It was mostly about the romance and not really about the plot or the world.
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Ugh Jacob. He was such a nuisance. I didn’t even see the point in his character save for that ridiculous triangle. Speaking of triangles, this Throne of Glass love triangle/square seems very frustrating and is one of the reasons I’ve yet to pick up the books. Shipping wars are just so off putting for me. I 100% agree with Adam. He was just irritating in the first two books and the way he judged everyone, especially Gansey was a bit uncalled for.
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Haha the ToG love square is pretty frustrating but I think I’m on the right ship so I actually don’t mind it too much XD . I still think you should read it because the action and story is a lot more than the romance, despite it being the thing that people focus on the most. And the series keeps getting better with each book, so I’m pretty excited to get my hands on Book 5!
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You don’t like Ron omg hold on a moment while go throw myself off a cliff. Ssssh, don’t listen to her, Ron, she didn’t mean it… He’s definitely favorite character in the series LOL.
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Hahaha sorry! But okay, I’m genuinely interested in why he’s your favourite character. I just don’t see it….
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I don’t know, I’ve just always loved him? He’s hilarious, loyal and such a good friend, he’s basically Harry’s brother. I low his jealousy flaw and how it stems back to him always being overshadowed by someone and never having anything for himself. I don’t have book boyfriends, but Ron is my one exception. β€ Often when people hate on Ron, they think about movie Ron and not book Ron (not saying you do though), that annoys me so much because movie Ron just isn't him.
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“I low”? lmao. I love*
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I think I definitely need to reread the books. I haven’t reread the whole series since Deathly Hallows came out and I guess movie Ron is always the Ron I imagine. He is pretty funny though π
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I actually have tons of articles/posts about movie Ron VS. book Ron, and just Ron positive posts in general, let me find some! XD Here’s my favorite, and one about what Hermione sees in him, and seven things the movies forgot about Ron. I love him a lot ok…. XD
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Chaol was on my list this week too!
My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2016/03/08/top-ten-tuesday-47/
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I’ve actually seen Chaol on a lot of lists this week. Glad to know that I’m not alone!
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I like the Darkling, but more as a character than as a love interest. I really don’t get people that wanted him and Alina to end up together. That’s disappointing about A Study in Charlotte, as it is being delivered to me today :p
My TTT.
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Same! I don’t understand people who ship Alina and the Darkling either! Like why?! I didn’t really like him that much as a character either, but I don’t think I can judge that properly since his character development started revolving around him wanting to be with Alina. I hope you enjoy A Study in Charlotte because I know that a lot of people did. I’ve discovered that Sherlock fans tend to not really like it because the characters are carbon copies of the original Sherlock and Watson, whereas people who aren’t familiar with Sherlock or the original Conan Doyle stories tend to really like the characters and plot.
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I’m indifferent to Ron one way or the other but his FAMILY is so critical to Harry and the story. My TTT
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I LOVE Ron’s family but I don’t really like Ron that much. I don’t dislike him but I wouldn’t miss him if he wasn’t there (okay, I probably would just because he’s such an important part of the story, being the sidekick and all that). Yeah… I dunno. I haven’t reread Harry Potter in a while so maybe my adult self will feel differently?
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I’m definitely with you on Chaol, Jacob, and The Darkling. I have to say that I’m fully team Mather though. π Thanks for sharing Jenna and, as always, fabulous post! β€
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Haha I think I’m too firmly in Team Theron to care about Mather. But we pretty much know who she’s going to end up with because of the character assassination in Ice Like Fire T_T I’ll always love him though!
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I’ve been seeing the Darkling on a lot of lists and get confused. Clearly I need to reread and actually finish this series. Absolutely agree with Jacob. I find your choice of Ron interesting, mostly because of your points, ones I never really thought about. When I think about him, I just remember him as just trying to be a good friend and be helpful in general. But I get the whiny part. Great list π
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I think the Darkling makes a poor love interest so the people that actually ship him with Alina… I just don’t see it. But I loved him as a character even if he was inconsistent. I don’t know he sort of reminded me of Sebastian from TMI. Just so lonely. T.T
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I’ve only read Shadow and Bone so I don’t know the Darkling’s *full* story yet, but I have to agree that he’s a character everyone loves and I just don’t get WHY. For some reason, I can’t stop picturing him as SNAPE. I can’t remember how he’s described in the book, so I don’t know how my brain came to the conclusion of him looking like that … but now I can’t stop thinking that π‘
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Hmm I think what makes the Darkling really interesting is his complex nature. He was humanized by Leigh Bardugo, but we also know him as the creepy villain. And of course he’s creepy, he’s a villain! XD I actually like his ruthless-ness in executing his plans, it just proves how capable he is as a villain!
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WAIT WHAT YOU WEREN’T A FAN OF THESE BROKEN STARS? OMGGG! That’s okay, Tarver can be mine then π LOL! Rhysand I actually agree with, I much preferred Tamlin and Lucien and I did find Rhysand to be a dick and manipulative. It’s interesting that everyone kind of loves Adam, I’m keen to see where that goes.
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