by Laura Drewry
The answer to Juliet’s epic question “What’s in a name?” is simple: A lot.
Sure, yes, okay, The Bard was right about one thing – a rose will always smell like a rose even if you call it a pickle. But names of characters in our favourite books, well, that’s a whole different story (no pun intended) and writers put a great deal of effort into choosing their characters’ names.
When Jane Austen sat down to write Pride and Prejudice, I imagine she thought long and hard before christening either Elizabeth or Mr. Darcy. Elizabeth Bennet is a good proper name for a good proper woman who knows (and usually goes along with) what society believes to be right. But when her friends and sisters call her Lizzy, we see the lighter of side of a complex character. As for Mr. Darcy. . .well. . .it’s actually impossible for my brain to think of him with any other name. Fitzwilliam Darcy. It screams upper-crust, snooty, and someone who is not to be trifled with. And my-oh-my did Colin Firth ever nail that role!
In contemporary terms, think about Christian Grey for a moment. Even if Ms. James used the same surname, would the character be the same if she’d named him Kevin or George? No. He wouldn’t even be the same character if she’d called him Chris. He’s a Christian.
The funny thing about names, though, is that many of us associate names with past experiences, either good or bad.
Take ‘Jason’ for example: A perfectly good name, right? But growing up, there was a kid in school who was downright nasty to me and guess what his name was? LOL So it doesn’t matter how many other Jasons I’ve met over the years, or how great they all might have been. In the child-part of my mind, the first Jason I ever met was horrible, ergo, I could never give that name to one of my heroes. A secondary character – sure. A character I knew I was going to kill off – absolutely! LOL
Having said that, of course, I will now contradict myself and say that I love (and I mean *love*) Jason Bourne and refuse to consider calling him by his real name, David Webb.
So tell me, are there any books you’ve read where you’ve either thought the names fit the characters perfectly? Or were there times when you just shook your head and wondered what the author was thinking? And do you have any names that you automatically associate with a good or bad memory?
ACCIDENTALLY IN LOVE
Fans of Jill Shalvis and Susan Mallery will love Laura Drewry’s warm and humorous new Friends First romance, a sexy romp about a good cop and a bad girl playing hard to get.
Ellie Palmer and cops don’t mix, and getting pulled over by Officer Brett Hale—again—doesn’t help. Neither does being forced to take a safe-driving course with him. Brett’s by-the-book attitude leaves Ellie ice-cold, and his rock-hard body won’t change that. Still, the more time she spends with the guy, the more she finds herself warming up to his unexpected charms.
Even though Brett comes off like a boy scout, Ellie has sparked something he wants badly enough to get him to rethink his past mistakes. But when her ex shows up, Brett makes it his mission to keep Ellie safe in the here and now. His gut tells him the guy’s trouble, and Ellie must agree, because she doesn’t complain when Brett pulls her close. To keep her safe, though, he’ll have to choose between breaking her heart . . . and breaking the rules.
ACCIDENTALLY IN LOVE can be purchased in mass market paperback or eBook format
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