It usually doesn’t take more than a chapter or two to recognize the hero in a love story—even if our hero starts out a bit of a rascal at the beginning.
Which begs the question: What makes the perfect hero . . . for you?
I can still remember reading VIRGIN RIVER, Book 1 in New York Times bestselling author Robyn Carr’s Virgin River Series, I knew without a shadow of a doubt this author and, maybe more importantly, this series was going to be huge.
Was it because she served up a strong woman with an interesting job? Well, no, though that was a welcome plus.
Was it because she set the books in a quaint and remote Pacific Northwest town against a backdrop of towering California redwoods? Well, no, though that was again welcomed since I love the Pacific Northwest.
Was it because she included an abandoned baby in need of a home? Still, no, though that did tug on the ole heartstrings.
No, for me, the most refreshing twist of the Virgin River Series had nothing to do with virgins or rivers or even babies and everything to do with Jack Sheridan, one of the most honorable heroes to grace the page of a modern-day novel.
Jack Sheridan was the kind of man that men want to be, that women dream about, and that mothers hope their sons will become . . . that he also had a sense of humor, well, that just made him perfect . . . at least for me.
To this day, I believe the key to the Virgin River Series was the honorable men Robyn created for her female heroines. In a world of shysters and players and narcissists, a hero like Jack Sheridan reminded us that there are good honorable men out there, and that those are the ones to whom we should give our hearts.
The Virgin River Series has gone on to include twenty titles since its debut in 2007 and to make the bestseller list over and over again, along the way it also made Robyn Carr a beloved author.
So I ask you, what makes a hero perfect for you? And what author do you believe does it best?
—Jeanne Devlin
