When it comes to men, make no mistake, it’s the women who know how to get it right. Being an avid reader with a love of romance has exposed me to compelling male characters who have raised the bar for what I expect from real-life men. I think that’s partly due to female authors who understand what we as women want when reading about a man.
In honor of Women’s History Month, here are five of my favorite male characters who were written by women!
- Garrett Graham from The Deal by Elle Kennedy
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With the hockey romances hitting the big screens, I absolutely had to include the book boyfriend from the first hockey romance I read. Garrett Graham is a hockey guy in college who was a player “off and on the ice” until he meets his love interest, Hannah Wells. Then he turns into this amazing guy who everyone instantly falls in love with.
One of my favorite moments that Kennedy writes for Graham is when he learns that Hannah has a sexually traumatic past. He becomes the most understanding and patient guy who supports her through everything she’s experiencing.
I also love that he’s a character who, from the beginning, is flawed, but throughout the story, he starts to unlearn some of the habits that he developed before we meet him. It also helps that he’s described as being very hot.
- Maxon Schreave From The Selection by Kiera Cass
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When I tell you that Maxon Schreave may have set the bar high for me from a very young age, I fully mean it. Maxon is the king and the love interest of the main character, America Singer. In this book, America, along with many other girls, competes to potentially marry Maxon. It’s like The Bachelor, but set in a dystopian world.
In the books, Cass makes Maxon lovable by portraying him as a carefree guy, and he falls in love with America before she even realizes it. Something that draws readers to him is that once he knows how he feels, he has trouble hiding it, and I think that resonates with people who want to know what it’s like to be chosen by someone so boldly like that.
A part of the book that sold Maxon for me was his love confession in the third book of the series. It’s the confession I use as the standard to compare every other love confession to.
- Aaron Warner from the Shatter Me series by Tahereh Mafi
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Book boyfriends come, and book boyfriends go. However, Aaron Warner has always stayed with me. Aaron Warner is someone who lives in a totalitarian society. As the son of a dictator, he can’t help but fall in love with his father’s enemy, Juliette, who can kill anyone with just a touch.
I feel drawn to Aaron Warner because Mafi has him falling in love with Juliette from the beginning. Even though he’s seen as a villain in the first few books, he’s always been drawn to Juliette. Also, once he falls more in love with her, he starts to work with her to destroy his father’s plans.
I think the level of loyalty that he has for the people he loves is very noble, and despite his traumatic past, he’s still capable of doing some good.
- Dorian Havilliard from The Throne of Glass Series by Sarah J. Maas
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Why read about anything else when I can read about Dorian Havilliard? While he may not be the main love interest in this series, he’s my favorite. Maas may not have wanted him and the main character, Caelena, to end up together, but I genuinely can’t help but fall in love with him.
Dorian is the prince to the tyrant king of Ardalan, except he’s somehow nothing like his father. Dorian liked to read and learn, which his father didn’t agree with at all.
My favorite Dorian moment is in the Throne of Glass book, where Celaena is bed-bound because she started getting her period again, and Dorian keeps her company by reading her a book. I love this moment because Maas notably doesn’t shy away from the gross things that happen in real life.
- Xaden Riorson from Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
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Where some men tend to fail, Xaden Riorson tends to fly. From being a dragon rider who’s the son of a rebellious duke, you’d expect him not to fall in love with the daughter of the woman who killed his father. Yet, despite all odds, he does.
For this being Yarros’ first fantasy series, I’m in awe of how well she’s done. Yarros is an author who raises all the stakes in her novels, and I think that’s what makes readers care deeply about the fate of her characters.
Xaden is my favorite book boyfriend. He was very easy to draw an attachment to because he’s an incredibly complex character who doesn’t understand his feelings. One thing I like about him is that even though he was hesitant to start something with Violet (the main character and his love interest), once they got together, he was all in.
Yarros also does a really good job of making the two characters have incredible on-page chemistry and banter. In general, he’s a fun character to read about.
Although these book boyfriends have set all my expectations for the men who enter my life, I wouldn’t be obsessed with them if I didn’t give credit to their female authors.
While some may frown upon the idea that these characters are unrealistic because they’re fictional, I argue that they could be a roadmap to what many of us are looking for. Female authors just tend to get it; everyone else should pay attention.
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