As you may—or may not—know, my Sisters of the Moon Series*** is picking up steam.  Urban fantasy starring three sisters–Camille, Delilah, and Menolly–each book is narrated from the viewpoint of a different sister.  WITCHLING was the first book, and CHANGELING is due out in June.  (By the way: just to set the record straight, I’ve never seen an episode of Charmed *grins*…my concept for the three sisters comes from the mythological aspects of the Triple Goddess, the Norns, and the Fates).

Anyway, I’ve been running a contest on my personal blog and on my MySpace blog (they’re both open till March 31st, by the way, if you want to enter) for copies of the ARCS of CHANGELING.  As part of the contest, I’m asking people to list their favorite characters—and tell me why.  So far, beyond the sisters, Smoky the dragon and Morio the fox demon are miles ahead.  No question about it, women love those men!

So I’ve been thinking about how so many women are taking to Smoky and Morio.  And I’ve been asking myself, why do I love my heroes so much, and why do my sisters love them?  I mean, we aren’t talking HEA romances here—we’re talking bizarre urban fantasy with a dark, humorous undertone.  Lots of action, some explicit sex, relationships galore, subplots everywhere, and mythology from all over the world all mixed into one big cauldron.  So the heroes are all a bit off—not your run-of-the-mill good guys, that’s for sure.  Camille, Menolly, and Delilah are hard put to keep up with this crew.

When I examine my male characters, I see they all possess aspects of the qualities I tend to find attractive in men—and a few not. 

Smoky, a gorgeous white dragon, morphs into a tall, sexy, reserved man.  He’s the man in white, with silver hair down to his calves.  Arrogant, he’s embodies a sense of timeless regality.  Smoky’s got his own agenda for everything he does.  He’s not magnanimous.  He’s wickedly playful, he enjoys sitting back and pushing buttons to control the show.  And yet, right below the surface is a menacing sense that yes, he *is* a dragon and therefore, if you aren’t careful, he might just fry you to a crisp and eat you up.  Dragons and other beasties do not play by human rules in my worlds.

Trillian, a Svartan—a race of rather menacing beings long ago related to the elves—is hedonistic.  Sensual to the core, he’s the magic man who can charm you with a kiss, the pied piper of the bedroom.  He, like Smoky, is a mercenary, and yet he’s there to help when Camille and her sisters any time they need him, even if he complains in the process.  Camille and Trillian have an odd relationship—sexually open, and yet, they are completely bound to one another through sex magic.  Trillian can be your best ally, or worst enemy.

Morio, a fox demon based on Japanese lore, is the unreadable rogue.  He always has a secret smile back there, like he knows something you don’t.  He’s loyal to the core, and yet, unpredictable.  Brilliant, his passion comes through like a quiet flame that can roar to life when he’s in his full demon form.

And then there’s Chase—the human of the group.  Chase is a ladies’ man, or so he likes to think, but let him meet the right woman and he falls hard.  He’s the protector, the sardonic lawman, the cautionary thinker of the group.  He knows he’s in over his head with the sisters and their cohorts, so he gives way when it’s necessary, but he’s always willing to be first into battle and he’ll die for his friends if need be.

And with CHANGELING (and DARKLING), you’ll meet new men—Zachary Lyonnesse, Venus the Moonchild, and others.

So what do my male characters say about me and the way I look at men?  I suppose I find power attractive in a man—that reserved brilliance that challenges you to go ahead, try to best him.  I like men who find intelligence appealing, men who like a woman who thinks for herself.  I can’t stand arrogance without substance behind it and I don’t like ‘who’s your daddy’ games.
 
When I look at my own husband, I see that he’s got a number of these qualities (all the better for me!) that I give to my heroes.  The sensuality of Trillian, the desire to protect that Chase embodies.  Samwise is smart and quiet, like Morio.  And like Smoky, he’s playful. And, he’s got long hair—another plus in my book.  ~grins~

So tell me, what are your favorite qualities in heroes?  What do you like in men that you read about or watch on TV, or invite into your boudoir?

Until next time,
Yasmine

***Note: Berkley may have dubbed my Sisters of the Moon Series as the Otherworld Series.  I’ve suggested not doing that, primarily because I don’t want people mixing up my Otherworld with Kelly Armstrong’s Otherworld Series, because they’re two vastly different places, though I love her world, but I’m not sure what their final decision is.