From the Archive: What’s your ideal hero in sweet Victorian romance?

From the Archive. This is yet another post I first conceived of in 2018 ( I think). Are my views of an ideal hero in Sweet Victorian romance the same as they were then? You'll have to read to find out!

What’s your ideal hero in sweet Victorian romance?

Oh boy, this oughta get me in trouble. :) Because, guess what? My idea of a hero doesn't seem to fit any of the styles you'll see in your typical modern romance novel.

What is my ideal romance hero? I like the poets, the musicians, the sensitive thinking men, the ones who use their minds and intellect to get out of sticky situations. The ones that work with the heroines rather than the kind that say "Step aside, honey. Let the man deal with this."

I'm sorry? I understand where it came from (*cavemen) but I prefer ladies who deal with their own hardships, Princess Leia types rather than the shrinking violet heroines.

But that's off-topic, isn't it?

I like the heroes like Alcott's Laurie, the charming neighbor in Little Women, Virginia Woolf's Septimus, or Jacob, the disturbed war veterans, and Edith Wharton's Lawrence Selden (left), far more than the typical romance alpha males. The reasonable ones. Even if sometimes they have to be unreasonable before the heroine teaches him what’s good for him. :)

(Even though, I will admit to having a soft spot for Lisa Kleypas’ blunt, honest, working class Simon Hunt.)

And, though, yes, we all appreciate Darcy, I can say honestly that I think the heroes in my and stories are far more Selden than they are or will be foot-in-mouth Darcys. :)

How about you? Who's your ideal romance hero?

If you’re curious for an example of how this preference shapes my sweet Victorian romances (and other works), you can browse my books here. Expect to find artists, thinkers, scholars, and quietly determined heroes who work alongside the heroines who steal their hearts.