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07
Aug

Kick Ass Heroines

Thanks so much to everyone who participated in the YA Scavenger Hunt! I had a crazy number of blog hits and almost three hundred readers entered to win a signed ARC of Andrea Cremer’s RIFT. The lucky winner is katmunster!  (Also, RIFT is out today – so if you didn’t win, head to the bookstore! Happy book birthday, Andrea!)

Since we got so many entries, though, I decided to give away three extra BORN WICKED swag packs. Each contains a wristband, magnet, signed bookmarks, and bookplate. Those winners are Reese’s Reviews, Nicloves2read, and Rachel Becker! 

I was also totally fascinated by who you chose as your favorite kick-ass heroines. So fascinated, in fact, that I decided to create an informal survey. Here are the characters that were mentioned more than once, with the number of times they were mentioned in parentheses. The characters with an asterisk beside them are the ones I totally agree are awesome – but I’ve obviously got some reading to do! (Also, while characters like Rose and Katniss and Tris are all fabulous, I loved that so many of you thought out of the box of physical strength to Hermione! There are many ways to be fierce, no?)

*Rose – VAMPIRE ACADEMY (34)
*Katniss – HUNGER GAMES (31)
*Katsa – GRACELING (20)
Alex – HALF-BLOOD (18)
*Tris – DIVERGENT (18)
*Hermione – HARRY POTTER (14)
Clary – MORTAL INSTRUMENTS (13)
Kelsey – TIGER’S CURSE (11)
Yelena – POISON STUDY (11)
*Buffy – BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER (8)
Caelena – THRONE OF GLASS (7)
Evie – PARANORMALCY (6)
Cat – NIGHT HUNTRESS (5)
Ismae – GRAVE MERCY (5)
*Calla – NIGHTSHADE (4)
*Elizabeth Bennett – PRIDE & PREJUDICE (4)
Eve Dallas – JD Robb series (4)
Katy – LUX (4)

Alanna – SONG OF THE LIONESS (3)
Elena –  OTHERWORLD (3)
Ellie – ANGELFIRE (3)
Kate Daniels – Ilona Andrews (3)
Lena – DELIRIUM (3)
MacKayla – FEVER (Karen Marie Moning) (3)
Max – MAXIMUM RIDE (3)
Penryn – ANGELFALL (3)
* Sydney Sage – VAMPIRE ACADEMY (3)
Violet – EMBRACE (3)

Ari – A BEAUTIFUL EVIL (2)
* Aria – UNDER THE NEVER SKY (2)
* Bitterblue – BITTERBLUE (2)
* Kristin Cashore’s heroines (2)
Chloe – DARKEST POWERS (2)
Dru – STRANGE ANGELS (2)
Finley Jane – CLOCKWORK CHRONICLES (2)
* Gemma Doyle – A GREAT AND TERRIBLE BEAUTY (2)
Helen – STARCROSSED (2)
Isobel – NEVERMORE (2)
Juliette – SHATTER ME (2)
Kat Bishop – HEIST SOCIETY (2)
Maggie – SIGNIFICANCE (2)
Morgan Rowlands – SWEEP (2)
Rachel – THE HOLLOWS  (2)
* Tally – UGLIES (2)
Tessa Gray – INFERNAL DEVICES (2)

These characters each got one vote apiece, but I love them and it made me happy to see them on the list:

* Bryn – RAISED BY WOLVES
* Claire – MORGANVILLE VAMPIRES
* Deryn – LEVIATHAN
* Luna Lovegood – HARRY POTTER
* Scarlet – SCARLET
* Scout – TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD

And Cate got three votes, too! Thank you for that. 🙂

Books that have moved up on my TBR shelf thanks to this poll include THRONE OF GLASS, GRAVE MERCY, and the HALF-BLOOD series.

What do you think? Is your favorite heroine on this list?

11 Responses

  1. Julia G.

    Aw, yay! I voted for Hermione so I'm happy that others find her so inspiring as well. I also put down Cate, too. 🙂 I think that besides Hermione, I also agree with Katniss, Rose, Katsa and Alanna the most. I think that all females can see a bit of themselves in every single one of these heroines and they all help us overcome struggles and adversaries which is always important in real life.
    I think, though, that Tess in Born Wicked really resonated with me. Even though she is the youngest sister, she is full of quiet strength that I think helps keep her family together, she is like the 'glue.' Thank you, Ms. Spotswood for writing a great book! I can't wait for the sequel! (And I loved the extra content that you posted during the hunt!)
    -Julia

    1. Aw, I'm so glad that you liked my fashion post and that you like Tess! We'll be seeing lots more of her in STAR CURSED and some of my favorite scenes are between her and Cate.

  2. Jess! You _must_ read Throne of Glass. I just finished it and was blown away by Celaena. I can't believe she didn't make it higher on the list, but I'm glad she's there!

    Cate is pretty kick-ass, but I imagine she'll be even moreso in Star Cursed! <3

    1. I'm going to the bookstore on Sat and totally planning to buy ToG. I can't wait to read it! I loved your review. And I think it's pretty awesome that so many people voted for Caelena before the book's even officially out!

      Cate is way more kick-ass in SC, imho. 🙂 She's very much coming into her own.

  3. This is a great list! I love strong female characters – you can never have enough kick-ass heroines!

    Katniss is my favourite, though I also love Max from Maximum Ride. And one that’s not been mentioned here – Taya from Dru Pagliassotti’s Clockwork Heart.

  4. Pingback : http://www.jessicaspotswood.com/blog/2012/08/07/kick-ass-heroines/ « BHS Library Blog!

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