Book Boyfriends
The term “book boyfriend” is a term that generally grates on me. When I think back to when this term became popular and highly used, I vividly recall the Twilight series. There was such a huge calling for Team Edward vs. Team Jacob. It forced readers to choose a side – and thus, advocating for a book boyfriend.
I also associate the term to teens and teen reads. I am by no means bashing adult YA readers. It’s just that I have seen so many people listing so many book boyfriends. It seems…elementary, like how little first graders list half of their grade as their boyfriend/girlfriend because they are simply friends and they like one another. The concept of boyfriend/girlfriend is completely lost on them.
Is the concept of book boyfriends lost on us, as readers? Specifically female readers? At what point is it too much – too many “boyfriends” on our list?
Are all of these guys that wonderfully rounded and deserving of a relationship? Or are they just guys that we are intensely attracted to…and are better off as one-night stands? OR are they guys we really love but aren’t date-able and we’d just really like them as a boy friend?
This is how I think in terms of book boyfriends. I think I can only include one honest-to-God book boyfriend, and that is Jamie Fraser of the Outlander series. A couple boy friends I would love to have in my life are Pudge and the Colonel from John Green’s Looking for Alaska.
Does this change how you view book boyfriends?
I want to know three things! Include the character name and book title for each below:
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Who is your #1 book boyfriend? What makes him stand out above the crowd as boyfriend material?
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Who would be on your friend zone list? What qualities separate him from boyfriend material?
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Who would be on your one-night list?
Girl of 1000 Wonders 
Who is your #1 book boyfriend? What makes him stand out above the crowd as boyfriend material?
Jamie Fraser (Outlander). He tough with vulnerable side. Educated with a witty sense of humor.
Who would be on your friend zone list? What qualities separate him from boyfriend material?
Bill Compton (Sookie Stackhouse). Overall, a great guy/vampire to have around, but his decisions, when it comes to girlfriends, is suspect.
Who would be on your one-night list?
Eric Northman (Sookie Stackhouse).
I like the idea of book boyfriends/girlfriends. It’s a chance to reflect on being young again. 🙂
I don’t really have book boyfriends either – guess I feel a little old for that. Ha! But when I think about this concept, the one guy who does stand out for me is Ridge from Colleen Hoover’s Maybe Someday. That book is just one of my all-time favorites and he always stands out to me as a truly good guy (who messes up sometimes).
Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction
Hmm, this is a fun topic to think about! It’s not a term I use much either (I think I associate it with the same Twilight fever you do!) but it’s more interesting when broken down in this way.
1. Who is your #1 book boyfriend? What makes him stand out above the crowd as boyfriend material?
This is a tough one, when you really try to narrow it to just one. I think I can narrow it to two: a modern book boyfriend and a more classic book boyfriend! The first would probably be Colin Hargreaves from the Lady Emily series. Colin’s such a gentleman, funny and smart but also completely supportive of Emily. He has his own opinions and they don’t always match up with Emily’s but he always respects her ideas and is just all around a good guy. Classic would have to be Nick Charles, of Nick and Nora fame. Nick is such a cad but he’s a good husband too. And stylish. So very stylish.
2. Who would be on your friend zone list? What qualities separate him from boyfriend material?
The one that comes to mind immediately is Walter Day from “The Yard.” A bit of a random choice, I think, but Walter always seems like such a stand-up guy and yet, I’m not the slightest bit attracted to him. He just seems very dependable and likable and trustworthy. Also perhaps Jim Taylor from the Sally Lockhart series. I don’t know, Jim’s an old favorite of mine and attractive somehow but not quite boyfriend material. Sorry, Jim.
3. Who would be on your one-night list?
Oh my, there are so many attractive jerks in literature haha! I think I would have to say Mike Hammer, Jay Gatsby and Edward IV from Philippa Gregory’s “The White Queen.” Probably don’t want to know what any of that says about me.
The way I see it, most of the characters on my list of favorite are either not men I’d want to date in real life, or I know we just wouldn’t be compatible no matter how much I adore them. Glad I’m not the only one who feels like the word “boyfriend” just seems a bit too strong.
My top pick for a book boyfriend would either be Emery from Charlie N. Holmberg’s The Paper Magician series or Marcus from Lexi Blake’s Thieves series (who, oddly enough, isn’t even a main character). Emery is quirky and different. Marcus is deep and the kinda guy who’d never take you for granted. And both are gorgeous in my mind, haha.
[…] Thoughts on Thursday ~ Book Boyfriends […]
Oh, this cracked me up 😉 That irks me a bit too!
And you’re probably right about the Twilight effect, by the way. In a way, I think that Twilight made it cool to be obsessed with fictional guys (not that people weren’t before, but they were never quite so open about it!)
I guess I was never *that* girl. I had a handful of crushes on fictional characters as a teen (and zero on real people!), but I never forgot that they were fictional, so it was more of a source for humor. So I guess the term “fictional crush” always made more sense to me than “book boyfriend.”
More frequently, I had a favorite character that I based my current look/image around! (I never grew out of the Tolkien-elf phase)
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