Adriana Anders | Gruff, Grumpy, and Reclusive: Five Heroes Who Hit all the Right Buttons

There’s a certain hero cocktail that hits all of my buttons. Big and gruff? Check. But a love on the inside. Also check. Scarred and messed up in so many ways? Check check check. And a loner. Yes. One hundred percent yes. I’ve got heroes who don’t fit this mold, because life is made up of more than just loners and I like to think my books mirror life, but when I can write one, I jump at the chance. And I absolutely love to read them. Luc, the hero of IN HIS HANDS, the third book in my Blank Canvas series, is a gruff, but sweet recluse and I absolutely adored putting him on the page.

Here are a few other loner heroes who are impossible to forget.

1. In UNBOUND, Cara McKenna gives us reclusive Rob who is kinky and strange and totally my kind of hero. He’s a mess, so of course I love him. The man is in self-imposed exile in the highlands, after his life fell apart in large part due to his alcoholism. By the time the heroine comes across him, he thinks he’s a lost cause. Aren’t lost cause heroes the best?
2. Noah Gideon Grant in Charlotte Stein’s INTRUSION is the guy everyone’s afraid of. He’s the killer who lives alone, and the last thing the heroine should do is get involved. But she does. And it’s so very good.
3. O’Keefe’s heroes are my crack. It’s like she pulls them straight from my fantasies. In EVERYTHING I LEFT UNSAID, when scarred, mysterious Dylan comes into the picture and he, literally, lives in isolation on his very own mountain, well… need I say more? My heartstrings are pulled.
4. DREAM A LITTLE DREAM by Susan Elizabeth Phillips features one of my favorite grumpy, loner heroes ever. He’s suffered a great tragedy and would rather be alone forever than get involved in life, so when the heroine shows up and forces him out of his shell, he’s harsh and resentful and OMG, I love him so much.
5. Finally, I’ve talked about Pamela Clare’s SKIN DEEP before because I guess this hero hits every one of my buttons: Nathaniel West is a scarred, reclusive veteran with a terrible opinion of himself. There’s nothing better than watching him emerge from his shell for the sake of the heroine. Sigh.

What makes your reader heart go pitter patter? Is it the most messed up man or are you more a perfect billionaire kind of gal?

IN HIS HANDS by Adriana Anders

Blank Canvas #3

Can love save her from a fate worse than death?

Dark and moody Luc Stanek craves a quiet life. But when a desperate woman lands bloodied and branded on his doorstep, he finds himself pulled into her world…and determined to save her no matter the cost.

Jo Merkley joined the Church of the Apocalyptic Faith as a child, and the brands marring her skin mark her as little more than the charismatic leader's property. Only Luc is able to see her for the woman she truly is. Determined to win her freedom, Jo and Luc will fight the only family Jo has ever known…for a future neither is certain can be theirs.

Romance Contemporary | Romance Erotica Sensual [Sourcebooks Casablanca, On Sale: August 1, 2017, Mass Market Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9781492633907 / eISBN: 9781492633914]

Buy IN HIS HANDS: Amazon.com | Kindle | BN.com | iTunes/iBooks | Kobo | Google Play | Powell's Books | Books-A-Million | Indiebound | Ripped Bodice | Amazon CA | Amazon UK | Amazon DE | Amazon FR

About Adriana Anders

Adriana Anders has acted and sung, slung cocktails and corrected copy. She’s worked for start-ups, multinationals and small nonprofits, but it wasn’t until she returned to her first love—writing romance—that she finally felt like she’d come home. Today, she resides with her tall French husband, two small children and fat French cat in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, where she writes the dark, gritty, emotional love stories of her heart.

Blank Canvas

WEBSITE | PINTEREST | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM