Connie Brockway | In Praise of the "Guy" Hero

Like most romance readers, I enjoy a variety pack of heroes, ranging from emotionally scarred and damaged ones like Jack Seward from ALL THROUGH THE NIGHT to the gorgeous and befuddled professor Archie Grant in my latest book, THE SONGBIRD'S SEDUCTION. But I have to fess up, while I appreciate the over-the-top darkness of Jack, my very favorite heroes are those who are just… guys.

“Just guy” heroes exhibit what I think of as Essential Male Cluelessness —a collection of traits that can be wildly charming and which may include to varying degrees: a wonderful lack of self-consciousness — the guy hero doesn’t bother ranking himself against others or others against himself; a clear emotional linearity — i.e. “I like you. You like me. Let’s hop in the sack!”; what, at least to the guy hero, are reasonable and unambiguous goals — i.e. “Let’s hop in the sack!”; and an intrinsic inability to dissemble— at least with any notable success.

Unfortunately (or, rather, for writerly purposes completely fortunate!) the flip side of charming is exasperating Apparently, all that aforementioned forthrightness comes tandem with certain deficiencies…like a constitutional inability to engage in or, for that mater, even recognize the subtleties of communication. Mostly female communication.

For example you, in your most tragic tones, ask your guy, “Does this dress make me look fat?” in answer to which, he actually spends two minutes perusing your a… derriere before nodding with what he may well imagine is commendable sympathy, commendable because from his point of view you’re solely responsible for getting your a…derriere into that shape and yet he’s still being what he presumably imagines is supportive by not pointing this out. Yet. Ergo, commendable. And while his point of view may have some validity, it’s clearly incidental to your query. Not that this has happened to me, but I can imagine. Just like I can also imagine staring dumbfounded into his wide, uncomprehending eyes, and realizing that the doofus actually thought you were asking for his opinion when all you wanted was reassurance.

I know this because I am married to that doofus and have been for decades. If one could earn a degree in “Guy Heroes” I’d be way past my master’s and working on my eighth or twentieth doctorate. And yet, in spite of my decades long research, there’s much more to learn. Because unpretentious does not simple, and a lack of ambiguity does not means a lack of depth. A guy is willing to stand before you and openly hand you his heart, proving that in vulnerability there is great strength. A guy hero may be clueless but he’s not confused and when he says “I love you,” he means it, he commits to the very core and forever, unhesitating, unquestioning and unending. Which is, when you come down to it, really pretty damn brave and certainly heroic.

What’s your favorite type of hero and why?

About THE SONGBIRD'S SEDUCTION

Effervescent bon vivant Lucy Eastlake is a young operetta singer whose star is on the rise in Edwardian London. Though struggling to maintain her beloved great-aunts’ household, she holds fast to the belief that “things will work out.” Now, with the fiftieth anniversary of a siege her great-aunt Lavinia lived through approaching, it looks like Lucy is right, because a fortune is due to be divided among the survivors. All Lucy and her great-aunts have to do is travel to a small Pyrenees town to claim Lavinia’s share of a fabulous treasure in rubies. What could be more simple?

Professor Ptolemy Archibald Grant is the brilliant, straitlaced grandson of a British lord who also withstood the siege. When his grandfather asks him as a matter of honor to escort his old love on the journey, the about-to-be married professor agrees, not expecting Lucy to be part of the bargain. Losing the great-aunts en route, the handsome, buttoned-down professor finds himself caught up in Lucy’s quirky, bewildering, and probably illegal efforts to reunite with them, as he is drawn further and further into an inexplicable infatuation with the free-spirited singer. What could be more complicated?

But when unwilling attraction gives way to sizzling passion, both will be forced to confront the ages-old question of whether love trumps honor…or the other way around.

About Connie Brockway

Connie Brockway is the New York Times bestselling author of more than twenty historical and contemporary romance novels. An eight-time finalist for the Romance Writers of America’s prestigious RITA award, Brockway has twice been its recipient, for MY DEAREST ENEMY and THE BRIDAL SEASON. She is the author of MY SEDUCTION, named one of Library Journal’s top romance novels of 2004. Her most recent novel is NO PLACE FOR A DAME and her most recent collaborative novel is THE LADY MOST WILLING, co-written with Julia Quinn and Eloisa James. She is a Minnesota native, and currently lives there with her husband and two spoiled mutts.

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