Top Ten Favorite Characters in Historical Fiction

Today's topic was Top Ten Favorite Characters in X genre  and since there isn't a genre i read more than historical fiction it was the obvious choice.

Lavina Waterhouse - Falling Angels by Tracy Chevalier
Back when I was in middle school and still trying to figure out my reading style I happened upon Tracy Chevalier. The girls in Falling Angels were around my age, and while I related more to Maude, I was envious of Lavinia. She fascinated me and even looking back now she remains one of my favorite characters of any genre.

Anne Neville - The Kingmakers Daughter - Phillipa Gregory
Anne Neville isn't remembered very glamorously  As wife of Richard III (that dude they just found under a car-park in England ) she is often portrayed as frail, dumb and tragic. In The Kingmakers Daughter Gregory creates an Anne that fights for her place, defending her position and eventually becomes the first lady in the land. She really is awesome.

Hadley Hemingway - The Paris Wife - Paula McLain
I'm not a huge fan of Ernest Hemingway as a writer, but as a person he is fascinating  Well, at least he's like reading about a really awful train wreck. Hadley is his first wife. She gets the years of struggling before Hem makes a huge name for himself.

Griet - The Girl with the Pearl Earring - Tracy Chevalier
Above I talked about Tracy Chevalier, and Girl with a Pearl Earring was the first novel of hers I read. Griet was fascinating. A Protestant in a Catholic house. A maid in the Vermeer house. She's clever and ever so slightly tragic. She's fascinating and I love how Chevalier imagined the origin of the most memorable of Vermeer's works.

Anne Boleyn
It doesn't even matter who's writing Anne Boleyn. If she's there, I'm probably going to read it.

Zelda Fitzgerald - Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald - Therese Anne Fowler
I just finished Z and Fowler's portrayal of Zelda Fitzgerald was outstanding. She's strength and wisdom, but bound by her love for her husband, a love that will be the downfall of both of them. She truly is America's First Flapper and her story is one to rival some of her husbands works.

Julian Carax - The Shadows of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
A creepy man who is trying to wipe out his own existence? I'm all over Julian and his sob story.

Nell - Exit the Actress - Priya Parmar
Nell is a super cool chick. Her sister ends up a prostitute but Nell gets to be an actress, and then eventually the Kings favorite mistress. She lives through a compelling time and her story is one worth hearing.

Claude Monet - Claude & Camille - Stephanie Cowell
I hate Monet as an artist. I don't care for his waterlily's and I avoid his wing of the Chicago Art Institue at all costs. However, his portrayal in Claude & Camille make me wish that I had a front row seat to the Impressionists club. Him and all of his artist friends invoke in me the same feelings that the Lost Generation does.