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Potential Husbands from YA Fantasy: A Comparison Chart (The Best of Book Riot)

Becky Stone

Staff Writer

Becky Stone loves to read stories about princesses who save themselves and firmly believes that a mug of hot chocolate paired with the right novel can solve almost any problem. Becky recently did that thing where you leave your safe, easy job to try to make money doing what you love, and is now a professional jewelry lover and freelance writer. You can find more of Becky at her blog, Diamonds in the Library, where she writes about both jewelry and books. Twitter: @DiamondsintheLi

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May 30, 2013

Much of the good ship Book Riot is off at Book Expo America this week, so we’re running some of our best stuff from the first half of 2013. We’ll be back with reports from BEA next week and our usual array of new book-nerdery. ____________________________

Example of a potential candidate, via IMDB.

There’s something special about the men of YA fantasy. They’re charming, well-intentioned, earnest, and usually attractive. They’re also often good with a sword, frequently able to do magic, and almost always prone to heroic acts. Their appeal is further enhanced by the nature of the genre. In YA fantasy, a novel or series usually ends with a romantic milestone – first kiss, reconciliation, declaration of love, engagement. The romance is preserved in its moment of absolute perfection, when everyone is happy and the future is full of promise. This it makes it very difficult to see the beaux of these books as anything short of ideal. Whatever the reason, there ain’t no man like a YA fantasy man. But with so many fictional Prince Charmings out there, how is a lady (or gentleman) to pick just one? I jest – since they’re not real, you can choose as many as you want, in sequence or simultaneously. But it can be helpful to keep track of your favorites all the same.

Potential Husbands from YA Fantasy
Candidate	Occupation	Pros	Cons
Prince Charmont “Char” (Ella Enchanted)	Prince.	Articulate, smart, thoughtful, useful in fights against giants, fond of sliding down banisters.	Cavalier with fine clothing, especially when it comes to buttons.
Ron Weasley (Harry Potter)	Sidekick.	Entertaining. Considerate towards house elves in siege situations. Likes smart women.	Family history of extreme fertility (more of a consideration than a con).
George Cooper (Alanna the Lioness)	King of Thieves.	King of Thieves!	Severed ear collection.
Akiva (Daughter of Smoke and Bone)	Angel warrior.	Supernaturally attractive. Considerate towards those he loves. Good at his job when he applies himself.	Seriously unusual family. Violent tendencies.
Marco Alisdair (The Night Circus)	Magician and personal assistant.	Makes breathtakingly beautiful things.	Prone to stringing along other women for personal gain. Is also very mysterious and possibly destined to kill you.
King Mendenbar (Enchanted Forest Chronicles)	King.	Adorable. Has a super cool magic sword.	Slightly bumbling – needs a strong woman. Possibly not a con.
Tobias “Four” Eaton (Divergent)	Trainer.	Physically fit, good with weapons, possesses moral fiber. Makes some effort to prevent teenagers from killing each other.	Is often very serious (but this may be circumstantial.)
Will Herondale (Infernal Devices)	Shadowhunter.	Dark hair and blue eyes. Good with weapons. Sarcastic, daring, strong, and loyal. Loves to read books. Writes occasional poetry.	Obsessed with demon pox.
Edward Cullen (Twilight)	Tragic hero/ high school student.	Sparkly.	Eternally 17. Undead. Prone to stalker-like behavior.
King Jonathan of Conté (Alanna the Lioness)	Prince/King.	Devastatingly handsome and powerful. Good with a sword.	Somewhat moody. Very unappealing rebellious phase during Woman Who Rides Like a Man.
Peeta Mellark (Hunger Games)	Tribute, revolutionary, baker.	Makes delicious baked goods. Also strong, sweet, and brave.	Stubborn.
Draco Malfoy (Harry Potter)	Adversary.	Sarcastic, creative, ambitious. Rich. Makes a cute ferret.	Somewhat evil. Treats people like minions.
Simon Lewis (Mortal Instruments)	Best friend and musician.	Endearingly nerdy and considerate, with a gift for retelling epic science fiction trilogies as bedtime stories.	Cold hands. Drinks blood.
Prince Lucian Kiggs (Seraphina)	Captain, bastard, prince.	Self-effacing, honest, loyal, brave. Open minded.	Has a silly name. Doesn’t take well to being lied to.
Neville Longbottom (Harry Potter)	Student and hero.	Sweet, loyal, and brave. Good with plants. Is worth 12 of Malfoy.	Somewhat clumsy and forgetful. Is a bit of a late bloomer, but boy does he bloom.

I think that’s a decent buffet of options. Who are your top choices? Did I leave off anyone who you feel strongly about? ____________________________ Sign up for our newsletter to have the best of Book Riot delivered straight to your inbox every two weeks. No spam. We promise. To keep up with Book Riot on a daily basis, follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook, , and subscribe to the Book Riot podcast in iTunes or via RSS. So much bookish goodness–all day, every day.

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