When Names Are a No-Go
A few years ago I picked up a well-reviewed historical – I can’t remember the title anymore but I think it was a Western – and DNFed the book. There was nothing wrong with the book, stylistically or content-wise, but I didn’t even make it past the second chapter. The reason? The name of the hero and the heroine were the exact same name as the name of my husband and his sister. And they were going to have sex.
I also rejected an erotic novel which seemed, to me, to be starring my father-in-law.
I thought of this when, in a recent purge of my keeper shelf, I picked up two books I had owned since before I had children. This time, I do remember the titles, but I’m going to keep them to myself for privacy reasons. Both books were second-chance romances in which the heroes had been previously married, with a child. In each book, the hero’s child had died. And in each book, the dead child had the same name as my child.
I’m able to read romances with names I’m related to when those names are really common. I have relatives named Nick, but I also know people named Nick, and I’ve seen movies and read books about Nicks, and consequently I don’t have a very strong association with Nick. An author can kill a Nick, write a sex scene with a Nick, or make Nick a horrible skanky villain and I won’t twitch. I’m also okay with the formal version of names. My family has a William, and Williams turn up in romances occasionally, but I only call our William Billy. I’ve never seen a Billy as a romance hero. I can read Richard, Robert, and Edward with no reaction since I know mine as Rick, Bob, and Ed. And fortunately, a lot of my female relatives have names specific to time periods (Judy from the 1940s-50s, Tiffany from the 1980s) which are not much in use as romance novel settings.
What about you? Do you have name dealbreakers? Do you avoid sex scenes starring certain names or name combinations, or can you immerse yourself in the book enough to suspend disbelief? What about death, torture, and so forth? If that happens to a name you know, does it feel worse to you than a name you only associate with that character?
Caroline Russomanno
Good Lord, people. These are characters in a book. Not your son/father/grandfather/husband/boyfriend/brother/ex/or your puppy. If you can’t separate the characters from real life, you probably should be reading self-help books instead.
There was a novel where the hero’s name was Durian (not Dorian, which is another story entirely and also not a hero’s name). There’s a popular fruit in southeast Asia called the durian. Its smell has been compared to a blue cheese wrapped in sweaty socks and then buried for two weeks. This is not something I associate with a hero, and I couldn’t read the book.
Brian the Norman and the Ministry of Silly Invasions!
It’s going to be a hit!
Wait – Brian the Viking? That sounds like a musical!
Sorry – Brian the Norman!
Bad names are a big turn off to me. The worst ever was probably a 10th c girl called Dawn Lynn Renfrew….
I thought that kind of ridiculously nomenclature died out in the 80’s but I saw a historicl romance novel recently with the hero (in late 13thc Scotland) having a viking god’s name, and the rest of the characters’ names were a hodge podge from ‘proper’ period names to Welsh names to ultra-modern names like ‘Kyla.’
I also have gone barmy on more than one occasion when I’ve read a novel supposed to be set in ancient Britain/Ireland, where a female character is called ‘Caitlin.’ Not ancient, not pronounced Kate-lynn, is a form of Kathleen.
In the bargain bin, I came across a historical romance set during the Norman Invasion. I don’t remember the heroine’s name, but the hero was one of the Normans, and his name was… BRIAN. OK, it’s possible he was supposed to be a Breton, but it’s more likely the writer had NO CLUE about the ethnicity of the name. I couldn’t get past the name anyway.
Androgynous names can make the back cover copy really … odd … sometimes :) More than once, I’ve blinked and re-read the back cover copy. I knew Avon couldn’t be publishing a male/male Regency, so I’d have to read it again to figure out which character was the heroine. Sometimes the cover copy sounded more interesting until I realized Sam was the heroine. ;)
I have an androgynous first name, but more women have it than men. It’s always jarring when it’s given to a man. I can get over it, but it takes a bit of time. I tend to dislike creative spellings for traditional/classic names. Even more so, I hate creative spellings for names such as in JR Ward’s BDB series. Sometimes, I’m simply put off by my own rather limited associations with a name. I have a very highly praised literary novel in my TBR pile that I’ve never been able to get past the first chapter because one of the main characters is named Biff. I can’t get past my own mental image of Biff to go any further. Maybe someday.
I once read a book where the heroine’s name was Plum. I don’t mean Stephanie Plum, either – that was her first name. I think she was supposed to be young and glamorous, but her name made me imagine a beaming, grandmotherly type in gingham, taking a pie out of the oven.
I see Professor Plum from Clue.
My son’s name became very trendy about a year after we named him and suddenly there are heroes named Asher coming out of the woodwork. I just can’t do it.
My daughter has a traditionally male name, Ellis, and I am fine with hero’s with her name. Just enough distance.
Just add that my son’s names are Olli Jaakko Mikael which is Olly Jacob Michael in english but that don’t distract me.
I don’t have this problem. English is not my first language so there are almost never same names except sometimes there is english version of the name like Catherine/Katherine is Katariina, John is Juha or Jacob is Jaakko (all names in my family) but I don’t mind it. Ok, there is Maria in my family too, but I don’t remember any books with this name. Or maybe the english version is Marie.
I have DNF’d more than one book for stupid names. If my eyes are rolling every time I read either the hero’s or heroine’s names – or both, I just say forget it. This applies to names that I can’t figure out how to pronounce.
I wasn’t able to read a category romance where the hero’s name was exactly the same as my father’s (first and last name) but I did manage to read (and re-read) one where the hero’s name is the same as a grandson’s. Interestingly, one of my favourite Linda Howard’s uses my other grandson’s name for the hero, but since I’d read and re-read the book lots before he was even thought of, let alone named, I haven’t had any trouble with it.
I’m with Mel Burns on Izzy – can’t stand that – and I also can’t stand Olly for Oliver. I also have a real problem with inappropriate names in historical books. And don’t get me started on the inappropriate use of titles – authors should not be using a title that actually exists and if they do use titles they’d better make sure they know how the character should be addressed correctly.
I’m also not a fan of androgynous names especially Kendall for a girl. My brother’s name is Kendall (he only answers to Ken if my parents or I call him it and only if he knows it’s us calling him that; he won’t even answer if his wife calls him Ken), I’ve worked with a couple male Kendall’s, and I went to college with a male Kendall. I know two people who named their (now elementary age) daughters Kendall or some variation of it so I either picture Kendall as a male or a young girl.
Historical names that are wrong. Grayson the duke, Hank the earl and so on. Regency girls called Vivien, Shirley, Beverley and Tracy (all men’s names in that era). The trouble with names is that you can’t get away from them, they’re in your face throughout the book.
And historical peers with the title of someone who actually existed in that period. So confusing! I’ve seen blurbs featuring the Duke of Argyll and the Earl of Devonshire recently, but they weren’t the Argyll or Devonshire that I was expecting (the rank isn’t important – the Duke of Devonshire was equally entitled to call himself the earl, and there were never two peers originating from the same place – just think about it, titles are territorial!)
And Kevin. I’m British, what can I say? Kevin just isn’t a heroic name over here. Sharons are a bit problematic, too.
I don’t mind family names, as long as they aren’t coupled. So if I read someone with my daughter’s name, that’s okay, as long as she isn’t paired with someone with the same name as my son or my husband!
That’s funny because my name is Sharon, but I don’t think I’ve ever encountered it in a romance. I do absolutely agree that authors need to be conscious of some level of historicity when naming characters and if a name is glaringly modern but the book is set in the early 19th century, the anachronism is hard to get past.
Sorry! It’s all the Sharon and Tracy jokes that flew around. Plus, Sharon has an interesting history, and it’s a problematic name to use in the Regency.
There are such things as parish registers and censuses (censi?) where names can be culled. Online, so they’re not too hard to get hold of. But when dukes are addressed as “”your lordship”” and respectable females run around London, what can you expect?
Oh, absolutely, and no offense taken! I’m not a complete stickler about historicity but I do expect some degree of accuracy when I read, and names are very telling of how much an author has researched her/his setting.
This is a fun conversation. I also tend to be less bugged by characters w/names of people I know, than I am by odd names or worse, anachronistic names/nicknames, such as a Regency heroine named MacKenzie, and called Mac. To my knowledge women using male or androgynous names is a much more modern trend. Same with very modern sounding names, such as a Victorian I once DNF-d, with a heroine named Summer. Using names like this in a historical don’t make the characters more relatable, it only looks like the author didn’t do her research. Also not a fan of the over-the-top macho names (Slade, Brick, etc.) or strange spellings for common names, unless the character is an dare-to-be-different type. Would love to see more classic names for men and women, as well as more ethnic names when fitting.
This is actually the problem I was going to cite. I have read so many historicals where the names are just not appropriate for the characters. A Victorian romance where the hero was called Travis? Um – no. There was an English earl called Caleb – I don’t think so. Then there were the heroines’s friends (sequel-bait) in a regency who were called Delaney and Bree. Again – no.
For historicals, you have to stick to the – perhaps dull – traditional names, because, for the most part, that’s what people did.
I echo Lynne’s comments about the name Kevin and would add the name Trevor to that list – and, I’m afraid, Colin. They just aren’t heroic names over here and I usually have to ignore the names if I’m reading a book where the hero has one of them.
Incidentally, I’m about to read a book in which the hero’s brother (I think) is named Robyn. Over here, that is the spelling used for the girl’s version of the name; I remember when I first skimmed through the book when I got it, I kept wondering who this woman was who kept showing up with the heroine.
Is that not the same on the other side of the pond? I’m really confused as to why an author would choose to do that, because I just know it’s going to bug the hell out of me!
Caz…””For historicals, you have to stick to the – perhaps dull – traditional names, because, for the most part, that’s what people did.””
You know, maybe because of the unusual naming trend that has been taking place for quite a while now, I actually love the traditional names and do see them coming back into fashion. Hazel, my great-grandmother’s name, and Opal, my grandmother’s name, are now becoming popular girls names again!
I recently found a book where the couple shared names with my sister and her husband. Nope! It didn’t help that the descriptions of the characters were close enough to be confusing.
My main issue with names is less about those I know on a personal basis, and more about those that are just plain odd. I just finished a romance where the heroine was named Khaki. Seriously? Khaki? I spent the whole book pretending it was a nickname for something else. Same thing with the Black Dagger Brotherhood books – I never could manage to read them, because the names are just plain ridiculous. And while I enjoyed Wicked as They Come, the name Criminy Stain just makes me giggle – not really the reaction to have to a vampire.
Ha! Criminy Stain sounds Dickensian :)
And yes, I agree that Khaki is a ridiculous name for a heroine, right up there with Calico, one of my least favorite heroine names. I think unusual naming is a very popular fad in our culture right now, but I don’t think it applies as accurately to the past, if readers care about that kind of historical accuracy.
If the name would sound appropriate for a dog, it shouldn’t be used for a heroine.
In the case of Criminy Stain, I think the name sounds more like something the dog would do to the carpet.
I just laughed out loud at this comment Caroline.
I’ve read books that used my name and it was slightly disconcerting but it also kind of made me feel as if my life was more exciting than it is
Your name is beautiful!
My great-aunt was a Genevieve who went by Gene. She got a draft notice during World War II.
Did the government mistake her for a guy? Was that why they sent her a draft notice?
Yep! I guess they thought Gene was short for Eugene.
The thing that bugs me is when authors find the weirdest names for their heroines…..like Zenobia (thanks blackjack for the excellent example). I can’t get past it, so DNF it’s if the heroine has a weird name.
But the name that bugs me to no end is Izzy! I can’t read it. I mean why take a beautiful name like Isobel or Isabella and reduce it to the sound insects make. It really irks me when authors use in historicals. Isa, Belle or Bella, yes, but no no to Izzy.
Then you’ll miss out on reading Tessa Dare’s latest RITA-Award-winning book, Romancing The Duke, where Izzy is short for Isolde.
Not a fan of Dare…..her RITA award winning books are pretty much DNF for me.
My father and brother are Christopher and Michael, so – especially in historical romance – I run into some trouble.
However, I’ve got past that, because both names are fairly common, and a few of my favourite heroes are named Christopher.
I’m safe with the women, because most of us are Ukrainian, and Natalia and Larisa and Oksana etc. still aren’t that common for heroines. It’s always the hero with the “”exotic”” name if one of them is going to have one!
Actually, the (very few) presumably Ukrainian have been the biggest sources of annoyance to me. There is an old Nora Roberts called “”Taming Natasha”” which has a Ukrainian “”Natasha”” heroine when it should be Natalya. And even more annoyingly (though it was not a romance) “”A short history of tractors in Ukrainian”” has “”Valentina, Nadhezda, Vera and Nikolai”” all claiming to be from the Western Ukraine. Drove me completely nuts since I am from there and there is just no way people from Ternopil would be using the Russian names. They would ne “”Valentyna, Nadiya, Vira and Mykola””. It pulled me out of the story completely.
REALLY? Ugh. That’s the part of the country my family is from (and many still live). I’ve seen that book everywhere, but never read it – now I’m glad I didn’t, because I would be ranting all over the internet!
For most names, Caroline, I’m the same way you are with the name Nick. If I’ve known different people with the name, it doesn’t have a strong association for me. In my own books, I’ve used character names that I later realized are the names of family members. (In my defense, I have a HUGE extended family.) I wasn’t associating those real-life people with the character at all.
BUT. I was bullied for years by a guy with an uncommon name. When a highly anticipated book came out, and the hero had that uncommon name, I just couldn’t read it. To me, that particular name can never belong to a hero.
The only time I have a little difficulty is when a hero has the same name as my father. Unfortunately, it’s not an uncommon name in the romance genre. I will still read the book but internally I’m plugging my ears and humming.
I get very annoyed when authors use names that are generally known as male for female characters and then use the nicknames which makes it even more confusing to keep of the track of the male and female characters.
And of course the most annoying to me is using names that are puzzling to pronounce. Why?!? I just end up using my own pronunciation having no idea if it’s right or wrong.
Julie James IS this trope, I swear. 8 books and only 1 of her heroines had a non-androgynous name (Victoria).
I cannot read anything if the hero’s name is my son’s, Ethan. I’m thinking there are a lot of moms now who have sons named Ethan. I wish authors would stop using the name. I read one once and tried to change his name in my head but it didn’t quite work. I vowed then never again.
Oh no! One of my all-time favourite heroes is Ethan!
My three sons names are often used for heroes of contemporary romance and my daughter’s is common enough in historical. As long as her name isn’t paired with any of theirs, I’m unbothered.
I think I could handle my child as a protagonist. My child as a dead child was too much.
My kids all have very old fashioned Anglo Saxon names so I have to be strong when reading historical romance!
I soldier on through, but I can’t say I love when my sons appear as romance heroes, and both of them do. One of them frequently stars in highlands romances. ;)
Both ex husband and current love have ultra-common names. There are, however, surprisingly few heroes named David and a lot of heroes named Michael. I’m not sure why.
There is a Jayne Anne Krentz novel in the Arcane series where the villain has the same name as my little brother – first name John, common as dirt; last name not common at all and it bothers the heck out of me. Didn’t keep me from reading the book, but I kept being jerked out of the story…
Some character names may feel strange at first if you know people that shares them, but if you just make an effort to visualize the character instead of the person you know it will soon pass and after a while you won’t even think about it.
At least with good enough books.
There are not necessarily any deal breakers for me with respect to character names, or at least on a personal association level. However, I do sometimes have a visceral reaction to names that just strike me as patently ridiculous. For instance, though I really liked Jo Goodman’s _This Gun for Hire_, I did struggle with the heroine’s name – Calico Nash. I disliked it so much that I kept trying to change it in my mind as I read. I did not care for the hero’s name much either – Quill. Really, what at the chances in life that a Calico and a Quill find each other? I also tried reading Eloisa James’s _Three Weeks with Lady X_ and DNF’d it quickly. Perhaps the fact that the lead characters are named Zenobia and Thorn played a small part. Along these lines, I hate a trend of naming male characters ridiculous macho names like Blade, Slade, Brick, Stone, etc.. I notice on the other hand that romance writers seem to avoid very ordinary male names like Bob or John – not romantic enough?
Largely though, I really try not to allow names to affect my overall enjoyment of any book (even if I don’t always succeed!).