Characters Who Deserved Better

Characters who deserved better

On Friday a character in The Archers (for anyone who doesn't know, that's a British radio show) was killed off out of the blue. I've spent the whole weekend coming to terms with it and I'm still not over it. So to keep myself distracted I thought I'd come up with a list of other characters I think have been treated  unfairly by their books!

These are characters who either died before they should have or just had harder lives than they deserved. Obviously, there will be spoilers for several books- I'll list the books' names with the characters, so avoid them if you haven't read them!

1. Remus Lupin- The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
When I was coming up with this list, Harry Potter was one of the first series I thought about. I could have chosen quite a few characters from the series- actually, it could merit a list by itself. But the death that was the most heartbreaking for me was Remus Lupin. Not only did he have one of the unluckiest lives of all the characters in the series, he was killed just as it looked like his life would get better. He had a wife, he had a son, and so of course he had to die. I still haven't accepted it.

2. Sephy Hadley- The Noughts and Crosses series by Malorie Blackman
I re-read Noughts and Crosses last last year, and didn't enjoy it as much as I'd remembered. But the characters were just as compelling as they had always been, and Sephy's ability to pull herself out of darkness is still so admirable. And there is a lot of darkness. Her lover is killed, her parents are always fighting, her daughter is corrupted by Jude. She never makes that lessen her goodness, but my point stands. Sephy Hadley just deserved a break.

3. Nehemia Ytger- The Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas
Nehemia's death came out of the blue. Sarah J. Maas gave us just enough time to fall in love with her, her determination, and her love for Eyllwe, not to mention her friendship with Aelin. To then kill her so suddenly and brutally changed the tone of the series, and made me fear for every other character I had come to love. But more than that, she should have had the chance to see Eyllwe freed. Maybe it gave Aelin a motivation to fight, but I'd rather Nehemia had lived, thanks.

4. Susan Pevensie- The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
The central relationship in more than half of the Narnia books is the one between the Pevensie siblings, which is even more remarkable because it means there are no prominent love stories. More than that, because they are the main characters, I became so fond of them. It felt like a betrayal when Susan didn't appear in the last book, especially when I realised that it was, effectively, only because she was a girl. I still hurt whenever I think of her life after the last book, and she deserved the same reward as her siblings.

5. Frodo Baggins- The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R Tolkien
Oh, Frodo. I completely understand why Tolkien put him through such a lot- it was all to make a point about the corrupting influence of evil. But that doesn't make it easier to watch him go from innocent and enthusiastic to so broken he can no longer live on Middle-Earth. What really broke my heart, though, was that he was still so kind and considerate even after it all. Sauron has a lot to answer for.

6. Sarai- Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor
I knew there was a likelihood of Sarai dying from the very first scene, but as I read more and more of the book I began to doubt my own judgement. Surely, such a central character wouldn't come to any lasting harm. She tried so hard to do the right thing, even in the face of hatred and discrimination.She also shared one of the most effective love stories I've read with Laszlo, despite never meeting him in the flesh. I was so ready for them to finally meet properly, when the mother of plot twists hit. And then the book finished. I don't know what's going to happen to Sarai next, but I'll be personally insulted if she doesn't come back to life somehow- and not just as a ghost.

7. Charlie Beckendorf- The Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson was a hard-hitting series, being as it was aimed at pre-teenagers. This was never more obvious than in the sudden and heroic death of Charlie Beckendorf. He was never a main character, but I loved his silent heroism and his skillful leadership. Killing him off at the beginning of the book was just a cruel move. His death may have been as brave as his life, but he should have seen the end of the war anyway.

8. Starr Carter- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
This is more of a reflection on society than on the plot of this book. The acquittal of Officer One-Fifteen is almost certainly what would have happened in a real life situation, and yet it felt massively disrespectful to Starr and Khalil and everything they and their loved ones had gone through. That was the point. But it didn't make it feel any less unfair, and I'm not sure I would be as forgiving as Starr in the same situation.

Apologies for any emotions which may have been awakened by this list- if it's consolation, I was just the same whilst I was writing it! If you want to complain at me, feel free to do so in the comments below.