ETA: I’ve removed “Recent Comments” from the sidebar to avoid spoilers due to this topic. PLEASE make sure you follow the instructions on how to comment below—thank you!!
I asked this question a few days ago on Twitter, but I’ve been thinking about it more. Since today is Memorial Day in the US, a day of barbecue, the unofficial start of summer, and a day of remembering those who died in military service. According to the wikipedia entry, Memorial Day’s history begins in the Civil War: “Begun as a ritual of remembrance and reconciliation after the civil war, by the early 20th century, Memorial Day was an occasion for more general expressions of memory, as ordinary people visited the graves of their deceased relatives, whether they had served in the military or not.”
(Can I say, as an aside, “Happy” Memorial Day seems to be the most ludicrous thing to say to someone? Have a great funeral! Merry Yom Kippur! Festive Good Friday! Anyway.)
Because today is all about remembering people, I wanted to ask you a question, and I’ve been struggling with ways to do this, since the answers you provide may be incredibly spoiler-y for other readers.
Which characters from books that you’ve read do you still mourn? Whose deaths in fiction do you still think about?
Here’s how I’d like to politely request you format your answer. At the top of your comment, please put the book or series your comment is about, with or without the author name, and then hit the return key a bunch of time to drop your answer down. That way, if someone doesn’t want to read about that series or book, they can skip to the next one – or avoid the comment thread all together.
My answer is below the fold.
JR Ward, Black Dagger Brotherhood Series
One character I think about still, years later, is Wellsie from JR Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood series. I probably should have known she wouldn’t survive the series because she was so strong a female (heh) but her kindness to John Matthew and her innate goodness left a profound impression on me when I read the series. I still remember the scene where she made rice with ginger in it for John Matthew, whose stomach was upset constantly, and my out-loud cry of “NO” when I read what happened to her.
What about you? Which deceased fictional characters do you still mourn?
I have two, from Lois McMaster Bujold’s Cryoburn, and Mercedes Lackey’s Magic’s Price.
Aral Vorkosigan (Cordelia’s husband and Miles’ dad). I knew his death would come eventually, but I still froze up in dread when the messenger came to tell Miles. And at the funeral scene I wished I could go hug Cordelia and cry with her.
Vanyel’s death was also foreshadowed all the way through his trilogy, not to mention he’s famous for dying young in books that were published earlier but chronologically come later. Yet I still go teary-eyed when he’s facing Leareth’s hordes and knows he has to leave Stefen behind, and when Stefen finds out he’s dead. And then I cry again when they’re reunited at the end, but that’s more of a bittersweet thing – because they missed out on spending their whole lives together, but at least they can share their afterlife.
I thought of one more, but I don’t think the Iliad needs a spoiler. Hector is one of the few likeable people in the whole book, and not only does he die horribly, but his body is desecrated. And the women’s laments send shivers down my spine.
Sara Donati, Wilderness series
The end of the series features an epilogue that sort of ties up all the characters’ stories, including their deaths. I sobbed for ages after finishing it. I still vividly remember Nathaniel and Boots’ courtship, and reading about their deaths just hurt. I’m not sure if that’s worse than just leaving it up to the readers’ imagination.
JR Ward Black Dagger Brotherhood
I’ve got to ditto Wellsie. To be honest, it’s the only one I can remember off the top of my head. So, I guess that counts for something. Every time I read a new BDB book, I hope against hope she’ll somehow come back, and every time she’s mentioned I get irked all over again. If I ever meet JR (Ward, not the guy from Dallas.) we will have words.
Vorkosigan series [Edited by SB Sarah]
I love the Vorkosogan series – Bujold is such an exceptionally gifted author, and in every book she writes, she makes me both laugh and cry. And in this book, you know that it is truly a giant passing away. And those five viewpoints of his death at the end of the book encapsulated the experience of grief.
I particularly loved Gregor’s comment, “The man has carried me since I was five years old – it’s my turn.” before he went to help carry the bier.
Eon and Aide from the Belisarius books by Eric Flint and David Drake
Eon – the mortally wounded young king slips away while Antonina reads to him in the midst of a fierce battle. This always makes the tears drip.
Aide, at the very end. During the entire storyline, we see Aide develop into a person. And at the end, when he has has helped the Good Guys achieve their victory over Malwa, he is obliterated by that very victory.
Persons34 – yes, when one of the persons the author brings to life dies, you will cry. But not all characters make the jump to persons!
Little Women [Edited by SB Sarah]
I wept buckets when Beth died in Little Women. I also felt it hugely unfair that Andrei dies in War and Peace. I know that Pierre is a good man but I still feel that Natasha would have been better off with Andrei.
Hmmm… I suspect I will be coming back to this thread.
HIs Dark Materials, by Philip Pullman
Philip Pullman is not shy about killing off his characters, but I can always accept their death even as I mourn them , which is perhaps the sign of a good writer. The one that got to me the most was Lee Scorseby and his daemon Hester. Their last stand always makes me cry, and I’ve read that series a hell of a lot of times.
The Borribles: Across the Dark Metropolis, by Michael de Larrabeiti
Chances are nobody else has read this, but oh god, Napoleon Boot! And the way Knocker guards his body! Scooter’s death makes me cry too. While he’s only been around for one book, while Napoleon has been a central character for three, the scene is a massive tearjerker.
The Farseer and Tawny Man trilogies, by Robin Hobb
Burrich. Need I say more? I go back and read his final scenes in Fool’s Fate over and over.
Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling
Fred Weasley.
“And Percy was shaking his brother, and Ron was kneeling beside them, and Fred’s eyes stared without seeing, the ghost of his last laugh still etched upon his face.”
Gets me every time.
Sirius Black, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. I cried so hard. I still cry any time I re-read that book. WHY DID HE HAVE TO DIE???????
Harry Potter:
Dittos on Sirius Black. That one hit me the hardest, but Fred Weasley and Dumbledore worked me over pretty good, too. Also
THE BARTIMAEUS TRILOGY
Nathaniel. He grew so much as a character, fleshing out into somebody noble instead of power-hungry. I loved those books and have not re-read them and I’m pretty sure that’s why.
Oops. One more: ANNE OF GREEN GABLES.
Matthew. Even my grown up self cries when I read the last chapters of AoGG.
THE WARRIOR’S APPRENTICE, Lois McMaster Bujold
Sgt. Bothari. A deeply troubled man, whose life was given meaning and redemption by the birth of his daughter and his relationships with Cordelia, Miles and to an extent, Aral.
Sabriel by Garth Nix.
When Abhorsen (the father) dies, I have that “breath-caught-in my-throat” moment. Especially since she thinks that she’s saving her dad, and he says that he can’t go with her, he’s just going to give her a chance to make a run for it because he has only “a hundred hundred heartbeats.” Every time I read it, it takes me back to the first time when I was 11 on my mother’s couch in front of the windows, praying that nobody would bother me.
The Lions of Al Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay
The death of Roderigo Belmonte. If it had benn Ammar, I would have mourned as well.
I also weep buckets at Matthew’s death in Anne of Green Gables and at the news of Walter’s death in Rilla of Ingleside.
Of all the deaths in the Sookie Stackhouse world, perhaps the most memorable for me is the “good death” of a minor character in the 10th book, Dead in the Family.
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“It wasn’t an occasion for tears; without a doubt, Caroline Bellefleur had had a long life—a life not devoid of sorrow, but at least full of moments of compensatory happiness.” Her last years are good ones, and at the end she is surrounded by her grandchildren and very pleasantly surprised to have Bill Compton revealed as her great-grandfather. And her last request? To leave her famous chocolate cake recipe to the whole town.
Robinton – The Dragonriders of Pern series by Anne McCaffery.
The gentle kindness and strength he’s provided all int he series. The moments where you see “Ah that could have happened…” and then the moments where things are revealed. His beloved Zair and the moment the two slip away after giving so much of themselves to Pern and its people. I cry every time.
Guy Gavriel Kay’s Lions of Al-Rassan and The Fionavar Tapestry.
Another author who doesn’t hesitate to kill off his principal characters. In Lions, the death of Rodrigo Belmonte gets me every time, as do the deaths of Kevin and Diarmuid in Fionavar, especially Diar’s.
I agree with Sycorax…
As soon as I read the title of the thread I knew for me it had to be Lee Scoresby and Hester.
So brave, so loyal, and their indivisible togetherness makes me heartsick every time.
been57: how rude, it’s nowhere near that many…
Warsworn by Elizabeth Vaughan
The death of Epor. The way he cried out for his bonded, Isdra, as he lay dying of the plague. The heart wrenching grief of Isdra. They were the Warprize’s guards. They were part of the family that formed around Lara within the army, a little nucleus of people she loved and trusted.
I admit I had tears in my eyes.
Thank you for asking people to hide the spoilers, because there is a book I haven’t read because I’m afraid of who will die: Cryoburn by Bujold.
All the reviews talk about the sad loss in the book. I am madly in love with Aral, and I want to be Cordelia, so I can’t stand the thought of either dying. I’m emotionally stressed right now and I’ve decided to not even read Cryoburn until I think I can handle the loss. I just don’t want to go there yet. (not obsessive at all, right? Mountains of Mourning almost killed me) Bujold’s a great writer, in part because she can cut to the bone.
Of deaths I’ve read, I’m going with Lions of Al-Rassan. My husband and I both cried over that one.
Black Jewels Series
Saetan SaDiablo
His death crushed my soul and I cried over it for at least an hour straight. I couldn’t even pick up the book for the rest of the day after he died.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.
When Rudy dies my heart genuinely broke! Such a touching book – so simple yet so heartbreaking,
Philip Pullman and His Dark Materials
I’m totally with everyone on Lee Scoresby and Hester. Such amazingly realistic characters, whose relationship really got me.
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
Case’s death is one which will stay with me a long time. Poor, poor preacher.
@Clara
The Book Thief is very appropriate for Memorial Day, as well. There are many memorable parts to that story, but the bombing at the end was particularly vivid. I was much grieved.
I know this really doesn’t count, but I mourn the death of the original Anita Blake. You know, the one who had a conscience, the one who didn’t screw everything in sight, the one who didn’t rape, the one who protected the weak, the one who truly loved a werewolf and probably would have been happy with him if Laurell K. Hamilton hadn’t screwed that relationship up.
I’ve never regretted watching a character go down a villain’s journey in my life until now.
Rilla of Ingleside
Definitely Walter! I still think it isn’t fair that the one character who didn’t want to go to war, who was shamed into going by community, had to be the one to die. I wanted him to be there for Rilla and her children and to have his own family. His death still makes me sad and I read the book for the first time many, many years ago.
The Hollows series by Kim Harrison
Kistan-His death really made me lose interest in the series. I was getting there anyway, but I really liked him and thought he was a good match for Rachel. After he died, I stopped buying and reading the books.
because69…hehehe
I have to second Cayenne’s Fionavar Tapestry.
The only time I can remember spontaneously crying while reading a book is when Diarmuid dies. A guy in my writers’ group admits to being brought low by Kay as well (Sailing to Sarantium).
I am so in agreement with you, Sarah, about the death of that character in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series. That couple was my favorite because they were so normal and kind in a world of WTF. It still peeves me, especially since that seems to be the only character who actually stays dead in the series.
My first thought was Harry Potter. The series, the characters that died and every character that lived. Great Series!
However, just the other day I was standing in front of my bookcase and was overwhelmed remembering The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson. It’s a strange book but one of the main characters dies and it really moved me. Even the death was strange. It has stuck with me.
Sycorax—I’m with you on the Philip Pullman. Although mine was Frederick Garland. He and Sally Lockhart finally hook up in the second book of the series, only to die in a fire after doing the deed, leaving her alone and pregnant. Ugghh…
For all my frustration, I may have to reread the series.
I have to third the GGK character deaths – always moving and they always make sense in the plots without ever feeling as though he’s killing them off just to be provocative.
Several people have already mentioned the characters I’ve most mourned. Bujold is the principal writer who has wrought vivid people whose passing has affected me.
As well as the two mentioned from the Vorkosigan series, I’d like to mention Arhys from “Paladin of Souls”. The realization of his death was very moving to me.
Martin the Warrior from the Redwall Series by Brian Jacques
and We the Living by Ayn Rand
I was more shocked than anything when Rose of Noonvale died. To my 11 year old mind it was never supposed to happen. Good girls weren’t supposed to be thrown against walls like dolls and crushed, murdered. I thought that there was always a HEA for good girls. Later, I decided it was really stupid of her to leap on the tyrant and try to bash him in with her slingstones instead of standing back and shooting at him, or learning to use a sword instead. Her death was pointless but it was the first time that I felt emotionally connected to death and understood what it is, that she was gone and there was no HEA for her and it was her fault for not defending herself properly.
Kira of We the Living was similarly crushed by larger forces, but she fought hard and dirty for her life. Her death and the conditions that caused it in Soviet Russia are so painful to watch unfold that I’ve never been able to read the book a second time all the way through.
captcha [college95]: That’s not a premonition!! There’s no way I’ll be in college til I’m 95.
Immortals Series, Tamora Pierce
Rikash! Sure he was a filthy, smelly half-man/half-metal bird, but he was snarky and honourable (well, in his own way) and kind to children, and he was Daine’s friend. His death made me distinctly teary.
Spoilers below for A Game of Thrones, and also for the series currently running on HBO—if you don’t want a LARGE plot development spoiled, don’t read.
I was absolutely crushed when Eddard Stark was executed at the end of A Game of Thrones. I’d been reading the whole book, watching the plots being plotted and the story being set up, secure in the knowledge that Ned was the hero and he would, eventually, win out. Except no, this is not that kind of story, and the character who is honorable and noble gets stabbed multiple times in the back while the villains live to scheme some more. It broke my heart…and yet the books are still compelling enough that I kept reading and am eagerly anticipating book 5 in July. Here’s my heart for your blender, Mr. Martin.
I won’t spoiler this because it’s a given—Kyoko, from the manga Fruits Basket, is the heroine’s mother and at the start of the series, has been dead for months. She’s developed as a character through her daughter Tohru’s memories, and the memories of others who knew her, and in latter volumes, we get her story. In the final volume, we see her die, and a series of wordless splash pages and panels show her fading out…then opening her eyes to see her beloved husband, who had died years before, holding out his hand to her. I sobbed.
Terry Pratchett’s City Guards series (Discworld) Men at Arms
Pratchett has a nasty habit of killing off main characters (and Death is actually one of the nicest and most sympathetic characters in the Discworld series), but I sobbed when Sergeant Detritus sits looking at Cuddy’s twisted helmet. Ok, so Cheery Littlebottom reappears later in the City Guards series, but Cuddy…Cuddy was the first dwarf in the watch, and his death still makes me cry.
The Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold
I saw that a couple of people mentioned Aral Vorkosigan, and his death did really wrench me.
But when I think about those books, the character I really mourn is Sergeant Bothari. His deeds are so appalling in so many ways, but his repentance, dogged loyalty, hope, and influence in shaping Miles (who I named my son for) made him such a complex force that I really mourned him, not just when he died, but long before. I can’t really explain it, he was a monster in so many ways. He did things that are horrifying to me. But I did mourn him.
The Original Anita Blake
I have to agree with RKB that it does seem as if the original and dearly loved Anita has died a slow, agonizing and painful (for us dedicated readers) death. What a shame and what a waste.
Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
Aslan. The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe was the first chapter book I ever read. I think I was five. I cried when Aslan sacrificed himself for Edmund. And then it was so shocking when he came back from the dead, too. I read that book over and over. I still have the paperbacks from the 1970s and am still amazed by Lewis’ writing.
I am Jewish and don’t come from a particularly religious home, and I think I was fourteen before I realized it was a Christian allegory. That idea, of the willing sacrifice and the return to life, was something I had never encountered, and for years it broke my heart and, at the same time, was a revelation.
The Sally Lockhart series, Phillip Pullman
Seriously, I cried BUCKETS over Fred. I mean, it takes Sally almost TWO WHOLE BOOKS to realize he’s her soulmate, they FINALLY get together and get it on, and then he dies saving one of the most annoying characters in the books. That was one of the most traumatic books of my childhood, except I kept reading it over and over.
Also, how has no one mentioned A Bridge to Terabithia? That book is like a painful rite of passage. I remember having to be called into my sister’s classroom because she wouldn’t stop crying when she finished it in class.
Already mentioned but The Hollow series by Kim Harrison
I really liked Kistan.
Hard Bitten by Chloe Neill
Oh my gosh ETHAN. I understand why he had to go because they had a “no where to go love affair”. But really he was such a great character.
Linda Howard, All the Queen’s Men
Not really a spoiler because it happens right at the beginning and sets up the events for the rest of the book but damn that still bugs the heck out of me! Dallas was a romance hero in his own right and I still keep hoping all these years later that she’s going to write another book (hopefully better than the last few) and he’s not really dead.
Nobody actually saw his dead body right? It’s possible. In my own little world.