Unsung heroes get their due…

Where’s My Hero? is an anthology collection that tells the tales of the heroes behind the scenes. Three male characters who were not the feature in the novels they appeared in, but who were so compelling that they left the reader wondering, “When do they get their happily ever after?”  Lisa Kleypas, Julia Quinn, and Kinley McGregor contributed to this collection. Personally, I think there are many unsung heroes on the sidelines of so many novels that should have their stories told. I hope that there are more books like this in the future.

First up is Dr. Jake Linley, who loyal fans would remember from Kleypas’s “Bow Street Runners” series (#1: Someone to Watch Over Me and #2: Lady Sophia’s Lover). He was described as a handsome rakehell, and who wouldn’t want him as their primary care physician? I know I would.

Against the Odds opens up three days before Lydia Craven’s wedding. She has had a crush on Jake since she was 16, but assumed he wasn’t attracted to her, and so four years later decides to choose a husband with her head, making a sensible match, instead of her heart. Jake, torn over her impending marriage, knowing that he desires her but feels he is not worthy of her, must decide quickly or risk losing Lydia forever. An encounter in the wine cellar is fated and steamy, definitely worth reading. This was the shortest story in the book, but this story could have also been a novel all in its own.

Second is the story of Simon of Ravenswood from McGregor’s novel “Master of Desire“.

Midsummer’s Knight is a tale of mistaken identity and long-distance love. Stryder, the Earl of Blackmoor, is a tournament knight, and very famous for his fighting-always has women chasing him and courting his favor.  Kenna is a Scottish heiress who has been writing Stryder since she met him at a tournament.

What she doesn’t realize is that it is not the knight, but the knight’s bodyguard and friend, Simon, who has been corresponding with her. Every word he writes is his own, but he signs the letters with a simple “S”. He realizes he is lying to himself when Kenna addresses the letters to Stryder. Inevitably, Kenna and Simon meet, and the truth emerges, and the love that at first only existed on paper must now overcome many obstacles. It’s a decent story, but a little too neatly wrapped up. I didn’t get as into it as I did the other two.

Last is Ned Blydon, from Julia Quinn’s novel “Splendid“.

A Tale of Two Sisters was definitely my favorite story overall.  Ned is a really fun character, a rake, but with an excellent sense of wit and humor. However, he also has an intrinsic sense of duty and has proposed to Lydia Thornton.

In the days before the wedding, he meets Lydia’s younger sister Charlotte, who is more alive and genuine than her sister, to Ned. Ned is instantly drawn to her, but conflicted because she will soon be his sister-in-law. Charlotte gets to know Ned and discovers that he is not at all aloof, or anything like Lydia had made him out to be. Ned knows now, after meeting Charlotte, that he is making a mistake, but can’t jilt Lydia.

Charlotte is torn between loyalty to her sister and this new friendship and connection with her sister’s fiancée. But I really like Ned and Charlotte together; they make the most natural couple, and their chemistry is real. I also thought this would have been a lot of fun in a novel of its own, but Quinn pretty much tells all that needs to be said in this short story.