Top Ten Tuesday: Best Character Names

Hello and welcome to another Top Ten Tuesday- this time about character names. Hope you’ve had a good week, my last ever exam is on the 25th and then I’m done with uni! So excited for the freedom!But while I’m counting down the days, here’s another Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

But while I’m counting down the days, here’s another Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

I find my name totally boring (it’s Hannah and, living in England, I’ve always been one of about a million Hannahs, it’s a very common name over here) so I really like the obscure, pretty names in YA. Or the cool nicknames. Here’s my list

1. Cassie from the Fifth Wave

Cassie’s full name was actually Cassiopeia. Like the constellation of stars? Very cool. I remember in the very beginning of The Fifth Wave the thing she says is most unusual about her is her name, shortened to something quite common but actually unusual, and that her tongue can touch the tip of her nose. I also have the unusal tongue ability but was very envious of her pretty name and it’s nice shortening.

2. Cat from Cat Royal

I really like the name Cat. The main character in my WIP is actually called Kat, although this may have to change due to the large number of literary heroines called Kat. Cat’s full name is actually Catherine Royal. Her surname is Royal after the Royal theatre in Dury Lane where she was abandoned as a baby in 18th century London and subsequently grew up. Not only did I love this spunky heroine as a kid but her name is awsome.

3. Skulduggery from Skulduggery Pleasant

In the Skulduggery Pleasant series names are a big thing- you have your true name, you randomly take on a pseudonym for reasons I can’t remember, you have your real name- it’s all very confusing. Throughout the series you have to get used to Valkyrie being called by about 5 different names. But this does mean all the character have brilliant names that sum up them! My favourite of which is Skulduggery Pleasant, our witty, clever, skeletal hero whose name is just brilliant.

4. Sticky from The Mysterious Benedict Society

The Mysterious Benedict Society is a book about a group of kids who are sent to a prep school for the gifted which has something other than maths test going on. They help uncover the secret the school are trying to hide without giving away their identities or that their passing information back to their spymaster, Mr Benedict. George “Sticky” Washington (don’t ask me why he was called that, I can’t remember at all) summed up this character perfectly. He had photographic memory and was very smart, named Sticky because everything “sticks” in his head. A great name for this nervous character.

5. Max from Maximum Ride

Maximum is an awful name. I don’t like it at all. But Max Ride is a really cool shortening and surname. It completely fits for the battle hardened flock leader, a genetically mutated teenage girl with wings who attempts to stop the genetics research plant that created her from continuing their experiments.

6. Starr from The Hate U Give

Have I mentioned I loved everything about The Hate U Give? Because I did. And Starr, the down to earth girl discovering the injustices of her world, was a brilliant heroine. Names are a bit of a theme in this novel, I vaguely remember a bit where Big Mav tells Starr about how he carefully picked each of his kids names and when they’re in the car at the end Chris asks about all of there names and how unfamiliar they are to him. Either way, I really like the name Starr and I think it was the perfect fit for this heroine.

So there you have it, the names I really enjoyed in some books and what there meaning was. Have you read any of these books? What are your favourite literary names? Would be great to hear from you guys in the comments!