Time To Come Clean - I'm A Heroine Addict

Yes, you read it right. I am totally hooked and have been for quite some time. I think it must have started when I was around thirteen. Probably as an escape from the mining village where I was growing up. I needed something to lift me out of the gloom; and I found it…in Gone With The Wind.

Yes Scarlett O’Hara was the first heroine to really make an impression on me. Beautiful, practical, determined and wily Scarlett. I couldn’t help but admire her. I even forgave her for being so stupidly misguided regarding Ashley Wilkes and completely in denial about her feelings for Rhett Butler. She was only human after all.

The next heroine to really grab my attention was Bridget Jones. I loved her before the end of day one of her famous diary. Natural, naïve, nice and normal Bridget. I definitely identified with her single situation and social struggles.

Yes, these two unforgettable heroines will always hold a special place in my heart. However, to coin one of Bridget’s very own phrases, they’re not my favourite pair.

My absolute and utter all-time favourite heroine just has to be E F Benson’s Lucia: the undisputed queen of them all. Lucia could out-manipulate Scarlett O’Hara any day of the week, she’s the centre of the social scene; much to her arch rival, Miss Mapp’s dismay and, what’s more, no mere mortal male will ever get the better of her. Of course she’s not all she seems to be but that’s part of her charm; it’s the very thing that makes her vulnerable and therefore lovable. She always leaves me wanting more. Just like a heroine should.