Blogging Challenge: Characters I Want To Meet

So, I've been participating in (and enjoying) the weekly Blogging Challenge over at Long and Short Reviews. This week's challenge is "Characters I Want To Meet".

I'm... I'm just going to point out that I read a lot of Cosmic Horror. It seems like the kind of thing I ought to mention at this point.

But okay, I mean, not everything I read is unrelenting horror. (Well, outside of the news, anyway.) So let's see...

Gimli. I mean, I'm not saying I'd go hunt Uruk-Hai with the fellow, not without magic or much better armor than I have. My swordsmanship isn't that good, and my archery is... decades out of practice. But a good meal and a few drinks after a long day of battle? Dwarvish hospitality? Absolutely. It'd be fun.

Corwin of Amber. Immortal Prince, able to find his way through the myriad worlds of Shadow, sarcastic bastard, expert swordsman, possible sorcerer, musician and composer. Again, I'd be a lot safer if I stayed out of the black magic and sudden death parts of his adventures, but he'd be a hell of a lot of fun to talk to or have a drink with.

Maskelle, from Martha Wells' standalone novel Wheel of the Infinite. The bitter, cranky, obstreperous Voice of The Adversary, who has to put up with (and take care of) way more shit than she really deserves but does it with a certain bloody-minded style. She'd be very dangerous company to keep, but a hell of a lot of fun to have a drink with.

Kaia Steelflower from Lilith Saintcrow's Steelflower chronicles. A hard-fighting, hard-drinking mercenary-turned-elf-princess who finds herself half-accidentally shepherding a band of unlikely companions... this is someone who knows how to party.

In fact, I'm seeing a distinct theme here. So let's throw in...

Hail Bristol, the gunrunner princess from K.B. Wagers' excellent Indranan War series.

...And then let's just all get together for a cross-genre pub crawl. Hijinks are guaranteed to ensue.