Who run the world? Girls! Happy International Women’s Day, everyone. 🎉 In honor of this wonderful day and all the inspirational women in my life, I thought it’d be fitting to have today’s post spotlight my favorite female characters in books. I could honestly go on and on forever about how much I love these characters (and many more), but here are my top picks!

Annabeth Chase
Percy Jackson & the Olympians by Rick Riordan

Annabeth freaking Chase. My QUEEN and the character that middle school Tiffany (and honestly current Tiffany) strives to be. Annabeth Chase is smart, resourceful, and brave. She never backed down in her fight for the good of mankind. 👑 She’s a strong-willed, kind-hearted female protagonist that holds her own against her boyfriend, Percy Jackson, who’s the title character. (Art by Viria)

Charlotte Branwell
The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare
I know that Tessa Gray is the main character of The Infernal Devices trilogy, but as much as I love her and relate to her love for books, my all-star award for this series definitely goes to the one-and-only Charlotte Branwell, Head of the London Institute. 💫 For me, she is the definition of a strong woman. She faced immense struggles and backlash as a woman leader, but she never backed down and continued to fight for what she believed to be right. She was only 23-years-old, yet she accomplished and prevailed through so much.

Emma Carstairs
The Dark Artifices by Cassandra Clare

If you looked up the word “badass” in the dictionary, I am 95% sure that a picture of Emma Carstairs will appear. 🗡 Like many of the other characters I love, Emma is strong, loyal, and brave. Her actions are always motivated to protect those she love. Despite going through some great hardships, she’s able to look forward to protect the Blackthorn family and the greater Shadowhunter world.

Sydney Sage
Bloodlines by Richelle Mead
One of my all-time favorite characters, and the absolute definition of character development. ❤ I wrote about this in my Why I Love Reading post, but Sydney is probably the character I aspire to be the most now. She’s incredibly knowledgeable and caring of others, yet she’s ready to fight to protect her family and friends. Most importantly, she has such a strong moral compass to do what is right. She has grown an instrumental amount since her first appearance in the Vampire Academy series, and she’s taught me a lot about staying strong despite body image pressures and breaking away from prejudiced thoughts developed in toxic environments.

Hermione Granger
Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

Continuing with the trend of strong and smart female characters, Hermione is ASDFGHJKL amazing. ⚡ Even though she’s sneered at because she’s a muggle, she holds her head high and becomes one of the brightest wizards of her age. She even recognizes her privilege as a wizard and advocates for the voiceless aka the house elves.

Starr Carter
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
“What’s the point of having a voice if you’re gonna be silent in those moments you shouldn’t be?”
I recently finished Angie Thomas’s On The Come Up, and as much as I love Bri, it made me a little sentimental and miss Starr. 🌟 I was also watching the trailers for the THUG movie (I know I’m ashamed I haven’t watched the actual movie yet either), but it made me think about how inspirational and amazing Starr is. As a character, she’s taught me so much and made me more aware of my own privilege, and truthfully, her story is one of the most important ones out there.

Inej Ghafa
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Inej Ghafa AKA the Silent Assassin or the Wraith. I cannot wait to see her character get translated into the Netflix series. 💚 I loved how she was able to demonstrate cunningness and ruthlessness but also maintain a balance of calm and collectiveness. She’s prime Slytherin.(Photo by Shalizeh7)

Megan Harper
Always Never Yours by Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka
Most of my favorite heroines are from fantasy novels, so I thought it’d be fun to throw in a few of my favorite contemporary stars too. 💐 Megan is one of my favorite contemporary protagonists because she goes through tremendous character development, and despite coming off as initially negative and down, she’s actually a fluffy softie on the inside. She’s not a cookie cutter main characters, but I think that’s what makes her all the more alluring.

Lara Jean Song-Covey
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han

When I first read the To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before trilogy, I wasn’t the biggest fan of it. However, after I reread the series, I fell in love with its aesthetics and story. 💖 I loved Lara Jean because she was one of the first Asian American protagonists that I could relate to within a story. It was amazing to see someone like me star in a fluffy contemporary, and I was even more excited when Lana Condor brought her character to life in the movie!

THAT feeling when I read Annabeth Chase for the first time in books, one does not resist falling in love with her character. An icon, a queen, really. Starr Carter is indeed and inspiration. I am excited to see Inej too!!! I know it’ll never be the same from the book but book gods and goddesses please, do ’em justice. Hahaha!
Happy International Women’s Day, Tiffany 💕
LikeLiked by 1 person
YESS!! Annabeth Chase is truly an inspiration, and I honestly miss her and Percy sooo much ❤ I just want to see her kicking butt and being awesome again. Starr and Inej just HAD to make this list because they're that iconic. 🌟
Thanks for your sweet words and support, Justine ❤
LikeLike
So many notable female characters on your list, Tiffany! I adore majority of them especially Hermione and Annabeth. Those two are legit badasses. I miss Sydney. She’s my spirit animal. One of my favorite iconic female characters is Lisbeth Salander from The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. ❤
Happy International Women's Day, Tiffany! Awesome post as always. 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
So excited that you love so many of them too!! Hermione and Annabeth are truly my everyday inspiration (and Sydney omg I love her so so much) I actually never read The Girl With a Dragon Tattoo, but I know it’s an iconic book. Even though I’ve never read it, I’ve heard about how great and badass Lisbeth is!
Thank you so much for reading and being amazing as always Beatrice 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
She is! I think you’ll love her and you’re always welcome, Tiffany! 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hermoine…. I love that woman.. happy women’s day to all of them
LikeLiked by 1 person
She’s amazing! Happy Women’s Day 🙂
LikeLike
Great and you as well
LikeLiked by 1 person
I absolutely love that you mentioned Charlotte in this list, I love her so very much and even more since I reread TID in January ❤️ She’s incredible, she’ll always have a special place in my heart!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes!! Thank you so much for appreciating ❤ I remember finishing the series and thinking about how wonderful and underrated she was 🙂 She's truly an inspiration!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thankyou for starting the post with Annabeth!! 😍
LikeLiked by 1 person
I had to! She’s an absolute icon ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Such a great list of female characters!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m so glad you love them as well 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
YAS I LOVE ANNABETH and Hermione is too awesome for words!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Right?? I love them so so much ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Annabeth, Hermione, Inej, and LJ! Yes! They’re all such queens, and I adore them! Such strong, inspirational characters! Wonderful list, Tiffany! 💕
LikeLiked by 2 people
They’re honestly such icons!! I love them so so much ❤ I'm so glad that you look up to them as well 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great list! I love Annabeth and inej! But especially like lara jean!!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes!! They’re absolutely amazing and wonderful 🙂 Such inspirations ❤
LikeLike
I love this list so much ❤ I love and admire Hermione, Annabeth, and Inej so much ❤ And I agree that Lara Jean is so absolutely amazing because she's literally the first ever hapa protagonist I related to and seeing Lana Condor on the big screen makes my smol Asian heart so happy ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Exactly!! It made me so happy to see Asian representation on such a big name movie ❤ and of course, Hermione, Annabeth, and Inej are such icons that had to make the list 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
What an amazing list❤ I Love Hermione so much, and as a kid she taught me to see the value in myself😁
LikeLiked by 2 people
Exactly! Hermione really inspired me to become more invested in academics and reading, and she also taught me a lot about myself ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hermione is awesome! I also liked Luna a lot and I think she’s underrated.
Other fave female characters I have include Anne from Anne of Green Gables and Dasha from River Secrets (part of the Books of Bayern!)
LikeLiked by 2 people
Luna is also amazing!! She’s so sweet and insightful 🙂
I actually haven’t read Anne of Green Gables or River Secrets, but they also sound like amazing role models ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ahhh Tiffany, I love your picks SO much! I love Hermione, obviously and ahh I’m so happy you mentioned Megan, she is one of my favorite protagonists EVER just as well, I love her SO much. and Lara Jean, oh I love her way too much as well haha 🙂
Fantastic choices! ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hehe I had a feeling you would love these picks as well ❤ They're so amazing and inspirational to me 🙂 I love that Megan is a little more spunky yet still so loving. Lara Jean and her aesthetics are my dream too~ Thank you for loving these!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve always said to myself that I don’t have a lot of female characters and I’m more drawn to male characters. But I identify with so many from your list, so I guess female characters have definitely conquered my heart. Lara Jean is the best: I relate to her so much! I also adore Inej and Annabeth as well, as they are some of the most badass female characters I’ve ever read about. One of my all time favorite female characters is Helene, from the Ember in the Ashes series. She goes through so much and I just wanted to protect her from everything, hahah.
Great choices, Tiffany! ❣️
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know what you’re saying! It’s hard to think of characters until I sat to write them down 🙂 Lara Jean and her aesthetic is my #goals! I love Inej and Annabeth so much too. They’re truly my inspirations. I’ve been meaning to read Ember in the Ashes because I’ve heard such great things, so I can definitely picture Helene being a great role model too ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
INEJ!!!!! YES YES YES ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
BIG MOOD!!! I love her so much ❤
LikeLike
oh my gosh annabeth, hermione and inej are all my faves they’re so amazing. I (obviously) also love all the female characters from Throne of Glass & ACOTAR and I think SJM writes such strong heroines, and they’re all so unique as well.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes!! Aelin was such an inspiration to me as well ❤ They all go through so much. Annabeth and Hermione are definitely my top two and Inej is absolutely lovable as well 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
YESSS I adore this post!💓Happy late International Women’s Day, Tiffany💪🏻I agree so much with Annabeth, Hermione, and Starr (I haven’t read any of the other ones XD). They’re pretty amazing, that’s for sure, and have inspired and empowered me as a reader and as a woman!
LikeLiked by 1 person
❤ Happy late International Women's Day to you too Olivia! You should definitely check out the other books because these women are all such inspirations to me!! If you ever get the chance, I'd highly recommend The Infernal Device trilogy. It's from the Shadowhunter world, but you don't need to read City of Bones truthfully :p
LikeLiked by 1 person
Love this list! I would have Kady from Illuminae on my list for sure.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I haven’t read Illuminae, but I’ve been hearing great things!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Just looking at their names makes me feel motivated and inspired to actually do something today
LikeLike
That’s such a mood 😭 Maybe I should be rereading this post when I need more inspiration~
LikeLike