FROM GUEST WRITER'S DESK: MY HAJJ EXPERIENCE BY MADIHAH

Eiyo Fadneiras,

Fadima Mooneira Book Heartthrob Profile series is back with a brand new heartthrob and guest writer. Yep, this month's book heartthrob profile episode will be shared by a guest writer named Maddy M. She is a book and travel blogger for two blogs, Little Miss Book Spoiler and Travels With Maddy. Please feel free to visit Maddy's blogs. Her travel diaries and book reviews are awesome to read.

Today, Maddy M wants to share her analysis of Sir Jacques Dragonet with you guys. Sir Jacques Dragonet is the book heartthrob in True Highland Spirit, a historical romance novel by Amanda Forester.

Now my lovely Fadneiras, please welcome book & travel blogger, Maddy M...

SIR JACQUES DRAGONET PROFILE

Image by Maddy M

NAME: Jacques / Jacques le Chanteur / Sir Dragonet

ESTIMATED AGE: Early 20s (most likely about 22)

NATIONALITY: French (he was from the Kingdom of France of the 14th century)

OCCUPATION: A member of Knights Hospitaller, a Catholic warrior order.

HIS ROLE IN THE STORY: The love interest of the main protagonist, Morrigan McNab. He also played a role in the restoration of her clan’s fortunes.

HIS GOALS:

Ever since he was a little boy, what Jacques wanted most in life was to be acknowledged as a son by his heartless father. He spent his life at his father’s beck and call, hoping that his father would one day approve of him. When his father sent him on a mission to retrieve a missing Christian relic in Scotland, Jacques was determined to accomplish it so he could redeem himself in the eyes of his father.

HIS PERSONALITY

Jacques was gentle, caring, protective, patient, and level-headed. He could control his emotions very well even in times of turmoil. He was also very passionate about his love and was very fierce when protecting the people he cared for.

Image by Maddy M

Jacques had assumed many identities to ensure the success of his treasure-hunting mission, and so he had to match his personality according to the role he played. When disguised as a minstrel, Jacques had presented a friendly and talkative persona, although he was very careful to not get into a too personal conversation with anyone, lest he blew his cover. When disguised as a knight under the Duke of Argitaine’s army, he was more serious and thoughtful. On the battlefield, he was an excellent swordsman and he fought honorably.

Underneath the valor of a knight, Jacques was actually very afraid of his father. His father’s treatment of him throughout the years had turned Jacques into a reserved man, who was very used to bottling up his feelings.

Being raised as a monk, he was also obedient, and he always said his prayers and he quoted the Bible from time to time. He had a cool temperament and he never lost his temper. He was also a gentleman, and he treated women with respect. When Jacques fell in love with Morrigan, his feelings had been so intense that he had no qualms about crying for her (or in front of her).

Image by Maddy M

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

Jacques was tall and had a lithe body with solid muscles. He had bright blue eyes and straight black hair that had a tendency to fall over one eye. From time to time he had to push the hair out of his eyes whenever the hair blocked his view. Jacques had a beautiful voice when he sang, and he could speak English, albeit with a French accent.

British Model, Joshua Anthony Brand (Image: Joshua Anthony Brand's Instagram @joshuabrand)

As a young and virginal hero, I believed Jacques must have a look of innocence on his face. I imagined Jacques to physically resemble British model, Joshua Anthony Brand especially in terms of his youthfulness, that look of innocence, that black hair as well as those blue eyes too!!!

HIS BACKSTORY

Jacques first appeared in The Highlander’s Heart as a supporting character who assisted the female protagonist of the novel several times. Jacques’ full story was then unveiled and concluded in True Highland Spirit. It is recommended to read The Highlander’s Heart first before attempting True Highland Spirit, for Jacques’ true identity was unveiled in stages, beginning from the former book.

Jacques was born to an unwed mother who raised him all by herself, but he was quite contented living without his father, the scandalous and womanizing Bishop of Troyes. One day, when Jacques was still a 10-year-old boy, his mother succumbed to the Black Death and he had nowhere else to turn to. Starving and desperate, Jacques went to his father, and the Bishop reluctantly let him live in the cathedral – as long as Jacques would do whatever he was ordered to and never revealed who was his true sire.

Jacques had been obedient, and at 12 years of age, the Bishop sent Jacques to join the ranks of the Knights Hospitaller, a Catholic warrior order. All Hospitaller Knights were monks, and so Jacques took a vow of celibacy and became a monk. When Jacques was elevated to the knighthood, he was given the name Sir Dragonet.

Image by Maddy M

The Bishop of Troyes actually cared nothing about his son’s advancements in life. He only wanted to use Jacques to find him the Shroud of Turin, a most valuable Christian relic which was believed to have been stolen and taken to Scotland. The Bishop wanted to use the relic to elevate his ranks in the church.

To make his way to Scotland, Jacques joined the Duke of Argitaine’s army, which was heading for Scotland as a part of France’s strategy in the 100-Years War with England. The Duke had assigned Jacques as a spy and he had disguised himself as a traveling minstrel called Jacques le Chanteur (Jacques the Singer). Being a spy in the mission let Jacques achieve two goals in one go: not only he would be able to spy for the Duke of Argitaine, but he was also able to investigate the whereabouts of the Shroud of Turin as well.

Everything seemed to go according to plan until Jacques met Morrigan McNab and unexpectedly fell in love with her. Morrigan was from the clan McNab, the poorest clan in the Scottish Highlands. Due to their impoverished state, the McNabs had been raiding other clans as well as unsuspecting travelers to survive. As the sister of the laird, Morrigan had decided it was also her responsibility to help her brother find sustenance for the clan – and so she disguised herself as a boy and became a raider like the other men of her clan.

But only Jacques could see the woman beneath the disguise. Only he could fall in love with her when other men had either shunned her or treated her like a man. Only Jacques could make Morrigan feel that deep inside, she was still a woman who wanted to love.

Their love for each other was straightforward, but their situation was not: the first complication was that he was a monk – and it was not in his powers to marry her, no matter how much he truly loved her. And secondly, Morrigan had also been sent by another party to search for the Shroud of Turin! They were both supposed to be rivals in their search for the same relic, but at the same time, they were too in love with one another that it was almost impossible to fight over who will keep the treasure if it was found. Their situation was very complicated and no logical solution seemed possible at all...

OVERALL REVIEW OF THE CHARACTER

Sir Jacques Dragonet was my first ever fictional crush (as far as I can remember). It took me a whole six months to get over the book hangover I experienced after reading True Highland Spirit!

Jacques had already caught my eyes when he first appeared in The Highlander’s Heart. And when he got his own story in True Highland Spirit, Jacques proved to be a dream lover for he had a combination of several traits coveted in a man.

The intensity of his love for Morrigan had been awe-inspiring. He could fall in love with Morrigan despite her being a foul-mouthed, weapon-wielding woman who not only wears men’s clothing but also steals to make a living. Morrigan always believed that it was already too late for her to change and become a woman again, especially after she decided to lead her clan in the war against England later on. But Jacques saw no shame in her because he understood her clan’s desperate situation.

Image by Maddy M

Although I have read some undesirable comments thinking Jacques was wimpy, I saw his actions as simply being gentle and respectful. He was mentally strong and he could be fierce when the need arises. His gentle character actually complimented his soulmate Morrigan, who was fiery, reckless, and impatient.

Jacques was also very different from most heroes in historical romances who were usually portrayed as being experienced with women. As a monk, Jacques was a virgin and he really had no idea about making love to a woman 😂.

P/s: I also found his French-laced English quite adorable! ^_^

Ok, so this is Maddy M's analysis of Sir Jacques Dragonet. Thank you for sharing your lovely analysis, Maddy M. Sir Jacques sounds like a dreamy book heartthrob to rock any bookworms' valentines day. Reading Maddy M's analysis of Sir Jacques makes me believe that the True Highland Spirit by Amanda Forester is a very romantic historical romance novel. I haven't read any novels by Amanda Forester yet. But I'm sure she's another brilliant author for me to check out. Thank you for introducing me to Amanda Forester, Maddy M. You always have the best taste in books ^_^

This year, I officially open the Book Heartthrob Profile series for guest writers to share their analysis and thoughts of their favorite book characters. So if any of you are interested to share your analysis of your favorite character, please feel free to contact me at garnet.earthtiger@gmail.com or fadimamooneira@yahoo.com.  All you need to do is email me the character's profile (please follow the Book Heartthrob Profile format), some images, and quotes from the character or snippets from the story. 

Ok, this is all for now. Thank you for reading this post. I'll see you guys again in my next post. Bonne weekend and take care ^_^

XoXo,

Fadima Mooneira ^_^

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

The Book & Travel Blogger ~ Maddy M (Image by Maddy M)

Maddy M loves books so much that she decided to brave through with her secondhand bookstore business despite the sluggish economy. For Maddy, the most awesome thing about the business is being able to find the books she (personally) wanted while hunting for stocks. Currently she had three boxes that contained books which were originally intended for the business but ended up in her personal collection instead! When not buried under books, Maddy also writes in her blogs – although this was done rather erratically.

 

 BLOGS:

1) LITTLE MISS BOOK SPOILER

2) TRAVELS WITH MADDY

 

INSTAGRAM: @maddyandthejourney

 

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