Some people binge-eat Doritos or binge-watch Netflix when they’re stressed out. Me? I binge-read books with kick-ass heroes. Not superheroes, mind you, but regular guys who don’t need a mask and cape to fight evil.
When I was writing my debut thriller Multo (meaning ghost in Tagalog), I also picked an ordinary character whose job and sense of justice compel him to kick ass. Multo follows Domingo, a Filipino American bounty hunter, as he looks for the only quarry that has ever eluded him – an undocumented biracial Filipino woman who can disappear like a ghost.
I enjoyed writing Domingo as much as I relished every moment I’ve spent with each of my favorite heroes, all of them a man among men. If everything goes haywire tomorrow, I’d choose these five protagonists to save me and the world!
#1 Jack Reacher (Jack Reacher series by Lee Child)
This hero travels light. In every book, he arrives in a new place with only the clothes on his back and enough cash. A former U.S. Army Military Police officer, he has a strict moral code and the right skills to go with it. He has no qualms breaking the law or a villain’s bones. He’s a vigilante, a killer, and an anti-hero. Amazon’s adaptation is a lot of fun, but you must meet the original Reacher on the page to consummate the experience.
#2 Easy Rawlins (Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Mosley)
Walter Mosley has written 15 books in this series. In book one, Devil in a Blue Dress, Ezekiel “Easy” Rawlins becomes a PI only because he’s unemployed. He has neither law enforcement training nor experience, although he’s a World War II veteran. He’s tough, smart, and unconventional. Denzel Washington played the character to a T in the 1995 film of the same title.
#3 Mark Watney (The Martian by Andy Weir)
When astronaut Mark Watney is left behind on Mars, he faces a life-and-death question. How would he ever get back to Earth? His answer: “I’m gonna have to science the shit out of this.” Watney is not only intelligent, resourceful, and brave, but also funny. If I ever get stranded anywhere, I’d prefer to be with Watney.
#4 Mikael Blomkvist (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson)
As a former news reporter, I’m partial to Mikael Blomkvist, a crusading journalist who uses the power of the pen to expose corrupt financiers. He relies on his investigative journalism skills to solve the decades-old mystery of the disappearance of a wealthy young woman.
#5 Sam Spade (The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett)
Sam Spade is the type of guy who outwits cops and scoundrels alike and fights the baddies bare-fisted. He romances the ladies, but he’s decidedly anti-romantic. He’s one of the greatest literary private investigators of all time. It’s no wonder he’s the prototype of all other fictional PIs that came after Dashiell Hammett’s seminal novel was published in 1930.
Cindy Fazzi is a Filipino American writer and former Associated Press reporter. She has worked as a journalist in the Philippines, Taiwan, and the United States. She’s the author of Multo, a contemporary thriller published by Agora Books, an imprint of Polis Books, in 2023. Her historical novel, My MacArthur, was published by Sand Hill Review Press in 2018. Her articles have appeared in the Daily Beast, Electric Literature, Publishers Weekly, and Writer’s Digest.
