Aiden Hale

Aiden is a fantasy and real-life hero all at once. His best virtue is a deep level of selflessness and self-sacrifice. His biggest flaws are his conviction that he is always right and his hair-trigger temper. Perhaps because of this, he is the most misunderstood character in the book. And my favorite. He is complex and—due to his memory—capable of living in many places, many times, many scenes all at once. Each reader will find their own understanding for Aiden, and I will not share it here. This is just some fun trivia about his character:

AIDEN TRIVIA

Aiden strongly dislikes the sun, heat, and especially sand. He loves water, deep lush forests, craggy mountains, and misty weather. He hates shaving, but loves tailored suits. He strongly disapproves of mess. He has a reading speed of over 6,500 words per minute, with a perfect 100% retention of what he reads. This beats the Guiness Reading Record by 1,800 words and 33% retention. To put this in context, during one of Elisa’s 90-minute, post-sex coma, Aiden read all the books she owns.

Aiden’s favorite place to sleep is on the ground, unless Elisa is next to him. He spends a lot of time at his Alone Place deep in the Columbia Gorge, and often spends the night there. When he is not losing himself in work or reading, Aiden plays chess (almost always against a computer, where he wins in 92% of the time). He tends to speak through clenched teeth when he is angry (which is often), and this has given him an angled, sharp (and in my opinion, sexy) jaw.

Aiden started his company, Hale Holdings, as a way to ensure that his parents—who had suffered greatly following Aiden’s deployment and the far-reaching circumstances of his torture there—will lack for nothing. Due to his memory and high IQ, Aiden has amassed an enormous amount of wealth. Interestingly, 50% of that wealth in fact belongs in trust to his parents, and the widow and son of one of his friends.

Please read below for Aiden’s favorite songs, books, and other things.

AIDEN’S SONGS

Jace Everett, Do Bad Things

Johnny Cash, I Walk the Line

Fun, Some Nights

Johnny Wright, Goodbye Sweetheart, Hello Vietnam

Wiener Philharmoniker, conducted by Herbert Von Karajan, Blue Danube

Finghin Collins, Piano Sonata, No. 11, Alla Turca

The Barber of Seville, Nozze di Figaro

Led Zeppelin, Whole Lotta Love

Neil Diamond, Girl, You’ll be a Woman Soon

Prince, Erotic City