TTT is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and The Bookish. This week is a Halloween freebie.
In my last two Halloween TTTs I looked firstly at literary villains and then at my favourite Agatha Christie mysteries. This year, in recognition of all those who’ll be dressing up in spooky costumes, I thought I’d list books featuring characters in disguise or, more broadly, characters who are not necessarily who they say they are. It’s difficult to do without revealing some big plot developments so I’ll keep my comments brief. Watch out for potential spoilers though.
1. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo. Jean Valjean’s efforts to leave his criminal past behind him quickly unravel when revolution is sparked on the streets of Paris. He navigates a precarious path, always wanting to do the right thing but risking losing everything if his true identity is discovered.
2. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J K Rowling. There are hundreds of examples in the Harry Potter books of characters who try to pass themselves off as someone else using Polyjuice Potion or some other magical spell. It happens a couple of times in this book alone.
3. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. Edmond Dantes creates an elaborate fake identity as the mysterious Count in a plot so extravagant, so intricate that for much of the book you have no idea exactly what he’s trying to achieve. But when it happens it’s brilliant.
4. The Princess Bride by William Goldman. ‘Why do you wear a mask and hood?’ ‘I think everybody will in the near future,’ was the man in black’s reply. ‘They’re terribly comfortable.
5. Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare. There’s so much cross dressing and disguising going on in Shakespeare’s plays its difficult to know where to begin. I love Viola though.
6. Charlotte Gray by Sebastian Faulks. I expect there are also probably hundreds of spy novels that would fit the bill here. Faulks’ story centres around a female agent who passes herself of as a French citizen in order to gather information on Nazi activities.
7. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. It has just occurred to me that this is the fourth book set in France on this list. Coincidence? The switching of identities is only a minor plot device in this one but it is definitely the best part (with the exception of any scene featuring Madame Defarge. Obviously.).
8. V for Vendetta by Alan Moore. I guess you could have any masked superhero/vigilante really but I chose this one because it feels quite real and very modern. It’s also pretty damn sinister.
9. The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins. I’m wracking my brains to remember whether the reader is party to the villains’ devious plans or whether the reader discovers the ruse later at the same time as the other characters. If anyone fancies reminding me in the comments that would be appreciated but if not I might just have to reread it (which would be frankly lovely).
10. Madame Doubtfire by Anne Fine. I happened to catch the last half hour of the film a few weeks ago and was reminded of how much I enjoyed this book. An estranged father disguises himself as a nanny in order to spend some time with his children; it’s ridiculous and mad but a little bit brilliant.
These were the first ten I thought of but let me know in the comments if you think of any more….
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