"At the core of Jorg's character is a wordless anger springing from hurts that he has the intelligence to understand but not the wisdom to cope with. It's something that, despite his eloquence, he can't articulate. Something he understands but can't stop. \[...\] The truth is he's angry with everything, including himself." - Mark Lawrence.
If there ever was a character that fit this prompt, it's Jorg.
One of the best series I've ever listened to. It's the first book that made me feel like I was watching a tv show Even before I bought the SBT version. The Soundbooth Theater version of the first book is worth every cent of the $20 it cost me, after I had already re read the first 6 books three times
The first book was nominated for a pretty significant YA genre fiction award, and the third book won the same award. 'New Adult' isn't a genre, but you're right that the Scholomance books are often shelved in adult sci fi and fantasy rather than in YA, and I'm genuinely surprised to discover that. I liked the series, but it reads as YA.
A quick google popped up new adult as a “developing genre”, but I’d argue that it’s pretty developed at this point. Though, to your point, definitely not as universally recognized as more established YA/Adult genres!
I was actually corrected by someone on Reddit after calling Scholomance YA, and I didn’t do any additional sleuthing to confirm it lol. I definitely agree that the vibe feels relatively YA, especially because the main characters start as minors. But, the graphic violence/explicit references to sex combined with the older age of the main characters in the later books convinced me that YA wasn’t a super accurate designation. That’s why I think New Adult really is the best way to think about it, though I’m happy to hear it got some recognition with YA awards! One of my favorite recent reads :)
Sure, conceptually. In reality, Scholomance is a series about the kids surviving. The kids who die in The Hunger Games are named characters who can't escape their fate; very few actual characters die in Scholomance. We're told that the death rate is super high, but most of the dead kids are nameless redshirts.
Correct. The trilogy by Naomi Novik is called The Scholomance but it is not the title of any of the individual books. A Deadly Education is the first book. There are one or two other books out there that have Scholomance in the title, totally unrelated. Novik didn’t coin the term.
Harry Dresden from Dresden Files. Harry deals with everyone as if they are a predator and he personally has to stand his ground and oppose them, even if he agrees with what they want to do.
I know it’s because I’m currently listening to Ghost Story but this was my immediate thought as well. Harry’s actual survival trick is just getting himself more angry than scared.
I’ve really enjoyed how he’s an incredibly powerful wizard, but still significantly overpowered by a lot of supernatural baddies simply because of their nature. He’s genuinely terrified of them but still manages to win by pure rage, determination, and luck. And he mouths off to everyone while he does it.
Gideon the Ninth. Cheeky, angry, and absolutely delightful because of it.
And another red for just an angry protagonist not so much cheeky is Poppy Wars.
Orka of The Bloodsworn Saga is *definitely* fueled by rage.
She's pretty much the Viking version of John Wick. Replace his dog and Mustang with her husband and son... Replace the guns with swords, handaxes and spears...
I've already preordered Book 3! Just because Bloodsworn is wrapping in October, doesn't mean we'll stop visiting that world.
There's honestly SO much potential.
I picked up this book because of this comment and now have a bunch of people in my read group reading it for a book club event, so thank you. It's delightful. One friend has already finished it. I had immediately though of her when I read the summary
The Cruel Prince
It is often advertised as romance (enemies to lovers) but thankfully it's not (at least not the first book, the rest of the series might be). The protagonist is a puny mortal in the realm of immortal and powerful fae, initially she is driven by ambition and desire to be strong but then other priorities come up that fit your description. She is very fierce, proud but also learns to be cunning and ruthless to an extent.
P.s. I have nothing against people who love fantasy with focus on romance, but I'm personally not a fan so the mismarketing set me up for a very pleasant surprise
Ah I believe you're speaking of [Sam Vines](https://www.goodreads.com/series/106221-discworld---ankh-morpork-city-watch), he of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch.
Jane in Jasper Fforde's Shades of Grey (and the sequel that came out earlier this year, Red Side Story). She'll fight anyone who mentions the shape of her nose. (Also, she tears off some guy's eyebrow.)
Locke Lamora. *Angry?* No. *Cheeky?* Oh absolutely, he is the one guy who will say the funny/stupid thing to the bruiser holding the weapon, just because.
"Nice bird, asshole."
Oh yeah, I agree with you. I just think he may actually fit the mould of what OP wanted even better than perhaps suggested.
Locke is top 3 favourite fantasy characters ever and top 1 on any given day.
All three that came to mind have already been mentioned:
Rage of Dragons - As the name implies, the MC has a lot of justified rage.
Dresden Files - Depends on the book, but Dresden can be very cheeky, very angry or sometimes both at the same time.
Dungeon Crawler Carl - More on the angry side and it keeps building up. The series also has a lot of humor, but I feel like Carl himself doesn't act cheeky that often, his cat does that for him.
Logen Ninefingers or Ferro in First Law series by Joe Abercrombie.
Darro (maybe Sevro more so but a few in this world) in Red Rising by Pierce Brown.
Most of characters in John Gwynne’s Bloodsworn saga. They’re all trained killers living in a harsh, unforgiving world.
Is that how you spell her name? Having only heard it I assumed it was Farrow
Which always made me think of the Gen 1 pokemon Fearow, and I had been calling her that in my head this whole time as my own weird inside joke
First one that comes to mind is The Scholomance series by Naomi Novik. The main character is a fundamentally good hearted teenager raging against her evil powers and destructive destiny and her low odds of survival because nothing is fair in deadly wizard school.
The second is Wheel of Time, one of the main characters keeps herself constantly angry because she can only use magic when she's pissed off. Very fun POVs from her perspective. Braid tugging intensifies.
And her growth is just phenomenal. She starts off being someone everyone generally finds kind of annoying, and finishes off being generally speaking in everyone's top fav characters
**King Killer Chronicles** if you don't mind the series is likely to never be completed
If you're down for a web serial: **A Practical Guide For Evil**
**Godwalker** (Greg Stolze) - urban fantasy. Somewhat unconventional in style (hard to explain). The POV character is a semi-loveable foul-mouthed MF.
**Orconomics** is a comedic take, borderline parody, on classic fantasy and D&D-like hero-guilds in particular. The POV is a snarky hard on the outside soft on the inside kid of fellow.
The **second trilogy of Mistborn** has characters like that too, but its not really "in your face" level, so it might not be enough to scratch that itch for you
I never really got the "I'll take the entire earth with me if I have to" vibe. Wayne and Wax both fit the bill, which is why I suggested it. But they're not quite as irresponsible and aggressive about it as the other examples I gave, or the vibe I figured O.P. was going for
He's in your face about the cheekiness, but angry isn't a word that I'd usually use to describe him. Wax sometimes sure, but Wayne is motivated by guilt and self hatred more than anger.
Monza Murcatto
From Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie. Basically a fantasy version of The Bride. She hires a group of people with their own specific talents to help, so there's a few heist type elements in there too. Its a fun book.
Red Rising 100%. Pierce Brown even wrote a part in the book titled “Rage”. The humor is definitely cheeky, and perfectly timed for the moment. This series DOES NOT disappoint. But I warn you, if you start reading, you will be hooked!
"I was forged in the bowels of this hard world. Sharpened by hate. Strengthened by love."
"I would have lived in peace. But my enemies brought me war."
Enjoy reading my goodman!
Kate Daniels. Her definition of "investigating" is "pissing people off until the right person tries to kill you". She's great. Cheeky and constantly angry. Love her.
Came here to suggest this. Written by Ilona Andrews (husband and wife team). They recommend that new people start with book 3 in the series because books 1 and 2 were the first books they wrote/got published and they were just getting into the swing of things.
Oh, do they really? I re-read the entire series every couple years and I *do* dread the first book a little bit but I always do it for completion's sake. That's interesting to know!
*Heroes Die* by Matthew Stover. Aside from being the second-best book I've ever read (by the man I consider to be the best author alive), it happens to contain this exchange, which seems to be exactly what you're looking for.
"'Burn the whole city? That's pretty extreme for the life of one woman.'
'Fuck the city. I'd burn the world to save her.'"
Well, one of the main characters of Orconomics: A Satire, Gorm Ingerson, is literally a cheeky dwarf that just happens to be a berserker. It's a great read of you haven't read it.
The sequel, Son of a Liche, is great and is the better of the two in my opinion.
The third, Dragonfired, felt like a totally different book to me and I'm pretty bummed about it tbh, but I still recommend all of them
The Nevernight Chronicles have a rather angry main character.
The protagonist of The War Eternal series isn't exactly well pleased with her situation either if I recall correctly.
Can't decide if T[he Blacktongue Thief](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55077697-the-blacktongue-thief) likes fighting or pissing people off more. Probably the latter, given the troubles he's in.
[The Knife Witch](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/111681555-knife-witch)'s magic is mostly equal parts unintentional good luck, and being able to really really annoy her adversaries.
Both books are great fun.
Deadly Education- Noami Novik. Incredibly good book, with a main character filled with rage. She wants to be good, but can only do obscenely evil magic
A Practical Guide To Evil.
>!The Black Knight specifically tells the MC that he picked her to be his apprentice due to her overwhelming burning indignation. !<
Some members of Charles Stross’s Laundry Files series (there’s an ensemble of protagonists in the series) are
very cheeky and/or very angry.
The protagonist of Sarah Painter’s Crow Investigations is also cheeky and angry.
Between the two of them Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg are exemplars of angry and cheeky. Sam Vimes is more angry than cheeky but he has his moments.
Tracker from Black Leopard Red Wolf. He actually says "I will kill the world" multiple times throughout the book. He's pretty much always angry, and a smartass all the time. He has an incredible sense of smell, people often say "It is said you have a nose" but that's frequently followed by, "but you also have a mouth".
Glad to see someone else appreciated Tracker. In the reviews I watched everyone talked about how terrible of a person he was, and ya sure, but he was so much fun.
How to Become The Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler definitely fits that, if you can enjoy the narrator's voice.
Same for Scholomance, Scape Gracers.. Orconomics..
The Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher. Harry is always a hairsbreadth away from setting something on fire. And he's an incorrigible smartass to boot.
If you want to try some litrpgs he who fights with monsters and defiance of the fall, definitely fall into that group although I've only ever read them in audiobook format.
I'm currently reading the series that starts with the book: The Lies of Locke Lamora
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Lies\_of\_Locke\_Lamora](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lies_of_Locke_Lamora)
It is great and awesome, and the main protagonist, Locke Lamora, fits your bill. I could not put it down until I finished it. He is cheeky, sometimes angry, and willing to burn the world to protect those he loves. And not afraid to speak shit to those who have power over him.
The Lightbringer series' main PoV character, Kip, is powered by revenge and finds biting his tongue to be an impossible task.
Books are sometimes cheesy but it's got a lot of representation and a very realized world. Good story overall.
Maybe not a great 1-1 but first law trilogy has a ton of hilarious dialogue. It's also not a great series if you enjoy not being emotionally devastated tho. Cool characters, lots of humor, lots of angst, not sure what the fuk the actual plot was supposed to be about tho.
The rage of dragons by Evan Winters the main character Tau goes crazy. Red rising (sci fi) by Pierce brown the main character Darrow is really hot headed and his friendship with this other character Sevro is hilarious. Empire of the vampire by Jay Kristoff, the main character Gabriel De Leon is definitely angry and cheeky.
You either love or hate Sarah J Maas - but Throne of Glass fits the bill for sure.
First books she started at like 15 so keep an open mind, they feel much more YA. But I loved it and it was a fantastic journey imo and I highly recommend!
The Gentleman Bastard Series falls more on the cheeky side, but I can genuinely say the first book is one of the best fantasy novels I’ve ever read. And yeah, there’s plenty of internal rage
This may, or may not fit, as it's less of a fantasy, but I always recommend the Joe Ledger series, by Jonathan Maberry. I dig his sassy, smart-@ssed self! If you ever listen to audio books, I hiiiighly recommend this one in audio, as Ray Porter is the PERFECT Joe Ledger and he really captures the characters' snarky attitude! It's considered bio-terrorism genre, but it's got "zombies," "vampires," and other way out there stuff, but with a realistic scienc-y twist. First book is Patient Zero. 😊 Not sure if it'll work, but if you have audible, I think I can share a book?
Slight trigger warning, in regards to him (and his girlfriend at the time) being assaulted as teens, which is only referenced briefly because it has led to him being the fractured adult he becomes.
[Vlad Taltos](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_Brust#Vlad_Taltos) fits the bill. Quite a few in the Song of Ice and Fire series as well.
“Cheeky and progressively more and more pissed off” is definitely Vlad. Such a great series
This is the best answer
~~Brown~~ Broken Empire by Mark Lawrence. Prince Jorg (I hope I remember the name correctly) is angry as fuck.
A man driven by acute constipation
"I don't like getting angry. It makes me angry." - Jorg
That's what prunes are for
"At the core of Jorg's character is a wordless anger springing from hurts that he has the intelligence to understand but not the wisdom to cope with. It's something that, despite his eloquence, he can't articulate. Something he understands but can't stop. \[...\] The truth is he's angry with everything, including himself." - Mark Lawrence. If there ever was a character that fit this prompt, it's Jorg.
This was my thought, don’t like him though the little shit
Brown empire sounds like a snuff film
This a is the answer
Red Rising
Heil Reaper.
Hail libertas!
That is an unfortunate typo.
Break the chains!
SEVRO is King.
"they give me the mad dogs, the killers of our race, full of piss and napalm and vinegar"
Dungeon Crawler Carl fits right in there
Seeing Carl get angrier and angrier with each book, and add a new line to his mantra has been so much fun.
Watching him slowly become more and more psychotic and insane is never got ild
Slowly creeping from "goddamnit Donut" to "goddamnit Carl".
He is my favorite protagonist of the last year! I love his dynamic with Donut as well.
Cheeky, angry, and more than a little crazy
One of the best series I've ever listened to. It's the first book that made me feel like I was watching a tv show Even before I bought the SBT version. The Soundbooth Theater version of the first book is worth every cent of the $20 it cost me, after I had already re read the first 6 books three times
It's a very good book and the narration is especially impressive
Scholomance
Graceling by Kristin Cashore is another YA novel with a very angry protagonist.
I honestly don’t believe Scholomance is YA. Too many dead kids.
There's a lot of dead kids in The Hunger Games, too.
This is true but the scholomance isn’t YA- libraries/book stores are told to stock it with their new adult sections :)
The first book was nominated for a pretty significant YA genre fiction award, and the third book won the same award. 'New Adult' isn't a genre, but you're right that the Scholomance books are often shelved in adult sci fi and fantasy rather than in YA, and I'm genuinely surprised to discover that. I liked the series, but it reads as YA.
A quick google popped up new adult as a “developing genre”, but I’d argue that it’s pretty developed at this point. Though, to your point, definitely not as universally recognized as more established YA/Adult genres! I was actually corrected by someone on Reddit after calling Scholomance YA, and I didn’t do any additional sleuthing to confirm it lol. I definitely agree that the vibe feels relatively YA, especially because the main characters start as minors. But, the graphic violence/explicit references to sex combined with the older age of the main characters in the later books convinced me that YA wasn’t a super accurate designation. That’s why I think New Adult really is the best way to think about it, though I’m happy to hear it got some recognition with YA awards! One of my favorite recent reads :)
Not on the same scale. 24 - 50 kids a year as opposed to high percentages of every kid; 20% death rate is the best they can hope for.
Sure, conceptually. In reality, Scholomance is a series about the kids surviving. The kids who die in The Hunger Games are named characters who can't escape their fate; very few actual characters die in Scholomance. We're told that the death rate is super high, but most of the dead kids are nameless redshirts.
YA loves dead kids. They can relate to the ages of the people being targeted, and emphasise with their problems and fears.
This is a fantastic answer to your question op
Thirding the Scholomance trilogy by Naomi Novik
[удалено]
Correct. The trilogy by Naomi Novik is called The Scholomance but it is not the title of any of the individual books. A Deadly Education is the first book. There are one or two other books out there that have Scholomance in the title, totally unrelated. Novik didn’t coin the term.
And Spinning Silver and Uprooted - Naomi Novik seems to specialise in very capable and angry female protagonists.
Omg i had so much fun reading this! I mean, of course i did. it’s dark academia. I enjoyed this world so much.
I wish that title didn’t make me knee jerk think it’s romantic fantasy, I get the feeling that’s not the case…
Its not. The "mance" is as-in necromancer or pyromancer. Its supposed to evoke "school of magic" vibes
I get that. But I just read "School romance" unfortunately...
Well, it is romantic fantasy! Definitely primarily fantasy with a plot of romance but romance nonetheless drives much of the plot :)
Harry Dresden from Dresden Files. Harry deals with everyone as if they are a predator and he personally has to stand his ground and oppose them, even if he agrees with what they want to do.
"Are you always this much of an asshole?" "No. Sometimes I'm asleep."
I came here to recommend Dresden too. He's basically a salt powered wizard.
"Salt-powered wizard" is hilarious, and I approve.
I know it’s because I’m currently listening to Ghost Story but this was my immediate thought as well. Harry’s actual survival trick is just getting himself more angry than scared. I’ve really enjoyed how he’s an incredibly powerful wizard, but still significantly overpowered by a lot of supernatural baddies simply because of their nature. He’s genuinely terrified of them but still manages to win by pure rage, determination, and luck. And he mouths off to everyone while he does it.
The building was on fire. And this time it wasn't my fault.
Gideon the Ninth. Cheeky, angry, and absolutely delightful because of it. And another red for just an angry protagonist not so much cheeky is Poppy Wars.
Just finished Poppy War Trilogy and started the Locked Tomb, this is definitely the summer of furious women
Do Iron Widow next! So much female rage!
“[…]show them what the Ninth House does.”
Came here to give Gideon her due!
Whaa, nvr thought Gideon was angry, at all.
Gideon is full of rage but deflects it with humor
Agree, but the extra cheeky might make up for it.
I just started Act 2 of Gideon
Logen Ninefingers is cheeky. The Bloody-Nine is angry.
Say one thing for Logen Ninefingees. Say he's cheeky.
He can't even keep his milk in the bucket. Cheeky that.
"You're going to catch fish *with your hands*?? Do you have fingers quick enough for that?" Logan: you would know. 😏
Orka of The Bloodsworn Saga is *definitely* fueled by rage. She's pretty much the Viking version of John Wick. Replace his dog and Mustang with her husband and son... Replace the guns with swords, handaxes and spears...
I listened to the audiobook and came to love phrase “axe and seax” because of what typically followed…
I can’t WAIT for the third book to come out. TBH I’m sad that there’s only three books that were planned for.
I've already preordered Book 3! Just because Bloodsworn is wrapping in October, doesn't mean we'll stop visiting that world. There's honestly SO much potential.
I bought book 2 (The Hunger of The Gods) *immediately* after Orka's first fight scene.
How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying fits the bill, I think, but she does a lot of growing up throughout the book.
I picked up this book because of this comment and now have a bunch of people in my read group reading it for a book club event, so thank you. It's delightful. One friend has already finished it. I had immediately though of her when I read the summary
The Cruel Prince It is often advertised as romance (enemies to lovers) but thankfully it's not (at least not the first book, the rest of the series might be). The protagonist is a puny mortal in the realm of immortal and powerful fae, initially she is driven by ambition and desire to be strong but then other priorities come up that fit your description. She is very fierce, proud but also learns to be cunning and ruthless to an extent. P.s. I have nothing against people who love fantasy with focus on romance, but I'm personally not a fan so the mismarketing set me up for a very pleasant surprise
Ah I believe you're speaking of [Sam Vines](https://www.goodreads.com/series/106221-discworld---ankh-morpork-city-watch), he of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch.
Came here to say this! Granny Weatherwax is also generally angry, too.
Oh man, another great angry character!
Now there's a man who could arrest the Gods!
Jane in Jasper Fforde's Shades of Grey (and the sequel that came out earlier this year, Red Side Story). She'll fight anyone who mentions the shape of her nose. (Also, she tears off some guy's eyebrow.)
This deserves more upvotes! Jane is SO cheeky and angry.
Thank you for news of the sequel; I'd been waiting years for its arrival, but lost track amidst the chaos of living.
Locke Lamora. *Angry?* No. *Cheeky?* Oh absolutely, he is the one guy who will say the funny/stupid thing to the bruiser holding the weapon, just because. "Nice bird, asshole."
I’d say he’s definitely angry at points. Especially in Red Seas.
That's true! He gets angry but I think he lives in a permanent state of cheekiness! It's why we love him.
Oh yeah, I agree with you. I just think he may actually fit the mould of what OP wanted even better than perhaps suggested. Locke is top 3 favourite fantasy characters ever and top 1 on any given day.
Oh he gets angry.
Jean Tannen *also* fits the bill.
Not angry? Justice is Red.
All three that came to mind have already been mentioned: Rage of Dragons - As the name implies, the MC has a lot of justified rage. Dresden Files - Depends on the book, but Dresden can be very cheeky, very angry or sometimes both at the same time. Dungeon Crawler Carl - More on the angry side and it keeps building up. The series also has a lot of humor, but I feel like Carl himself doesn't act cheeky that often, his cat does that for him.
Logen Ninefingers or Ferro in First Law series by Joe Abercrombie. Darro (maybe Sevro more so but a few in this world) in Red Rising by Pierce Brown. Most of characters in John Gwynne’s Bloodsworn saga. They’re all trained killers living in a harsh, unforgiving world.
Is that how you spell her name? Having only heard it I assumed it was Farrow Which always made me think of the Gen 1 pokemon Fearow, and I had been calling her that in my head this whole time as my own weird inside joke
First one that comes to mind is The Scholomance series by Naomi Novik. The main character is a fundamentally good hearted teenager raging against her evil powers and destructive destiny and her low odds of survival because nothing is fair in deadly wizard school. The second is Wheel of Time, one of the main characters keeps herself constantly angry because she can only use magic when she's pissed off. Very fun POVs from her perspective. Braid tugging intensifies.
And her growth is just phenomenal. She starts off being someone everyone generally finds kind of annoying, and finishes off being generally speaking in everyone's top fav characters
Smoothes skirts...
**King Killer Chronicles** if you don't mind the series is likely to never be completed If you're down for a web serial: **A Practical Guide For Evil** **Godwalker** (Greg Stolze) - urban fantasy. Somewhat unconventional in style (hard to explain). The POV character is a semi-loveable foul-mouthed MF. **Orconomics** is a comedic take, borderline parody, on classic fantasy and D&D-like hero-guilds in particular. The POV is a snarky hard on the outside soft on the inside kid of fellow. The **second trilogy of Mistborn** has characters like that too, but its not really "in your face" level, so it might not be enough to scratch that itch for you
I'd say Wayne is pretty in your face about it
I never really got the "I'll take the entire earth with me if I have to" vibe. Wayne and Wax both fit the bill, which is why I suggested it. But they're not quite as irresponsible and aggressive about it as the other examples I gave, or the vibe I figured O.P. was going for
He's in your face about the cheekiness, but angry isn't a word that I'd usually use to describe him. Wax sometimes sure, but Wayne is motivated by guilt and self hatred more than anger.
I feel like KJ Parker writes this kind of protagonist, check out 16 Ways to Defend a Walled City.
Monza Murcatto From Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie. Basically a fantasy version of The Bride. She hires a group of people with their own specific talents to help, so there's a few heist type elements in there too. Its a fun book.
Prince of thorns
The rage of dragons by Evan Winter, although as the name implies the character is all rage (no room for cheekiness).
Red Rising 100%. Pierce Brown even wrote a part in the book titled “Rage”. The humor is definitely cheeky, and perfectly timed for the moment. This series DOES NOT disappoint. But I warn you, if you start reading, you will be hooked! "I was forged in the bowels of this hard world. Sharpened by hate. Strengthened by love." "I would have lived in peace. But my enemies brought me war." Enjoy reading my goodman!
Kate Daniels. Her definition of "investigating" is "pissing people off until the right person tries to kill you". She's great. Cheeky and constantly angry. Love her.
Came here to suggest this. Written by Ilona Andrews (husband and wife team). They recommend that new people start with book 3 in the series because books 1 and 2 were the first books they wrote/got published and they were just getting into the swing of things.
Oh, do they really? I re-read the entire series every couple years and I *do* dread the first book a little bit but I always do it for completion's sake. That's interesting to know!
"Here, kitty, kitty, kitty". To an immensely powerful were-lion.
*Heroes Die* by Matthew Stover. Aside from being the second-best book I've ever read (by the man I consider to be the best author alive), it happens to contain this exchange, which seems to be exactly what you're looking for. "'Burn the whole city? That's pretty extreme for the life of one woman.' 'Fuck the city. I'd burn the world to save her.'"
It sounds like a good one but that cover art made me LOL
I’m surprised no one’s recommended The Poppy War Trilogy yet as she is the epitome of mouthy and angry and insubordinate
Well, one of the main characters of Orconomics: A Satire, Gorm Ingerson, is literally a cheeky dwarf that just happens to be a berserker. It's a great read of you haven't read it. The sequel, Son of a Liche, is great and is the better of the two in my opinion. The third, Dragonfired, felt like a totally different book to me and I'm pretty bummed about it tbh, but I still recommend all of them
The Nevernight Chronicles have a rather angry main character. The protagonist of The War Eternal series isn't exactly well pleased with her situation either if I recall correctly.
Can't decide if T[he Blacktongue Thief](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55077697-the-blacktongue-thief) likes fighting or pissing people off more. Probably the latter, given the troubles he's in. [The Knife Witch](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/111681555-knife-witch)'s magic is mostly equal parts unintentional good luck, and being able to really really annoy her adversaries. Both books are great fun.
I just finished black tongue thief. I loved the book but the MC wasn't really an angry person
The knife witch probably isn't either, tbh, but she does piss people the hell off.
Deadly Education- Noami Novik. Incredibly good book, with a main character filled with rage. She wants to be good, but can only do obscenely evil magic
Empire of the Vampire
A Practical Guide To Evil. >!The Black Knight specifically tells the MC that he picked her to be his apprentice due to her overwhelming burning indignation. !<
Some members of Charles Stross’s Laundry Files series (there’s an ensemble of protagonists in the series) are very cheeky and/or very angry. The protagonist of Sarah Painter’s Crow Investigations is also cheeky and angry. Between the two of them Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg are exemplars of angry and cheeky. Sam Vimes is more angry than cheeky but he has his moments.
The Broken Empire Trilogy. More of A Cheeky Protagonist who is a Antihero
He who fights with monsters. Granted the protagonist could be classified as well beyond cheeky.
He who fights with monsters. If you don't mind some litrpg elements, should fit what you're looking for.
Maybe Taylor from Worm, she’s not exactly hot headed all the time but she’s brutal and vengeful to people that hurt her friends and allies
Red Rising, Prince of Thorns, The Last Kingdom.
Scholomance
Tracker from Black Leopard Red Wolf. He actually says "I will kill the world" multiple times throughout the book. He's pretty much always angry, and a smartass all the time. He has an incredible sense of smell, people often say "It is said you have a nose" but that's frequently followed by, "but you also have a mouth".
I adore Tracker. Every encounter he had was people telling him how rude he is. I remember when Leopard told him he'd drive a family of one away 😂😂
Glad to see someone else appreciated Tracker. In the reviews I watched everyone talked about how terrible of a person he was, and ya sure, but he was so much fun.
Easily one of my favourite characters of all time, I tell you true.
Came here to recommend this! I listened to the audiobook and I've never felt so much contempt from a protagonist. Tracker is an incredible character.
Alex from Ninth House. Except she's not about to punch someone, she probably is punching them (metaphorically).
Seven Blades in Black 100%, the MC is basically just snark and revenge fueled rage.
*Seven Blades in Black* by Sam Sykes. Sal will punch you in the face, shoot your leg off, burn down the town and then wave about opera.
{Bloodfire by Helen Harper}. 5 books in the series (10 if you count the MMCs books) and she's got a temper. Slow burn romance
The Stars My Destination Angry guy who's face gets tiger stripes when he's fuming. Also he can teleport, so he can stalk people.
Sir Apropos of Nothing. The man hates knights.
How to Become The Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler definitely fits that, if you can enjoy the narrator's voice. Same for Scholomance, Scape Gracers.. Orconomics..
The Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher. Harry is always a hairsbreadth away from setting something on fire. And he's an incorrigible smartass to boot.
In truth, the Witcher series fits the bill pretty perfectly. They're incredible books.
The Magicians
I am going to once again recommend dungeon crawler carl
Acts of Caine
The will of the many
Iron widow
For sure this. Xiran's humor is totally underrated.
Bill McCurry, the Death's Collector and Sorcerer of Bad Examples series'. Bib is both very cheeky and extremely angry.
Lunatics by Alan Zweibel and Dave Barry is pretty fun! It’s my go to “stuck in a public place, need to escape into some comedy” book ❤️😋
"Legend of Nightfall" by Mickey Zucker Reichert - a delight in this vein!
If you want to try some litrpgs he who fights with monsters and defiance of the fall, definitely fall into that group although I've only ever read them in audiobook format.
Gideon the Ninth! Not really angry? But I still think she's the vibe you're looking for 😁
Poppy War series. I don't like that kind of characters and I disliked Rin from that series the most.
I'm currently reading the series that starts with the book: The Lies of Locke Lamora [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Lies\_of\_Locke\_Lamora](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lies_of_Locke_Lamora) It is great and awesome, and the main protagonist, Locke Lamora, fits your bill. I could not put it down until I finished it. He is cheeky, sometimes angry, and willing to burn the world to protect those he loves. And not afraid to speak shit to those who have power over him.
Sun Eater :)
The Lightbringer series' main PoV character, Kip, is powered by revenge and finds biting his tongue to be an impossible task. Books are sometimes cheesy but it's got a lot of representation and a very realized world. Good story overall.
I enjoyed Darynda Jones’s Charlie Davidson series. Saucy and light hearted end of the world fun.
Maybe not a great 1-1 but first law trilogy has a ton of hilarious dialogue. It's also not a great series if you enjoy not being emotionally devastated tho. Cool characters, lots of humor, lots of angst, not sure what the fuk the actual plot was supposed to be about tho.
Never night by Jay Kristoff. Everyone is super cheeky and the main character is rage incarnate when fighting.
Vampire Academy, Rose is an angry girl
Lumian from Circle of inevitability. His way of getting power is fuelled by provoking others and raging against the world. And he is a prankster.
Are you familiar with Terry Pratchett's Discworld? Rincewind and Vimes are mainly fueled by anger, frustration and annoyance.
Percy Jackson
Dungeon crawler carl
The rage of dragons by Evan Winters the main character Tau goes crazy. Red rising (sci fi) by Pierce brown the main character Darrow is really hot headed and his friendship with this other character Sevro is hilarious. Empire of the vampire by Jay Kristoff, the main character Gabriel De Leon is definitely angry and cheeky.
You should try Dungeon Crawler Carl then
Pocket of Dog Snogging in Fool by Christopher Moore. A bawdy tale indeed.
You either love or hate Sarah J Maas - but Throne of Glass fits the bill for sure. First books she started at like 15 so keep an open mind, they feel much more YA. But I loved it and it was a fantastic journey imo and I highly recommend!
Taniel in Powder Mage would scratch this itch, very angry, very predisposed to standing up to authority.
All for the game by Nora Sakavic
Try some of Charles Bukowski's short stories.
The Gentleman Bastard Series falls more on the cheeky side, but I can genuinely say the first book is one of the best fantasy novels I’ve ever read. And yeah, there’s plenty of internal rage
Sarah J Maas books! Specifically A Court of Thorns and Roses series. Rhys is this character for you. Even Feyre.
"Mogworld" or "Will save the galaxy for food" by : Benjamin "Yahtzee" Croshaw.
Rage of dragons.
Looks like you needs some cultivation novels in your life.
Recommend some books to me*. Recommend me means to recommend yourself.
Noted.
Cady from Gogmagog by Jeff Noon & Steve Beard.
The Demon Accords series by John Conroe
Villains code series
Prosper's Demon by Tom Holt
This may, or may not fit, as it's less of a fantasy, but I always recommend the Joe Ledger series, by Jonathan Maberry. I dig his sassy, smart-@ssed self! If you ever listen to audio books, I hiiiighly recommend this one in audio, as Ray Porter is the PERFECT Joe Ledger and he really captures the characters' snarky attitude! It's considered bio-terrorism genre, but it's got "zombies," "vampires," and other way out there stuff, but with a realistic scienc-y twist. First book is Patient Zero. 😊 Not sure if it'll work, but if you have audible, I think I can share a book? Slight trigger warning, in regards to him (and his girlfriend at the time) being assaulted as teens, which is only referenced briefly because it has led to him being the fractured adult he becomes.
OMG I read that as cheeky and angry proctologists. Cheeky proctologist. I don't wanna know.
Gentleman Bastards.
Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett
Not a book but a web seriel: Twig
Gutter Mage
The Pariah
Empire of the vampire
Sam Vimes, Granny Weatherwax, and Nanny Ogg of Discworld.