Character Files: Lorelei von Leyden

The Ruby Redfort Books in Order. Credit Image

I’ve decided to start a semi-regular post feature where I highlight some of my favourite, least favourite or just overall interesting characters from books that I’ve read. To kick it off, I had to go with Lorelei von Leyden, hands down my favourite antagonist from the Ruby Redfort series by Lauren Child.

Lorelei is your perfect villain; cunning, sly and stylish, she’s both undeniably psychopathic and incredibly cool. If I was going to be a villain, this is no doubt who I’d want to be. Beware the small, unintentional spoilers that may wind up in this post. I’ll try not to include any, but I thought I better warn you just in case.

The first of Ruby’s many rules. Credit Image

Lorelei von Leyden

Interesting characteristics: Lorelei wears a distinctive Turkish Delight scented perfume, made especially for her by Madame Swann, a french perfumer. This perfume is what gives away at least one of her disguises during the series.

Disguise: This is one of my favourite aspects of Lorelei’s character. Throughout the series she disguises herself as a number of different characters and/or adopted personas, including Ruby Redfort, the main protagonist, a random local and a fellow villain, just to name a few. Not only is she the master of disguise, but she’s also the master of style; both her disguises and her normal outfits are incredibly sophisticated.

Revenge:

Like many evil characters, Lorelei has a cruel desire for revenge, specifically for the series’ main protagonist, who foils many of the villain’s plots and at one stage lands her in jail. While in jail, Lorelei fills an entire journal with morbid descriptions of how she is going to seek out and destroy Ruby (creepy, I know).

For those of you who are interested, here’s a behind the scenes clip on the shooting of the series’ paper back covers. 

Have you read any of the Ruby Redfort books? Who’s your favourite villain? I would love to hear from you in the comment section below! 🙂