Characters
- Jeremy Lachlan MacConnor
- A gifted physicist who has trouble talking to girls. Scottish. Owner of Castle MacConnor. Wears a French Foreign Legion Kepi. Raised by his Uncle Angus and Aunt Lotte.
- Nilson Maria Theresa "Nils" Kerr
- Jeremy's constant companion, who teases him mercilessly, and also sometimes endangers his life.
- Kate Provoczki
- Nils' level-headed cousin. Short black hair, built like a rake, became a journalist because she likes collecting gossip on people. Chain smokes.
- André Provoczki
- Kate's brother. Fond of his sister. Homosexual.
- Angus James
- Jeremy's uncle, also a scientist. He and Jeremy were kindred spirits. The character is visually based on Donald Sutherland's portrayal of Wilhelm Reich from the Cloudbusting video by Kate Bush.
- Lotte MacConnor
- Jeremy's aunt and grand matriarch of the family. Speaks in an accent so thick that it is at times difficult to read (which as some will tell you is how they talk in the Highlands). At times she seems to be no more than your typical senile old relative, yet she seems to retain a better grip on reality that most give her credit, even though it borders on the sinister at times. Cooper says that her bizarre dialogue is an attempt at a phonetic transcription of the Highland Scots accent.
- Dougal MacWikkening
- Jeremy's homicidal and immortal cousin. The character of Dougal, particularly his immortality, is influenced by the 1986 action/fantasy film Highlander. (His name, is a pun on Duncan, the protagonist of the Highlander television series and also the term "Quickening" which refers to the moment an Immortal slays another Immortal and gains his powers.)
- Ziegfreid
- Owner of the Platinum Grit Café, once described by Jeremy as "...more German than anyone has a right to be." Expert in coffee, weapons and relocating large buildings.
- Raoul
- A sentient, talking cabinet with a strong Jamaican accent. Never actually seen to be mobile in any way, but appears in numerous locations without explanation of how he got there, and was once heard (but not seen) talking on a telephone. Reportedly served in the merchant marine.
- Terrence Morley
- Agent and possible executor of the MacConnor Family Estate. Bitterly dislikes Angus and Jeremy. For a time operated the family's private sanitorium under the supervision of Lottie.
- Doctor John Cottington
- MacConnor Family Physician. Due to his position, he is very knowledgeable of the more mystical part of the family history. Despite a detached and pompous manner, he takes his role as a doctor very seriously and readily comes to the aid of Jeremy.
Read more about this topic: Platinum Grit
Famous quotes containing the word characters:
“Children pay little attention to their parent’s teachings, but reproduce their characters faithfully.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)
“The Nature of Familiar Letters, written, as it were, to the Moment, while the Heart is agitated by Hopes and Fears, on Events undecided, must plead an Excuse for the Bulk of a Collection of this Kind. Mere Facts and Characters might be comprised in a much smaller Compass: But, would they be equally interesting?”
—Samuel Richardson (1689–1761)
“A criminal trial is like a Russian novel: it starts with exasperating slowness as the characters are introduced to a jury, then there are complications in the form of minor witnesses, the protagonist finally appears and contradictions arise to produce drama, and finally as both jury and spectators grow weary and confused the pace quickens, reaching its climax in passionate final argument.”
—Clifford Irving (b. 1930)