Character Spotlight ~ Tamara Leigh's Bridget Pickwick Buchanan & J.C. Dirk with giveaways

Bridget & J.C.

Tamara Leigh has written some of my favourite characters, especially her leading men!  Enjoy meeting J.C. and the lovely Bridget :)


Over to you, Tammy:~

Brief physical description

Bridget Pickwick-Buchanan is the 5’6” 33-year-old heroine of my new novel, Restless in Carolina. This tree huggin’, animal lovin’, ever grievin’ widow has pale green eyes and long blonde dreadlocks—yes, dreadlocks, but this part of her “widow’s weeds” comes undone early on in the story.

Then there’s my 36-year-old hero, J.C. Dirk, an environmentally conscious developer with a secret agenda. If I may say so myself, this guy is attractive. At 5’9” he’s buff and broad-shouldered, has light brown hair, bright green eyes flecked with gold, and occasionally sports the lightly stubbled look.

Actor/famous person

I’ve gone back and forth on the actress I believe best represents the character of Bridget and have landed on Elizabeth Mitchell of the television series “Lost” and “V”. Thought Elizabeth’s eyes are blue and Bridget’s are green, they share the same sparkle.

As for J.C., here’s looking at Simon Baker of “The Mentalist” series. In fact, Bridget even likens J.C. to the actor. See, my little gal might be up to her elbows in composting, but she does watch television from time to time.

Strengths and weaknesses

Bridget has two outstanding strengths: devotion to family—not only her departed husband but her extended family—and disregard for materialism. However, both strengths translate into weaknesses when she perseverates on them (i.e. clinging to grief over the loss of her husband).

Like Bridget, J.C.’s strength lies in his devotion to family. Unfortunately, his weakness is that of holding grudges and his determination to personally render justice.

Quirk (if any)

Bridget is the queen of quirks. So where do I start? She has a pet possum that can’t quite get the “playing possum” thing right, is overly protective of personal space, resents technology (though it does have its uses), is hypersensitive to perfumes and colognes— Enough already!

J.C.’s quirk is the high energy that makes him overly expressive, restless, and, at times, noisy (key and coin jangler).

Your inspiration for the character

Though I don’t come close to being a stereotypical tree hugger, I believe my concern for the environment is the seed out of which Bridget grew…and grew. I didn’t want her character to be on the extreme end of environmentalism, but I wanted her to exhibit a greater concern than my own—the kind that daily manifests itself regardless of inconvenience.

Background to the story

Restless in Carolina is the third and final book in my Southern Discomfort series. It tells the story of the last female cousin, Bridget Pickwick-Buchanan, who has taken four years—and counting—to come to terms with being a widow. When it falls to Bridget to entice an eco-friendly developer to buy her family’s estate in order to keep it out of the hands of those who would ruthlessly exploit it, she hunts down J.C. Dirk whose green property developments have earned him national acclaim. What she doesn’t know is that J.C. has his own agenda that could mean the end of everything she’s worked for…and break her recovering heart.

Tammy ~ as always, I love your spotlights and your characters :)  And choosing an Australian actor for J.C. is a plus for me!

Relz Reviewz Extras

Review of Restless in Carolina

Review of Leaving Carolina and Character spotlight on Piper & Axel

Review of Nowhere, Carolina and Character spotlight on Maggie & Reece

Interview with Tamara

Visit Tamara's website
Buy Tamara's books at Amazon or Koorong