Consult a lawyer and get an opinion letter. Copyright is unlikely to apply to names (see http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-protect.html http://www.copyrigh

Consult a lawyer and get an opinion letter. Copyright is unlikely to apply to names (see http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-protect.html http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-protect.html). Patents clearly do not apply. Character names may be trademarked, but it is likely using a name from the book for your company will not introduce confusion by conflicting with another use of the same "mark". (See http://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/process/index.jsp http://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/process/index.jsp) Using a name from a book brings along a lot of baggage, some of which you might want, but some, not so much. No matter what, it's complicated.