Other Books in the Genre

Sometimes, you just have to leave the computer and do something else. For those times, here are some books I recommend. Some (if not all) of these books are out of print. If you can't find them at your local bookstore, try on the 'net at Amazon.com. Or try your local library. If they don't have it, ask whether they can borrow it from some other library. If you really want to buy it, try the Advanced Book Exchange.

Author Title Comments
J. D. Austin Bobby's Girl
She's smart, beautiful, and strong -- really strong.
She's one of the good aliens, sent into exile in Los Angeles so she can 'fit in.'
Can she and her new Hollywood buddies save the Earth from the bad aliens?

Nancy A. Collins Sunglasses After Dark
In the Blood
Paint it Black
A Dozen Black Roses

She climbs a ladder with a guy twice her size hanging on her back. In a pool hall she singlehandedly takes on nine members of the toughest gang in town. At point-blank range she takes three hollow-point bullets in the stomach and yet walks out of the morgue.
In her spare time she goes around killing vampires with her silver switchblade.
She's what Buffy the Vampire Slayer should have been. She is Sonja Blue.
She's also a vampire.
The first three books can be found in a single volume titled Midnight Blue.

Robert A. Heinlein Friday
She's a genetically engineered woman with superhuman abilities. Among other things, she works as a courier. But some of her best work is done in a bed.
This is probably the most mainstream book on this list.

Brian Herbert
and
Marie Landis World of Darkness:
Blood on the Sun
During the early part of World War II, Desidra is cast out of her clan. She gets a cryptography job with the US Army and is stationed in Alaska.
In her spare time, she uses her superhuman abilities to aid the Allied war effort.
She also falls in love. With an enemy officer.
(I swear I didn't pattern Marlen after her.)

Tanya Huff Blood Price
Blood Trail
Blood Lines
Blood Pact
Blood Debt

Not for the impatient reader.
Vicki Nelson was a homicide detective with Toronto's finest until an eye condition gave her the choice of riding a desk or leaving the force. Naturally she leaves and becomes a private investigator.
She's the first person on scene when a grisly murder takes place, the victim's body drained of blood. Other murders soon follow. Naturally people start thinking vampire.
Complications set in. She's hired to investigate by the first victim's girlfriend, unaware that Vicki was at the scene. The detective in charge of the case is her ex-partner (and ex-lover).
Henry Fitzroy is also concerned, but for different reasons. Even though he's innocent of the murders, if the people of Toronto really believe there's a vampire on the loose, they might come after him with their sharpened stakes.
Vicki and Henry meet, and join forces. The two of them, along with Vicki's ex-partner, eventually stop the killer.
That's all in the first book. The group continue to solve additional strange cases.
In the fourth book, after Vicki's mother is killed, Vicki herself teeters on the brink of death. The only way to save her life is for Henry to 'enhance' her.
Okay, so it's not exactly the same thing as an Aurora Universe enhancement. But the results are quite worthwhile, in the fifth book she really kicks some ass.

Julie Kenner Aphrodite's Kiss
Zoë is a librarian. She's also a halfling.
On her next birthday, she must decide whether she will lose her powers and become a mortal, or else keep her powers and join the Venerate Council of Protectors.
She's already being tested to see whether she's qualified to join the Council. If she flunks, she'll lose her powers (and memory of them) and become a mortal.
Can she live with her super-powers? Can her mother live with her when she finds out that Zoë has inherited her father's powers?
Can her super-powers get her the man of her dreams? Especially as he's looking for an average Jane?

Christopher Moore Bloodsucking Fiends:
A Love Story
Jody wakes up under a dumpster with a burned arm. She also has superhuman abilities, including strength, speed, and heightened senses. And a big bundle of money.
And a lot of questions. Just what happened to her?
The downside? When the sun comes up, she falls asleep.
She also can't keep any food down. Not even water. Only blood.

Christopher Pike The Last Vampire series
She's five thousand years old but could still pose as a high school student.
This six-book series starts out with her kicking some ass and ends with her kicking some real ass. In between, she has to deal with other vampires, half of the Los Angeles police department, a bunch of Marines, and her not-quite-vampire daughter. At the end of it all, guess who's the only one left standing.

S. M. Stirling Drakon
Gwendolyn is a member of a genetically engineered race called the Draka, from another dimension. When an explosion rips a hole through the dimensional barrier, she is transported to another dimension.
To Earth. In our dimension.
With her superhuman abilities, she wreaks havoc.
There are three other books in the Draka series, though all of them are set in the world of the Draka, and predate this one.
Marching Through Georgia
Under the Yoke
Stone Dogs
These three books are also available in a single volume, Domination.
There's also an anthology of short stories set in the same universe by other authors, titled Drakas.

Paul B. Thompson
and
Tonya R. Carter Darkness & Light
Volume 1 of the Dragonlance Chronicles Prelude.
Kit and Sturm hitch a ride with some gnomes and end up on the magical red moon. The magic affects them all differently. One of them gains super-vision, another gains super-hearing. Naturally, the only female in the group gains super-strength.

David Weber The Apocalypse Troll
A man on the verge of retiring from the Navy is sailing solo across the Atlantic. A bunch of UFOs overfly the carrier task group just over the horizon. Shooting breaks out. One of the UFOs crashes near his boat. Inside is a wounded survivor, apparently human.
Definitely female.

I also highly recommend his "Honor Harrington" series, starting with On Basilisk Station.

David Weber
and
Eric Flint Crown of Slaves
Set in the same universe as the "Honor Harrington" series above and likewise filled with strong and tough women.
And one especially strong and tough woman. Not that her Amazons are anything to sneeze at, but if you're reading this page you'll love Thandi Palane.

Philip Wylie Gladiator
A scientist creates a serum which endows the recipient with incredible strength. He injects it into the fetus in his pregnant wife. Unfortunately (for us), the baby is a boy.
The book follows the life of the son, and his struggles to fit into the 'normal' world.
This is a true classic. It came within a Y chromosone of being the first work in this genre. It's hard to find, but definitely worth the read.

John Zakour
and
Lawrence Ganem The Plutonium Blonde
The Doomsday Brunette
Would you believe an android with a plutonium core, 150 times stronger, 176 times more durable, 200 times faster, with senses far more acute, and a vastly higher IQ than normal carbon-based humans? And looks like an exotic dancer on top of all that?
How about four brunettes, created from super-charged DNA to be stronger, smarter, more beautiful, more alluring, more magnetic, more everything than the average human? And "nigh-invulnerable."
And coming soon, The Radioactive Redhead.

Author	Title	Comments
J. D. Austin	Bobby's Girl	She's smart, beautiful, and strong -- really strong. She's one of the good aliens, sent into exile in Los Angeles so she can 'fit in.' Can she and her new Hollywood buddies save the Earth from the bad aliens?
Nancy A. Collins	Sunglasses After Dark In the Blood Paint it Black A Dozen Black Roses	She climbs a ladder with a guy twice her size hanging on her back. In a pool hall she singlehandedly takes on nine members of the toughest gang in town. At point-blank range she takes three hollow-point bullets in the stomach and yet walks out of the morgue. In her spare time she goes around killing vampires with her silver switchblade. She's what Buffy the Vampire Slayer should have been. She is Sonja Blue. She's also a vampire. The first three books can be found in a single volume titled Midnight Blue.
Robert A. Heinlein	Friday	She's a genetically engineered woman with superhuman abilities. Among other things, she works as a courier. But some of her best work is done in a bed. This is probably the most mainstream book on this list.
Brian Herbert and Marie Landis	World of Darkness: Blood on the Sun	During the early part of World War II, Desidra is cast out of her clan. She gets a cryptography job with the US Army and is stationed in Alaska. In her spare time, she uses her superhuman abilities to aid the Allied war effort. She also falls in love. With an enemy officer. (I swear I didn't pattern Marlen after her.)
Tanya Huff	Blood Price Blood Trail Blood Lines Blood Pact Blood Debt	Not for the impatient reader. Vicki Nelson was a homicide detective with Toronto's finest until an eye condition gave her the choice of riding a desk or leaving the force. Naturally she leaves and becomes a private investigator. She's the first person on scene when a grisly murder takes place, the victim's body drained of blood. Other murders soon follow. Naturally people start thinking vampire. Complications set in. She's hired to investigate by the first victim's girlfriend, unaware that Vicki was at the scene. The detective in charge of the case is her ex-partner (and ex-lover). Henry Fitzroy is also concerned, but for different reasons. Even though he's innocent of the murders, if the people of Toronto really believe there's a vampire on the loose, they might come after him with their sharpened stakes. Vicki and Henry meet, and join forces. The two of them, along with Vicki's ex-partner, eventually stop the killer. That's all in the first book. The group continue to solve additional strange cases. In the fourth book, after Vicki's mother is killed, Vicki herself teeters on the brink of death. The only way to save her life is for Henry to 'enhance' her. Okay, so it's not exactly the same thing as an Aurora Universe enhancement. But the results are quite worthwhile, in the fifth book she really kicks some ass.
Julie Kenner	Aphrodite's Kiss	Zoë is a librarian. She's also a halfling. On her next birthday, she must decide whether she will lose her powers and become a mortal, or else keep her powers and join the Venerate Council of Protectors. She's already being tested to see whether she's qualified to join the Council. If she flunks, she'll lose her powers (and memory of them) and become a mortal. Can she live with her super-powers? Can her mother live with her when she finds out that Zoë has inherited her father's powers? Can her super-powers get her the man of her dreams? Especially as he's looking for an average Jane?
Christopher Moore	Bloodsucking Fiends: A Love Story	Jody wakes up under a dumpster with a burned arm. She also has superhuman abilities, including strength, speed, and heightened senses. And a big bundle of money. And a lot of questions. Just what happened to her? The downside? When the sun comes up, she falls asleep. She also can't keep any food down. Not even water. Only blood.
Christopher Pike	The Last Vampire series	She's five thousand years old but could still pose as a high school student. This six-book series starts out with her kicking some ass and ends with her kicking some real ass. In between, she has to deal with other vampires, half of the Los Angeles police department, a bunch of Marines, and her not-quite-vampire daughter. At the end of it all, guess who's the only one left standing.
S. M. Stirling	Drakon	Gwendolyn is a member of a genetically engineered race called the Draka, from another dimension. When an explosion rips a hole through the dimensional barrier, she is transported to another dimension. To Earth. In our dimension. With her superhuman abilities, she wreaks havoc. There are three other books in the Draka series, though all of them are set in the world of the Draka, and predate this one. Marching Through Georgia Under the Yoke Stone Dogs These three books are also available in a single volume, Domination. There's also an anthology of short stories set in the same universe by other authors, titled Drakas.
Paul B. Thompson and Tonya R. Carter	Darkness & Light	Volume 1 of the Dragonlance Chronicles Prelude. Kit and Sturm hitch a ride with some gnomes and end up on the magical red moon. The magic affects them all differently. One of them gains super-vision, another gains super-hearing. Naturally, the only female in the group gains super-strength.
David Weber	The Apocalypse Troll	A man on the verge of retiring from the Navy is sailing solo across the Atlantic. A bunch of UFOs overfly the carrier task group just over the horizon. Shooting breaks out. One of the UFOs crashes near his boat. Inside is a wounded survivor, apparently human. Definitely female. I also highly recommend his "Honor Harrington" series, starting with On Basilisk Station.
David Weber and Eric Flint	Crown of Slaves	Set in the same universe as the "Honor Harrington" series above and likewise filled with strong and tough women. And one especially strong and tough woman. Not that her Amazons are anything to sneeze at, but if you're reading this page you'll love Thandi Palane.
Philip Wylie	Gladiator	A scientist creates a serum which endows the recipient with incredible strength. He injects it into the fetus in his pregnant wife. Unfortunately (for us), the baby is a boy. The book follows the life of the son, and his struggles to fit into the 'normal' world. This is a true classic. It came within a Y chromosone of being the first work in this genre. It's hard to find, but definitely worth the read.
John Zakour and Lawrence Ganem	The Plutonium Blonde The Doomsday Brunette	Would you believe an android with a plutonium core, 150 times stronger, 176 times more durable, 200 times faster, with senses far more acute, and a vastly higher IQ than normal carbon-based humans? And looks like an exotic dancer on top of all that? How about four brunettes, created from super-charged DNA to be stronger, smarter, more beautiful, more alluring, more magnetic, more everything than the average human? And "nigh-invulnerable." And coming soon, The Radioactive Redhead.

More to come. Stay tuned.

Got any other suggestions? You can send me mail.

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