Spunky Heroine

Spunky Heroine Science Fiction is categorized by its protagonist, who is a spunky female character, rather than its plot or other characteristics. A Spunky Heroine is an awesome girl; she is a strong character who knows how to take care of herself.

In Sci Fi, the characterization of women has a history of being condescending, sexist, trivial, and stereotypical. In some ways, the Spunky Heroine sub-genre is an attempt at sexual equality. However, some of the stories that feature a spunky heroine, describe her as an anomaly or isolated. Nonetheless, this is an example of Sci Fi's evolution: more and more female characters are being developed and featured in strong roles.

You can view the crowd-ranked "Popular" Spunky Heroine Science Fiction Books list and vote and/submit entries to it.

1 Emergence

By David Palmer. Candy Smith-Foster is an 11-year-old girl who has been orphaned and is living in a post-apocalyptic America.
2 Rite of Passage

By Alexei Panshin. Mia Havero recounts her coming-of-age story when she survived thirty days on a colony planet.
3 Reefsong

By Carol Severance. Angie Dinsman after being equipped with webbed hands and gills goes on a mission to locate secret research that may hold the answer to Earth's starvation problem.
4 Space Trippers Book1

By A. Lightbourne. Valesque Rhaugh has a doctorate in scientific engineering.
5 The Hunger Games

By Suzanne Collins. Katniss Everdeen, a 16-year-old girl who competes in a battle to the death.
6 Friday

By Robert A. Heinlein. Friday Baldwin is a genetically engineered artificial person.
7 Artificial Absolutes

By Mary Fan Jane Colt is a recent graduate whose best friend is kidnapped and her brother framed for murder.
8 True Belivers

By Maria Zannini. Rachel Cruz is an archaeologist and an immortal being.
9 Watchstar trilogy

By Pamela Sargent. Each novel in this series follows a different female protagonist.
10 Feed

By M-T-Anderson. A story told from a boy's perspective, but with the help of a new friend, Violet, he is awakened to the truth.

Other Features of Spunky Heroine Science Fiction

Level of Real Science
Variable. This sub-genre is defined by its protagonist and not its scientific explorations so writers are free to decide how real their science will be.
Level of Grand Ideas/Social Implications
Moderate. Spunky Heroine Sci Fi are not idea driven stories. However, by creating strong, female characters, Spunky Heroine Sci Fi participates in a broader social commentary on sexual equality--though not usually overtly.
Level of Characterization
Moderate. In a sub-genre that's all about the protagonist you can expect a three dimensional character. However, the characterization of protagonists in these stories tend to be similar, she is gutsy, adventurous, strong, smart, confident, energetic, outspoken, and knows how to kick some behinds.
Level of Plot Complexity
High. Spunky Heroine stories tend to be adventure tales and so they are plot driven. Often there is a mystery element, something to be uncovered.
Level of Violence
Moderate. The spunky heroine character does not usually seek violence, but she can definitely hold her own should she encounter a violent situation.

Related Science Fiction subgenres

Any and all sub-genres can feature a protagonist who is a spunky heroine.