# Guys, which novels with a female main character do you particularly like? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 8, 2017, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407 "2017-06-08T01:31:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Textual\_Innuendo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/898d66/32.png) [@Textual\_Innuendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Textual_Innuendo)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2017, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/101 "2017-06-11T15:07:29Z")
I’ll put in additional nominations for _Diamond Age_, Pratchett’s witch books,_Chapterhouse Dune_, and _Anna Karenina_, and add a few I haven’t seen yet: Nancy Kress’ _Beggars in Spain_ and _Beggars and Choosers_ - a gripping duo about genetically modified children created without the need to sleep, and the ensuing societal and personal consequences, told from a strong female protagonists’s view Norman Rush’s _Mating_ - scintillatingly narrated from the first person POV of a brilliantly complex unnamed female graduate student in Africa, and is such a fantastic first-person portrayal that it’s one of those books that makes you sad the protagonist is fictional rather than a real-life person Charles Stross’ _Iron Sunrise_ - a fun and easy reading space opera featuring a Wednesday Addams clone as protagonist, along with strong secondary female characters who are spooks and assassins respectively Mira Grant’s _Feed_ and the other two books in that series, a zombie-as-virus book whose protagonist is the usual kick-ass zombie killer type needed in universes like that ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/102 "2017-06-12T01:27:36Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Then I will again recommend _Elleander Morning_ by Jerry Yulsman, to you in particular. Some strong thematic similarities between the two; if you like one I suspect you’ll like the other. I’ll second that recommendation. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2017, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/103 "2017-06-12T16:12:11Z")
Thomas Perry’s _[Jane Whitefield](https://www.goodreads.com/search?q=jane+whitefield)_ series. She’s Native American and helps people that need to disappear. And she’s just bad-ass. ---
**Author:** ![UncaStuart](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncastuart/32/404_2.png) [@UncaStuart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncaStuart)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2017, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/104 "2017-06-15T01:53:09Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > > [@UncaStuart](#): > > > > Oh, yes indeed. I think it’s my favorite book of the last two decades. > > Then I will again recommend _Elleander Morning_ by Jerry Yulsman, to you in particular. Some strong thematic similarities between the two; if you like one I suspect you’ll like the other. Thanks, I will certainly check that out. ---
**Author:** ![Fugazi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f08c70/32.png) [@Fugazi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fugazi)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2017, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/105 "2017-06-15T04:19:45Z")
> [@Textual\_Innuendo](#): > > Nancy Kress’ _Beggars in Spain_ and _Beggars and Choosers_ - a gripping duo about genetically modified children created without the need to sleep, and the ensuing societal and personal consequences, told from a strong female protagonists’s view ooooo thank you for this. I read the novella a long time ago but had forgotten the details. I didn’t even know that it had been expanded. I will nominate the _Mercy Thompson_ and the _Alpha and Omega_ series’ by Patricia Briggs. Also, _The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet_ by Becky Chambers. ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2017, 9:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/106 "2017-06-15T09:10:25Z")
As a teacher, I consider **Susan Sto Helit** (from Terry Pratchett’s Hogfather etc.) to be the ultimate example of our profession. And the books are amusing too… ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2017, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/107 "2017-06-15T14:52:06Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Things like Connie Willis books and _The Diamond Age_ technically don’t meet the OPs criteria because they have multiple alternating POV characters, some of which are male. (Some of Connie Willis’s work has a single POV character that is female–you could go with the hilarious novella _All Seated On the Ground_.) (The OPs criteria–if taken seriously–rules out many good books with good female characters who are the POV character for _some_ chapters but not _all_ of them.) I suppose that’s true when I think hard about it, but when the female POVs are the only ones I readily remember, and the ones that made the most impact, does that make it count? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2017, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/108 "2017-06-15T14:55:22Z")
Ooh, it’s been a while since I read them, so I don’t remember if they had other POV characters, but I loved the Alanna series by Tamora Pierce. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2017, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/109 "2017-06-15T15:26:23Z")
For those who like Bujold’s type of fantasy/sf, check out Martha Wells’s _The Wizard Hunters_. One of my favorite female lead characters ever. ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2017, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/110 "2017-06-16T09:46:52Z")
Laura Ingalls Wilder ---
**Author:** ![Nauplius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nauplius/32/51_2.png) [@Nauplius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nauplius)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2017, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/111 "2017-06-16T15:54:33Z")
_The Clan of the Cave Bear_ ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Sanchez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e19adc/32.png) [@Rick\_Sanchez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Sanchez)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2017, 8:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/112 "2017-06-17T08:30:06Z")
Angela Carter’s _Nights at the Circus_ is absolutely superb, and has one of the most interesting main characters I know. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2017, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/113 "2017-07-04T23:01:38Z")
The protagonist in D. M. Thomas’s _White Hotel_. ---
**Author:** ![Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blue_blistering_barnacle/32/3386_2.png) [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blue_Blistering_Barnacle)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2017, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/114 "2017-07-04T23:07:16Z")
The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley A retelling of the Arthurian legend, mostly from Morgan le Fey’s perspective. ---
**Author:** ![Weisshund](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ba8739/32.png) [@Weisshund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weisshund)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/115 "2017-07-05T00:37:04Z")
Lisey’s Story by Stephen King? ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/116 "2017-07-05T01:16:57Z")
The “Mistborn” (fantasy) trilogy by Brandon Sanderson. Several of his works, in fact: the novella “The Emperor’s Soul” and the novel “Warbreaker” feature strong female central characters as well. ---
**Author:** ![Teuton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teuton/32/3864_2.png) [@Teuton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teuton)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/117 "2017-07-05T08:37:26Z")
> [@theR](#): > > Uprooted by Naomi Novik, about a girl given as payment to the local wizard so she can become his witch apprentice. I’ll second this, it’s one of the best books I’ve read in recent years, and a rare genuinely self contained fantasy story without obvious hooks for a series. The first **Wayfarers** book by Becky Chambers, _The long way to a small, angry planet_ has an ensemble cast with strong female roles, but the second one, _A closed and common orbit_ has two protagonists, both female, and it’s much the better book. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/118 "2017-07-05T12:34:51Z")
The Crying of Lot 49 We Have Always Lived In the Castle Dracula The Silence of the Lambs Rubyfruit Jungle ---
**Author:** ![Pantastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3bc359/32.png) [@Pantastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pantastic)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/119 "2017-07-05T20:01:35Z")
Vernor Vinge’s Fire Upon the Deep and Children of the Sky both have the same two female humans as main characters. There are also some major alien female characters, including the leader of the ‘good guy’ kingdom and arguably the leader of the ‘bad guy’ kingdom, but the gender roles for the Tines are not well explained and it’s not clear how analogous to our gender theirs is. I love Fire Upon the Deep (Children of the Sky is good too), and definitely was able to related to the female characters. It’s pretty impressive that Ravna is paired up with a guy who is basically a several hundred year old legendary hero who has the ‘corpse’ of an alien demigod/superintelligence in his brain and still manages to be the driving force in her story arc. Pratchett’s Witches, Susan, and Montrous Regiment books are good examples that have already been mentioned, I especially love the way the witches interact with each other. David Weber’s Honor Harrington series is also good military space opera in the early books (my recommendation is to read in release order until you find one boring, then declare the end of the series). ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407/120 "2017-07-05T20:17:58Z")
> [@Pantastic](#): > > …David Weber’s Honor Harrington series is also good military space opera in the early books (my recommendation is to read in release order until you find one boring, then declare the end of the series). That strikes me as excellent advice. Once the series goes bad for you, it will never get any better. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-which-novels-with-a-female-main-character-do-you-particularly-like/788407.md?page=7)