Book picks similar to
Marrow by Preston Norton


superhero
young-adult
superheroes
science-fiction

The Astounding Antagonists


Rafael Chandler - 2014
    Agon, a megalomaniacal inventor with an arsenal of lethal gadgets. Motley, a wisecracking jewel thief with nothing left to lose. Chillpill, a cryogenic drug lord who just wants a normal life. Baelphegor, a demonic psychopath with an ugly score to settle. They're the most dangerous supervillains on Earth, and they're about to pull off the perfect crime. There's just one catch: if they succeed, they might accidentally save the world. From the skyscrapers of Apex City to the gates of Hell itself, the Antagonists are pursued by violent superheroes and billionaire vigilantes. But as loyalties are tested and old hatreds are rekindled, the line between friend and foe begins to blur...

Other People's Heroes


Blake M. Petit - 2002
    Imagine a world where people bend steel in their bare hands, where champions dart across the sky, where avengers step out of the shadows to protect the innocent. Imagine a man larger than life protecting the innocent, imagine a family of heroes, imagine warriors dedicated to the safety of mankind. Imagine you've worshiped them your entire life. Then imagine it's all a hoax. Imagine that your champions are actors, the fights choreographed... imagine the real heroes vanished a decade ago. Imagine you're the only one who knows the truth. And imagine what you would do to put things right...

The Never Hero


T. Ellery Hodges - 2014
    His life is about to undergo a massive shift. A violent and merciless otherworldly enemy unleashes slaughter in the streets, calling out in a language only he understands.And it is seeking its challenger.In order to defeat the threat, Jonathan must become a temporal weapon... while remaining completely anonymous. Unfortunately, harnessing off-world powers has its own special challenges...The Never Hero is the first installment in The Chronicles of Jonathan Tibbs -- a mind-bending, genre crossing, action-adventure trilogy.

Sensation


Kevin Hardman - 2013
    Unlike most of his contemporaries, however, Jim actually had the goods: a plethora of super powers that would have been the envy of any meta on the planet. But when his tryout with the Alpha League - the world's premiere group of supers - goes disastrously wrong, Jim basically becomes an outcast. Two years later, Jim is still bitter about what happened to him. However, he soon finds himself the centerpiece in an odd turn of events that gives him a second chance at his dream. But nothing is as easy as it sounds, as Jim soon discovers. Among other things, he’s made an enemy of a prospective super teammate, he’s being stalked by an unknown pursuer, and a shadowy cabal bent on world domination has identified him as the only obstacle to their plans. It’s a lot for one super to handle, even with a smorgasbord of abilities. But if saving the world were easy, everyone would do it…

Heroine Complex


Sarah Kuhn - 2016
    Working for one is even harder.Evie Tanaka is the put-upon personal assistant to Aveda Jupiter, her childhood best friend and San Francisco's most beloved superheroine. She's great at her job—blending into the background, handling her boss's epic diva tantrums, and getting demon blood out of leather pants.Unfortunately, she's not nearly as together when it comes to running her own life, standing up for herself, or raising her tempestuous teenage sister, Bea.But everything changes when Evie's forced to pose as her glamorous boss for one night, and her darkest secret comes out: she has powers, too. Now it's up to her to contend with murderous cupcakes, nosy gossip bloggers, and supernatural karaoke battles—all while juggling unexpected romance and Aveda's increasingly outrageous demands. And when a larger threat emerges, Evie must finally take charge and become a superheroine in her own right... or see her city fall to a full-on demonic invasion.

Illusive


Emily Lloyd-Jones - 2014
    A small percentage of the population developed superhero-like powers, and Americans suffering from these so-called adverse effects were given an ultimatum: Serve the country or be declared a traitor.Some people chose a third option: live a life of crime.Seventeen-year-old Ciere Giba has the handy ability to change her appearance at will. She's what's known as an illusionist. She's also a thief. After crossing a gang of mobsters, Ciere must team up with a group of fellow superpowered criminals on a job that most would have considered impossible: a hunt for the formula that gave them their abilities. It was supposedly destroyed years ago - but what if it wasn't?Government agents are hot on their trail, and the lines between good and bad, us and them, and freedom and entrapment are blurred as Ciere and the rest of her crew become embroiled in a deadly race that could cost them their lives.

Arena Mode


Blake Northcott - 2013
    Until one morning, after a dangerous fall lands him in the emergency room, he discovers that a tumor is pressing against his brain.Unable to afford experimental but potentially life-saving surgery, Moxon takes drastic action; he volunteers for Arena Mode: 2041's most vicious sporting event, where thirteen superhumans fight in an urban combat zone for a multi-billion dollar prize.Moxon is forced to battle opponents possessing ungodly speed, strength, and abilities once thought to exist only across the pages of superhero comics - and he's armed with nothing more than his rapidly-diminishing brain cells.With the odds stacked impossibly against him, Moxon fights to not only survive the wrath of the other competitors, but to unlock the mysteries buried within the Arena itself.Discover the series that has been nominated for the prestigious BSFA Award (Arena Mode, Best Novel of 2013), has been ranked #1 on Amazon in the US and the UK (Arena Mode, Superhero and Dystopian categories, May 2015) and is currently part of the high school curriculum in the state of Florida.

Worm


Wildbow - 2013
    Her first attempt at taking down a supervillain sees her mistaken for one, thrusting her into the midst of the local ‘cape’ scene’s politics, unwritten rules, and ambiguous morals. As she risks life and limb, Taylor faces the dilemma of having to do the wrong things for the right reasons.The story, titled Worm, takes the form of a web serial, posted in bite-sized reads in much the same way that authors such as Mark Twain would release their works one chapter at a time in the days before full-fledged novels. Worm started in June 2011, updating twice a week, and finished in late November, 2013. It totals roughly 1,750,000 words; roughly 26 typical novels in length (or 10-11 very thick novels).

Sidekicks


Arthur Mayor - 2019
    Paper or plastic, cake or pie, tackle my chem homework or give a supervillain a well-deserved smackdown? (The answer’s obvious: cake.) When the leader of the world’s most powerful superhero team asked me to become Raven, his apprentice, that was the easiest choice ever. But I blew it. Now, all the superheroes are dead, killed in an instant by an enemy they never saw coming. And I have another choice: give up and hide inside my normal life or master my powers and assemble a team of fellow trainees to protect the city. If you enjoy action-packed good versus evil battles, snarky banter, and plucky teenage superheroes who refuse to quit, you will love Raven’s adventures in Sidekicks, the first book of Superpower Chronicles. Perfect for fans of Spider-Man and The Teen Titans. Get your copy today! Superpower Chronicles SIDEKICKS (Book 1) HEROES (Book 2) VIGILANTES (Available October 11, 2019) VILLAINS (Available November 8, 2019) ASSASSINS (Available 2020)

The Miranda Contract


Ben Langdon - 2014
    Pop Star.Sometimes the life we're given isn't the life we'd choose for ourselves.For the past five years, Dan Galkin has been lying to everyone about just how ordinary he is. But Dan's the grandson of The Mad Russian: one of the world's most powerful, and insane, supervillains. And Dan has powers too. He's a living battery, able to absorb and discharge electricity with his mind. Normally he keeps his powers hidden, but when the old man returns with an offer to make his grandson heir apparent, any chance at an ordinary life is blown apart.Miranda Brody thought she wanted to be a pop star, but now she's got the international profile and the entourage, she doesn't recognize the Miranda she has become. After getting caught up in the cross-fire between Dan and his grandfather, Miranda realizes there's more to life than being famous. Staying alive, for example, becomes a high priority. And not falling in love with the pizza boy comes a close second.Labeled by society, trapped by expectation.Dan and Miranda might actually be able to change everything.As long as they don't kill each other first.

Spark


Rachael Craw - 2014
    The next, she’s a Shield, the result of a decades-old experiment gone wrong, bound by DNA to defend her best friend from an unknown killer.The threat could come at home, at school, anywhere. All Evie knows is that it will be a fight to the death.And then there’s Jamie. irresistible. off-limits.

Brave Men Run - A Novel of the Sovereign Era


Matthew Wayne Selznick - 2005
    Can young Nathan Charters find himself in this uncertain new world? Who is he, where did he come from, and is he part of a remarkable new minority...or just a misfit among misfits? Brave Men Run is at once gripping and emotional, shocking and intelligent."I thoroughly enjoyed it." -- Paul Story, author of Tom Corven"Well written, with great dialogue...utterly convincing." -- The Rev-Up Review"Brave Men Run is an incredible piece of work! I'm totally hooked..." -- Jonathan Kalmes Buy the MP3 CD! Visit the official Brave Men Run web site!

Blaze of Glory


Sheryl Nantus - 2010
    The Agency captures her and others like her when their powers begin to manifest, pitting them against each other in staged, gladiatorial fights. An explosive implant on the back of her neck assures she'll keep right on smiling for the camera and beating up the bad guys.When Earth comes under attack, suddenly the show becomes deadly real. Unable to deal with a real alien, the "supers" are falling in droves. Millions of innocent civilians are going to die...unless Jo can cobble together a team from among the fake heroes and villains the Agency enslaved. Including Hunter, who not only promises to show her how to deactivate the implants, but seems to know more than he should about how the mysterious Agency operates.Forcing a rag-tag bunch of former enemies to work together is the least of Jo's problems. The trick is determining if Hunter is friend or foe—and becoming the hero everyone thought she was before the world is destroyed for real.Warning: Contains superhero in-jokes, Canadiana and large alien craft shaped like avocados. Really.

Broken


Susan Jane Bigelow - 2011
    Extrahumans, those possessing supernatural abilities such as flight and strength, are required by this government to belong to the Union, where they can be trained, monitored, and weaponized. Michael Forward is cursed with the ability to see the future – every possible future – when he gazes into another person’s eyes. All he has ever wanted is to escape the grim destiny he sees when he looks in the mirror, but when he is tasked with a mission that will define the course of human history, Michael finds he cannot refuse. Now, he needs the help of a homeless ex-superhero to save a baby who may become the key to humanity’s freedom.Broken figured she was done with heroics when she lost the ability to fly and escaped the confinement of the Extrahuman Union. But then the world started to fall apart around her, and a desperate teenage prophet with a baby entered her life, offering her the possibility of redemption and a chance to fly once more.In a time of spreading darkness, when paranoia and oppression reign, can these unlikely allies preserve a small ray of hope for a better, brighter future?

Dark Star


Bethany Frenette - 2012
    Her mother is the superhero Morning Star, the most deadly crime-fighter in the Twin Cities, so it's hard for Audrey not to feel safe. That is, until she's lured into the sweet night air by something human and not human--something with talons and teeth, and a wide, scarlet smile. Now Audrey knows the truth: her mom doesn't fight crime at night. She fights Harrowers--livid, merciless beings who were trapped Beneath eons ago. Yet some have managed to escape. And they want Audrey dead, just because of who she is: one of the Kin. To survive, Audrey will need to sharpen the powers she has always had. When she gets close to someone, dark corners of the person's memories become her own, and she sometimes even glimpses the future. If Audrey could only get close to Patrick Tigue, a powerful Harrower masquerading as human, she could use her Knowing to discover the Harrowers' next move. But Leon, her mother's bossy, infuriatingly attractive sidekick, has other ideas. Lately, he won't let Audrey out of his sight. When an unthinkable betrayal puts Minneapolis in terrible danger, Audrey discovers a wild, untamed power within herself. It may be the key to saving her herself, her family, and her city. Or it may be the force that destroys everything--and everyone--she loves.