History ActionGirl / Literature

* The titular character in Robert Heinlein's ''Friday'' epitomizes this trope. She is stronger, faster, smarter, and hornier than everyone she meets. Most of Heinlein's heroines are larger-than-live, but Friday is literally superhuman.
** Deety in ''The Number of The Beast'' is likewise a busty strawberry blonde who is a precocious super-genius polymath, a crack shot, and an expert martial artist.

** HonorHarrington from DavidWeber's ''Honorverse'' novels not only commands starships (and later in the series, entire fleets), but on occasion takes part in various forms of hand-to-hand combat. She's an all round example of the action woman who's both smart and physically very capable.

* Action Girls were popular in classical literature. Examples include the goddesses Athena (LadyOfWar) and Artemis (TheArcher), Penthesilea the Amazon Queen who appeared ancient epic cycles (and later Kleist's play) and Camilla in Virgil's ''TheAeneid''. The popularity of Amazon women waned in Middle Ages, but they were to make a comeback in Renaissance epic in the form of female knights such as Bradamante and Marfisa in Ariosto's ''Orlando Furioso'', Clorinda in Tasso's ''Gerusalemme Liberata'', and Belphoebe, Britomart, and Palladine in Spenser's ''TheFaerieQueene''. In the latter poem, Spenser laments the scarcity of Action Girls in his own time and bids females to start kicking ass again as they did in the old days (because he knew Queen Elizabeth would appreciate it).

* [[HarryPotter Hermione Granger]] is the wizarding world's resident BadassBookworm. [[MagicalGirlWarrior Ginny Weasley and Luna Lovegood]] also have their moments, and so does Ginny's mom Molly.

* KrisLongknife is a very badass SpaceNavy officer.

* The ''{{Shannara}}'' franchise has had a few. While the original trilogy was lacking in this department, ''TheHeritageOfShannara'' featured Wren Ohmsford, and Matty Roh, both of whom were perfectly capable of looking out for themselves and kicking major ass. Wren fought her way in and out of [[HungryJungle Morrowindl]] using a knife and the Elfstones, while Matty is a WaifFu abusing, rapier-armed BrokenBird who can match the Federation's best, and cheerfully goes after [[TheHeartless The Shadowen]] using only her sword. ''TheVoyageOfTheJerleShannara'' also has two, in Tamis (Elven Hunter, personally trained by the Captain of the Home Guard), and Rue Meridan, who at one point jacks an entire airship by herself.

* BrandonSanderson seems to like this trope. The main character of ''{{Mistborn}}'' is Vin, who is one of the biggest {{Badass}}es in a trilogy full of them even before she [[spoiler: becomes a god]], and in the first book she has a DarkActionGirl nemesis, Lady Shan. [[EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses Sarene]] from ''{{Elantris}}'' is more of a political {{Chessmaster}} type, but she fences in her spare time and is good enough to hold her own against the BigBad, a magically enhanced warrior monk. {{Warbreaker}} has no really solid example, though Vivenna seems to be becoming an ActionGirl in training by the end. Also, all Parshendi females in ''TheStormlightArchive'', assuming Dalinar's guess about their "[[BattleCouple battle pairs]]" is right.

* Nihal, the main heroine of the ''ChroniclesOfTheEmergedWorld'' is a badass Half-elf DragonRider.

* Many of JamesHSchmitz's characters were Action Girls before the trope was popular, most notably [[LittleMissBadass Maleen, Goth, and the Leewit]] from ''TheWitchesOfKarres''. Others, such as Trigger Argee and Telzey Amberdon could also hold their own. In terms of sheer Badassery, though, the prize has to go to [[BadassBookworm Nile Etland]], a research biologist who almost singlehandedly stonewalled an alien invasion of her planet.

* Many of JamesHSchmitz's characters were Action Girls before the trope was popular, most notably [[LittleMissBadass Maleen, Goth, and the Leewit]] from ''The Witches of Karres''. Others, such as Trigger Argee and Telzey Amberdon could also hold their own. In terms of sheer Badassery, though, the prize has to go to [[BadassBookworm Nile Etland]], a research biologist who almost singlehandedly stonewalled an alien invasion of her planet.

* Mara Jade of the ''StarWars'' ExpandedUniverse switches back and forth between being an Action Girl and a full-on MarySue depending on who was writing her, only to end up as a FauxActionGirl [[spoiler:purely so the writer could kill her off. She got ridiculously close to ''killing'' her killer, and that's not something a ''FauxActionGirl'' is capable of, it's something an ActionMom or MamaBear would do, but if she'd been [[CharacterDerailment written accurately]], she would have mopped the floor with the jumped-up idiot before the fight even properly started. ''Sacrifice'' began the process of restoring her from FauxActionGirl to ActionGirl, only to kill her off before getting her anywhere near to her true {{Badass}} level]].

* Kahlan in Terry Goodkind's ''{{The Sword of Truth}}'' series and even more so in ''{{Legend of the Seeker}}''.
** And Cara. And by extension the rest of the Mord-Sith.

* Eowyn, of course, from ''LordOfTheRings''. A LadyOfWar who pulls a SweetPollyOliver and kills the leader of the Ringwraiths. [[WordOfGod Tolkien]] had actually initially planned to have her die in that battle, but his wife liked her so much that he had her survive to marry Faramir--who was his AuthorAvatar.

* ''TheMalazanBookOfTheFallen'' has them in spades. [[TheEmpress Empress]] [[CareerKiller Laseen]], [[WaifFu Sorry]], heck any female [[BadassArmy Imperial Marine or Crimson Guard]].

* The ''{{Shannara}}'' franchise has had a few. While the original trilogy was lacking in this department, ''TheHeritageOfShannara'' featured Wren Ohmsford, and Matty Roh, both of whom were perfectly capable of looking out for themselves and kicking major ass. Wren fought her way in and out of [[HungryJungle Morrowindl]] using a knife and the Elfstones, while Matty is a WaifFu abusing, rapier-armed BrokenBird who can match the Federation's best, and cheerfully goes after [[TheHeartless The Shadowen]] using only her sword. ''TheVoyageOfTheJerleShannara'' also has two, in Tamis (Elven Hunter, personally trained by the Captain of the Home Guard), and Rue Meridan, who at one point jacks an entire airship by herself.

* Mara Jade of the ''StarWars'' ExpandedUniverse switches back and forth between being an Action Girl and a full-on MarySue depending on who was writing her, only to end up as a FauxActionGirl [[spoiler:purely so the writer could [[WallBanger kill her off]]. She got ridiculously close to ''killing'' her killer, and that's not something a ''FauxActionGirl'' is capable of, it's something an ActionMom or MamaBear would do, but if she'd been [[CharacterDerailment written accurately]], she would have mopped the floor with the jumped-up idiot before the fight even properly started. ''Sacrifice'' began the process of restoring her from FauxActionGirl to ActionGirl, only to kill her off before getting her anywhere near to her true {{Badass}} level]].

* Clarissa Kinnison (nee [=McDougall=]) of the ''{{Lensman}}'' novels, and all four of her daughters. Arguably Virgilia Samms from the same universe, in as much as she's an integral part of Triplanetary's senior operations planning and is as exposed to danger as any of the men (to the point where she's [[spoiler:captured and tortured]], and barely escapes with her life). In ''Masters of the Vortex'', there are several female members of Neal Cloud's crew who kick MAJOR arse, including the epic scene where they [[spoiler:commandeer the weapons Cloud was issued for use as overclocked drilling and sampling lasers, and reduce the local gangster boss's fortress to a puddle of boiling rock along with everyone in it]]. The Lensman universe was pretty much Smith's redemption for making Dorothy Seaton such a shrinking violet for all but the very last part of the ''Skylark'' quartet.

* Hermione and Ginny become proper Action Girls starting with ''HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix'' and are quite accomplished by the end. Also Luna Lovegood, Nymphadora Tonks and Professor [=McGonagall=]. [[spoiler: Molly Weasley also gets a MamaBear moment too]].

* Miya, from [[{{MiyaBlack}} Miya Black, Pirate Princess]] starts the book thinking she's this; by the end she's definitely proven it.

* Michael Scott's ''Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel'' series is full of them. Perenelle Flamel is a powerful sorceress, Scathach is an ancient Celtic warrior and Sophie takes a level in badass when she gets her magical powers activated. Then none other than Joan of Arc shows up in the second book.

* Hermione and Ginny become proper Action Girls starting with ''HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix'' and are quite accomplished by the end. Also Luna Lovegood, Nymphadora Tonks and Professor McGonagall. [[spoiler: Molly Weasley also gets a MamaBear moment too]].

* Mearad of Pellinor from Allison Croggon's {{The Books of Pellinor}} series is a swordswoman and warrior. Sylvia of Innail could also be considered an action girl since she's seen battling the mountainmen in book four.

* BrandonSanderson seems to like this trope. The main character of ''{{Mistborn}}'' is Vin, who is one of the biggest {{Badass}}es in a trilogy full of them even before she [[spoiler: becomes a god]], and in the first book she has a DarkActionGirl nemesis, Lady Shan. [[EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses Sarene]] from ''{{Elantris}}'' is more of a political {{Chessmaster}} type, but she fences in her spare time and is good enough to hold her own against the BigBad, a magically enhanced warrior monk. {{Warbreaker}} has no really solid example, though Vivenna seems to be becoming an ActionGirl in training by the end.

* All Parshendi females in ''TheStormlightArchive'', assuming Dalinar's guess about their "[[BattleCouple battle pairs]]" is right.

* Tally Youngblood in the third and fourth books of {{Scott Westerfeld's}} {{Uglies}} series since she's a special. Shay and the rest of the specials/cutters and the Sly Girls form book four also apply for this trope.

* Kitty in ''TheAlienSeries'' has killed aliens with a pen, an iPod and hairspray.

* Pretty much all the girls from {{The Gallagher Girls}} series, except the civilians and Liz.

* All Parshendi females in ''TheStormlightArchive'', assuming Dalinar's guess about their "[[BattleCouple battle pairs]]" is right.