“Don’t Underestimate Her Ability to Talk, It’s Her Superpower”: Epistemic Negotiation and the Power of Community in Carrie Vaughn’s Kitty Norville Series

Rhonda Nicol’s “‘Don’t Underestimate Her Ability to Talk, it’s Her Superpower’: Epistemic Negotiation and the Power of Community in Carrie Vaughn’s Kitty Norville Series” interrogates the action heroine of the urban fantasy genre. By contrast to most authors of the genre, Carrie Vaughn, posits Nicol, highlights her protagonist’s interpersonal skills and community-building abilities, making them equal in value to physical power. The series thus posits a heroine easily identifiable to female urban fantasy readers while she questions the value of toughness for female empowerment.