A Superhero Universe
by H. L. Burke
The Supervillain Rehabilitation Project (AKA SVR-Verse or DOSA-Verse) is a multi-series superhero universe (currently) consisting of six separate series.
Supervillain Rehabilitation Project
The first series from a timeline perspective, this series follows superheroine, Prism, as she attempts to redeem her late father’s legacy by helping his disgraced protege get back on the hero path.Â
Relapsed (Free Short Story Prequel)
Supervillain Rescue Project
This Young Adult spin-off takes place after the main series when Prism and Fade start a camp for at-risk superpowered teens and follows three new superpowered characters, Jake, Laleh, and Marco.
Power Play, now in Audio!
Supervillain Romance Project
This series follows the Park family, a separate superhero clan, as they fight villains—and sometimes date them. This series can be read independently, though later books feature crossover characters from the YA and Original Series.Â
Series Four: Superhero Romance Project
While there are some cameos from other series, this is a series of standalone romantic comedies featuring other superpowered characters from the universe and can be read independently.Â
Rescuing a Supervillain
Coming Soon: Courting a Superhero
Series Five: Supervillain Legacy Project
Set seventeen years after the original series, this YA series features children of the original heroes as well as other new young characters.Â
Game On
Coming Soon: Game Changer
Anthology: The DOSA Files, Tales from the SVR Universe
Volume I
Volume II
Volume III
Stories by multiple writers set within the world of the SVR. Stories are not necessarily canon to the universe as a whole. Â
SVR Files: Stories by other authors writing within the world of the SVR. Published and edited by H.L. Burke.Â
What Order Should You Read the Supervillain Rehabilitation Project Books?
The thing is, there is no right answer. With five separate series in the same world, I tried to write each book in a way that someone could jump right in from that starting point. If you REALLY want a list, here are four possible routes through the world.
If you're a purist, you may want to read the stories in the order they occur. This is the strict timeline for ALL the books in the Supervillain Rehabilitation Project Universe (note: The DOSA Files anthology includes multiple stories set at different points in the timeline. The short story "Rethink" is technically the earliest point in the timeline, but since the stories in this collection are not essential to the whole and they all occur in different years, I don't list it as part of the timeline. You can read it at any point).
Relapsed
Reformed
Redeemed
Reborn
Refined
Blind Date with a Supervillain
Power On
Reunion
Power Play
On the Run with a Supervillain
Power Through
Power Up
Superhero For Christmas
Superhero Ever After
Captured by a Supervillain
Engaged to a Supervillain
Accidentally a Supervillain
Second Chance Superhero
Wishing on a Supervillain
Her Fake Superhero Boyfriend
Rescuing a Supervillain
Game On
This route was actually suggested by some of my younger readers. If you are primarily a YA reader, you may want to start with the Supervillain Rescue Project teen series. Once you do, though, you may want to continue to follow that series's lead character, Jake, through his journey into adulthood. This is the route that chases Jake through his character growth from angry young man to responsible and steady husband and father.
Power On
Power Play
Power Through
Power Up
Captured by a Supervillain
Engaged to a Supervillain
Accidentally a Supervillain
Game On
(the rest whenever you get around to them)
I'm actually not a huge "twist" writer, but there are three events that happen throughout the series that can be spoiled if you read in the "wrong" order. This is the order you can take that will provide you the most surprises.
Relapsed
Reformed
Redeemed
Reborn
Refined
Blind Date with a Supervillain
On the Run with a Supervillain
Captured by a Supervillain
Power On
Reunion
Power Play
Power Through
Power Up
Engaged to a Supervillain
Accidentally a Supervillain
(you can fit the romance books anywhere, just be sure you read Wishing on a Supervillain BEFORE Game On)
So maybe you're in it JUST for the kissing books, and you don't really care about anything else. That's fine. This the route to maximize the romantic feels.
Superhero For Christmas
Superhero Ever After
Blind Date with a Supervillain
On the Run with a Supervillain
Captured by a Supervillain
Engaged to a Supervillain
Accidentally a Supervillain
Second Chance Superhero
Wishing on a Supervillain
Her Fake Superhero Boyfriend
Rescuing a Supervillain
(go back and hit the YA and main series if you feel like something less kissy/kissy)
Faith in My Superhero Books
The Supervillain Rehabilitation Project universe is set in modern America. When I started the series, I chose to make the main character, Prism, a follower/believer in my faith, Christianity, and Fade on a path towards it.
The thing is, as the world expanded, I started chasing downside characters whose faith was not my own--or who even lacked faith altogether--but who still had a story.
I'll admit, there is a temptation to just "convert" every character I love (which is most of them) to Christianity but that's not really how the world works. A few characters do get a faith journey (I chose to have Shawn and Juliet Park become Christians--mainly because I knew who I wanted Juliet to marry and I didn't think that character would be served marrying outside his faith), but for the most part, if a character doesn't start out with that foundation, I continue to write them as what they were when they first stumbled into my world.
It's not always easy writing a character outside of my worldview, and I tend to see what I do as "portraying" other worldviews rather than "promoting" them. It's important to me to approach them honestly rather than make them easy caricatures or object lessons or anything other than a "real" person (admitting they are by nature, fictional).
Thankfully, I've often had help. I had readers who consulted with me when I introduced Wildfyre with his LDS faith/background and others who walked me through Joel and Rachel Blum's Judaism. The most common, though, is ending up with characters I would consider "secular." They don't have a particular faith. They often make moral choices I wouldn't condone or espouse viewpoints I don't share.
For instance, I don't believe in sex outside of marriage, but based on the viewpoints of a lot of my characters, they would not have the same "hang-ups." I generally will STILL put barriers between them and "hooking up" so I don't write about them doing so, but I'll acknowledge if they have pasts where this would've been a thing.
The thing is, I don't think Christianity is well-served with fiction that pretends other viewpoints don't exist or only portrays them as a contrast. We're living in this world and that includes interacting with people outside our faith. I have people I very much love who don't follow my worldview, and I never want them to see themselves in my book as punching bags or laughingstock.
Now there are some viewpoints I probably couldn't portray. A truly militant atheist or someone following outright satanic beliefs... I don't think I could handle that darkness... but for people of faiths I do interact with and have seen the humanity in them even if I disagree with their spiritual, theological, or philosophical conclusions, I never want to dehumanize them.
Because of this, I'm definitely NOT writing what I would consider Christian fiction. Ironically, my current project, Rescuing a Supervillain, has some of the strongest faith/Christian themes in it, probably closer to Reunion (which is the only book where I've ever written out a conversion scene). It's a weird little niche I've carved myself because I have way more religion in my works than you usually find in "general market" fiction but other stuff that makes my work a square peg to the round hole of Christian fiction as a market.
But overall, I like where I've landed. I know I have readers of various faiths/non-faiths, and while I think the majority of my followers/readers are Christian, I think they know not to expect me to stay to the expected for that.
Anyway, long ramble but just a general statement of how I handle this for those who are following me.
All over really. If you're curious check out this map with pins indicating where various stories take place:
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1qYftXH-WI1VfB73FZOj1wU0lLR5NIHA&usp=sharingÂ
