Wold Newton by Philip Jose Farmer

Wold Newton is not only a real English village in Yorkshire, it's also a speculative fiction series by noted author Philip Jose Farmer which uses the real 1795 meteorite strike as a reason for providing genetic mutations to anyone passing by which gave them extraordinary abilities (which were then passed on to their descendants).

Something of a "mash-up" series, the novels feature characters both real and imagined and offer insights into classic literature from authors such as Jules Verne, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Edgar Rice Burroughs.