The Touch — Harry Turtledove

A collection of short stories--by Harry Turtledove, William F. Nolan, Janet Asimov, Tananarive Due, Maggie Estep, Kit Reed, and others--documents the bizarre biological phenomenon of Deprivers, people who, for unknown reasons, possess a strange defense mechanism that can incapacitate other human beings, a situation that can cause life-threatening consequences for those who come in contact with a Depriver. Reprint.