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After

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

Mark Twain1889

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More like it

Same sardonic register, still satire

1 more ↓

  • Compulsory

    Martha Wells

    A security android hacks its own governor module to gain free will. It hides its sentience while continuing to protect its human clients.

    Same sardonic register, still science fiction

    pace0·prose0·bleak-1

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • In the Night Garden

    Catherynne M. Valente2006

    A girl with tattooed eyelids tells a prince interlocking stories of monsters and folklore. The narrative is a series of nested myths.

    sardonic → dreamlike

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1

  • Ficciones

    Jorge Luis Borges1945

    A collection of short stories exploring philosophical paradoxes, infinite libraries, and imaginary encyclopedias.

    sardonic → meditative

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1

  • Love & Sleep

    John Crowley1994

    Pierce Moffett researches the history of magic while living in a small town. The narrative shifts between his life and the Renaissance.

    sardonic → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

To recover

3 more ↓

  • Starter Villain

    John Scalzi2023

    A substitute teacher inherits his uncle's secret supervillain business, including a volcano lair and talking cats.

    sardonic → wry

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

  • Factfulness

    Hans Rosling2018

    A data-driven look at global trends in poverty, health, and education. It uses statistics to correct common misconceptions about the world.

    sardonic → earnest

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

  • Playing with Fire

    Gena Showalter2006

    A barista gains elemental superpowers after being poisoned and must flee from a government agent. They eventually work together to escape.

    sardonic → playful

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Dungeon Crawler Carl

    Matt Dinniman2020

    Earth is converted into an 18-level televised death game. A man and a cat must navigate traps and monsters to survive.

    Same sardonic register

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Mind's Eye

    Douglas E. Richards2014

    A man discovers he has the ability to access the internet and process data directly with his mind. He is hunted by a secret organization.

    sardonic → propulsive

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • The Atlantis Gene

    A.G. Riddle2013

    A geneticist and a counter-terrorism agent uncover a global conspiracy involving human evolution and an ancient Antarctic discovery.

    sardonic → propulsive

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

Slower

3 more ↓

  • The Habitation of the Blessed

    Catherynne M. Valente2010

    A priest finds the lost kingdom of Prester John. The story is told through three nested layers of journals, myths, and historical accounts.

    sardonic → dreamlike

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

  • Moonwise

    Greer Gilman1991

    Two women are pulled into a world created by their own folk-tales. The narrative uses dense, archaic language to describe a shifting landscape.

    sardonic → dreamlike, still portal fantasy

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

  • Unfinished Tales

    J.R.R. Tolkien1980

    A collection of incomplete narratives and essays that expand the history, geography, and lore of Middle-earth.

    sardonic → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • The Vengeance of Rome

    Michael Moorcock2006

    Pyat, an unreliable narrator and Nazi sympathizer, travels through the 1930s. He observes the rise of fascism while remaining self-deluded.

    Same sardonic register, still satire

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1

  • The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever (The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, #1-3)

    Stephen R. Donaldson

    A man with leprosy is transported to a magical realm where he is a prophesied savior. He refuses to believe the world is real.

    sardonic → bleak, still portal fantasy

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1

  • The Sub: A Study in Witchcraft

    Thomas M. Disch1999

    A substitute teacher discovers she has the power of witchcraft. She uses her abilities to manipulate her small town as her sanity deteriorates.

    Same sardonic register, still satire

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+1