After
A Stranger in Olondria
Sofia Samatar2013
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
5 of 6 directions open — nothing denser
More like it
- pace0prose0bleak+1
The Winged Histories
Sofia Samatar2016
Four women—a soldier, a scholar, a socialite, and a singer—navigate a civil war. The story is told through their distinct, lyrical perspectives.
Same elegiac register, still literary fantasy
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
- pace0prose-1bleak+1
The Greener Shore
Morgan Llywelyn2006
After the Roman conquest of Gaul, the druid Ainvar leads his people to Ireland to establish a new home and preserve their traditions.
Same elegiac register, still fish out of water
pace0·prose-1·bleak+1
- pace0prose0bleak0
Dæmonomania
John Crowley2000
In the third book of the Aegypt cycle, characters in the 1970s and the Renaissance navigate secret histories and alchemy. It is a slow study.
elegiac → meditative, still literary fantasy
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose-1bleak+1
Saint of Bright Doors
Vajra Chandrasekera2023
A man trained by his mother to assassinate his divine father flees to a city of magical doors. He joins a support group for people with similar pasts.
elegiac → meditative, still literary fantasy
pace0·prose-1·bleak+1
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Last Light of the Sun
Guy Gavriel Kay2004
Viking raiders, Welsh-inspired tribes, and Anglo-Saxons clash in a world where the fae interfere. It follows several families over years.
Same elegiac register
pace0·prose0·bleak0
To recover
- pace0prose-3bleak-1
This Girl
Colleen Hoover2013
A husband retells the story of his early relationship to his wife. It uses dual timelines to revisit events from the first book in the series.
elegiac → earnest
pace0·prose-3·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-3bleak-1
The Score
Elle Kennedy2016
A college senior has a one-night stand with a hockey player to get over a breakup. They continue the arrangement as graduation approaches.
elegiac → playful
pace+1·prose-3·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-3bleak-1
To Sir Phillip, With Love
Julia Quinn2003
Eloise Bridgerton travels to meet a widowed baronet she has only known through letters. They consider a marriage of convenience.
elegiac → warm
pace+1·prose-3·bleak-1
- pace0prose-3bleak-1
All Rhodes Lead Here
Mariana Zapata2021
A woman moves back to her Colorado hometown after a breakup and rents a garage apartment from a grumpy single father.
elegiac → warm
pace0·prose-3·bleak-1
- pace0prose-3bleak-1
Hannah's List
Debbie Macomber2010
A widower receives a letter from his late wife suggesting three women he should date. He begins to interact with each woman over the following year.
elegiac → warm
pace0·prose-3·bleak-1
Faster
- pace+2prose-3bleak0
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.
elegiac → sardonic
pace+2·prose-3·bleak0
- pace+2prose-3bleak-1
The Stainless Steel Rat
Harry Harrison1961
A futuristic con man is caught by the Special Corps and forced to use his criminal skills to catch other lawbreakers.
elegiac → playful
pace+2·prose-3·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-3bleak0
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.
elegiac → propulsive
pace+2·prose-3·bleak0
- pace+2prose-3bleak0
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.
elegiac → propulsive
pace+2·prose-3·bleak0
- pace+2prose-3bleak0
Monster Hunter International
Larry Correia2007
An accountant kills his boss, who has become a werewolf, and is recruited by a private company that hunts monsters for government bounties.
elegiac → propulsive
pace+2·prose-3·bleak0
Slower
- pace-1prose0bleak0
Endless Things
John Crowley2007
A scholar travels to Europe to find a secret history of magic hidden within real-world myths. This is the conclusion of a four-book cycle.
elegiac → meditative, still literary fantasy
pace-1·prose0·bleak0
- pace-1prose0bleak+1
Boneland
Alan Garner2012
An adult Colin searches for his lost sister while an ancient shaman performs rituals in the same landscape. The two timelines mirror one another.
Same elegiac register
pace-1·prose0·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose0bleak0
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.
elegiac → dreamlike
pace-1·prose0·bleak0
- pace-1prose0bleak0
Unfinished Tales
J.R.R. Tolkien1980
A collection of incomplete narratives and essays that expand the history, geography, and lore of Middle-earth.
elegiac → meditative
pace-1·prose0·bleak0
- pace-1prose0bleak0
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.
elegiac → dreamlike
pace-1·prose0·bleak0
Heavier
- pace+1prose-1bleak+2
The Fifth Season
N. K. Jemisin2015
A mother searches for her daughter across a continent undergoing a tectonic apocalypse. Some chapters address the reader in the second person.
elegiac → bleak
pace+1·prose-1·bleak+2
- pace+1prose-2bleak+2
Pet Sematary
Stephen King1983
A family moves to Maine and discovers a burial ground that can return the dead to life. They use it, and the consequences are absolute.
elegiac → tense
pace+1·prose-2·bleak+2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-2bleak+2
The Poppy War
R.F. Kuang2018
A war orphan enters a military academy and discovers shamanic powers. She leads a unit into a total war inspired by 20th-century Chinese history.
elegiac → bleak
pace+1·prose-2·bleak+2
- pace+1prose-1bleak+2
The Traitor Baru Cormorant
Seth Dickinson2015
An accountant infiltrates the empire that conquered her home to destroy it from within. She uses economics and politics as her primary weapons.
elegiac → cold
pace+1·prose-1·bleak+2
- pace+1prose-1bleak+2
Song of Kali
Dan Simmons1985
An American poet travels to Calcutta to find a manuscript by a dead writer. He encounters a cult that worships the goddess of destruction.
elegiac → bleak
pace+1·prose-1·bleak+2
