LitQueuelitqueue

After

Art in the blood

Bonnie MacBird2015

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

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  • The Venus Throw

    Steven Saylor1995

    In 56 B.C., Gordianus the Finder investigates the murder of his former teacher. The search leads through the political underworld of Rome.

    Same wry register, still historical mystery

    pace0·prose0·bleak0

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • The Name of the Rose

    Umberto Eco1983

    A friar and his novice investigate a series of murders at an Italian monastery in 1327. Much of the text covers theological debate.

    wry → meditative, still historical mystery

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

  • Blood on the dining-room floor

    Gertrude Stein1948

    A repetitive, circular narrative about a death in a country house. It uses experimental prose to obscure the facts of a traditional mystery.

    wry → playful

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

  • The Doves Necklace

    Raja Alem2014

    A detective investigates an unidentified woman's body found in a Mecca alleyway. The city itself narrates parts of the story.

    wry → dreamlike

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

To recover

3 more ↓

  • The Lost Symbol

    Dan Brown2009

    Symbologist Robert Langdon follows a trail of Masonic puzzles through Washington D.C. monuments to save his kidnapped mentor.

    wry → propulsive

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Walking Disaster

    Jamie McGuire2013

    This novel retells the events of 'Beautiful Disaster' from the perspective of Travis Maddox. It follows his college years and obsession with Abby.

    wry → propulsive

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Killer Blonde

    Laura Levine2004

    A freelance writer investigates a murder in the Hamptons after a socialite is killed. She balances the case with her work for a demanding boss.

    wry → playful

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

Faster

3 more ↓

  • The Housemaid's Secret

    Freida McFadden2023

    A housemaid with a criminal record takes a job for a wealthy couple. She becomes obsessed with the wife she is forbidden from seeing.

    wry → propulsive

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

  • Behind Closed Doors

    B.A. Paris2016

    A woman is held captive by her husband in a high-security home. She must find a way to escape before her sister moves in with them.

    wry → propulsive

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

  • Kiss the Girls

    James Patterson1995

    Detective Alex Cross tracks two serial killers operating on opposite coasts who are communicating and competing with one another.

    wry → tense

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak+1

Slower

3 more ↓

  • Gödel, Escher, Bach

    Douglas R. Hofstadter1979

    An exploration of how cognition emerges from hidden neurological patterns. It uses math, art, and music to explain self-referential systems.

    wry → playful

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

  • Ulysses

    James Joyce1914

    Three characters wander through Dublin on a single day in 1904. Each chapter uses a different literary style to mimic thoughts and sensations.

    wry → playful

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

  • A maça no escuro

    Clarice Lispector1961

    A man flees into the Brazilian interior believing he killed his wife. He works on a remote farm while navigating his own internal monologue.

    wry → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak+1

Heavier

wry → bleak, still historical mystery

3 more ↓

  • American Psycho

    Bret Easton Ellis1991

    A wealthy investment banker details his daily routines, consumer habits, and graphic murders. The narrative is cold and repetitive.

    wry → cold

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+2

  • Sharp Objects

    Gillian Flynn2006

    A reporter returns to her hometown to cover the murders of two girls while grappling with her own history of self-harm.

    wry → tense

    pace0·prose0·bleak+2

  • In Cold Blood

    Truman Capote1965

    A reconstruction of the 1959 murder of a Kansas family and the subsequent investigation. It follows both the victims and the killers.

    wry → clinical

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+2