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After

Ashes of Chaos

Amelia Hutchins2020

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

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  • The Darkest Seduction

    Gena Showalter2012

    A warrior possessed by the spirit of Doubt must choose between his duty and a woman who is his natural enemy. It is a paranormal romance.

    Same tense register, still paranormal romance

    pace0·prose0·bleak-1

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • Madame Bovary

    Gustave Flaubert1856

    A doctor's wife in provincial France seeks escape from her mundane life through expensive tastes and extramarital affairs.

    Same tense register

    pace0·prose+2·bleak0

  • Paradise Logic

    Sophie Kemp2025

    A young woman follows advice from a magazine to become a perfect partner. Her quest involves surreal jobs and messages from the beyond.

    tense → epic

    pace0·prose+2·bleak0

  • Mad Mabel

    Sally Hepworth2025

    An eighty-one-year-old woman with a history of killing people tries to hide her past when a curious young girl moves into the neighborhood.

    tense → dark

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

To recover

3 more ↓

  • Electric Idol

    Katee Robert2022

    In a modern-day Olympus, Eros is ordered to kill Psyche but chooses to enter a fake marriage with her to protect her from his mother.

    tense → playful, still paranormal romance

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

  • Fantasy Lover

    Sherrilyn Kenyon2002

    A Spartan warrior cursed to be a love-slave inside a book is summoned by a modern woman. She takes him into the world to live as a man.

    tense → earnest, still paranormal romance

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

  • A Quick Bite

    Lynsay Sands2005

    A vampire who faints at the sight of blood finds a psychologist tied to her bed as a gift. They navigate his kidnapping and her family dynamics.

    tense → playful, still paranormal romance

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Quantum Radio

    A.G. Riddle2023

    A scientist at CERN discovers a signal from a parallel universe. He must flee a conspiracy while exploring the implications of the data.

    tense → propulsive

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Ill Wind

    Rachel Caine2003

    A weather warden on the run from the law uses her ability to control storms to protect people from rogue elemental forces.

    tense → propulsive, still paranormal romance

    pace+1·prose0·bleak-1

  • Paper Princess

    Erin Watt2016

    An orphaned girl is taken in by a wealthy family with five hostile sons. She must navigate high school bullying and mansion politics.

    tense → propulsive, still enemies to lovers

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

Slower

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    tense → playful

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

  • Absalom, Absalom!

    William Faulkner1936

    The rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen is recounted through multiple, conflicting memories. The prose uses extremely long, complex sentences.

    tense → elegiac

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak+1

  • Either/Or

    Søren Kierkegaard1992

    A collection of papers presents two life philosophies: the aesthetic pursuit of pleasure and the ethical commitment to duty.

    tense → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • Tess of the D’Urbervilles

    Thomas Hardy

    A country girl is sent to claim kinship with wealthy relatives. Her life is derailed by a sequence of social betrayals and rigid moral standards.

    tense → elegiac

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1

  • Brokeback Mountain

    Annie Proulx1997

    Two ranch hands begin a secret sexual and emotional relationship in 1963 Wyoming. The story follows their occasional meetings over twenty years.

    tense → elegiac

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1

  • Bright Side

    Kim Holden2014

    An optimistic college student moves to Minnesota for a fresh start while hiding a terminal diagnosis from her best friend.

    tense → tender

    pace0·prose0·bleak+1