LitQueuelitqueue

After

Atlas Shrugged

Ayn Rand1957

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

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  • The Lady of the Rivers

    Philippa Gregory2011

    Jacquetta of Luxembourg navigates the English court, marries for love after being widowed, and serves Queen Margaret of Anjou.

    Same earnest register

    pace0·prose0·bleak0

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • Gravity's Rainbow

    Thomas Pynchon1973

    During the end of WWII, an American lieutenant's sexual encounters seem to predict where German V-2 rockets will fall. The narrative is fragmented.

    earnest → sardonic

    pace0·prose+2·bleak+1

  • A Brief History of Seven Killings

    Marlon James2014

    A large cast of characters recounts the 1976 attempt on Bob Marley's life. The narrative spans decades and moves from Jamaica to New York.

    earnest → propulsive

    pace+1·prose+2·bleak+2

  • 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.

    earnest → playful

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak0

To recover

3 more ↓

  • On a Pale Horse

    Piers Anthony1983

    After accidentally killing the personification of Death, a man must take over the office. He navigates the bureaucracy of the afterlife.

    earnest → playful

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Apprentice to the Villain

    Hannah Nicole Maehrer2024

    Evie Sage assists an evil overlord while a magical threat endangers their kingdom. The story follows their workplace dynamic and a looming siege.

    earnest → playful

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything

    Steven D. Levitt

    An economist uses data to investigate the incentives behind real-world phenomena like cheating teachers and falling crime rates.

    earnest → wry

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Pines

    Blake Crouch2012

    A Secret Service agent searches for missing colleagues in an Idaho town he cannot leave. The townspeople and physics itself seem to work against him.

    earnest → tense, still dystopian

    pace+2·prose-1·bleak+1

  • Get Jiro!

    Anthony Bourdain2012

    In a future Los Angeles, master chefs rule as warlords. A sushi chef who kills rude customers is caught between two warring food factions.

    earnest → sardonic, still dystopian

    pace+2·prose-1·bleak0

  • Child 44

    Tom Rob Smith2008

    A Soviet security officer investigates a serial killer in a state that officially claims murder does not exist.

    earnest → tense

    pace+2·prose0·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.

    earnest → playful

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak0

  • A Fable

    William Faulkner1954

    During WWI, a French corporal leads a mutiny that halts the fighting. The narrative mirrors the events of the Passion of Christ.

    earnest → meditative, still philosophical fiction

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

  • In Search of Lost Time

    Marcel Proust2001

    A narrator examines his life through involuntary memories triggered by sensory experiences. It spans seven volumes of social observation.

    earnest → meditative, still philosophical fiction

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak0

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • The New Wilderness

    Diane Cook2020

    A mother and daughter join a group living in the last remaining wilderness to escape a polluted city. They must survive the land and each other.

    earnest → bleak, still dystopian

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2

  • To Paradise

    Hanya Yanagihara2022

    Three stories set in 1893, 1993, and 2093 explore alternate versions of New York. Characters deal with illness, family legacies, and totalitarianism.

    earnest → elegiac, still dystopian

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2

  • Oryx and Crake

    Margaret Atwood2003

    A man survives a genetic apocalypse in a world of engineered creatures. He remembers his past with a scientist and the woman they both loved.

    earnest → sardonic, still dystopian

    pace+1·prose+1·bleak+2