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After

Beg

C.D. Reiss

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

Same tense register, still erotic romance

1 more ↓

  • Freed

    E.L. James2021

    Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele marry and navigate their new life together. Christian's former lovers and business rivals threaten their safety.

    pace-1·prose0·bleak0

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·bleak+1

  • 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·bleak+1

  • 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·bleak0

To recover

tense → playful, still erotic romance

3 more ↓

  • Seducing Cinderella

    Gina L. Maxwell2012

    An orthopedic surgeon asks her brother's best friend, an MMA fighter, to help her become more confident. They enter a physical arrangement.

    tense → playful, still contemporary romance

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

  • This Man

    Jodi Ellen Malpas2013

    An interior designer begins an affair with a wealthy client who demands total control over her life and schedule.

    Same tense register, still erotic romance

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Night After Night

    Lauren Blakely2014

    A woman meets a man in a bar and agrees to a three-night arrangement. The narrative follows their sexual encounters and growing connection.

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Victory at Prescott High

    C.M. Stunich

    A high school girl seeks revenge against the boys who bullied her while navigating a complex relationship with all of them at once.

    tense → propulsive, still contemporary romance

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

  • 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·bleak0

  • Savage Prince

    Meghan March2018

    A powerful man in the New Orleans underworld becomes obsessed with a woman and pursues her despite the danger of his lifestyle.

    tense → propulsive

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

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·bleak0

  • 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+2

  • 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·bleak0

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • The Last Letter

    Rebecca Yarros2019

    A soldier returns from war to help his deceased friend's sister raise her twins in Colorado. The story is told through letters and prose.

    tense → elegiac, still contemporary romance

    pace0·prose0·bleak+2

  • Wuthering Heights

    Emily Brontë1846

    Two families on the Yorkshire moors deal with the arrival and subsequent revenge of an adopted orphan. The story is told through nested narrators.

    tense → bleak

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+2

  • A Farewell to Arms

    Ernest Hemingway1929

    An American ambulance driver and a British nurse conduct a love affair during the Italian campaign of World War I.

    tense → elegiac

    pace-1·prose0·bleak+2