After
Being a Green Mother
Piers Anthony1987
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
5 of 6 directions open — nothing to recover from
More like it
- pace0prose+1bleak+1
Jack of Kinrowan
Charles de Lint1995
A young woman discovers she is part of a hidden world of faerie folklore existing alongside modern Ottawa.
Same earnest register, still mythic fiction
pace0·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace0prose+1bleak+1
Words of Radiance
Brandon Sanderson2014
Multiple protagonists navigate a world-ending storm and a war against an ancient race. An assassin targets world leaders using gravity magic.
Same earnest register, still chosen one
pace0·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace0prose0bleak0
Pawn of Prophecy
David Eddings1982
A farm boy travels with a storyteller and a sorceress to recover a stolen magical orb. It is a traditional quest through various kingdoms.
Same earnest register, still chosen one
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace-1prose+1bleak+1
Cast in Sorrow
Michelle Sagara2013
Kaylin Neya returns to the High Court of the Barrani to investigate a series of murders. She must navigate immortal politics to stop a killer.
Same earnest register, still urban fantasy
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose+1bleak+1
The Measure of the Magic
Terry Brooks2011
A young Knight of the Word must use a powerful black staff to defend a valley of refugees from an invading army and a demonic presence.
Same earnest register, still chosen one
pace0·prose+1·bleak+1
Denser prose
- pace-1prose+3bleak+1
In the Night Garden
Catherynne M. Valente2006
A girl with tattooed eyelids tells a prince interlocking stories of monsters and folklore. The narrative is a series of nested myths.
earnest → dreamlike, still mythic fiction
pace-1·prose+3·bleak+1
- pace-1prose+3bleak+1
Soldier of Sidon
Gene Wolfe2006
A mercenary in ancient Egypt loses his memory every time he sleeps. He records his days in a scroll while interacting with gods and spirits.
earnest → meditative, still mythic fiction
pace-1·prose+3·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose+3bleak+2
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.
earnest → elegiac, still mythic fiction
pace-2·prose+3·bleak+2
- pace-1prose+3bleak+2
Vellum
Hal Duncan2005
Humans transformed into angels and demons fight across a multiverse for a book that controls reality. The narrative jumps through time and myth.
earnest → dreamlike, still mythic fiction
pace-1·prose+3·bleak+2
- pace-1prose+3bleak+2
The Dragon and the Unicorn
A. A. Attanasio1994
A celestial being takes human form to engineer the birth of King Arthur. The narrative spans centuries and involves gods, demons, and atoms.
earnest → meditative, still mythic fiction
pace-1·prose+3·bleak+2
Faster
earnest → propulsive, still urban fantasy
- pace+1prose+1bleak+1
Touch the dark
Karen Chance2006
A clairvoyant woman is forced to work for a vampire senator to escape a mob boss. She navigates a supernatural underworld with high-speed action.
pace+1·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace+1prose+1bleak+2
Battle Ground
Jim Butcher2020
A wizard leads the supernatural defense of Chicago against an invading army led by a Titan. The book is a single, continuous battle.
pace+1·prose+1·bleak+2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose+1bleak+2
Blood Engines
Tim Pratt2007
A sorceress who uses blood magic to power her spells defends her city from a rival. She makes ruthless choices to maintain her power.
earnest → sardonic, still urban fantasy
pace+1·prose+1·bleak+2
- pace+1prose+1bleak+1
Sandman Slim
Richard Kadrey2009
A magician crawls out of Hell to hunt the people who murdered his girlfriend in Los Angeles. He uses black magic and a stolen shotgun.
earnest → sardonic, still urban fantasy
pace+1·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace+1prose+1bleak+1
Hunted
Kevin Hearne2011
A druid and his apprentice flee across Europe while being hunted by Artemis, Diana, and Loki.
pace+1·prose+1·bleak+1
Slower
- pace-2prose+3bleak+2
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.
earnest → elegiac, still mythic fiction
pace-2·prose+3·bleak+2
- pace-2prose+3bleak+1
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.
earnest → dreamlike, still mythic fiction
pace-2·prose+3·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose+3bleak+1
Love & Sleep
John Crowley1994
Pierce Moffett researches the history of magic while living in a small town. The narrative shifts between his life and the Renaissance.
earnest → meditative
pace-2·prose+3·bleak+1
- pace-2prose+3bleak+1
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.
earnest → dreamlike, still mythic fiction
pace-2·prose+3·bleak+1
- pace-2prose+3bleak+1
Unfinished Tales
J.R.R. Tolkien1980
A collection of incomplete narratives and essays that expand the history, geography, and lore of Middle-earth.
earnest → meditative
pace-2·prose+3·bleak+1
Heavier
- pace0prose+2bleak+3
A Dirty Job
Christopher Moore2006
A beta-male widower is forced to become a Soul Merchant. He collects glowing objects from the dying while avoiding ancient monsters.
earnest → dark, still urban fantasy
pace0·prose+2·bleak+3
- pace-1prose+2bleak+3
The Alchemy of Stone
Ekaterina Sedia2008
An alchemist automaton is caught in a political struggle between gargoyles and her creators. She must find a way to wind her own heart key.
earnest → elegiac, still urban fantasy
pace-1·prose+2·bleak+3
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+1bleak+3
Mees, kes teadis ussisõnu
Andrus Kivirähk2015
A boy in medieval Estonia learns the ancient language of snakes to command animals as his forest culture is erased by Christian invaders.
earnest → elegiac, still mythic fiction
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+3
- pace0prose+1bleak+3
A Matter of Blood
Sarah Pinborough2010
A detective investigates a serial killer in a London plagued by a failing economy and a supernatural virus. The tone is consistently grim.
earnest → bleak, still urban fantasy
pace0·prose+1·bleak+3
- pace0prose+2bleak+3
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.
earnest → bleak
pace0·prose+2·bleak+3
