Chatterton

Flying to Nowhere

John Fuller1983

A bishop's representative visits a remote Welsh island to investigate a series of disappearances. He finds a doctor dissecting pilgrims.

wry → dreamlike, still historical fiction

pace0·prose0·bleak+1

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.

wry → sardonic, still historical fiction

pace0·prose+1·bleak+1

The Mirror and the Light

Hilary Mantel2020

Thomas Cromwell navigates the final four years of his life in Henry VIII's court. He attempts to maintain power as his allies and influence erode.

wry → elegiac, still historical fiction

pace0·prose+1·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-1·prose+1·bleak0

Tuesdays with Morrie

Mitch Albom1994

A journalist reconnects with his dying college professor for weekly lessons on life. They discuss aging, regret, and love as the professor declines.

wry → tender

pace0·prose-2·bleak-1

Steal Like an Artist

Austin Kleon2012

A series of short, illustrated principles for creative work. It focuses on remixing existing ideas and establishing productive daily habits.

wry → playful

pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1

Big Magic

Elizabeth Gilbert2015

The author shares her philosophy on the creative process through personal anecdotes. It focuses on overcoming fear and pursuing curiosity.

wry → warm

pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1

Tell No One

Harlan Coben2000

A widower receives an email from his wife eight years after her murder. He flees the FBI to discover if she is still alive.

wry → propulsive, still mystery

pace+2·prose-2·bleak0

Ten Big Ones

Janet Evanovich2004

Stephanie Plum witnesses a gang hit and becomes a target herself. She balances the threat with her ongoing romantic indecision.

wry → playful, still mystery

pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1

Private Vegas

James Patterson2015

Jack Morgan investigates a man who trains women to become killers in Las Vegas. The story follows multiple perspectives in short chapters.

wry → propulsive, still mystery

pace+2·prose-2·bleak0

The English Patient

Michael Ondaatje1992

Four people shelter in a ruined Italian villa at the end of WWII. They care for a burned, anonymous man who recounts his past in the desert.

pace-1·prose0·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-1·prose+1·bleak0

Lila

Marilynne Robinson2014

A woman with a traumatic, nomadic past settles in a small Iowa town and marries a minister. She struggles to reconcile her history with his faith.

wry → tender, still historical fiction

pace-1·prose0·bleak0

The Confessions of Nat Turner

William Styron1967

A fictionalized confession of the leader of an 1831 slave revolt while he awaits execution in a Virginia jail cell.

pace0·prose0·bleak+2

The Known World

Edward P. Jones2003

A black man who was once a slave becomes a slave owner in antebellum Virginia. The story follows the fallout on the plantation after his death.

wry → meditative, still historical fiction

pace0·prose0·bleak+2

A Long Long Way

Sebastian Barry2005

A young Irishman joins the British Army to fight in the trenches of World War I while his home country moves toward rebellion.

wry → elegiac, still historical fiction

pace0·prose0·bleak+2