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Damiano

R. A. MacAvoy1984

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More like it

Same elegiac register, still historical fantasy

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  • Damiano's Lute

    R. A. MacAvoy1984

    A lutenist travels through a plague-stricken 14th-century Europe with a dog and the archangel Raphael. The Black Death is a central presence.

    pace0·prose0·bleak0

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • Endless Things

    John Crowley2007

    A scholar travels to Europe to find a secret history of magic hidden within real-world myths. This is the conclusion of a four-book cycle.

    elegiac → meditative, still historical fantasy

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

  • The Tourmaline

    Paul Park2006

    A girl from our world navigates a magical, alternate-history Europe where Romania is a superpower. The narrative is dense and non-linear.

    elegiac → dreamlike, still historical fantasy

    pace0·prose+1·bleak0

  • The Wandering Unicorn

    Manuel Mujica Lainez1965

    A shapeshifting fairy falls in love with a medieval knight and follows him through the Crusades. The prose is dense and formal.

    elegiac → dreamlike, still historical fantasy

    pace0·prose+1·bleak-1

To recover

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    elegiac → playful

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-2

  • The perfect Christmas

    Debbie Macomber2009

    A woman hires a grumpy matchmaker to find a husband. He assigns her three tasks to complete before he will introduce her to his chosen candidate.

    elegiac → warm

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

  • Big Magic

    Elizabeth Gilbert2015

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

    elegiac → warm

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

Faster

3 more ↓

  • The Stainless Steel Rat

    Harry Harrison1961

    A futuristic con man is caught by the Special Corps and forced to use his criminal skills to catch other lawbreakers.

    elegiac → playful

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-2

  • Mind's Eye

    Douglas E. Richards2014

    A man discovers he has the ability to access the internet and process data directly with his mind. He is hunted by a secret organization.

    elegiac → propulsive

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1

  • Warbound

    Larry Correia2013

    In an alternate 1930s, people with magical abilities fight a war against a trans-dimensional threat. It is the final book in a trilogy.

    elegiac → propulsive, still historical fantasy

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1

Slower

3 more ↓

  • Cloud & Ashes: Three Winter's Tales

    Greer Gilman2009

    A triptych of stories set in a mythic Yorkshire, told in dense, archaic dialect. It follows the intersections of folk magic and celestial myth.

    elegiac → dreamlike, still historical fantasy

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak0

  • 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.

    Same elegiac register

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak0

  • Unfinished Tales

    J.R.R. Tolkien1980

    A collection of incomplete narratives and essays that expand the history, geography, and lore of Middle-earth.

    elegiac → meditative

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • The sad tale of the brothers Grossbart

    Jesse Bullington2009

    Two murderous brothers travel across 14th-century Europe to rob Egyptian tombs. They encounter monsters and religious zealots along the way.

    elegiac → sardonic, still historical fantasy

    pace+1·prose0·bleak+1

  • 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.

    elegiac → bleak

    pace+1·prose0·bleak+1

  • Pet Sematary

    Stephen King1983

    A family moves to Maine and discovers a burial ground that can return the dead to life. They use it, and the consequences are absolute.

    elegiac → tense

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak+1