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After

Darkdawn

Jay Kristoff2019

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

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  • The Third Kingdom

    Terry Goodkind2013

    A wizard loses his magic and must stop a death-infected conspiracy in the northern Dark Lands. He relies on his sword and wits to save his allies.

    propulsive → tense, still dark fantasy

    pace0·prose-1·bleak0

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • The Light and the Dark

    Mikhail Shishkin2013

    Two lovers exchange letters that transcend time and space. One writes from a domestic life while the other writes from the front lines of a war.

    propulsive → elegiac

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak0

  • 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.

    propulsive → dreamlike

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

  • Ficciones

    Jorge Luis Borges1945

    A collection of short stories exploring philosophical paradoxes, infinite libraries, and imaginary encyclopedias.

    propulsive → meditative

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

To recover

3 more ↓

  • Hot mahogany

    Stuart Woods2008

    A lawyer guards a former spy with amnesia who restores antique furniture. They uncover a conspiracy linked to the man's service in Vietnam.

    propulsive → wry

    pace0·prose-2·bleak-2

  • Assistant to the Villain

    Hannah Nicole Maehrer2023

    A woman takes a job as an administrative assistant to a local villain to support her family. She manages his office while ignoring his evil deeds.

    propulsive → playful

    pace0·prose-2·bleak-2

  • Fearless Fourteen

    Janet Evanovich2008

    A bounty hunter searches for a missing bank robber while a stoner guards a cop's house. The plot involves a hidden nine-million-dollar fortune.

    propulsive → playful

    pace0·prose-2·bleak-2

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Dungeon Crawler Carl

    Matt Dinniman2020

    Earth is converted into an 18-level televised death game. A man and a cat must navigate traps and monsters to survive.

    propulsive → sardonic

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1

  • 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.

    propulsive → playful

    pace+1·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.

    Same propulsive register

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1

Slower

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    propulsive → dreamlike

    pace-2·prose+1·bleak-1

  • Unfinished Tales

    J.R.R. Tolkien1980

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

    propulsive → meditative

    pace-2·prose+1·bleak-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.

    propulsive → dreamlike

    pace-2·prose+1·bleak-1

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • We Dream of Gods

    Devin Madson2022

    Four protagonists navigate the collapse of empires as a god returns to the world. The story concludes a series defined by total war and betrayal.

    propulsive → bleak, still dark fantasy

    pace0·prose0·bleak+1

  • Forge of darkness

    Steven Erikson2012

    A civil war begins in an ancient realm of darkness. The narrative follows aristocrats and soldiers as their society fractures into factions.

    propulsive → elegiac, still dark fantasy

    pace-1·prose0·bleak+1

  • Queen of the Conquered

    Kacen Callender2019

    A noblewoman with mind-control powers enters a royal competition to kill the colonizers who murdered her family.

    propulsive → bleak, still dark fantasy

    pace-1·prose0·bleak+1