After
Oath of Loyalty
Kyle Mills2022
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
5 of 6 directions open — nothing faster
More like it
Same propulsive register, still espionage
- pace0prose0bleak0
Protect and Defend
Vince Flynn2007
CIA operative Mitch Rapp travels to the Middle East to prevent Iranian retaliation after an Israeli strike. He works to stop a terrorist plot.
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
Use of force
Brad Thor2017
Navy SEAL Scot Harvath is hired to track a missing terrorist after a body washes up in Italy. He works outside the law to stop a summer attack.
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
Warriors
Ted Bell2014
Spy Alex Hawke attempts to rescue a kidnapped scientist while the United States and China move toward nuclear war.
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
One Rough Man
Brad Taylor2011
A former covert operator discovers a terrorist plot involving a powerful weapon. He works outside the law to stop the attack.
pace0·prose0·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak-1
The President Is Missing
Bill Clinton2018
The U.S. President goes underground to stop a cyberattack that threatens to wipe out the nation's electrical and financial infrastructure.
Same propulsive register, still political thriller
pace0·prose0·bleak-1
Denser prose
- pace-2prose+3bleak+1
The Doves Necklace
Raja Alem2014
A detective investigates an unidentified woman's body found in a Mecca alleyway. The city itself narrates parts of the story.
propulsive → dreamlike
pace-2·prose+3·bleak+1
- pace-2prose+3bleak+1
My Name Is Red
Orhan Pamuk
In 1591 Istanbul, miniaturists investigate a colleague's murder. Objects and colors narrate chapters alongside the human characters.
propulsive → meditative
pace-2·prose+3·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose+3bleak+1
Amberes
Roberto Bolaño2002
A fragmented series of fifty-six short sections follows a police officer, a redhead, and a hunchback through a series of loosely linked crimes.
propulsive → cold
pace-2·prose+3·bleak+1
- pace-3prose+3bleak0
Blood on the dining-room floor
Gertrude Stein1948
A repetitive, circular narrative about a death in a country house. It uses experimental prose to obscure the facts of a traditional mystery.
propulsive → playful
pace-3·prose+3·bleak0
- pace-2prose+3bleak+2
American Psycho
Bret Easton Ellis1991
A wealthy investment banker details his daily routines, consumer habits, and graphic murders. The narrative is cold and repetitive.
propulsive → cold
pace-2·prose+3·bleak+2
To recover
- pace-1prose+1bleak-1
The Princess Bride
William Goldman1973
A farm boy seeks to rescue his true love from a prince. The story is presented as an abridged version of a fictional historical text.
propulsive → playful
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+1bleak-1
Double Cross
Ben Macintyre2012
A history of the double agents who deceived the German high command before D-Day. It focuses on five spies and their handlers.
propulsive → wry, still espionage
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose0bleak-1
Dark Lover
J. R. Ward2005
A vampire king seeks revenge against the slayers who killed his parents while protecting a woman discovering her own supernatural heritage.
Same propulsive register
pace-1·prose0·bleak-1
- pace-1prose0bleak-1
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
pace-1·prose0·bleak-1
- pace-1prose0bleak-1
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
pace-1·prose0·bleak-1
Slower
- pace-3prose+3bleak0
Blood on the dining-room floor
Gertrude Stein1948
A repetitive, circular narrative about a death in a country house. It uses experimental prose to obscure the facts of a traditional mystery.
propulsive → playful
pace-3·prose+3·bleak0
- pace-3prose+3bleak+1
Dhalgren
Samuel R. Delany1975
An amnesiac wanderer enters Bellona, a city cut off from the world where time and geography shift. He joins a gang and writes poetry.
propulsive → dreamlike
pace-3·prose+3·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-3prose+3bleak-1
Gödel, Escher, Bach
Douglas R. Hofstadter1979
An exploration of how cognition emerges from hidden neurological patterns. It uses math, art, and music to explain self-referential systems.
propulsive → playful
pace-3·prose+3·bleak-1
- pace-3prose+3bleak0
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.
propulsive → playful
pace-3·prose+3·bleak0
- pace-3prose+3bleak+1
A maça no escuro
Clarice Lispector1961
A man flees into the Brazilian interior believing he killed his wife. He works on a remote farm while navigating his own internal monologue.
propulsive → meditative
pace-3·prose+3·bleak+1
Heavier
- pace-1prose+1bleak+2
Never
Ken Follett2021
Global leaders and intelligence officers struggle to prevent a series of small international incidents from escalating into a nuclear world war.
propulsive → tense, still political thriller
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+2
- pace-1prose+2bleak+2
Libra
Don DeLillo1988
A fictionalized biography of Lee Harvey Oswald. It follows his life and the CIA conspiracy that leads to the assassination of JFK.
propulsive → eerie, still political thriller
pace-1·prose+2·bleak+2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+1bleak+2
Red April
Santiago Roncagliolo2009
A prosecutor in 2000s Peru investigates a series of gruesome murders during Holy Week. He uncovers a conspiracy involving the military and rebels.
propulsive → bleak, still political thriller
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+2
- pace-2prose+2bleak+2
Moneyland
Oliver Bullough2018
This nonfiction work tracks how global elites use offshore accounts and shell companies to hide wealth. It follows the history of money laundering.
propulsive → tense, still political thriller
pace-2·prose+2·bleak+2
- pace-2prose+3bleak+2
American Psycho
Bret Easton Ellis1991
A wealthy investment banker details his daily routines, consumer habits, and graphic murders. The narrative is cold and repetitive.
propulsive → cold
pace-2·prose+3·bleak+2