Siege

Swan Song

Robert R. McCammon1987

Survivors of a nuclear holocaust travel across a ruined America. A girl with life-giving powers is hunted by a shapeshifting manifestation of evil.

Same tense register, still post-apocalyptic

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Gormenghast

Mervyn Peake1950

A young heir and a social climber navigate the rigid rituals of a decaying, labyrinthine castle. The prose is dense and descriptive.

tense → dark

pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner

James Hogg1824

A religious fanatic becomes convinced he is predestined for salvation and commits crimes at the behest of a mysterious stranger.

tense → cold

pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

Ghost Stories

Henry James2001

A collection of Victorian tales where the existence of ghosts is often left to the reader's interpretation.

tense → meditative

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Alpine for you

Maddy Hunter2003

A woman leads a group of senior citizens on a tour of the Swiss Alps. When a passenger dies, she must investigate her fellow travelers.

pace-1·prose-1·bleak-2

The Kaiju Preservation Society

John Scalzi2022

A food delivery driver joins a secret organization that travels to an alternate Earth to care for massive, dinosaur-like creatures.

tense → playful, still found family

pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2

Smokin' Seventeen

Janet Evanovich2011

A bounty hunter investigates bodies found in her boss's lot while choosing between three suitors. The story follows her daily mishaps in New Jersey.

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The Walking Dead, Book Six

Robert Kirkman2010

Survivors of a zombie plague attempt to build a community in a fortified neighborhood. The focus is on group politics and interpersonal conflict.

tense → bleak, still post-apocalyptic

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28 Days Later

Alex Garland2002

A man wakes from a coma to find London deserted and overrun by humans infected with a rage virus. He joins a small group of survivors.

tense → bleak, still post-apocalyptic

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The Fall

Thomas A. Watson

A survivalist uses his preparation and skills to protect his family during a sudden global collapse. The focus is on tactical defense.

tense → earnest, still post-apocalyptic

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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.

tense → playful

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Absalom, Absalom!

William Faulkner1936

The rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen is recounted through multiple, conflicting memories. The prose uses extremely long, complex sentences.

tense → elegiac

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Either/Or

Søren Kierkegaard1992

A collection of papers presents two life philosophies: the aesthetic pursuit of pleasure and the ethical commitment to duty.

tense → meditative

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Autumn

David Moody2011

A viral outbreak kills billions, and the corpses begin to move. Two groups of survivors with different philosophies are forced to work together.

tense → bleak, still post-apocalyptic

pace-1·prose0·bleak+1

One

Conrad Williams2009

A man walks across a scorched, post-apocalyptic Britain to find his son. He encounters red rain, ruins, and cannibalism.

tense → bleak, still post-apocalyptic

pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1

Resistance

William C. Dietz2009

In 1951, an American soldier joins the British resistance against an evolving alien species that has conquered Europe. It is a military war story.

Same tense register, still post-apocalyptic

pace+1·prose0·bleak+1