After
The Firebrand
Marion Zimmer Bradley1987
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
6 of 6 directions open
More like it
Same elegiac register, still mythic fiction
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Forest House
Marion Zimmer Bradley1994
In Roman-occupied Britain, a Druid's daughter becomes a High Priestess while hiding her love for a Roman soldier.
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Witch's Heart
Genevieve Gornichec2021
The Norse giantess Angrboda survives being burned by Odin and raises three unique children in the forest. It follows her life through Ragnarok.
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Forest House
Diana L. Paxson1994
In Roman-occupied Britain, a young woman is trained as a priestess while torn between her duty and her love for a Roman officer.
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose+1bleak0
Mother of Kings
Poul Anderson2001
A fictionalized biography of Gunnhild Mother of Kings. It follows her from childhood training in sorcery to her rise in Viking-era politics.
pace0·prose+1·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose+1bleak0
Roma Mater
Karen Anderson1986
A Roman centurion deserts his legion and becomes the King of Ys, a magical city ruled by nine queens. He must navigate prophecy and ritual.
pace0·prose+1·bleak0
Denser prose
- pace0prose+2bleak-1
Soldier of Sidon
Gene Wolfe2006
A mercenary in ancient Egypt loses his memory every time he sleeps. He records his days in a scroll while interacting with gods and spirits.
elegiac → meditative, still mythic fiction
pace0·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+2bleak-1
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.
elegiac → dreamlike, still mythic fiction
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+2bleak0
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 mythic fiction
pace-1·prose+2·bleak0
- pace-1prose+2bleak-1
Love & Sleep
John Crowley1994
Pierce Moffett researches the history of magic while living in a small town. The narrative shifts between his life and the Renaissance.
elegiac → meditative, still historical fantasy
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+2bleak0
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, still mythic fiction
pace-1·prose+2·bleak0
To recover
- pace+1prose-1bleak-2
Warrior Rising
P.C. Cast2008
Goddesses transport a modern woman to ancient Troy to seduce and distract Achilles. It is a lighthearted fish-out-of-water romance.
elegiac → playful
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-1bleak-2
Being a Green Mother
Piers Anthony1987
Orb, the daughter of Fate, assumes the role of Nature. She uses her magical songs to manage the world's ecology and confront a demonic threat.
elegiac → earnest, still mythic fiction
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-1bleak-2
Neon Gods
Katee Robert2021
In a modern city-state, Persephone flees an arranged marriage to Zeus by entering the underworld. She strikes a deal with Hades to stay there.
elegiac → tense, still mythic fiction
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-1bleak-2
Sorceress of Darshiva
David Eddings1989
A group of companions travels across a continent to stop an ancient evil. The story relies on banter and established high-fantasy archetypes.
elegiac → playful
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-1bleak-2
Redshirts
John Scalzi2012
Low-ranking crew members on a starship realize they are disposable characters in a sci-fi television show. They attempt to escape their fate.
elegiac → playful
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2
Faster
- pace+2prose-1bleak-1
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.
elegiac → sardonic
pace+2·prose-1·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-1bleak-2
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-1·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-1bleak-1
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-1·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-1bleak-1
The Atlantis Gene
A.G. Riddle2013
A geneticist and a counter-terrorism agent uncover a global conspiracy involving human evolution and an ancient Antarctic discovery.
elegiac → propulsive
pace+2·prose-1·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-1bleak-1
Monster Hunter International
Larry Correia2007
An accountant kills his boss, who has become a werewolf, and is recruited by a private company that hunts monsters for government bounties.
elegiac → propulsive
pace+2·prose-1·bleak-1
Slower
elegiac → dreamlike, still mythic fiction
- pace-1prose+2bleak-1
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.
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+2bleak0
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.
pace-1·prose+2·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+2bleak-1
Love & Sleep
John Crowley1994
Pierce Moffett researches the history of magic while living in a small town. The narrative shifts between his life and the Renaissance.
elegiac → meditative, still historical fantasy
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+2bleak0
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, still mythic fiction
pace-1·prose+2·bleak0
- pace-1prose+2bleak-1
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+2·bleak-1
Heavier
- pace0prose0bleak+1
Mees, kes teadis ussisõnu
Andrus Kivirähk2015
A boy in medieval Estonia learns the ancient language of snakes to command animals as his forest culture is erased by Christian invaders.
Same elegiac register, still mythic fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
- pace+1prose+1bleak+1
The Burning God
R.F. Kuang2020
A general leads a peasant army in a civil war across a fantasy version of China. She grapples with her sanity and the influence of a fire god.
elegiac → bleak, still historical fantasy
pace+1·prose+1·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose+1bleak+1
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·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace+1prose+1bleak+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·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace+1prose0bleak+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·prose0·bleak+1
