LitQueuelitqueue

After

The hundredth man

Jack Kerley2004

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

Same tense register, still thriller

1 more ↓

  • Die again

    Tess Gerritsen2014

    A Boston detective and a pathologist track a killer whose methods mirror a massacre on an African safari years prior.

    pace0·prose0·bleak0

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    tense → playful

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-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.

    tense → dreamlike

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak0

  • American Psycho

    Bret Easton Ellis1991

    A wealthy investment banker details his daily routines, consumer habits, and graphic murders. The narrative is cold and repetitive.

    tense → cold

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

To recover

tense → propulsive, still thriller

3 more ↓

  • A Veiled Deception

    Annette Blair2009

    A vintage shop owner investigates a murder during her sister's wedding preparations to clear her family's name.

    tense → playful

    pace-1·prose-1·bleak-2

  • Orchard Valley Grooms

    Debbie Macomber2010

    Three sisters return to their Oregon hometown after their father's heart attack. The first story follows Valerie and her father's surgeon.

    tense → warm

    pace-1·prose-1·bleak-2

  • It Starts with Us

    Colleen Hoover2022

    A single mother navigates a new relationship with her first love while managing a jealous ex-husband. The story alternates perspectives.

    tense → earnest

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Memory Man

    David Baldacci2015

    A detective with a brain injury that prevents him from forgetting anything hunts for the person who murdered his family.

    tense → propulsive, still thriller

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

  • Mind prey

    John Sandford1995

    Detective Lucas Davenport hunts a kidnapper who records his victims' terror. The story alternates between the investigator and the criminal.

    Same tense register, still thriller

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • The Fourth Monkey

    J.D. Barker

    A detective hunts a serial killer who sends ears and eyes to his victims' families. The story alternates between the chase and the killer's diary.

    Same tense register, still thriller

    pace+1·prose0·bleak0

Slower

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    tense → playful

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-2

  • 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

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-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.

    tense → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

Heavier

tense → bleak, still police procedural

3 more ↓

  • Broken Harbor

    Tana French2012

    A detective investigates a family murdered in a failed housing development. The story focuses on the investigator's mental unraveling.

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1

  • Shadow Man

    Cody McFadyen2006

    An FBI agent with a traumatic past tracks a serial killer who targets families. The narrative details extreme physical and psychological torture.

    Same tense register, still police procedural

    pace0·prose0·bleak+1

  • Phantom

    Jo Nesbø

    Harry Hole returns to Oslo to clear his stepson of a murder charge. He descends into the city's drug scene to find the real killer.

    pace0·prose0·bleak+1