After
The Memory Police
Yoko Ogawa1994
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
5 of 6 directions open — nothing heavier
More like it
- pace0prose0bleak0
J
Howard Jacobson2014
In a future where a past catastrophe is never named, two people with mysterious origins begin a relationship under constant surveillance.
elegiac → cold, still dystopian
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak-1
I Am Homeless if This Is Not My Home
Lorrie Moore2024
A teacher visits his dying ex-girlfriend in a hospice before taking a road trip with her reanimated corpse.
Same elegiac register, still literary
pace0·prose0·bleak-1
- pace0prose-1bleak-1
Never Let Me Go
Kazuo Ishiguro2005
Students at an isolated boarding school grow up and realize the specific, grim purpose for which they were created. They do not rebel.
Same elegiac register, still dystopian
pace0·prose-1·bleak-1
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Alchemy of Stone
Ekaterina Sedia2008
An alchemist automaton is caught in a political struggle between gargoyles and her creators. She must find a way to wind her own heart key.
Same elegiac register
pace0·prose0·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak0
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.
Same elegiac register
pace0·prose0·bleak0
Denser prose
- pace0prose+1bleak-1
The Claw of the Conciliator
Gene Wolfe1981
An exiled torturer travels with a gem that can heal the dead. The narrative uses archaic vocabulary and an unreliable perspective.
elegiac → dreamlike
pace0·prose+1·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+1bleak-2
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
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+1bleak-1
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
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1
- pace0prose+1bleak-1
Tours of the Black Clock
Steve Erickson1989
A ghostwriter for Hitler's private pornography lives in a surreal version of the 20th century where history and memory blur.
elegiac → dreamlike
pace0·prose+1·bleak-1
- pace0prose+1bleak-2
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.
elegiac → dreamlike
pace0·prose+1·bleak-2
To recover
- pace0prose-2bleak-3
This Time Together: Laughter and Reflection
Carol Burnett2010
The comedian shares anecdotes from her career in television and film. The book is a series of short chronological reflections.
elegiac → warm
pace0·prose-2·bleak-3
- pace+1prose-2bleak-3
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-2·bleak-3
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-2bleak-3
The Da Vinci Code
Dan Brown2003
A symbologist and a cryptologist flee the police while solving puzzles hidden in art. They search for a secret regarding the Holy Grail.
elegiac → propulsive
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-3
- pace+1prose-2bleak-3
Fifty Shades of Grey
E.L. James2000
A college student enters a sexual contract with a wealthy businessman. The story focuses on their power dynamics and BDSM encounters.
elegiac → earnest
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-3
- pace+2prose-2bleak-3
The Martian
Andy Weir2011
A man does arithmetic to stay alive on Mars. Problem, attempt, result, repeat.
elegiac → wry
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-3
Faster
- pace+2prose-2bleak-2
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-2·bleak-2
- pace+2prose-2bleak-3
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-2·bleak-3
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-2bleak-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.
elegiac → propulsive
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-2
- pace+2prose-2bleak-2
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-2·bleak-2
- pace+2prose-2bleak-2
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-2·bleak-2
Slower
- pace-1prose+1bleak-2
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
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-2
- pace-1prose+1bleak-1
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
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+1bleak-2
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
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-2
- pace-1prose+1bleak-2
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+1·bleak-2
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
Translated Accounts
James Kelman2001
Anonymous witnesses describe life under a military regime. The prose uses broken, bureaucratic syntax to mimic a literal translation.
elegiac → bleak, still dystopian
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
