After
The Player of Games
Iain Banks1988
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
6 of 6 directions open
More like it
- pace0prose0bleak0
Surface Detail
Iain Banks2010
A murdered woman is resurrected by an AI civilization to seek revenge. Meanwhile, digital hells host a virtual war over the fate of the afterlife.
Same sardonic register, still space opera
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose-1bleak0
Grimspace (Sirantha Jax # 1)
Ann Aguirre2008
A navigator with a rare genetic ability is freed from prison by rebels to help overthrow a galactic government.
Same sardonic register, still space opera
pace0·prose-1·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
Shards of Earth
Adrian Tchaikovsky2021
A telepathic pilot on a salvage ship discovers evidence that the moon-sized aliens who destroyed Earth have returned.
sardonic → tense, still space opera
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
Endymion
Dan Simmons1996
Set 274 years after a galactic collapse, a young man is tasked with protecting a messianic child from the Catholic Church. They flee across worlds.
sardonic → earnest, still space opera
pace0·prose0·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Temporal Void
Peter F. Hamilton2008
Multiple factions across the galaxy compete to influence a human pilgrimage into a black hole. The Void consumes entire star systems.
sardonic → propulsive, still space opera
pace0·prose0·bleak0
Denser prose
- pace-1prose+1bleak+1
Radiance
Catherynne M. Valente2015
A documentary filmmaker disappears on Venus in an alternate 1980s solar system. The story is told through scripts, interviews, and letters.
sardonic → dreamlike, still space opera
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace0prose+1bleak+1
Perhaps the Stars
Ada Palmer2021
A global war between ideological factions reaches its conclusion. The story is told through a dense, 18th-century style narrative voice.
sardonic → meditative, still space opera
pace0·prose+1·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose+1bleak+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.
sardonic → dreamlike
pace-2·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace-1prose+1bleak+1
Empty Space
M. John Harrison2012
Three interlocking timelines follow a widow in London, a detective in a neon city, and a pilot in deep space. The prose is dense and surreal.
sardonic → dreamlike, still space opera
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
The golden age
John C. Wright2002
In a far-future utopia, an immortal man discovers he has had his memories erased. He searches for his identity while defying a collective mind.
sardonic → meditative, still space opera
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
To recover
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
All Systems Red
Martha Wells2017
A self-aware security android hacks its own governor module to watch soap operas while protecting a team of scientists on a distant planet.
sardonic → wry, still space opera
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace0prose-2bleak-1
Star Nomad
Lindsay Buroker2016
A fighter pilot and a small crew of strangers attempt to escape a system-wide war in a freighter. It is a character-driven space adventure.
sardonic → playful, still space opera
pace0·prose-2·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose-2bleak-1
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.
sardonic → playful, still space opera
pace0·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace-1prose-1bleak-1
Saltation
Sharon Lee2010
A young pilot trains at a military academy while navigating the complex social hierarchies of the Liaden Universe. It is a coming-of-age story.
sardonic → warm, still space opera
pace-1·prose-1·bleak-1
- pace0prose-1bleak-1
Ethan of Athos
Lois McMaster Bujold1986
A doctor from an all-male planet travels into deep space to find new genetic material and encounters women for the first time.
sardonic → wry, still space opera
pace0·prose-1·bleak-1
Faster
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
All Systems Red
Martha Wells2017
A self-aware security android hacks its own governor module to watch soap operas while protecting a team of scientists on a distant planet.
sardonic → wry, still space opera
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-1bleak0
The Star Wars Trilogy
George Lucas2018
A farm boy joins a rebellion against a galactic empire. He learns to use a mystical force under the guidance of an exiled knight.
sardonic → earnest, still space opera
pace+1·prose-1·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
The Android's Dream
John Scalzi2006
A diplomat must find a specific, genetically engineered sheep to prevent an interstellar war. The story is a fast-paced, irreverent space comedy.
sardonic → playful, still space opera
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
Chilling Effect
Valerie Valdes2019
A spaceship captain completes dangerous missions to pay off a ransom for her kidnapped sister. The crew includes a pilot who is a sentient plant.
sardonic → playful, still space opera
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
The Star Kings
Edmond Hamilton1949
A 20th-century man swaps bodies with a prince 200,000 years in the future. He must lead a galactic empire against a tyrant's fleet.
sardonic → propulsive, still space opera
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
Slower
- pace-2prose+1bleak+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.
sardonic → dreamlike
pace-2·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace-2prose+1bleak0
Invisible Cities
Italo Calvino1972
Marco Polo describes fifty-five imaginary cities to Kublai Khan. The book is a series of short, prose-poem meditations on urban existence.
sardonic → meditative
pace-2·prose+1·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose+1bleak0
Beelzebub's tales to his grandson
Georges Ivanovitch Gurdjieff1950
An extraterrestrial being explains the history and strange behaviors of humanity to his grandson during a long space voyage.
sardonic → meditative
pace-2·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-1prose0bleak0
Ancillary Justice
Ann Leckie2013
A lone soldier, once the artificial intelligence of a massive starship, seeks revenge in a single human body.
sardonic → meditative, still space opera
pace-1·prose0·bleak0
- pace-1prose0bleak+1
Children of Dune
Frank Herbert1976
The twin heirs of Paul Atreides navigate political conspiracies and their own evolving biology to secure the future of the desert planet.
sardonic → meditative, still space opera
pace-1·prose0·bleak+1
Heavier
- pace0prose0bleak+2
Consider Phlebas
Iain Banks1987
A shape-shifting mercenary works for an alien empire to retrieve a rogue AI during a galactic war. He faces a series of deadly set-pieces.
sardonic → bleak, still space opera
pace0·prose0·bleak+2
- pace-1prose0bleak+2
An Exchange of Hostages
Susan R. Matthews1997
A surgeon is drafted into a space empire's corps of torturers. He tries to maintain his ethics while being trained to inflict pain.
sardonic → clinical, still space opera
pace-1·prose0·bleak+2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak+2
The Gap Into Conflict: The Real Story
Stephen R. Donaldson
A space pirate, a victim, and a police officer are trapped in a cycle of abuse and betrayal. The narrative shifts perspectives to reveal lies.
sardonic → bleak, still space opera
pace0·prose0·bleak+2
- pace0prose-1bleak+2
Star Wars - Legacy of the Force - Sacrifice
Karen Traviss2007
Jacen Solo hunts his own parents during a galactic civil war. He commits increasingly ruthless acts to secure his power as a Sith apprentice.
sardonic → bleak, still space opera
pace0·prose-1·bleak+2
- pace0prose-1bleak+2
Star Wars - The New Jedi Order - Star by Star
Troy Denning2001
Jedi strike teams infiltrate enemy space to destroy a biological weapon that tracks Force-users. The plot focuses on a high-stakes mission.
sardonic → tense, still space opera
pace0·prose-1·bleak+2
