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After

The Redemption of Time

Baoshu2019

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

Same meditative register, still hard sci-fi

1 more ↓

  • Probability Moon

    Nancy Kress2000

    Scientists study a planet where the inhabitants are biologically incapable of lying, while a hostile alien race threatens humanity.

    meditative → tense, still hard sci-fi

    pace0·prose0·bleak0

Denser prose

meditative → dreamlike, still space opera

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    Same meditative register, still space opera

    pace0·prose+2·bleak0

  • City of Saints and Madmen

    Jeff Vandermeer2001

    A collection of stories, histories, and pamphlets about the city of Ambergris. It uses found documents to build a surreal urban history.

    meditative → dreamlike

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak0

  • The Fractal Prince

    Hannu Rajaniemi2012

    A post-human thief is sent to Earth to steal a memory from a city made of digital ghosts. The prose uses dense, unexplained jargon.

    meditative → dreamlike, still hard sci-fi

    pace0·prose+2·bleak-1

To recover

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    meditative → playful, still space opera

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

  • Foundation's Edge

    Isaac Asimov1982

    Two factions search for a hidden planet and the origin of humanity. The plot follows political maneuvering and scientific deduction.

    meditative → propulsive, still hard sci-fi

    pace0·prose0·bleak-2

  • Walking Disaster

    Jamie McGuire2013

    This novel retells the events of 'Beautiful Disaster' from the perspective of Travis Maddox. It follows his college years and obsession with Abby.

    meditative → propulsive

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

Faster

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    meditative → playful, still space opera

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2

  • Project Hail Mary

    Andy Weir2021

    A man wakes up on a spaceship with amnesia and two dead crewmates. He must use scientific experiments to remember his mission and save the sun.

    meditative → propulsive, still hard sci-fi

    pace+1·prose0·bleak-2

  • 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.

    meditative → propulsive, still space opera

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2

Slower

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    Same meditative register

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

  • Children of Memory

    Adrian Tchaikovsky2023

    Advanced humans and uplifted animals observe a failing colony on a harsh planet. The story explores memory and the nature of consciousness.

    Same meditative register, still hard sci-fi

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

  • White Mars, or, The mind set free

    Brian W. Aldiss1999

    A group of scientists and thinkers attempts to establish a utopian society on Mars after Earth is cut off by a global catastrophe.

    meditative → earnest, still hard sci-fi

    pace-2·prose+1·bleak-2

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • Flood

    Stephen Baxter2008

    The sea level rises globally due to water leaking from the Earth's crust. Four former hostages watch as civilization slowly drowns over decades.

    meditative → clinical, still hard sci-fi

    pace0·prose0·bleak+1

  • Echopraxia

    Peter Watts2014

    A biologist is caught on a mission toward the sun alongside a pilot and a group of transhuman monks. It explores consciousness and evolution.

    meditative → bleak, still hard sci-fi

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

  • Beyond the Aquila Rift

    Alastair Reynolds2001

    A spaceship crew wakes from cold sleep to find they have overshot their destination by light-years. They must face the reality of their location.

    meditative → bleak, still hard sci-fi

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+1