The Songbird and the Heart of Stone

Who Fears Death

Nnedi Okorafor2010

A young woman born of violence in post-apocalyptic Africa develops magical abilities. She journeys across a desert to stop a genocidal sorcerer.

Same earnest register, still quest

pace0·prose0·bleak0

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.

earnest → dreamlike

pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

Dæmonomania

John Crowley2000

In the third book of the Aegypt cycle, characters in the 1970s and the Renaissance navigate secret histories and alchemy. It is a slow study.

earnest → meditative

pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1

Ficciones

Jorge Luis Borges1945

A collection of short stories exploring philosophical paradoxes, infinite libraries, and imaginary encyclopedias.

earnest → meditative

pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1

While It Lasts

Abbi Glines2013

A college baseball player works on a farm over the summer to avoid jail after a DUI. He falls for a woman who is grieving her late fiancé.

earnest → warm

pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

Anna's return

Marta Perry2010

An unmarried woman returns to her Amish community with an adopted baby. She seeks forgiveness while hiding the child from a violent father.

Same earnest register

pace-1·prose-1·bleak-2

Happy, Happy, Happy

Phil Robertson2013

The founder of Duck Commander recounts his life from a difficult upbringing to business success. He focuses on his faith and outdoor lifestyle.

Same earnest register

pace0·prose-1·bleak-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.

earnest → propulsive

pace+1·prose-1·bleak-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.

earnest → propulsive

pace+1·prose-1·bleak-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.

earnest → propulsive

pace+1·prose-1·bleak-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.

earnest → dreamlike

pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

Unfinished Tales

J.R.R. Tolkien1980

A collection of incomplete narratives and essays that expand the history, geography, and lore of Middle-earth.

earnest → meditative

pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

Moonwise

Greer Gilman1991

Two women are pulled into a world created by their own folk-tales. The narrative uses dense, archaic language to describe a shifting landscape.

earnest → dreamlike

pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

The Damnation Game

Clive Barker1985

An ex-con becomes a bodyguard for a billionaire who made a deal with a supernatural gambler. The debt comes due through gore and resurrection.

pace0·prose+1·bleak+1

The Black Company

Glen Cook1984

An elite mercenary unit serves an immortal sorceress. The story is told through the cynical journals of the company's doctor and historian.

earnest → grim, still dark fantasy

pace0·prose+1·bleak+1

Snow, Glass, Apples

Neil Gaiman2019

A retelling of Snow White from the stepmother's perspective. The princess is a vampiric creature and the queen struggles to protect the kingdom.

earnest → cold, still dark fantasy

pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1