After
The Yiddish Policemen's Union
Michael Chabon2007
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
6 of 6 directions open
More like it
- pace0prose0bleak0
Pasquale's Angel
Paul J. McAuley1994
In an alternate Renaissance Florence where Leonardo da Vinci's inventions sparked an industrial revolution, a painter investigates a murder.
Same wry register, still alternate history
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace+1prose0bleak0
Titanium Noir
Nick Harkaway2023
A detective investigates the murder of a Titan, a genetically enhanced elite who is nearly impossible to kill. It is a hardboiled mystery.
wry → sardonic, still noir
pace+1·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Baroque Cycle
Neal Stephenson2003
A three-volume epic follows alchemists, thieves, and courtiers during the scientific revolution. It tracks the birth of modern finance and logic.
Same wry register, still conspiracy
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace+1prose0bleak0
Cahokia Jazz
Francis Spufford2023
In an alternate 1920s where a Native American city thrives, a detective investigates a ritualistic murder that threatens a race war.
wry → tense, still noir
pace+1·prose0·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak+1
Carlucci's Heart
Richard Paul Russo1997
A police officer in a decaying San Francisco investigates a series of murders linked to a corporate conspiracy and a mysterious heart.
wry → bleak, still noir
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
Denser prose
- pace-1prose+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.
wry → dreamlike
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace0prose+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.
wry → dreamlike, still alternate history
pace0·prose+1·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose+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.
wry → dreamlike
pace0·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace0prose+1bleak+1
In Green's Jungles
Gene Wolfe2000
A narrator travels to different worlds while his physical form and memories shift. He recounts past voyages to prove his identity to his companions.
wry → elegiac
pace0·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace0prose+1bleak+1
All Those Vanished Engines
Paul Park2014
Three linked stories follow the Park family through an alternate history where the American Civil War ended in a two-nation settlement.
wry → dreamlike, still alternate history
pace0·prose+1·bleak+1
To recover
wry → playful
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
Twenties Girl
Sophie Kinsella2009
Lara is visited by the ghost of her great-aunt Sadie, who appears as a 1920s flapper. They search for a missing necklace and chase a former lover.
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
Bad Girl Reputation
Elle Kennedy2022
A former party girl returns to her coastal hometown for a funeral and tries to avoid her ex-boyfriend. They struggle to maintain their distance.
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
Truly, Madly
Heather Webber2010
A woman with the psychic ability to find lost objects takes over her family's matchmaking business. She teams up with a cynical private investigator.
wry → playful, still mystery
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
Vampires Are Forever
Lynsay Sands2008
A woman suspects her business partner is a vampire after he attempts to bite her. He tries to convince her they are fated mates.
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
The Mane Event
Shelly Laurenston2007
A female cop reunites with a childhood friend who is now a lion-shifter. They navigate a romantic attraction while he pursues her in New York.
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
Faster
- pace+2prose-1bleak0
The Demolished Man
Alfred Bester1953
In a future where telepathic police make premeditated crime impossible, a businessman plans a murder. He uses a catchy song to block his thoughts.
wry → propulsive, still noir
pace+2·prose-1·bleak0
- pace+2prose-2bleak-1
The Martian
Andy Weir2011
A man does arithmetic to stay alive on Mars. Problem, attempt, result, repeat.
Same wry register
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-2bleak-1
Ready Player One
Ernest Cline2008
A teenager in a dystopian future hunts for a digital easter egg inside a massive simulation. The quest relies on 1980s pop culture trivia.
wry → propulsive
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-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.
Same wry register
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-2bleak0
Skin Game
Jim Butcher2014
Wizard Harry Dresden joins a team of villains to rob a vault in the Underworld. It is a fast-paced heist set in a modern fantasy Chicago.
wry → propulsive
pace+2·prose-2·bleak0
Slower
- pace-1prose+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.
wry → dreamlike
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace-1prose+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.
wry → meditative
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+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.
wry → meditative
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
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.
wry → playful, still mystery
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-1prose0bleak0
Hav
Jan Morris2006
A travel writer describes the culture and history of a fictional Mediterranean city-state before and after a massive political upheaval.
wry → elegiac, still alternate history
pace-1·prose0·bleak0
Heavier
- pace0prose0bleak+2
A Scanner Darkly
Philip K. Dick1977
An undercover narcotics agent in a near-future California becomes addicted to the drug he is investigating and begins to spy on himself.
wry → bleak, still noir
pace0·prose0·bleak+2
- pace+1prose0bleak+2
Watchmen
Dave Gibbons1986
Retired costumed vigilantes investigate a conspiracy after one of their own is murdered. The story uses a comic-within-a-comic and backmatter.
wry → cold, still noir
pace+1·prose0·bleak+2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose0bleak+2
Elvissey
Jack Womack1993
Travelers from a corporate dystopia visit an alternate 1954 to kidnap Elvis Presley. They find a version of him that is dangerous and unstable.
wry → bleak, still alternate history
pace+1·prose0·bleak+2
- pace+1prose0bleak+2
The Gone World
Tom Sweterlitsch2018
An investigator travels to possible futures to solve a murder and stop an approaching apocalypse. The timeline changes based on her observations.
wry → bleak, still noir
pace+1·prose0·bleak+2
- pace+1prose0bleak+2
Noir
K. W. Jeter1998
An investigator navigates a corporate-owned city where people trade in simulated experiences and legal technicalities.
wry → sardonic, still noir
pace+1·prose0·bleak+2
