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After

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars

Christopher Paolini2020

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

Same earnest register, still space opera

1 more ↓

Denser prose

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.

    earnest → meditative, still space opera

    pace0·prose+2·bleak+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.

    earnest → elegiac

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+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.

    earnest → dreamlike, still space opera

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

To recover

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    earnest → playful

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-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.

    earnest → playful

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-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.

    earnest → playful, still space opera

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

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.

    earnest → playful, still space opera

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-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.

    earnest → propulsive, still space opera

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • 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.

    Same earnest register, still space opera

    pace+1·prose0·bleak0

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.

    earnest → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

  • Gödel, Escher, Bach

    Douglas R. Hofstadter1979

    An exploration of how cognition emerges from hidden neurological patterns. It uses math, art, and music to explain self-referential systems.

    earnest → playful

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

  • Ulysses

    James Joyce1914

    Three characters wander through Dublin on a single day in 1904. Each chapter uses a different literary style to mimic thoughts and sensations.

    earnest → playful

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    earnest → clinical, still space opera

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+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.

    earnest → bleak, still space opera

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2

  • Dark Age

    Pierce Brown2019

    An outlawed revolutionary fights a losing war on Mercury while an exiled heir attempts to reclaim a space empire. It is a violent military epic.

    earnest → propulsive, still space opera

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2