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After

Total control

David Baldacci1996

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

1 more ↓

  • The Firm

    John Grisham1991

    A young lawyer joins a high-paying law firm only to discover it is a front for the mob and the FBI wants him to inform on them.

    Same propulsive register, still legal thriller

    pace+1·prose0·bleak0

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • Amberes

    Roberto Bolaño2002

    A fragmented series of fifty-six short sections follows a police officer, a redhead, and a hunchback through a series of loosely linked crimes.

    propulsive → cold

    pace-1·prose+3·bleak+1

  • 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.

    propulsive → playful

    pace-2·prose+3·bleak0

  • American Psycho

    Bret Easton Ellis1991

    A wealthy investment banker details his daily routines, consumer habits, and graphic murders. The narrative is cold and repetitive.

    propulsive → cold

    pace-1·prose+3·bleak+2

To recover

3 more ↓

  • The Sentinel

    Lee Child2020

    A drifter helps an IT manager targeted by criminals after a cyberattack. He uses physical force to protect the man and uncover a conspiracy.

    Same propulsive register

    pace0·prose0·bleak-1

  • Plum Lucky

    Janet Evanovich2007

    Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum chases a man who stole a horse and a bag of money. Her grandmother and a mysterious ally join the pursuit.

    propulsive → playful

    pace0·prose0·bleak-1

  • Saucer (Nova Audio Books)

    Stephen Coonts2002

    A college student discovers a flying saucer buried in the Sahara Desert and must keep it out of the hands of a billionaire and the military.

    Same propulsive register, still techno-thriller

    pace0·prose+1·bleak-1

Faster

Same propulsive register, still techno-thriller

3 more ↓

  • The Firm

    John Grisham1991

    A young lawyer joins a high-paying law firm only to discover it is a front for the mob and the FBI wants him to inform on them.

    Same propulsive register, still legal thriller

    pace+1·prose0·bleak0

  • Runner

    Patrick Lee2014

    A retired special forces operative protects a young girl with no memory from armed government agents. The plot is a high-speed chase.

    pace+1·prose0·bleak0

  • Deception Point

    Dan Brown2001

    An intelligence analyst is sent to the Arctic to verify a NASA discovery. She finds evidence of a hoax that threatens the presidential election.

    pace+1·prose0·bleak0

Slower

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    propulsive → playful

    pace-2·prose+3·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.

    propulsive → playful

    pace-2·prose+3·bleak0

  • A maça no escuro

    Clarice Lispector1961

    A man flees into the Brazilian interior believing he killed his wife. He works on a remote farm while navigating his own internal monologue.

    propulsive → meditative

    pace-2·prose+3·bleak+1

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • Sharp Objects

    Gillian Flynn2006

    A reporter returns to her hometown to cover the murders of two girls while grappling with her own history of self-harm.

    propulsive → tense

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2

  • In Cold Blood

    Truman Capote1965

    A reconstruction of the 1959 murder of a Kansas family and the subsequent investigation. It follows both the victims and the killers.

    propulsive → clinical

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+2

  • Lord of the Flies

    William Golding1954

    Schoolboys are stranded on an island and try to organize a society. Order collapses into tribalism and violence.

    propulsive → tense

    pace0·prose+2·bleak+2