After
Troubles
J. G. Farrell1970
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
6 of 6 directions open
More like it
- pace0prose-1bleak0
The Battle of Pollocks Crossing
J. L. Carr1985
A young English teacher spends a year in 1920s South Dakota. He encounters a series of local eccentrics and escalating frontier violence.
Same wry register, still historical fiction
pace0·prose-1·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Siege of Krishnapur
J. G. Farrell1973
British residents in a 19th-century Indian outpost face a violent uprising. The story tracks the physical and social decay of the community.
wry → sardonic, still historical fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
Good Behaviour
Molly Keane1981
A woman recalls her youth in an Anglo-Irish manor, where the strict social codes of the gentry mask cruelty and financial ruin.
wry → sardonic, still historical fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Long Song
Andrea Levy2010
An elderly woman in Jamaica narrates her life as a house slave on a sugar plantation. She describes the 1831 Baptist War and the end of slavery.
Same wry register, still historical fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Dog
Joseph O'Neill2014
A lawyer moves to Dubai to manage the finances of a wealthy family after a breakup. He spends his time overthinking his moral and legal complicity.
Same wry register, still satire
pace0·prose0·bleak0
Denser prose
- pace0prose+1bleak0
Gravity's Rainbow
Thomas Pynchon1973
During the end of WWII, an American lieutenant's sexual encounters seem to predict where German V-2 rockets will fall. The narrative is fragmented.
wry → sardonic, still historical fiction
pace0·prose+1·bleak0
- pace+1prose+1bleak+1
A Brief History of Seven Killings
Marlon James2014
A large cast of characters recounts the 1976 attempt on Bob Marley's life. The narrative spans decades and moves from Jamaica to New York.
wry → propulsive, still historical fiction
pace+1·prose+1·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
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Absalom, Absalom!
William Faulkner1936
The rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen is recounted through multiple, conflicting memories. The prose uses extremely long, complex sentences.
wry → elegiac, still historical fiction
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace0prose+1bleak+1
The Wake
Paul Kingsnorth2014
A landowner in 1066 leads a guerrilla resistance against Norman invaders. The story is written in a modified version of Old English.
wry → bleak, still historical fiction
pace0·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace-1prose+1bleak-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.
wry → playful
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1
To recover
wry → playful, still satire
- pace+1prose-2bleak-2
Year zero
Reid, Robert2012
Aliens discover that Earth's music is the best in the galaxy and they owe humanity trillions in copyright fines.
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-2bleak-2
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.
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-2bleak-2
Twelve Sharp
Janet Evanovich2006
Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum is stalked by a mysterious woman while investigating a murder linked to her associate, Ranger.
wry → playful
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-2bleak-2
Rich People Problems
Kevin Kwan2017
An extended family gathers in Singapore as their matriarch lies dying. They scheme against one another to inherit a massive estate.
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-2bleak-2
Wielding a Red Sword
Piers Anthony1986
An Indian prince avoids an arranged marriage by accepting the supernatural office of War. He wields a sword that draws him into a conflict in Hell.
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2
Faster
- pace+2prose-1bleak-1
Candide
Voltaire
A naive young man travels the world while his tutor insists that everything is for the best. He encounters a series of global catastrophes.
wry → sardonic, still satire
pace+2·prose-1·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-2bleak-2
Dial A for Aunties
Jesse Q. Sutanto2021
A photographer accidentally kills her blind date. Her mother and aunties help hide the body during a massive luxury wedding.
wry → playful
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-2bleak-1
Get Jiro!
Anthony Bourdain2012
In a future Los Angeles, master chefs rule as warlords. A sushi chef who kills rude customers is caught between two warring food factions.
wry → sardonic, still satire
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-1bleak0
Child 44
Tom Rob Smith2008
A Soviet security officer investigates a serial killer in a state that officially claims murder does not exist.
wry → tense
pace+2·prose-1·bleak0
- pace+2prose-2bleak-2
The Da Vinci Code
Dan Brown2003
A symbologist and a cryptologist flee the police while solving puzzles hidden in art. They search for a secret regarding the Holy Grail.
wry → propulsive
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-2
Slower
wry → elegiac, still historical fiction
- pace-1prose+1bleak+1
Absalom, Absalom!
William Faulkner1936
The rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen is recounted through multiple, conflicting memories. The prose uses extremely long, complex sentences.
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace-1prose0bleak0
The English Patient
Michael Ondaatje1992
Four people shelter in a ruined Italian villa at the end of WWII. They care for a burned, anonymous man who recounts his past in the desert.
pace-1·prose0·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+1bleak-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.
wry → playful
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
The Pale King
David Foster Wallace2011
An unfinished, experimental novel about the mundane daily operations of an IRS processing center in 1985 Illinois.
wry → sardonic, still satire
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
Umbrella
Will Self2013
A psychiatrist in 1971 treats a woman who has been catatonic for decades. The prose shifts between eras and consciousnesses without paragraph breaks.
wry → clinical
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
Heavier
wry → bleak, still historical fiction
- pace0prose-1bleak+1
A Fine Balance
Rohinton Mistry1995
Four people from different castes share a small apartment during the 1975 Indian Emergency. Their lives are upended by state-sanctioned violence.
pace0·prose-1·bleak+1
- pace0prose0bleak+1
The Confessions of Nat Turner
William Styron1967
A fictionalized confession of the leader of an 1831 slave revolt while he awaits execution in a Virginia jail cell.
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak+1
The Known World
Edward P. Jones2003
A black man who was once a slave becomes a slave owner in antebellum Virginia. The story follows the fallout on the plantation after his death.
wry → meditative, still historical fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
- pace0prose0bleak+1
A Long Long Way
Sebastian Barry2005
A young Irishman joins the British Army to fight in the trenches of World War I while his home country moves toward rebellion.
wry → elegiac, still historical fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
- pace0prose0bleak+1
Brotherless Night
V. V. Ganeshananthan2023
A young woman in Sri Lanka tries to study medicine while her brothers join militant groups during the civil war. It covers a decade of conflict.
wry → elegiac, still historical fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
