LitQueuelitqueue

After

Age of War

Michael J. Sullivan2018

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

Same earnest register, still epic fantasy

1 more ↓

  • Magician: Apprentice

    Raymond E. Feist

    An orphan boy is apprenticed to a master magician in a fantasy world. He becomes central to a war against invaders from another rift in space.

    pace0·prose0·bleak0

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • The Light and the Dark

    Mikhail Shishkin2013

    Two lovers exchange letters that transcend time and space. One writes from a domestic life while the other writes from the front lines of a war.

    earnest → elegiac

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

  • In the Night Garden

    Catherynne M. Valente2006

    A girl with tattooed eyelids tells a prince interlocking stories of monsters and folklore. The narrative is a series of nested myths.

    earnest → dreamlike

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak0

  • The Claw of the Conciliator

    Gene Wolfe1981

    An exiled torturer travels with a gem that can heal the dead. The narrative uses archaic vocabulary and an unreliable perspective.

    earnest → dreamlike

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

To recover

Same earnest register, still epic fantasy

3 more ↓

  • The Kaiju Preservation Society

    John Scalzi2022

    A food delivery driver joins a secret organization that travels to an alternate Earth to care for massive, dinosaur-like creatures.

    earnest → playful

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Smokin' Seventeen

    Janet Evanovich2011

    A bounty hunter investigates bodies found in her boss's lot while choosing between three suitors. The story follows her daily mishaps in New Jersey.

    earnest → playful

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

  • The Martian

    Andy Weir2011

    A man does arithmetic to stay alive on Mars. Problem, attempt, result, repeat.

    earnest → wry

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Dungeon Crawler Carl

    Matt Dinniman2020

    Earth is converted into an 18-level televised death game. A man and a cat must navigate traps and monsters to survive.

    earnest → sardonic

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

  • The Stainless Steel Rat

    Harry Harrison1961

    A futuristic con man is caught by the Special Corps and forced to use his criminal skills to catch other lawbreakers.

    earnest → playful

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • 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·bleak0

Slower

3 more ↓

  • Boneland

    Alan Garner2012

    An adult Colin searches for his lost sister while an ancient shaman performs rituals in the same landscape. The two timelines mirror one another.

    earnest → elegiac

    pace-2·prose+2·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·bleak0

  • 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·bleak0

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • Last Argument of Kings

    Joe Abercrombie2008

    The Union faces internal revolt and external invasion as a dying king leaves a power vacuum. Multiple POV characters navigate a cynical war.

    earnest → bleak, still epic fantasy

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2

  • 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 epic fantasy

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2

  • The Dragon Republic

    R. F. Kuang2019

    A shaman soldier joins a rebellion to overthrow the Empress while struggling with opium addiction and a vengeful god. It mirrors Chinese history.

    earnest → tense, still epic fantasy

    pace0·prose0·bleak+2