After
Beelzebub's tales to his grandson
Georges Ivanovitch Gurdjieff1950
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
4 of 6 directions open — nothing denser, nothing slower
More like it
Same meditative register, still science fiction
- pace+1prose-1bleak0
Chronosequence
Hilbert Schenck1988
An American academic in England discovers a series of 19th-century documents that hint at an impending alien contact event.
pace+1·prose-1·bleak0
- pace+1prose-1bleak0
Star-begotten
H. G. Wells1937
A historian becomes convinced that Martians are using cosmic rays to alter human genes. He begins to see evidence of a new, superior species.
pace+1·prose-1·bleak0
- pace+1prose-2bleak0
Gravity dreams
L. E. Modesitt, Jr.1999
After nanotechnology alters his body, a religious conservative is exiled to a high-tech society where he trains as a starship pilot.
pace+1·prose-2·bleak0
- pace+1prose-2bleak0
Visitors
Orson Scott Card2014
Time-travelers split up to prevent Earth from destroying their colony planet. One travels across his world while his double heads for Earth.
pace+1·prose-2·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose0bleak+1
Embassytown
China Miéville2011
On a distant planet, humans coexist with aliens whose language is literal truth. A new arrival threatens the fragile linguistic balance.
pace+1·prose0·bleak+1
To recover
meditative → playful, still science fiction
- pace+3prose-3bleak-1
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.
pace+3·prose-3·bleak-1
- pace+3prose-3bleak-1
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.
pace+3·prose-3·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-3bleak-1
The Last Question
Isaac Asimov2007
A short story told in seven vignettes spanning billions of years. Humanity asks a supercomputer if the heat death of the universe can be avoided.
Same meditative register, still science fiction
pace+2·prose-3·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-3bleak-1
Dream Park
Steven Barnes1981
A security chief investigates a real death during a high-stakes holographic role-playing game. The story tracks the game mechanics and the murder.
meditative → propulsive, still science fiction
pace+2·prose-3·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-2bleak-1
Fugitive Telemetry
Martha Wells2021
A security android discovers a dead body on a space station and must work with human authorities to solve the murder without being blamed.
meditative → sardonic, still science fiction
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1
Faster
- pace+3prose-3bleak-1
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.
meditative → playful, still science fiction
pace+3·prose-3·bleak-1
- pace+3prose-3bleak0
The Lake House
James Patterson
A veterinarian and an FBI agent protect six genetically engineered children who can fly. They are pursued by a global conspiracy.
meditative → propulsive, still science fiction
pace+3·prose-3·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+3prose-2bleak+1
Logan's run
William F. Nolan1967
In a future where everyone is executed at age 21, an enforcer becomes a fugitive. He attempts to reach a rumored sanctuary.
meditative → tense, still science fiction
pace+3·prose-2·bleak+1
- pace+3prose-2bleak0
Influx
Daniel Suarez2014
A physicist invents a gravity-reflecting device and is imprisoned by a secret agency that suppresses technology. He plots a high-tech escape.
meditative → propulsive, still science fiction
pace+3·prose-2·bleak0
- pace+3prose-2bleak0
Star Wars Episode VII - The Force Awakens
Alan Dean Foster2001
A scavenger and a defecting soldier join the fight against a new galactic power. They search for a missing hero from the previous generation.
meditative → propulsive, still science fiction
pace+3·prose-2·bleak0
Heavier
- pace+1prose-1bleak+2
Hard to be a god
Аркадий Стругацкий2014
An observer from a technologically advanced Earth lives undercover on a planet stuck in a medieval state. He must watch atrocities without helping.
meditative → bleak, still science fiction
pace+1·prose-1·bleak+2
- pace+2prose-2bleak+2
The Jaunt
Stephen King2009
A father explains the history of teleportation to his family while they wait to travel. He describes the danger of being awake during the trip.
meditative → tense, still science fiction
pace+2·prose-2·bleak+2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+3prose-1bleak+2
Hellspark
Janet Kagan1988
A linguist travels to a new planet to investigate a murder. She must determine if the local species is sentient while navigating a conspiracy.
meditative → tense, still science fiction
pace+3·prose-1·bleak+2
- pace+3prose-2bleak+2
The Running Man
Richard Bachman
A man enters a deadly reality show to fund medical care for his daughter. He must survive thirty days while the entire world hunts him for money.
meditative → propulsive, still science fiction
pace+3·prose-2·bleak+2
- pace+1prose-1bleak+2
Strangers
Gardner Dozois1978
An artist living among the alien Cian on a distant planet falls in love with a local woman and attempts to navigate their incompatible biology.
meditative → elegiac, still science fiction
pace+1·prose-1·bleak+2
