After
Black Ships
Jo Graham2008
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
6 of 6 directions open
More like it
Same elegiac register, still historical fantasy
- pace0prose0bleak+1
Alcestis
Katharine Beutner2010
A retelling of the Greek myth from the perspective of the woman who dies for her husband. She describes her life and her time in the underworld.
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
- pace0prose0bleak0
Thomas the Rhymer
Ellen Kushner1990
A harper is kidnapped by the Queen of Elfland and returns to the human world years later with the gift of prophecy.
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak+1
The Tower of Beowulf
Parke Godwin1995
A retelling of the Beowulf myth that explores the psychological motivations of the monster Grendel and his mother. It is a somber, mythic drama.
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
- pace0prose-1bleak+1
The Witch's Heart
Genevieve Gornichec2021
The Norse giantess Angrboda survives being burned by Odin and raises three unique children in the forest. It follows her life through Ragnarok.
pace0·prose-1·bleak+1
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak0
Lavinia
Ursula K. Le Guin2008
A minor character from the Aeneid narrates her life in ancient Italy. She speaks to the ghost of her creator, Virgil, about her fate and marriage.
elegiac → meditative, still historical fantasy
pace0·prose0·bleak0
Denser prose
- pace0prose+1bleak0
Soldier of Sidon
Gene Wolfe2006
A mercenary in ancient Egypt loses his memory every time he sleeps. He records his days in a scroll while interacting with gods and spirits.
elegiac → meditative, still historical fantasy
pace0·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
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.
elegiac → dreamlike, still historical fantasy
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+1bleak+1
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.
Same elegiac register, still mythic fiction
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace-1prose+1bleak+1
Cloud & Ashes: Three Winter's Tales
Greer Gilman2009
A triptych of stories set in a mythic Yorkshire, told in dense, archaic dialect. It follows the intersections of folk magic and celestial myth.
elegiac → dreamlike, still historical fantasy
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
Love & Sleep
John Crowley1994
Pierce Moffett researches the history of magic while living in a small town. The narrative shifts between his life and the Renaissance.
elegiac → meditative, still historical fantasy
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
To recover
- pace0prose-2bleak-1
The Comfort Book
Matt Haig2021
A collection of short reflections, lists, and anecdotes intended to provide mental support. It is a non-linear book of philosophy and memoir.
elegiac → warm
pace0·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
Being a Green Mother
Piers Anthony1987
Orb, the daughter of Fate, assumes the role of Nature. She uses her magical songs to manage the world's ecology and confront a demonic threat.
elegiac → earnest, still mythic fiction
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose-2bleak-1
This Girl
Colleen Hoover2013
A husband retells the story of his early relationship to his wife. It uses dual timelines to revisit events from the first book in the series.
elegiac → earnest, still retelling
pace0·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
The Score
Elle Kennedy2016
A college senior has a one-night stand with a hockey player to get over a breakup. They continue the arrangement as graduation approaches.
elegiac → playful
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-2bleak-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.
elegiac → playful
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1
Faster
- pace+2prose-2bleak0
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.
elegiac → sardonic
pace+2·prose-2·bleak0
- pace+2prose-2bleak-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.
elegiac → playful
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-2bleak0
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.
elegiac → propulsive
pace+2·prose-2·bleak0
- pace+2prose-2bleak0
The Atlantis Gene
A.G. Riddle2013
A geneticist and a counter-terrorism agent uncover a global conspiracy involving human evolution and an ancient Antarctic discovery.
elegiac → propulsive
pace+2·prose-2·bleak0
- pace+2prose-2bleak0
Monster Hunter International
Larry Correia2007
An accountant kills his boss, who has become a werewolf, and is recruited by a private company that hunts monsters for government bounties.
elegiac → propulsive, still chosen one
pace+2·prose-2·bleak0
Slower
elegiac → dreamlike, still historical fantasy
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
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.
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-1prose+1bleak+1
Cloud & Ashes: Three Winter's Tales
Greer Gilman2009
A triptych of stories set in a mythic Yorkshire, told in dense, archaic dialect. It follows the intersections of folk magic and celestial myth.
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
Love & Sleep
John Crowley1994
Pierce Moffett researches the history of magic while living in a small town. The narrative shifts between his life and the Renaissance.
elegiac → meditative, still historical fantasy
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-1prose+1bleak+1
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.
Same elegiac register, still mythic fiction
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
Unfinished Tales
J.R.R. Tolkien1980
A collection of incomplete narratives and essays that expand the history, geography, and lore of Middle-earth.
elegiac → meditative
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
Heavier
- pace0prose-1bleak+2
Mees, kes teadis ussisõnu
Andrus Kivirähk2015
A boy in medieval Estonia learns the ancient language of snakes to command animals as his forest culture is erased by Christian invaders.
Same elegiac register, still historical fantasy
pace0·prose-1·bleak+2
- pace+1prose0bleak+2
The Burning God
R.F. Kuang2020
A general leads a peasant army in a civil war across a fantasy version of China. She grapples with her sanity and the influence of a fire god.
elegiac → bleak, still historical fantasy
pace+1·prose0·bleak+2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose0bleak+2
The sad tale of the brothers Grossbart
Jesse Bullington2009
Two murderous brothers travel across 14th-century Europe to rob Egyptian tombs. They encounter monsters and religious zealots along the way.
elegiac → sardonic, still historical fantasy
pace+1·prose0·bleak+2
- pace+1prose0bleak+2
The Fifth Season
N. K. Jemisin2015
A mother searches for her daughter across a continent undergoing a tectonic apocalypse. Some chapters address the reader in the second person.
elegiac → bleak
pace+1·prose0·bleak+2
- pace+1prose-1bleak+2
Pet Sematary
Stephen King1983
A family moves to Maine and discovers a burial ground that can return the dead to life. They use it, and the consequences are absolute.
elegiac → tense
pace+1·prose-1·bleak+2
