Crossing the River

Moon Tiger

Penelope Lively1987

A dying historian recalls her life, specifically her time as a war correspondent in Egypt. The timeline jumps between her past and present.

pace0·prose0·bleak0

Beloved

Toni Morrison1987

A mother in post-Civil War Ohio is haunted by the ghost of the daughter she killed to spare from slavery. The prose is dense and non-linear.

Same elegiac register, still historical fiction

pace0·prose+1·bleak0

Let Us Descend

Jesmyn Ward2023

An enslaved girl travels from the Carolinas to New Orleans. She uses memories of her mother and spirits to survive the journey and the labor.

Same elegiac register, still historical fiction

pace0·prose+1·bleak0

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.

elegiac → propulsive, still historical fiction

pace+1·prose+1·bleak+1

Assistant to the Villain

Hannah Nicole Maehrer2023

A woman takes a job as an administrative assistant to a local villain to support her family. She manages his office while ignoring his evil deeds.

elegiac → playful

pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

The Marriage Bargain

Jennifer Probst2012

A bookstore owner enters a one-year contract marriage with a billionaire to save her family's land. They must follow a set of rules to stay platonic.

elegiac → playful

pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

A Quick Bite

Lynsay Sands2005

A vampire who faints at the sight of blood finds a psychologist tied to her bed as a gift. They navigate his kidnapping and her family dynamics.

elegiac → playful

pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

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.

elegiac → sardonic

pace+2·prose-1·bleak-1

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.

elegiac → propulsive

pace+2·prose-2·bleak-2

The Martian

Andy Weir2011

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

elegiac → wry, still epistolary

pace+2·prose-2·bleak-2

Lila

Marilynne Robinson2014

A woman with a traumatic, nomadic past settles in a small Iowa town and marries a minister. She struggles to reconcile her history with his faith.

elegiac → tender, still historical fiction

pace-1·prose0·bleak-1

A Fable

William Faulkner1954

During WWI, a French corporal leads a mutiny that halts the fighting. The narrative mirrors the events of the Passion of Christ.

elegiac → meditative, still historical fiction

pace-1·prose+1·bleak0

Rhine Journey

Ann Schlee1981

A middle-aged woman travels by steamer down the Rhine in 1851. She observes her family and internalizes a chance encounter with a man from her past.

elegiac → meditative, still historical fiction

pace-1·prose0·bleak0

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.

elegiac → meditative, still historical fiction

pace0·prose0·bleak+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.

Same elegiac register, still historical fiction

pace0·prose0·bleak+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.

Same elegiac register, still historical fiction

pace0·prose0·bleak+1