After
Kaleidoscope Century
John Barnes1995
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
5 of 6 directions open — nothing heavier
More like it
- pace0prose+1bleak0
The Gap Into Conflict: The Real Story
Stephen R. Donaldson
A space pirate, a victim, and a police officer are trapped in a cycle of abuse and betrayal. The narrative shifts perspectives to reveal lies.
Same bleak register, still unreliable narrator
pace0·prose+1·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
Hater
David Moody2006
A sudden epidemic causes ordinary people to commit extreme acts of violence against others. A father tries to protect his family as society collapses.
Same bleak register, still unreliable narrator
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak-1
T2
S. M. Stirling2001
John Connor and Sarah Connor fight to prevent the activation of Skynet as the first Terminator units are manufactured in the present day.
bleak → tense, still cyberpunk
pace0·prose0·bleak-1
- pace0prose0bleak0
Market Forces
Richard K. Morgan2004
In a future where executives duel in armored cars for promotions, Chris Faulkner joins a firm that profits from civil wars. It is a corporate satire.
bleak → sardonic, still cyberpunk
pace0·prose0·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak-1
On My Way to Paradise
Dave Wolverton1989
A pharmacist in a future Panama joins a mercenary army to pay for his escape from a war-torn Earth.
Same bleak register, still military sci-fi
pace0·prose0·bleak-1
Denser prose
- pace-1prose+2bleak-1
Shadow & Claw
Gene Wolfe1983
A torturer travels across a far-future Earth where technology is indistinguishable from magic. He recounts his exile in dense, archaic prose.
bleak → meditative, still unreliable narrator
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+2bleak-1
Radiance
Catherynne M. Valente2015
A documentary filmmaker disappears on Venus in an alternate 1980s solar system. The story is told through scripts, interviews, and letters.
bleak → dreamlike
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose+2bleak-1
Seven Surrenders
Ada Palmer2017
The leaders of global Hives struggle to maintain a centuries-long peace as secrets emerge. The narrator is biased and uses archaic language.
bleak → sardonic, still unreliable narrator
pace0·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+2bleak-1
Rakesfall
Vajra Chandrasekera2024
Two souls reincarnate across centuries of Sri Lankan history and a distant future. The narrative shifts through different bodies and realities.
bleak → dreamlike
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-2prose+2bleak-2
Invisible Cities
Italo Calvino1972
Marco Polo describes fifty-five imaginary cities to Kublai Khan. The book is a series of short, prose-poem meditations on urban existence.
bleak → meditative
pace-2·prose+2·bleak-2
To recover
- pace+1prose-1bleak-3
Ready Player One
Ernest Cline2008
A teenager in a dystopian future hunts for a digital easter egg inside a massive simulation. The quest relies on 1980s pop culture trivia.
bleak → propulsive, still cyberpunk
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-3
- pace0prose-1bleak-3
On a Pale Horse
Piers Anthony1983
After accidentally killing the personification of Death, a man must take over the office. He navigates the bureaucracy of the afterlife.
bleak → playful
pace0·prose-1·bleak-3
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose-1bleak-3
Apprentice to the Villain
Hannah Nicole Maehrer2024
Evie Sage assists an evil overlord while a magical threat endangers their kingdom. The story follows their workplace dynamic and a looming siege.
bleak → playful
pace0·prose-1·bleak-3
- pace0prose-1bleak-3
Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
Steven D. Levitt
An economist uses data to investigate the incentives behind real-world phenomena like cheating teachers and falling crime rates.
bleak → wry
pace0·prose-1·bleak-3
- pace0prose-1bleak-3
Phule's Company
Robert Lynn Asprin1990
A wealthy captain is court-martialed and sent to lead a group of military misfits on a remote frontier planet.
bleak → playful, still military sci-fi
pace0·prose-1·bleak-3
Faster
- pace+1prose-1bleak-3
Ready Player One
Ernest Cline2008
A teenager in a dystopian future hunts for a digital easter egg inside a massive simulation. The quest relies on 1980s pop culture trivia.
bleak → propulsive, still cyberpunk
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-3
- pace+1prose-1bleak-1
Hell Divers
Nicholas Sansbury Smith2016
Skydivers jump from massive airships to a ruined Earth to scavenge parts for humanity's survival. One team is stranded in a hostile zone.
bleak → tense, still military sci-fi
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-1bleak-1
Akira, Vol. 1
Katsuhiro Ōtomo1984
In a rebuilt post-WWIII Tokyo, two teenage bikers get caught in a government conspiracy after one develops psychic powers.
bleak → propulsive, still cyberpunk
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1
- pace+1prose0bleak-1
Lines of Departure
Marko Kloos2014
An officer fights an interstellar war against alien giants while Earth collapses into poverty. It follows military campaigns across space.
bleak → tense, still military sci-fi
pace+1·prose0·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-1bleak-3
The Martian
Andy Weir2011
A man does arithmetic to stay alive on Mars. Problem, attempt, result, repeat.
bleak → wry
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-3
Slower
- pace-2prose+2bleak-1
Dhalgren
Samuel R. Delany1975
An amnesiac wanderer enters Bellona, a city cut off from the world where time and geography shift. He joins a gang and writes poetry.
bleak → dreamlike, still unreliable narrator
pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-2prose+2bleak-2
Invisible Cities
Italo Calvino1972
Marco Polo describes fifty-five imaginary cities to Kublai Khan. The book is a series of short, prose-poem meditations on urban existence.
bleak → meditative
pace-2·prose+2·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose+2bleak-2
Beelzebub's tales to his grandson
Georges Ivanovitch Gurdjieff1950
An extraterrestrial being explains the history and strange behaviors of humanity to his grandson during a long space voyage.
bleak → meditative
pace-2·prose+2·bleak-2
- pace-2prose+1bleak-3
Dandelion Wine
Ray Bradbury1946
A twelve-year-old boy experiences a series of vignettes over one summer in 1928 Illinois. The chapters focus on small-town life and aging.
bleak → elegiac
pace-2·prose+1·bleak-3
- pace-2prose0bleak-3
For Us, the Living
Robert A. Heinlein2003
A 1930s pilot wakes up in the year 2086. The book consists of long dialogues explaining the social, economic, and sexual norms of the future.
bleak → earnest
pace-2·prose0·bleak-3
