After
Kolyma tales
Varlam SHALAMOV1980
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
3 of 6 directions open — nothing heavier, nothing denser, nothing slower
More like it
- pace0prose0bleak-1
His Master's Voice
Stanisław Lem2018
A mathematician works at a secret facility to decode a neutrino signal from space. The book is a philosophical essay disguised as a memoir.
Same clinical register
pace0·prose0·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-1bleak-1
The house behind the cedars
Charles Waddell Chesnutt1900
Two siblings of mixed race leave their home to pass as white in the post-Civil War South. One enters a high-society engagement.
clinical → elegiac, still historical fiction
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1
- pace+1prose0bleak0
The Wake
Paul Kingsnorth2014
A landowner in 1066 leads a guerrilla resistance against Norman invaders. The story is written in a modified version of Old English.
clinical → bleak, still historical fiction
pace+1·prose0·bleak0
- pace+1prose0bleak-1
Against the Day
Thomas Pynchon2006
A massive ensemble cast navigates the globe between the 1893 World's Fair and WWI. The plot spans airships, math, and secret societies.
clinical → playful, still historical fiction
pace+1·prose0·bleak-1
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-1bleak-1
Ragtime
E. L. Doctorow1975
Historical figures and a fictional family intersect in early 20th-century New York. The narrative moves between various social classes and events.
clinical → wry, still historical fiction
pace+2·prose-1·bleak-1
To recover
clinical → playful
- pace+3prose-3bleak-3
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-3
- pace+2prose-3bleak-3
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.
pace+2·prose-3·bleak-3
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+3prose-3bleak-3
The Martian
Andy Weir2011
A man does arithmetic to stay alive on Mars. Problem, attempt, result, repeat.
clinical → wry
pace+3·prose-3·bleak-3
- pace+1prose-3bleak-3
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.
clinical → warm
pace+1·prose-3·bleak-3
- pace+3prose-3bleak-3
Odessa Sea
Clive Cussler2016
Dirk Pitt investigates a ghost ship in the Black Sea and discovers a conspiracy involving a lost Romanov secret. It is a high-speed adventure.
clinical → propulsive
pace+3·prose-3·bleak-3
Faster
- pace+3prose-3bleak-3
The Martian
Andy Weir2011
A man does arithmetic to stay alive on Mars. Problem, attempt, result, repeat.
clinical → wry
pace+3·prose-3·bleak-3
- pace+3prose-3bleak-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.
clinical → propulsive
pace+3·prose-3·bleak-3
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+3prose-3bleak-3
All Systems Red
Martha Wells2017
A self-aware security android hacks its own governor module to watch soap operas while protecting a team of scientists on a distant planet.
clinical → wry
pace+3·prose-3·bleak-3
- pace+3prose-3bleak-2
Skin Game
Jim Butcher2014
Wizard Harry Dresden joins a team of villains to rob a vault in the Underworld. It is a fast-paced heist set in a modern fantasy Chicago.
clinical → propulsive
pace+3·prose-3·bleak-2
- pace+3prose-3bleak-3
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.
clinical → playful
pace+3·prose-3·bleak-3