After
Macbeth
William Shakespeare
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
5 of 6 directions open — nothing denser
More like it
- pace0prose-2bleak0
The Crucible
Arthur Miller1953
A play set during the Salem witch trials. A village turns on itself as accusations of witchcraft lead to public trials and executions.
Same tense register, still tragedy
pace0·prose-2·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak+1
Othello
William Shakespeare
A Moorish general in the Venetian army is manipulated into believing his wife is unfaithful. The plot relies on a stolen handkerchief.
Same tense register, still tragedy
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
- pace0prose-1bleak0
The Only Good Indians
Stephen Graham Jones2020
Four Blackfeet men are pursued by a vengeful entity ten years after an illegal elk hunt. The entity targets them and their families one by one.
Same tense register
pace0·prose-1·bleak0
- pace0prose-1bleak0
The Alienist
Caleb Carr1994
In 1896 New York, a psychologist and a reporter use early forensic techniques to track a serial killer. Theodore Roosevelt assists them.
Same tense register
pace0·prose-1·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose-1bleak0
Summer of Night
Dan Simmons1991
Five boys in 1960 Illinois discover an ancient evil awakening in their school. They must fight supernatural threats while their town decays.
Same tense register
pace0·prose-1·bleak0
To recover
tense → playful
- pace0prose-3bleak-2
The Love Hypothesis
Ali Hazelwood2021
A biology PhD candidate enters a fake relationship with a young professor to satisfy a friend. They navigate academic politics and attraction.
pace0·prose-3·bleak-2
- pace0prose-3bleak-2
Beautiful Bastard
Christina Lauren2013
An MBA intern and her demanding media executive boss engage in a series of sexual encounters while competing at work. It is an erotic romance.
pace0·prose-3·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose-3bleak-2
The Hating Game
Sally Thorne2016
Two executive assistants at a publishing house compete for a single promotion through a series of psychological games and mutual sabotage.
pace0·prose-3·bleak-2
- pace0prose-3bleak-2
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.
pace0·prose-3·bleak-2
- pace-1prose-3bleak-2
The Spanish Love Deception
Elena Armas2021
A woman convinces a colleague she dislikes to fly to Spain and pose as her boyfriend for a wedding. They have four weeks to prepare the ruse.
pace-1·prose-3·bleak-2
Faster
- pace+1prose-3bleak-1
Creepers
David Morrell2005
Five urban explorers break into a long-abandoned hotel in New Jersey and find themselves trapped with a killer.
Same tense register
pace+1·prose-3·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-3bleak-1
Patient Zero
Jonathan Maberry2009
A detective joins a secret government task force to stop a terrorist group using a bio-weapon that reanimates the dead. It is an action thriller.
tense → propulsive
pace+1·prose-3·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-3bleak+1
The Rising
Brian Keene2003
A father travels across an apocalypse where the dead are possessed by malevolent, intelligent demons. The world is ending permanently.
tense → bleak
pace+1·prose-3·bleak+1
- pace+1prose-3bleak-1
Shattered
Dean Koontz1973
A man and his future stepson drive across America while being stalked by the woman's vengeful ex-husband.
Same tense register
pace+1·prose-3·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-3bleak0
The Executioner
Chris Carter2010
A Los Angeles detective hunts a serial killer who murders victims using their specific phobias. Each crime scene features a blood-scrawled number.
Same tense register
pace+1·prose-3·bleak0
Slower
- pace-2prose0bleak0
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.
tense → dreamlike
pace-2·prose0·bleak0
- pace-2prose0bleak-2
Gödel, Escher, Bach
Douglas R. Hofstadter1979
An exploration of how cognition emerges from hidden neurological patterns. It uses math, art, and music to explain self-referential systems.
tense → playful
pace-2·prose0·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose0bleak-1
Ulysses
James Joyce1914
Three characters wander through Dublin on a single day in 1904. Each chapter uses a different literary style to mimic thoughts and sensations.
tense → playful
pace-2·prose0·bleak-1
- pace-2prose0bleak+1
Absalom, Absalom!
William Faulkner1936
The rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen is recounted through multiple, conflicting memories. The prose uses extremely long, complex sentences.
tense → elegiac
pace-2·prose0·bleak+1
- pace-2prose0bleak-1
Either/Or
Søren Kierkegaard1992
A collection of papers presents two life philosophies: the aesthetic pursuit of pleasure and the ethical commitment to duty.
tense → meditative
pace-2·prose0·bleak-1
Heavier
tense → elegiac
- pace-1prose-1bleak+1
Frankenstein
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley1818
Victor Frankenstein assembles a living being from scavenged parts. The narrative follows the creature's rejection and its violent revenge.
pace-1·prose-1·bleak+1
- pace0prose-2bleak+1
Flowers in the Attic
V.C. Andrews1979
Four children are hidden in an attic for years by their mother and grandmother to secure an inheritance. They face gradual poisoning and abuse.
pace0·prose-2·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose0bleak+1
Hamlet
William Shakespeare
A prince of Denmark is told by a ghost that his uncle killed his father. He feigns madness while deciding whether to take revenge.
tense → meditative
pace-1·prose0·bleak+1
- pace-1prose-1bleak+1
The Terror
Dan Simmons2007
Two British ships searching for the Northwest Passage in 1845 become trapped in ice and are hunted by a creature.
tense → bleak
pace-1·prose-1·bleak+1
- pace0prose-2bleak+1
The Lottery
Shirley Jackson1983
Villagers gather for an annual ritual in a small town. The story follows the procedural steps of a lottery that ends in a public execution.
tense → cold
pace0·prose-2·bleak+1
