LitQueuelitqueue

After

Midnight

Dean Koontz1989

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

Same propulsive register, still horror

1 more ↓

  • We Sold Our Souls

    Grady Hendrix2018

    A former metal guitarist discovers her old bandmate sold her soul for fame. She travels across the country to reclaim her life.

    pace0·prose0·bleak+1

Denser prose

propulsive → dreamlike

3 more ↓

  • The Golden

    Lucius Shepard1993

    A vampire detective investigates the murder of a woman bred for her blood. The story takes place within a sprawling castle during a summit.

    propulsive → decadent

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

  • The Unholy Consult

    R. Scott Bakker2017

    A messiah leads his armies toward a final confrontation with an ancient, soul-devouring force. The world is ending.

    propulsive → bleak

    pace0·prose+2·bleak+2

  • Android Karenina

    Лев Толстой2010

    The text of Tolstoy's classic is modified to include robots, cyborgs, and space travel in a 19th-century Russian setting.

    propulsive → elegiac, still horror

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+2

To recover

3 more ↓

  • Sea of Greed

    Clive Cussler2018

    Kurt Austin investigates the destruction of oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico. The trail leads to a billionaire with a plan to end the oil age.

    Same propulsive register

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Modern Romance

    Aziz Ansari2015

    A comedian and a sociologist analyze how technology and culture have changed dating. It uses data and interviews to compare eras.

    propulsive → playful

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Building a Second Brain

    Tiago Forte2022

    A guide to a digital organization system designed to store and retrieve ideas, notes, and information for long-term projects.

    propulsive → earnest

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Intercepts

    T.J. Payne2020

    A worker at a government facility monitors human test subjects driven insane by sensory deprivation. The experiment enters his private life.

    propulsive → tense, still horror

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak+2

  • Extinction Machine

    Jonathan Maberry2013

    Joe Ledger investigates a series of global incidents involving UFOs and missing government officials. It is a high-speed military techno-thriller.

    Same propulsive register, still techno-thriller

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

  • Infected

    Bobby Adair

    A slow-acting virus turns the population into aggressive predators. The story follows a survivor navigating the initial societal collapse.

    Same propulsive register, still horror

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak+1

Slower

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    propulsive → playful

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

  • Absalom, Absalom!

    William Faulkner1936

    The rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen is recounted through multiple, conflicting memories. The prose uses extremely long, complex sentences.

    propulsive → elegiac

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak+2

  • Either/Or

    Søren Kierkegaard1992

    A collection of papers presents two life philosophies: the aesthetic pursuit of pleasure and the ethical commitment to duty.

    propulsive → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • Mapping the Interior

    Stephen Graham Jones2017

    A teenager follows a figure resembling his dead father into the hidden spaces of his home. He maps a shifting, dangerous interior.

    propulsive → elegiac, still horror

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2

  • 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.

    propulsive → elegiac, still horror

    pace0·prose0·bleak+2

  • 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.

    propulsive → cold, still horror

    pace0·prose0·bleak+2