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Mulengro: A Romany Tale

Charles de Lint1985

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  • Ninth House

    Leigh Bardugo2019

    A freshman who can see ghosts monitors the occult rituals of Yale's secret societies. She investigates a murder on campus.

    Same tense register, still urban fantasy

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • Ficciones

    Jorge Luis Borges1945

    A collection of short stories exploring philosophical paradoxes, infinite libraries, and imaginary encyclopedias.

    tense → meditative

    pace0·prose+1·bleak-1

  • At Swim-Two-Birds

    Flann O'Brien1939

    A student writes a story about a man whose own characters rebel and plot against him. It incorporates Irish myth and multiple layers of fiction.

    tense → playful

    pace0·prose+1·bleak-2

  • Love & Sleep

    John Crowley1994

    Pierce Moffett researches the history of magic while living in a small town. The narrative shifts between his life and the Renaissance.

    tense → meditative

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

To recover

3 more ↓

  • Night Pleasures

    Sherrilyn Kenyon2002

    An immortal warrior and a skeptical accountant are handcuffed together while being hunted by supernatural predators.

    tense → playful, still urban fantasy

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

  • Better Off Dead

    Lee Child2021

    Jack Reacher investigates a staged car crash in Arizona and infiltrates a dangerous local crew to find a missing woman.

    tense → propulsive

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

  • How to Marry a Millionaire Vampire

    Kerrelyn Sparks2005

    A vampire who broke a fang kidnaps a dentist who is afraid of blood. She is hiding from the mafia while he needs his smile repaired.

    tense → playful, still urban fantasy

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

Faster

tense → propulsive, still urban fantasy

3 more ↓

  • Battle Ground

    Jim Butcher2020

    A wizard leads the supernatural defense of Chicago against an invading army led by a Titan. The book is a single, continuous battle.

    pace+2·prose-1·bleak0

  • Blood Engines

    Tim Pratt2007

    A sorceress who uses blood magic to power her spells defends her city from a rival. She makes ruthless choices to maintain her power.

    tense → sardonic, still urban fantasy

    pace+2·prose-1·bleak0

  • Sandman Slim

    Richard Kadrey2009

    A magician crawls out of Hell to hunt the people who murdered his girlfriend in Los Angeles. He uses black magic and a stolen shotgun.

    tense → sardonic, still urban fantasy

    pace+2·prose-1·bleak-1

Slower

3 more ↓

  • The Habitation of the Blessed

    Catherynne M. Valente2010

    A priest finds the lost kingdom of Prester John. The story is told through three nested layers of journals, myths, and historical accounts.

    tense → dreamlike

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

  • Unfinished Tales

    J.R.R. Tolkien1980

    A collection of incomplete narratives and essays that expand the history, geography, and lore of Middle-earth.

    tense → meditative

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

  • Moonwise

    Greer Gilman1991

    Two women are pulled into a world created by their own folk-tales. The narrative uses dense, archaic language to describe a shifting landscape.

    tense → dreamlike

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

Heavier

tense → bleak, still dark fantasy

3 more ↓

  • The Damnation Game

    Clive Barker1985

    An ex-con becomes a bodyguard for a billionaire who made a deal with a supernatural gambler. The debt comes due through gore and resurrection.

    pace+1·prose0·bleak+1

  • The Black Company

    Glen Cook1984

    An elite mercenary unit serves an immortal sorceress. The story is told through the cynical journals of the company's doctor and historian.

    tense → grim, still dark fantasy

    pace+1·prose0·bleak+1

  • Snow, Glass, Apples

    Neil Gaiman2019

    A retelling of Snow White from the stepmother's perspective. The princess is a vampiric creature and the queen struggles to protect the kingdom.

    tense → cold, still dark fantasy

    pace0·prose0·bleak+1