After
Quarantine
Greg Egan1992
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
6 of 6 directions open
More like it
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River of Gods
Ian McDonald2004
Nine characters navigate a near-future India on the brink of water wars and the emergence of sentient artificial intelligence.
cold → propulsive, still hard scifi
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
Count Zero
William Gibson1986
A mercenary and a young hacker navigate a corporate war involving biochips and digital deities. The story follows three separate plotlines.
Same cold register, still cyberpunk
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
Chasm City
Alastair Reynolds2001
A mercenary hunts a killer in a city transformed by a virus that fuses flesh and machinery. The narrative weaves between the hunt and past memories.
Same cold register, still cyberpunk
pace0·prose0·bleak0
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Broken Angels
Richard K. Morgan2003
A mercenary is hired to recover an alien artifact during a planetary civil war. The story involves corporate heists and digitized consciousness.
Same cold register, still cyberpunk
pace0·prose0·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
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Brass Man
Neal Asher2005
An agent pursues a cyborg enemy across star systems while a scientist uncovers the truth about a lethal, ancient alien technology.
Same cold register, still cyberpunk
pace0·prose0·bleak0
Denser prose
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VAS
Steve Tomasula2002
A man considers a vasectomy while the book uses diagrams and varied typography to explore the history of eugenics and biotechnology.
cold → clinical, still cyberpunk
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-2prose+1bleak0
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.
cold → dreamlike
pace-2·prose+1·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
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In Green's Jungles
Gene Wolfe2000
A narrator travels to different worlds while his physical form and memories shift. He recounts past voyages to prove his identity to his companions.
cold → elegiac
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-2prose+1bleak-1
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.
cold → meditative
pace-2·prose+1·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+1bleak-1
The golden age
John C. Wright2002
In a far-future utopia, an immortal man discovers he has had his memories erased. He searches for his identity while defying a collective mind.
cold → meditative, still hard scifi
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1
To recover
- pace0prose-2bleak-2
Murderbot Diaries
Martha Wells2023
A self-aware security android hacks its governor module to watch soap operas while protecting humans. It navigates corporate conspiracies.
cold → sardonic, still cyberpunk
pace0·prose-2·bleak-2
- pace0prose-2bleak-2
Vampires Are Forever
Lynsay Sands2008
A woman suspects her business partner is a vampire after he attempts to bite her. He tries to convince her they are fated mates.
cold → playful
pace0·prose-2·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
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The Mane Event
Shelly Laurenston2007
A female cop reunites with a childhood friend who is now a lion-shifter. They navigate a romantic attraction while he pursues her in New York.
cold → playful
pace0·prose-2·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-2bleak-2
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.
cold → propulsive, still cyberpunk
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2
- pace0prose-2bleak-2
Mile High
Liz Tomforde2023
A professional hockey player and a flight attendant clash on the team's private plane during a season-long road trip.
cold → playful
pace0·prose-2·bleak-2
Faster
cold → propulsive, still cyberpunk
- pace+1prose-2bleak-2
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.
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-2bleak0
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.
pace+1·prose-2·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-2bleak-2
The Martian
Andy Weir2011
A man does arithmetic to stay alive on Mars. Problem, attempt, result, repeat.
cold → wry
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-2bleak-2
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.
cold → wry
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
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.
cold → propulsive
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1
Slower
- pace-2prose+1bleak0
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.
cold → dreamlike
pace-2·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-2prose+1bleak0
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.
cold → clinical, still hard scifi
pace-2·prose+1·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose+1bleak-1
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.
cold → meditative
pace-2·prose+1·bleak-1
- pace-2prose+1bleak-1
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.
cold → meditative
pace-2·prose+1·bleak-1
- pace-2prose0bleak-2
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.
cold → elegiac
pace-2·prose0·bleak-2
Heavier
- pace0prose-1bleak+1
Titan
Stephen Baxter1997
A crew of astronauts embarks on a one-way mission to Saturn's moon. The narrative details the technical and psychological decay of the mission.
Same cold register, still hard scifi
pace0·prose-1·bleak+1
- pace0prose-1bleak+1
Dr. Adder
K. W. Jeter1984
In a broken future Los Angeles, a surgeon performs extreme genital modifications for a subculture of outcasts.
cold → cynical, still cyberpunk
pace0·prose-1·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
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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.
cold → sardonic, still cyberpunk
pace0·prose-1·bleak+1
- pace0prose0bleak+1
Maelstrom
Peter Watts2001
A bio-engineered virus spreads through the global network while a woman navigates a flooded, post-apocalyptic landscape.
cold → bleak, still hard scifi
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
- pace0prose0bleak+1
Random Acts of Senseless Violence
Jack Womack1994
A twelve-year-old girl records her life in a diary as New York City collapses into riots and hyperinflation. Her family falls into poverty.
cold → bleak, still cyberpunk
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
