After
Revival
Stephen King2014
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
5 of 6 directions open — nothing heavier
More like it
Same bleak register, still cosmic horror
- pace0prose+1bleak0
The Doll Who Ate His Mother
Ramsey Campbell1976
After a car crash, a woman discovers her brother's arm has been stolen. She joins three strangers to track a person with a history of cannibalism.
pace0·prose+1·bleak0
- pace0prose+1bleak0
Nuestra parte de noche
Mariana Enríquez2019
A father and son travel across Argentina during the military junta. They are fleeing a secret society that uses mediums for horrific rituals.
pace0·prose+1·bleak0
- pace+1prose+1bleak0
Song of Kali
Dan Simmons1985
An American poet travels to Calcutta to find a manuscript by a dead writer. He encounters a cult that worships the goddess of destruction.
pace+1·prose+1·bleak0
- pace+1prose0bleak-1
A God in the Shed
J.-F. Dubeau2017
A small-town inspector catches a serial killer, only to find an ancient entity trapped in a shed. The creature begins to influence the residents.
pace+1·prose0·bleak-1
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak-1
A Dance with Dragons
George R. R. Martin2011
Multiple characters navigate political betrayals and a looming winter across two continents. This volume focuses on the Wall and the East.
Same bleak register
pace0·prose0·bleak-1
Denser prose
- pace0prose+2bleak-1
Palimpsest
Catherynne M. Valente2009
Four strangers visit a secret city accessible only through sexual contact. They become obsessed with returning to the city and its inhabitants.
bleak → dreamlike
pace0·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+2bleak-1
Boneland
Alan Garner2012
An adult Colin searches for his lost sister while an ancient shaman performs rituals in the same landscape. The two timelines mirror one another.
bleak → elegiac
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose+2bleak-1
Tours of the Black Clock
Steve Erickson1989
A ghostwriter for Hitler's private pornography lives in a surreal version of the 20th century where history and memory blur.
bleak → dreamlike
pace0·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace0prose+2bleak-1
The Claw of the Conciliator
Gene Wolfe1981
An exiled torturer travels with a gem that can heal the dead. The narrative uses archaic vocabulary and an unreliable perspective.
bleak → dreamlike
pace0·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace0prose+2bleak-2
Ficciones
Jorge Luis Borges1945
A collection of short stories exploring philosophical paradoxes, infinite libraries, and imaginary encyclopedias.
bleak → meditative
pace0·prose+2·bleak-2
To recover
- pace+2prose-1bleak-3
The Lost Symbol
Dan Brown2009
Symbologist Robert Langdon follows a trail of Masonic puzzles through Washington D.C. monuments to save his kidnapped mentor.
bleak → propulsive
pace+2·prose-1·bleak-3
- pace0prose-1bleak-3
This Girl
Colleen Hoover2013
A husband retells the story of his early relationship to his wife. It uses dual timelines to revisit events from the first book in the series.
bleak → earnest
pace0·prose-1·bleak-3
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-1bleak-3
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.
bleak → playful
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-3
- pace+1prose-1bleak-3
Walking Disaster
Jamie McGuire2013
This novel retells the events of 'Beautiful Disaster' from the perspective of Travis Maddox. It follows his college years and obsession with Abby.
bleak → propulsive
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-3
- pace+1prose-1bleak-3
This Man
Jodi Ellen Malpas2013
An interior designer begins an affair with a wealthy client who demands total control over her life and schedule.
bleak → tense
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-3
Faster
- pace+2prose0bleak-1
The Mist
Stephen King1980
A group of townspeople is trapped in a grocery store by a thick mist containing lethal monsters while social order collapses inside.
bleak → tense, still cosmic horror
pace+2·prose0·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-1bleak-2
Dungeon Crawler Carl
Matt Dinniman2020
Earth is converted into an 18-level televised death game. A man and a cat must navigate traps and monsters to survive.
bleak → sardonic
pace+2·prose-1·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-1bleak-3
The Stainless Steel Rat
Harry Harrison1961
A futuristic con man is caught by the Special Corps and forced to use his criminal skills to catch other lawbreakers.
bleak → playful
pace+2·prose-1·bleak-3
- pace+2prose-1bleak-2
Mind's Eye
Douglas E. Richards2014
A man discovers he has the ability to access the internet and process data directly with his mind. He is hunted by a secret organization.
bleak → propulsive
pace+2·prose-1·bleak-2
- pace+2prose-1bleak-2
The Atlantis Gene
A.G. Riddle2013
A geneticist and a counter-terrorism agent uncover a global conspiracy involving human evolution and an ancient Antarctic discovery.
bleak → propulsive
pace+2·prose-1·bleak-2
Slower
- pace-1prose+2bleak-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.
bleak → meditative
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-2
- pace-1prose+2bleak-1
Boneland
Alan Garner2012
An adult Colin searches for his lost sister while an ancient shaman performs rituals in the same landscape. The two timelines mirror one another.
bleak → elegiac
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+2bleak-2
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.
bleak → dreamlike
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-2
- pace-1prose+2bleak-2
Unfinished Tales
J.R.R. Tolkien1980
A collection of incomplete narratives and essays that expand the history, geography, and lore of Middle-earth.
bleak → meditative
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-2
- pace-1prose+2bleak-2
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.
bleak → dreamlike
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-2
