Star Wars - The New Jedi Order - Force Heretic II - Refugee

Star Trek Deep Space Nine - Avatar Book One

S. D. Perry2001

Following a devastating war, the crew of a space station must prevent a new conflict after a surprise attack kills hundreds of people.

pace0·prose0·bleak-1

Valis

Philip K. Dick1981

A man experiences a beam of pink light that imparts vast information. The narrative explores his mental breakdown and search for God in California.

earnest → meditative

pace-1·prose+2·bleak0

Return to the Whorl

Gene Wolfe2001

A man returns to his home planet on a small spacecraft to find his family. The story is told through his complex, often confusing journals.

earnest → elegiac

pace-1·prose+2·bleak0

Empty Space

M. John Harrison2012

Three interlocking timelines follow a widow in London, a detective in a neon city, and a pilot in deep space. The prose is dense and surreal.

earnest → dreamlike, still space opera

pace-1·prose+2·bleak0

Redshirts

John Scalzi2012

Low-ranking crew members on a starship realize they are disposable characters in a sci-fi television show. They attempt to escape their fate.

earnest → playful, still space opera

pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

The Da Vinci Code

Dan Brown2003

A symbologist and a cryptologist flee the police while solving puzzles hidden in art. They search for a secret regarding the Holy Grail.

earnest → propulsive

pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2

Smokin' Seventeen

Janet Evanovich2011

A bounty hunter investigates bodies found in her boss's lot while choosing between three suitors. The story follows her daily mishaps in New Jersey.

earnest → playful

pace0·prose-1·bleak-2

The Android's Dream

John Scalzi2006

A diplomat must find a specific, genetically engineered sheep to prevent an interstellar war. The story is a fast-paced, irreverent space comedy.

earnest → playful, still space opera

pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2

Chilling Effect

Valerie Valdes2019

A spaceship captain completes dangerous missions to pay off a ransom for her kidnapped sister. The crew includes a pilot who is a sentient plant.

earnest → playful, still space opera

pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2

The Star Kings

Edmond Hamilton1949

A 20th-century man swaps bodies with a prince 200,000 years in the future. He must lead a galactic empire against a tyrant's fleet.

earnest → propulsive, still space opera

pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2

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.

earnest → meditative

pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

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.

earnest → playful

pace-2·prose+2·bleak-2

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.

earnest → playful

pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1

Consider Phlebas

Iain Banks1987

A shape-shifting mercenary works for an alien empire to retrieve a rogue AI during a galactic war. He faces a series of deadly set-pieces.

earnest → bleak, still space opera

pace0·prose+1·bleak+1

An Exchange of Hostages

Susan R. Matthews1997

A surgeon is drafted into a space empire's corps of torturers. He tries to maintain his ethics while being trained to inflict pain.

earnest → clinical, still space opera

pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1

The Gap Into Conflict: The Real Story

Stephen R. Donaldson

A space pirate, a victim, and a police officer are trapped in a cycle of abuse and betrayal. The narrative shifts perspectives to reveal lies.

earnest → bleak, still space opera

pace0·prose+1·bleak+1