LitQueuelitqueue

After

The Atlantis Plague

A.G. Riddle2013

5 of 6 directions open — nothing faster

More like it

1 more ↓

  • When the Wind Blows

    James Patterson1847

    A veterinarian and an FBI agent discover winged children created in a secret laboratory. They go on the run to protect the girl from her creators.

    Same propulsive register, still techno-thriller

    pace0·prose0·bleak-1

Denser prose

propulsive → dreamlike

3 more ↓

  • Ficciones

    Jorge Luis Borges1945

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

    propulsive → meditative

    pace-2·prose+3·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.

    propulsive → playful

    pace-2·prose+3·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.

    propulsive → meditative

    pace-3·prose+3·bleak-1

To recover

3 more ↓

  • The Man Who Quit Money

    Mark Sundeen2012

    A biography of Daniel Suelo, who abandoned currency in 2000. It follows his daily life scavenging and living in caves in the Utah wilderness.

    propulsive → meditative

    pace-2·prose+1·bleak-2

  • The Zen of Zombie: Better Living Through the Undead (Zen of Zombie Series)

    Scott Kenemore

    A satirical self-help guide that uses the behavior of zombies as a model for achieving mindfulness and reducing stress.

    propulsive → playful

    pace-2·prose+1·bleak-2

  • The Colour of Magic

    Terry Pratchett1983

    A failed wizard and a naive tourist travel across a flat world carried by a turtle. The story parodies fantasy tropes and clichés.

    propulsive → playful

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-2

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.

    propulsive → dreamlike

    pace-3·prose+3·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.

    propulsive → meditative

    pace-3·prose+3·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.

    propulsive → dreamlike

    pace-3·prose+3·bleak-1

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • Fail-safe

    Eugene Burdick1962

    A mechanical failure sends American bombers to nuke Moscow, forcing the President to negotiate a desperate solution to avoid total war.

    propulsive → tense, still techno-thriller

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+1

  • Pet Sematary

    Stephen King1983

    A family moves to Maine and discovers a burial ground that can return the dead to life. They use it, and the consequences are absolute.

    propulsive → tense

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1

  • The Poppy War

    R.F. Kuang2018

    A war orphan enters a military academy and discovers shamanic powers. She leads a unit into a total war inspired by 20th-century Chinese history.

    propulsive → bleak

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1