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After

The Chalk Girl (A Mallory Novel, #10)

Carol O'Connell2011

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

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  • Sudden prey

    John Sandford1996

    After Lucas Davenport kills a group of outlaws, their surviving relatives launch a retaliatory strike against his family.

    cold → tense, still police procedural

    pace0·prose-1·bleak0

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • Blood on the dining-room floor

    Gertrude Stein1948

    A repetitive, circular narrative about a death in a country house. It uses experimental prose to obscure the facts of a traditional mystery.

    cold → playful

    pace-2·prose+1·bleak-1

  • The Doves Necklace

    Raja Alem2014

    A detective investigates an unidentified woman's body found in a Mecca alleyway. The city itself narrates parts of the story.

    cold → dreamlike

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak0

  • American Psycho

    Bret Easton Ellis1991

    A wealthy investment banker details his daily routines, consumer habits, and graphic murders. The narrative is cold and repetitive.

    Same cold register

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1

To recover

3 more ↓

  • Festive in Death

    J.D. Robb2014

    Detective Eve Dallas investigates the murder of a personal trainer in a futuristic New York during the Christmas season.

    cold → propulsive, still police procedural

    pace0·prose-2·bleak-2

  • Noble Prince

    Devney Perry2020

    A police chief takes a witness into his home to protect her from a motorcycle gang. She refuses to follow his rules despite the danger.

    cold → earnest

    pace0·prose-2·bleak-2

  • Heat wave

    Richard Castle2009

    A New York homicide detective investigates a real estate mogul's death while a magazine journalist shadows her. It is a police procedural.

    cold → playful, still police procedural

    pace0·prose-2·bleak-2

Faster

cold → propulsive, still police procedural

3 more ↓

  • The Crucifix Killer

    Chris Carter2010

    An LA detective finds a signature mark on a victim that suggests a previously executed serial killer is still active or has a copycat.

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak0

  • Memory Man

    David Baldacci2015

    A detective with a brain injury that prevents him from forgetting anything hunts for the person who murdered his family.

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak0

  • Little boy blue

    M. J. Arlidge2016

    Detective Helen Grace investigates a murder in a BDSM club. Her own presence at the scene as a regular client complicates the search for the killer.

    cold → tense, still police procedural

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

Slower

3 more ↓

  • Death at La Fenice

    Donna Leon1992

    Commissario Guido Brunetti investigates the cyanide poisoning of a famous conductor in Venice. The story focuses on the city's social atmosphere.

    cold → meditative, still police procedural

    pace-1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • 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

  • 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.

    cold → playful

    pace-2·prose+1·bleak-2

Heavier

cold → bleak, still police procedural

3 more ↓

  • Broken Harbor

    Tana French2012

    A detective investigates a family murdered in a failed housing development. The story focuses on the investigator's mental unraveling.

    pace-1·prose0·bleak+1

  • Shadow Man

    Cody McFadyen2006

    An FBI agent with a traumatic past tracks a serial killer who targets families. The narrative details extreme physical and psychological torture.

    cold → tense, still police procedural

    pace0·prose-1·bleak+1

  • Phantom

    Jo Nesbø

    Harry Hole returns to Oslo to clear his stepson of a murder charge. He descends into the city's drug scene to find the real killer.

    pace0·prose-1·bleak+1