After
The Colossus of Ylourgne
Clark Ashton Smith2009
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
5 of 6 directions open — nothing denser
More like it
- pace0prose0bleak+1
The Dark Eidolon
Clark Ashton Smith2009
A sorcerer seeks revenge against a king in a dying world under a dim sun. The story uses dense, archaic prose to describe necromancy and demons.
sardonic → cold, still dark fantasy
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
- pace0prose0bleak0
Ambergris
Jeff VanderMeer2020
This collection follows the history of a city built atop a subterranean race. It uses fake histories, journals, and detective noir.
sardonic → dreamlike, still dark fantasy
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose-1bleak0
Can Such Things Be? [24 stories]
Ambrose Bierce1924
Twenty-four short stories concerning the supernatural and the macabre. Characters encounter ghosts, strange deaths, and psychological terrors.
Same sardonic register, still weird fiction
pace0·prose-1·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Dream Cycle of H. P. Lovecraft
H.P. Lovecraft2003
A collection of stories following characters who travel into a shared dream world. It focuses on strange geography and cosmic entities.
sardonic → dreamlike, still weird fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose-1bleak0
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Oscar Wilde1890
A young man remains youthful while his painted portrait ages and reflects his moral decay. He pursues a life of hedonism in Victorian London.
Same sardonic register
pace0·prose-1·bleak0
To recover
sardonic → propulsive
- pace+2prose-3bleak-2
The Lost Symbol
Dan Brown2009
Symbologist Robert Langdon follows a trail of Masonic puzzles through Washington D.C. monuments to save his kidnapped mentor.
pace+2·prose-3·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-3bleak-2
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.
pace+1·prose-3·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-3bleak-2
This Man
Jodi Ellen Malpas2013
An interior designer begins an affair with a wealthy client who demands total control over her life and schedule.
sardonic → tense
pace+1·prose-3·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-3bleak-2
Better Off Dead
Lee Child2021
Jack Reacher investigates a staged car crash in Arizona and infiltrates a dangerous local crew to find a missing woman.
pace+1·prose-3·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-3bleak-2
Real Murders
Charlaine Harris1990
A librarian in a small Georgia town belongs to a club that studies famous crimes. A real murder occurs that mimics a historical case.
sardonic → wry
pace+1·prose-3·bleak-2
Faster
- pace+2prose-3bleak0
Hellsing
Kohta Hirano2003
A secret British organization uses a powerful vampire to fight a supernatural Nazi uprising. The Vatican intervenes as London is besieged.
Same sardonic register, still dark fantasy
pace+2·prose-3·bleak0
- pace+2prose-3bleak0
Something is Killing the Children, Book One
James Tynion IV2021
A monster hunter arrives in a town where children are being eaten by invisible creatures. It is a graphic novel about systemic violence.
sardonic → tense, still dark fantasy
pace+2·prose-3·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-3bleak-1
Creepers
David Morrell2005
Five urban explorers break into a long-abandoned hotel in New Jersey and find themselves trapped with a killer.
sardonic → tense
pace+2·prose-3·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-3bleak-1
Patient Zero
Jonathan Maberry2009
A detective joins a secret government task force to stop a terrorist group using a bio-weapon that reanimates the dead. It is an action thriller.
sardonic → propulsive
pace+2·prose-3·bleak-1
- pace+2prose-3bleak+1
The Rising
Brian Keene2003
A father travels across an apocalypse where the dead are possessed by malevolent, intelligent demons. The world is ending permanently.
sardonic → bleak
pace+2·prose-3·bleak+1
Slower
- pace-1prose0bleak0
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.
sardonic → dreamlike
pace-1·prose0·bleak0
- pace-1prose0bleak-2
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.
sardonic → playful
pace-1·prose0·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose0bleak-1
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.
sardonic → playful
pace-1·prose0·bleak-1
- pace-1prose0bleak+1
Absalom, Absalom!
William Faulkner1936
The rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen is recounted through multiple, conflicting memories. The prose uses extremely long, complex sentences.
sardonic → elegiac
pace-1·prose0·bleak+1
- pace-1prose0bleak-1
Either/Or
Søren Kierkegaard1992
A collection of papers presents two life philosophies: the aesthetic pursuit of pleasure and the ethical commitment to duty.
sardonic → meditative
pace-1·prose0·bleak-1
Heavier
- pace0prose0bleak+1
The Dark Eidolon
Clark Ashton Smith2009
A sorcerer seeks revenge against a king in a dying world under a dim sun. The story uses dense, archaic prose to describe necromancy and demons.
sardonic → cold, still dark fantasy
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
- pace0prose-1bleak+1
The Croning
Laird Barron2012
An elderly geologist discovers his wife and her social circle belong to an ancient cult. The narrative shifts between his past and present.
sardonic → tense, still weird fiction
pace0·prose-1·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-1bleak+1
Song for the Unraveling of the World
Brian Evenson2019
A collection of short stories where characters experience physical and psychological distortions. The reality of each narrator is unreliable.
sardonic → cold, still weird fiction
pace+1·prose-1·bleak+1
- pace+1prose-1bleak+1
Fever Dream
Samanta Schweblin2014
A dying woman talks to a boy in a clinic. They reconstruct her memories to find the exact moment a toxin entered her life.
sardonic → dreamlike, still weird fiction
pace+1·prose-1·bleak+1
- pace+1prose0bleak+1
The Unholy Consult
R. Scott Bakker2017
A messiah leads his armies toward a final confrontation with an ancient, soul-devouring force. The world is ending.
sardonic → bleak, still dark fantasy
pace+1·prose0·bleak+1
