LitQueuelitqueue

After

The Darkest Fire

Gena Showalter2008

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

1 more ↓

  • Rejected

    Jaymin Eve2021

    A wolf shifter living as a pack outcast is captured by the leader's son. Her first transformation reveals a fated mate who publicly rejects her.

    earnest → tense, still paranormal romance

    pace0·prose-1·bleak0

Denser prose

earnest → dreamlike

3 more ↓

  • Ficciones

    Jorge Luis Borges1945

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

    earnest → meditative

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak0

  • 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.

    earnest → playful

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1

  • 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.

    earnest → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

To recover

3 more ↓

  • The Mane Event

    Shelly Laurenston2007

    A female cop reunites with a childhood friend who is now a lion-shifter. They navigate a romantic attraction while he pursues her in New York.

    earnest → playful, still paranormal romance

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

  • An Alpha's Path

    Carrie Ann Ryan2015

    A chemist goes on a blind date with a man who is secretly a werewolf. She must decide whether to accept his supernatural world.

    earnest → playful, still paranormal romance

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Blood Vow

    J.R. Ward2017

    A trainee in a vampire brotherhood works as a bodyguard for an aristocrat while they investigate a family murder.

    Same earnest register, still paranormal romance

    pace0·prose0·bleak-1

Faster

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    earnest → playful

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Psycho Beasts

    Jasmine Mas2022

    In the third book of a dark fantasy series, a royal heir faces an ultimatum while navigating a reverse harem relationship.

    earnest → sardonic, still paranormal romance

    pace+1·prose0·bleak+1

  • 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.

    earnest → propulsive

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

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.

    earnest → dreamlike

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

  • Unfinished Tales

    J.R.R. Tolkien1980

    A collection of incomplete narratives and essays that expand the history, geography, and lore of Middle-earth.

    earnest → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

  • 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.

    earnest → dreamlike

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    earnest → bleak

    pace0·prose0·bleak+2

  • The Traitor Baru Cormorant

    Seth Dickinson2015

    An accountant infiltrates the empire that conquered her home to destroy it from within. She uses economics and politics as her primary weapons.

    earnest → cold

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2

  • 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.

    earnest → bleak

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2