After
The Last Emperox
John Scalzi2020
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
6 of 6 directions open
More like it
Same wry register, still space opera
- pace0prose+1bleak0
The Consuming Fire
John Scalzi2018
An empress and her allies attempt to maintain order as the wormholes connecting their interstellar empire begin to collapse.
pace0·prose+1·bleak0
- pace0prose+1bleak0
Expendable
James Alan Gardner1997
In a future where only 'expendable' people are sent to dangerous planets, an explorer investigates a high-fatality mission. It is a space opera.
pace0·prose+1·bleak0
- pace+1prose0bleak-1
All Systems Red
Martha Wells2017
A self-aware security android hacks its own governor module to watch soap operas while protecting a team of scientists on a distant planet.
pace+1·prose0·bleak-1
- pace0prose+1bleak-1
Ethan of Athos
Lois McMaster Bujold1986
A doctor from an all-male planet travels into deep space to find new genetic material and encounters women for the first time.
pace0·prose+1·bleak-1
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose+1bleak-1
Sentinels from Space
Eric Frank Russell1953
A man with telepathic powers works to prevent a war between Earth and its colonies on Mars and Venus. He hides his true nature from humanity.
pace0·prose+1·bleak-1
Denser prose
- pace-1prose+3bleak+1
Hunter of Worlds
C. J. Cherryh1977
A human is abducted by the Iduve, a cold and powerful alien race, to serve as a translator and pawn in their internal political conflicts.
wry → cold, still space opera
pace-1·prose+3·bleak+1
- pace-1prose+3bleak+1
Radiance
Catherynne M. Valente2015
A documentary filmmaker disappears on Venus in an alternate 1980s solar system. The story is told through scripts, interviews, and letters.
wry → dreamlike, still space opera
pace-1·prose+3·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose+3bleak+1
Perhaps the Stars
Ada Palmer2021
A global war between ideological factions reaches its conclusion. The story is told through a dense, 18th-century style narrative voice.
wry → meditative, still space opera
pace0·prose+3·bleak+1
- pace-1prose+3bleak+1
Shadow & Claw
Gene Wolfe1983
A torturer travels across a far-future Earth where technology is indistinguishable from magic. He recounts his exile in dense, archaic prose.
wry → meditative
pace-1·prose+3·bleak+1
- pace-1prose+3bleak+1
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.
wry → dreamlike, still space opera
pace-1·prose+3·bleak+1
To recover
wry → earnest, still space opera
- pace-1prose+1bleak-1
The Rowan
Anne McCaffrey1990
A powerful telepath living in isolation connects with a distant mind to defend against an alien invasion. It follows their psychic courtship.
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1
- pace+1prose+1bleak-1
Skylark DuQuesne
Edward Elmer Smith1966
Two rival geniuses must unite their space fleets to stop an alien threat. It features planet-destroying weapons and faster-than-light travel.
pace+1·prose+1·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose+1bleak-1
- pace+1prose0bleak-1
All Systems Red
Martha Wells2017
A self-aware security android hacks its own governor module to watch soap operas while protecting a team of scientists on a distant planet.
Same wry register, still space opera
pace+1·prose0·bleak-1
- pace0prose+1bleak-1
First Lensman
Edward E. Smith1950
A man receives a telepathic lens from aliens and must form a galactic police force to defend the universe against a hidden conspiracy.
pace0·prose+1·bleak-1
Faster
- pace+1prose0bleak-1
All Systems Red
Martha Wells2017
A self-aware security android hacks its own governor module to watch soap operas while protecting a team of scientists on a distant planet.
Same wry register, still space opera
pace+1·prose0·bleak-1
- pace+1prose+1bleak0
The Star Wars Trilogy
George Lucas2018
A farm boy joins a rebellion against a galactic empire. He learns to use a mystical force under the guidance of an exiled knight.
wry → earnest, still space opera
pace+1·prose+1·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose+1bleak+1
Red Rising
Pierce Brown2014
A laborer on Mars discovers his caste is being lied to and undergoes surgery to infiltrate the ruling elite. He joins a brutal war games academy.
wry → propulsive, still space opera
pace+1·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace+1prose+2bleak0
The Stars My Destination
Alfred Bester1956
Gully Foyle is left for dead in space and spends years seeking revenge. He travels a future where humans can teleport using their minds.
wry → propulsive, still space opera
pace+1·prose+2·bleak0
- pace+1prose0bleak-1
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.
wry → playful, still space opera
pace+1·prose0·bleak-1
Slower
- pace-2prose+3bleak+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.
wry → dreamlike
pace-2·prose+3·bleak+1
- pace-2prose+3bleak0
Invisible Cities
Italo Calvino1972
Marco Polo describes fifty-five imaginary cities to Kublai Khan. The book is a series of short, prose-poem meditations on urban existence.
wry → meditative
pace-2·prose+3·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose+3bleak0
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.
wry → meditative
pace-2·prose+3·bleak0
- pace-1prose+2bleak0
Ancillary Justice
Ann Leckie2013
A lone soldier, once the artificial intelligence of a massive starship, seeks revenge in a single human body.
wry → meditative, still space opera
pace-1·prose+2·bleak0
- pace-1prose+2bleak+1
Children of Dune
Frank Herbert1976
The twin heirs of Paul Atreides navigate political conspiracies and their own evolving biology to secure the future of the desert planet.
wry → meditative, still space opera
pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1
Heavier
- pace0prose+2bleak+2
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.
wry → bleak, still space opera
pace0·prose+2·bleak+2
- pace-1prose+2bleak+2
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.
wry → clinical, still space opera
pace-1·prose+2·bleak+2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose+2bleak+2
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.
wry → bleak, still space opera
pace0·prose+2·bleak+2
- pace0prose+1bleak+2
Star Wars - Legacy of the Force - Sacrifice
Karen Traviss2007
Jacen Solo hunts his own parents during a galactic civil war. He commits increasingly ruthless acts to secure his power as a Sith apprentice.
wry → bleak, still space opera
pace0·prose+1·bleak+2
- pace0prose+1bleak+2
Star Wars - The New Jedi Order - Star by Star
Troy Denning2001
Jedi strike teams infiltrate enemy space to destroy a biological weapon that tracks Force-users. The plot focuses on a high-stakes mission.
wry → tense, still space opera
pace0·prose+1·bleak+2
