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After

The Library of the Dead

T. L. Huchu2021

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

Same wry register, still urban fantasy

1 more ↓

  • Thunderbird Falls

    C. E. Murphy2006

    A beat cop and shaman must prevent a second apocalypse in three months. The story follows her as she balances police work with supernatural duties.

    pace0·prose0·bleak0

Denser prose

wry → dreamlike

3 more ↓

  • Ficciones

    Jorge Luis Borges1945

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

    wry → 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.

    wry → 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.

    wry → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

To recover

3 more ↓

  • Body Movers

    Stephanie Bond2006

    A department store employee joins a body-transport service for a trip to Florida that involves a missing socialite and a loan shark.

    wry → playful

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Her Russian Billionaire: 50 Loving States, Texas

    Theodora Taylor

    A woman reunites with a wealthy Russian man she once knew, leading to the revelation of a child he did not know existed.

    wry → playful

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Artemis

    Andy Weir2017

    A porter and smuggler on a lunar colony takes a high-stakes sabotage job to pay off a debt. She uses technical knowledge to solve problems.

    wry → propulsive

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

Faster

wry → propulsive, still urban fantasy

3 more ↓

  • Battle Ground

    Jim Butcher2020

    A wizard leads the supernatural defense of Chicago against an invading army led by a Titan. The book is a single, continuous battle.

    pace+1·prose0·bleak+1

  • Blood Engines

    Tim Pratt2007

    A sorceress who uses blood magic to power her spells defends her city from a rival. She makes ruthless choices to maintain her power.

    wry → sardonic, still urban fantasy

    pace+1·prose0·bleak+1

  • Sandman Slim

    Richard Kadrey2009

    A magician crawls out of Hell to hunt the people who murdered his girlfriend in Los Angeles. He uses black magic and a stolen shotgun.

    wry → sardonic, still urban fantasy

    pace+1·prose0·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.

    wry → 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.

    wry → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

  • Translated Accounts

    James Kelman2001

    Anonymous witnesses describe life under a military regime. The prose uses broken, bureaucratic syntax to mimic a literal translation.

    wry → bleak, still dystopian

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak+2

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • The Alchemy of Stone

    Ekaterina Sedia2008

    An alchemist automaton is caught in a political struggle between gargoyles and her creators. She must find a way to wind her own heart key.

    wry → elegiac, still urban fantasy

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+2

  • The Fifth Season

    N. K. Jemisin2015

    A mother searches for her daughter across a continent undergoing a tectonic apocalypse. Some chapters address the reader in the second person.

    wry → bleak, still dystopian

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2

  • Doctor Rat

    William Kotzwinkle1976

    A laboratory rat loyal to his human captors defends the practice of vivisection while animals worldwide begin a bloody revolt.

    wry → sardonic, still dystopian

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2