LitQueuelitqueue

After

The tragedy of X

Ellery Queen1932

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

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  • The Will and the Deed

    Edith Pargeter1960

    Heirs to a diva's fortune are trapped in a snowbound village after a disappointing will reading. A killer begins targeting the group.

    analytical → wry, still locked room

    pace0·prose0·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.

    analytical → playful

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

  • 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.

    analytical → dreamlike

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

  • American Psycho

    Bret Easton Ellis1991

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

    analytical → cold

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+2

To recover

3 more ↓

  • Glazed Murder

    Jessica Beck2010

    A donut shop owner finds her rival dead in his shop. She investigates the local community to clear her own name.

    analytical → playful, still cozy

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Murder is Binding

    Lorna Barrett2008

    A bookstore owner in a small New Hampshire town finds a rival dead. She investigates the local community to clear her own name.

    analytical → warm, still cozy

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Buried in a Book

    Lucy Arlington2012

    A 45-year-old intern at a literary agency investigates the death of an author in the office. She uncovers a trail of threatening letters.

    analytical → warm, still cozy

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Ten Big Ones

    Janet Evanovich2004

    Stephanie Plum witnesses a gang hit and becomes a target herself. She balances the threat with her ongoing romantic indecision.

    analytical → playful, still cozy

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • The Da Vinci Code

    Dan Brown2003

    A symbologist and a cryptologist flee the police while solving puzzles hidden in art. They search for a secret regarding the Holy Grail.

    analytical → propulsive

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Behind Closed Doors

    B.A. Paris2016

    A woman is held captive by her husband in a high-security home. She must find a way to escape before her sister moves in with them.

    analytical → propulsive

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

Slower

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    analytical → dreamlike

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak+1

  • 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.

    analytical → playful

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-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.

    analytical → playful

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • In Cold Blood

    Truman Capote1965

    A reconstruction of the 1959 murder of a Kansas family and the subsequent investigation. It follows both the victims and the killers.

    analytical → clinical

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+2

  • Lord of the Flies

    William Golding1954

    Schoolboys are stranded on an island and try to organize a society. Order collapses into tribalism and violence.

    analytical → tense

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2

  • Shutter Island

    Dennis Lehane2003

    analytical → tense

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+2