After
The Walking Dead, Vol. 8: Made To Suffer
Robert Kirkman
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
4 of 6 directions open — nothing heavier, nothing faster
More like it
- pace-1prose0bleak0
The Walking Dead, Vol. 6: This Sorrowful Life
Robert Kirkman
Survivors of a zombie plague attempt to build a community in a prison. The focus is on the psychological toll of leadership and human cruelty.
Same bleak register, still post-apocalyptic
pace-1·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak-1
28 Days Later
Alex Garland2002
A man wakes from a coma to find London deserted and overrun by humans infected with a rage virus. He joins a small group of survivors.
Same bleak register, still post-apocalyptic
pace0·prose0·bleak-1
- pace0prose0bleak-1
Complete 30 Days Of Night Trilogy
Steve Niles2007
Vampires descend on an Alaskan town during a month of total darkness. The survivors attempt to hide and fight back in a graphic novel format.
Same bleak register, still siege
pace0·prose0·bleak-1
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Rising
Brian Keene2003
A father travels across an apocalypse where the dead are possessed by malevolent, intelligent demons. The world is ending permanently.
Same bleak register
pace0·prose0·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
Them Or Us
David Moody2011
The final survivors of a global plague face a mutated, aggressive subclass of humans. It is a graphic account of total societal collapse.
Same bleak register, still post-apocalyptic
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
Denser prose
bleak → dreamlike
- pace-2prose+3bleak-1
House of Leaves
Mark Z. Danielewski1998
A man finds a door in his house that should not exist. The story is told through layers of academic footnotes and a decaying manuscript.
pace-2·prose+3·bleak-1
- pace-2prose+3bleak-1
Ambergris
Jeff VanderMeer2020
This collection follows the history of a city built atop a subterranean race. It uses fake histories, journals, and detective noir.
pace-2·prose+3·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose+3bleak0
Gormenghast
Mervyn Peake1950
A young heir and a social climber navigate the rigid rituals of a decaying, labyrinthine castle. The prose is dense and descriptive.
bleak → dark
pace-2·prose+3·bleak0
- pace-2prose+3bleak0
The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner
James Hogg1824
A religious fanatic becomes convinced he is predestined for salvation and commits crimes at the behest of a mysterious stranger.
bleak → cold
pace-2·prose+3·bleak0
- pace-2prose+3bleak-1
Ghost Stories
Henry James2001
A collection of Victorian tales where the existence of ghosts is often left to the reader's interpretation.
bleak → meditative
pace-2·prose+3·bleak-1
To recover
- pace-2prose+1bleak-3
The Zen of Zombie: Better Living Through the Undead (Zen of Zombie Series)
Scott Kenemore
A satirical self-help guide that uses the behavior of zombies as a model for achieving mindfulness and reducing stress.
bleak → playful, still zombie fiction
pace-2·prose+1·bleak-3
- pace-2prose+1bleak-3
The Book of Hope
Jane Goodall2021
A dialogue-based book where Jane Goodall discusses her life's work and her reasons for remaining optimistic about the environment.
bleak → earnest
pace-2·prose+1·bleak-3
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose+1bleak-3
The Man Who Quit Money
Mark Sundeen2012
A biography of Daniel Suelo, who abandoned currency in 2000. It follows his daily life scavenging and living in caves in the Utah wilderness.
bleak → meditative
pace-2·prose+1·bleak-3
- pace-1prose+1bleak-3
The Colour of Magic
Terry Pratchett1983
A failed wizard and a naive tourist travel across a flat world carried by a turtle. The story parodies fantasy tropes and clichés.
bleak → playful
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-3
- pace-1prose+1bleak-3
Battlefield Earth: A Saga of the Year 3000
L. Ron Hubbard2000
A human survivor leads a rebellion against the Psychlos, an alien race that has strip-mined Earth for a thousand years.
bleak → propulsive, still post-apocalyptic
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-3
Slower
- pace-3prose+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.
bleak → dreamlike
pace-3·prose+3·bleak-1
- pace-3prose+3bleak-3
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.
bleak → playful
pace-3·prose+3·bleak-3
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-3prose+3bleak-2
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.
bleak → playful
pace-3·prose+3·bleak-2
- pace-3prose+3bleak0
Absalom, Absalom!
William Faulkner1936
The rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen is recounted through multiple, conflicting memories. The prose uses extremely long, complex sentences.
bleak → elegiac
pace-3·prose+3·bleak0
- pace-3prose+3bleak-2
Either/Or
Søren Kierkegaard1992
A collection of papers presents two life philosophies: the aesthetic pursuit of pleasure and the ethical commitment to duty.
bleak → meditative
pace-3·prose+3·bleak-2
