
After
Titans of Chaos
John C. Wright2007
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
6 of 6 directions open
More like it
- pace0prose-1bleak0
Madwand
Roger Zelazny1981
A young man with immense, untrained magical power enters a sorcerous competition to master his abilities. He faces lethal rivals and ancient rites.
propulsive → sardonic, still science fantasy
pace0·prose-1·bleak0

- pace-1prose0bleak0
The Book of the Long Sun
Gene Wolfe1993
A priest living inside a massive generation ship receives a vision from a god. He attempts to save his parish from political and social decay.
propulsive → meditative, still science fantasy
pace-1·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
Orphans of Chaos
John C. Wright2005
Five boarding school students discover they are non-human entities with powers derived from different physical laws.
propulsive → earnest, still science fantasy
pace0·prose0·bleak0

- pace0prose0bleak0
The City We Became
N. K. Jemisin2020
Five people become the living avatars of New York City's boroughs. They must unite to fight an ancient, interdimensional entity.
Same propulsive register, still chosen one
pace0·prose0·bleak0

1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak0
Kushiel's Chosen
Jacqueline Carey2002
A courtesan and spy uncovers a conspiracy against her queen. The story involves travel across a fictionalized Europe and explicit sexual themes.
Same propulsive register, still chosen one
pace0·prose0·bleak0

Denser prose
- pace-1prose+1bleak+1
The Claw of the Conciliator
Gene Wolfe1981
An exiled torturer travels with a gem that can heal the dead. The narrative uses archaic vocabulary and an unreliable perspective.
propulsive → dreamlike, still science fantasy
pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1

- pace-1prose+1bleak0
In the Night Garden
Catherynne M. Valente2006
A girl with tattooed eyelids tells a prince interlocking stories of monsters and folklore. The narrative is a series of nested myths.
propulsive → dreamlike
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0

3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
Ficciones
Jorge Luis Borges1945
A collection of short stories exploring philosophical paradoxes, infinite libraries, and imaginary encyclopedias.
propulsive → meditative
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0

- pace-1prose+1bleak-1
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.
propulsive → playful
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

- pace-2prose+1bleak0
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.
propulsive → meditative
pace-2·prose+1·bleak0

To recover
- pace0prose-2bleak-1
Split Infinity
Piers Anthony1980
A man travels between a high-tech world of games and a parallel world of magic. He must master both systems to avoid being assassinated.
propulsive → playful, still science fantasy
pace0·prose-2·bleak-1

- pace0prose-2bleak-1
The 4-Hour Workweek
Timothy Ferriss2006
A guide to lifestyle design that explains how to automate a business and outsource life tasks to achieve a four-hour workweek.
propulsive → wry
pace0·prose-2·bleak-1

3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose-2bleak-1
Fifty Shades of Grey
E.L. James2000
A college student enters a sexual contract with a wealthy businessman. The story focuses on their power dynamics and BDSM encounters.
propulsive → earnest
pace0·prose-2·bleak-1

- pace0prose-2bleak-1
Neon Gods
Katee Robert2021
In a modern city-state, Persephone flees an arranged marriage to Zeus by entering the underworld. She strikes a deal with Hades to stay there.
propulsive → tense
pace0·prose-2·bleak-1

- pace0prose-2bleak-1
That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon
Kimberly Lemming2021
A spice trader saves a demon while intoxicated and joins his quest to kill a witch. The story features frequent sexual content and humor.
propulsive → playful
pace0·prose-2·bleak-1
Faster
- pace+1prose-2bleak0
Dungeon Crawler Carl
Matt Dinniman2020
Earth is converted into an 18-level televised death game. A man and a cat must navigate traps and monsters to survive.
propulsive → sardonic, still science fantasy
pace+1·prose-2·bleak0

- pace+1prose-2bleak-1
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.
propulsive → playful
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1

3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-2bleak0
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.
Same propulsive register
pace+1·prose-2·bleak0

- pace+1prose-2bleak0
The Atlantis Gene
A.G. Riddle2013
A geneticist and a counter-terrorism agent uncover a global conspiracy involving human evolution and an ancient Antarctic discovery.
Same propulsive register
pace+1·prose-2·bleak0

- pace+1prose-2bleak0
Monster Hunter International
Larry Correia2007
An accountant kills his boss, who has become a werewolf, and is recruited by a private company that hunts monsters for government bounties.
Same propulsive register, still chosen one
pace+1·prose-2·bleak0

Slower
- pace-2prose+1bleak0
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.
propulsive → meditative
pace-2·prose+1·bleak0

- pace-2prose+1bleak+1
Boneland
Alan Garner2012
An adult Colin searches for his lost sister while an ancient shaman performs rituals in the same landscape. The two timelines mirror one another.
propulsive → elegiac
pace-2·prose+1·bleak+1

3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose+1bleak0
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.
propulsive → dreamlike
pace-2·prose+1·bleak0

- pace-2prose+1bleak0
Unfinished Tales
J.R.R. Tolkien1980
A collection of incomplete narratives and essays that expand the history, geography, and lore of Middle-earth.
propulsive → meditative
pace-2·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-2prose+1bleak0
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.
propulsive → dreamlike
pace-2·prose+1·bleak0

Heavier
- pace0prose0bleak+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.
propulsive → bleak, still science fantasy
pace0·prose0·bleak+2

- pace-1prose0bleak+2
The Unconquered Country: A Life History
Geoff Ryman1986
A woman lives through the colonization and industrial destruction of her country by magical invaders. It mirrors the history of the Vietnam War.
propulsive → elegiac, still science fantasy
pace-1·prose0·bleak+2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak+2
Blade of Tyshalle
Matthew Woodring Stover2001
A retired assassin returns to a parallel fantasy world to save his wife from corporate and divine enemies. He navigates two realities.
propulsive → sardonic, still science fantasy
pace0·prose0·bleak+2

- pace0prose-1bleak+2
Pet Sematary
Stephen King1983
A family moves to Maine and discovers a burial ground that can return the dead to life. They use it, and the consequences are absolute.
propulsive → tense
pace0·prose-1·bleak+2

- pace0prose-1bleak+2
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.
propulsive → bleak, still chosen one
pace0·prose-1·bleak+2
