After
Wildwood Road
Christopher Golden2005
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
6 of 6 directions open
More like it
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Dead Zone
Stephen King1979
A man wakes from a five-year coma with the ability to see the future through touch. He must decide how to act on a vision of a political disaster.
tense → elegiac, still horror
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
Innocence
Dean Koontz2013
Two social outcasts, one living in tunnels and the other hiding from enemies, find each other in a city facing an apocalypse.
Same tense register, still horror
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
Fellside
M.R. Carey2016
A woman serving time for a fatal arson attack begins to see the ghost of the girl she killed. The story takes place inside a high-security prison.
Same tense register, still horror
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
My Darling Girl
Jennifer McMahon2023
A woman brings her dying, estranged mother into her home, only to suspect the older woman is possessed by a malevolent spirit.
Same tense register, still horror
pace0·prose0·bleak0
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak0
Sisters of the Lost Nation
Nick Medina2023
A young woman on a Louisiana reservation searches for her missing sister while a supernatural presence or a human predator stalks the girls.
Same tense register, still horror
pace0·prose0·bleak0
Denser prose
- pace-2prose+2bleak0
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.
tense → elegiac
pace-2·prose+2·bleak0
- pace-1prose+2bleak0
Tours of the Black Clock
Steve Erickson1989
A ghostwriter for Hitler's private pornography lives in a surreal version of the 20th century where history and memory blur.
tense → dreamlike
pace-1·prose+2·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+2bleak-1
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.
tense → dreamlike
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+2bleak0
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.
tense → dreamlike
pace-1·prose+2·bleak0
- pace-1prose+2bleak-1
Ficciones
Jorge Luis Borges1945
A collection of short stories exploring philosophical paradoxes, infinite libraries, and imaginary encyclopedias.
tense → meditative
pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1
To recover
- pace-1prose-1bleak-2
This Girl
Colleen Hoover2013
A husband retells the story of his early relationship to his wife. It uses dual timelines to revisit events from the first book in the series.
tense → earnest
pace-1·prose-1·bleak-2
- pace0prose-1bleak-2
The Score
Elle Kennedy2016
A college senior has a one-night stand with a hockey player to get over a breakup. They continue the arrangement as graduation approaches.
tense → playful
pace0·prose-1·bleak-2
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose-1bleak-2
All Rhodes Lead Here
Mariana Zapata2021
A woman moves back to her Colorado hometown after a breakup and rents a garage apartment from a grumpy single father.
tense → warm
pace-1·prose-1·bleak-2
- pace-1prose-1bleak-2
Hannah's List
Debbie Macomber2010
A widower receives a letter from his late wife suggesting three women he should date. He begins to interact with each woman over the following year.
tense → warm
pace-1·prose-1·bleak-2
- pace-1prose-1bleak-2
The Comfort Book
Matt Haig2021
A collection of short reflections, lists, and anecdotes intended to provide mental support. It is a non-linear book of philosophy and memoir.
tense → warm
pace-1·prose-1·bleak-2
Faster
- pace+1prose-1bleak+1
Final Destination I
Natasha Rhodes2006
After surviving a plane crash they were destined to die in, a group of teenagers is hunted by an invisible, lethal force.
Same tense register, still horror
pace+1·prose-1·bleak+1
- pace+1prose-1bleak-1
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.
tense → sardonic
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+1prose-1bleak-2
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.
tense → playful
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2
- pace+1prose-1bleak-1
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.
tense → propulsive
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1
- pace+1prose-1bleak-1
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.
tense → propulsive
pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1
Slower
- pace-2prose+2bleak-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.
tense → meditative
pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-2prose+2bleak0
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.
tense → elegiac
pace-2·prose+2·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-2prose+2bleak-1
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.
tense → dreamlike
pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-2prose+2bleak-1
Unfinished Tales
J.R.R. Tolkien1980
A collection of incomplete narratives and essays that expand the history, geography, and lore of Middle-earth.
tense → meditative
pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1
- pace-2prose+2bleak-1
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.
tense → dreamlike
pace-2·prose+2·bleak-1
Heavier
- pace0prose0bleak+1
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.
Same tense register, still horror
pace0·prose0·bleak+1
- pace0prose+1bleak+1
Song of Kali
Dan Simmons1985
An American poet travels to Calcutta to find a manuscript by a dead writer. He encounters a cult that worships the goddess of destruction.
tense → bleak, still horror
pace0·prose+1·bleak+1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose+1bleak+1
The Damnation Game
Clive Barker1985
An ex-con becomes a bodyguard for a billionaire who made a deal with a supernatural gambler. The debt comes due through gore and resurrection.
tense → bleak, still horror
pace0·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace0prose+1bleak+1
Last Days
Brian Evenson2009
A detective is kidnapped by a cult that practices ritual amputation and forced to investigate a murder within their ranks.
tense → clinical, still horror
pace0·prose+1·bleak+1
- pace0prose+1bleak+1