After
Young Mungo
Douglas Stuart2022
- pace
- prose
- structure
- bleakness
5 of 6 directions open — nothing heavier
More like it
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Confessions of Nat Turner
William Styron1967
A fictionalized confession of the leader of an 1831 slave revolt while he awaits execution in a Virginia jail cell.
Same bleak register, still historical fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak0
No Country for Young Men
Julia O'Faolain1980
A family in 1970s Ireland deals with the fallout of a visit from an American relative. The story uncovers secrets from the 1920s Civil War.
Same bleak register, still historical fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak0
- pace0prose0bleak-1
Swimming in the Dark
Tomasz Jedrowski2020
Two men fall in love at an agricultural camp in 1980s Poland. They struggle to maintain their bond under a repressive communist regime.
bleak → elegiac, still historical fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak-1
- pace0prose0bleak-1
The Great Believers
Rebecca Makkai2018
Two timelines follow a group of friends in Chicago during the 1980s AIDS crisis and a woman searching for her daughter in 2015 Paris.
bleak → elegiac, still historical fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak-1
1 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose0bleak0
The Bluest Eye
Toni Morrison1970
A young Black girl in 1940s Ohio prays for blue eyes as a way to escape her reality. The narrative follows her family's collapse and trauma.
Same bleak register, still historical fiction
pace0·prose0·bleak0
Denser prose
- pace+1prose+1bleak0
A Brief History of Seven Killings
Marlon James2014
A large cast of characters recounts the 1976 attempt on Bob Marley's life. The narrative spans decades and moves from Jamaica to New York.
bleak → propulsive, still historical fiction
pace+1·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
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, still historical fiction
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace0prose+1bleak-1
Gravity's Rainbow
Thomas Pynchon1973
During the end of WWII, an American lieutenant's sexual encounters seem to predict where German V-2 rockets will fall. The narrative is fragmented.
bleak → sardonic, still historical fiction
pace0·prose+1·bleak-1
- pace0prose+1bleak0
Don Quixote
Kathy Acker1986
A woman undergoes an abortion and adopts the persona of Don Quixote to pursue a quest in a fragmented, postmodern landscape.
bleak → sardonic
pace0·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
Translated Accounts
James Kelman2001
Anonymous witnesses describe life under a military regime. The prose uses broken, bureaucratic syntax to mimic a literal translation.
Same bleak register
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
To recover
- pace+1prose-2bleak-3
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.
bleak → earnest
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-3
- pace+1prose-2bleak-3
The Duke and I
Julia Quinn2000
A duke and a debutante enter a fake courtship to avoid social pressure. They navigate Regency London's marriage market while hiding their deal.
bleak → playful
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-3
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-2bleak-3
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.
bleak → propulsive
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-3
- pace+1prose-2bleak-3
On Dublin Street
Samantha Young2012
An American woman in Scotland enters a sex-only arrangement with her roommate's brother to avoid emotional intimacy. It is a contemporary romance.
bleak → warm
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-3
- pace+1prose-2bleak-3
Night Pleasures
Sherrilyn Kenyon2002
An immortal warrior and a skeptical accountant are handcuffed together while being hunted by supernatural predators.
bleak → playful
pace+1·prose-2·bleak-3
Faster
- pace+2prose-2bleak-3
Dial A for Aunties
Jesse Q. Sutanto2021
A photographer accidentally kills her blind date. Her mother and aunties help hide the body during a massive luxury wedding.
bleak → playful
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-3
- pace+2prose-1bleak-1
Child 44
Tom Rob Smith2008
A Soviet security officer investigates a serial killer in a state that officially claims murder does not exist.
bleak → tense
pace+2·prose-1·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace+2prose-1bleak-2
Candide
Voltaire
A naive young man travels the world while his tutor insists that everything is for the best. He encounters a series of global catastrophes.
bleak → sardonic
pace+2·prose-1·bleak-2
- pace+2prose-2bleak-3
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.
bleak → propulsive
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-3
- pace+2prose-2bleak-3
The Martian
Andy Weir2011
A man does arithmetic to stay alive on Mars. Problem, attempt, result, repeat.
bleak → wry
pace+2·prose-2·bleak-3
Slower
bleak → elegiac, still historical fiction
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
Absalom, Absalom!
William Faulkner1936
The rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen is recounted through multiple, conflicting memories. The prose uses extremely long, complex sentences.
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0
- pace-1prose0bleak-1
The English Patient
Michael Ondaatje1992
Four people shelter in a ruined Italian villa at the end of WWII. They care for a burned, anonymous man who recounts his past in the desert.
pace-1·prose0·bleak-1
3 more ↓ ↑
- pace-1prose+1bleak-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-1·prose+1·bleak-2
- pace-1prose+1bleak-1
Umbrella
Will Self2013
A psychiatrist in 1971 treats a woman who has been catatonic for decades. The prose shifts between eras and consciousnesses without paragraph breaks.
bleak → clinical
pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1
- pace-1prose+1bleak0
Translated Accounts
James Kelman2001
Anonymous witnesses describe life under a military regime. The prose uses broken, bureaucratic syntax to mimic a literal translation.
Same bleak register
pace-1·prose+1·bleak0