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Fiction Filters

Trope tagging and searching for books

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Books

Likeable characters

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The Warrior’s Apprentice

Cover art for The Warrior's Apprentice
by Lois McMaster Bujold

Series:

The Vorkosigan Saga

Genres:

Science fiction and fantasy, Space opera

Tropes:

Coming of age, Cons and swindles, Fealty, Madcap adventures, Politics

Characters:

Character(s) with ADHD

Time Periods:

Long-Term Future

Places:

Military, Outer space

The Hands of the Emperor

Cover art for The Hands of the Emperor
by Victoria Goddard

Series:

The Lays of the Hearth-Fire

Genres:

Fantasy, Fantasy of manners

Tropes:

Fealty, Found family, Playing the long game, Politics, Unreliable narrator

Characters:

Asexual main character(s), Characters in their 50s, Characters in their 60s, Politician, Royalty

Time Periods:

Places:

Africa inspired setting, Pacific Islands inspired setting, Secondary World

The Love Hypothesis

by Ali Hazelwood

Series:

Genres:

Contemporary romance, Humor, New adult fiction, Slice of life

Tropes:

Age Difference, Breaking the fourth wall, Coming of age, Crush on teacher, Fake dating, Feelings realization, Fluff, Friends to lovers, Grumpy/sunshine, Kissing to avoid suspicion, Miscommunication, Opposites attract, Pining, Playing the long game, Slice of life, Woman in a man's world

Characters:

Academic, Characters in their 20s, Characters in their 30s, College student, Scientist, Teacher

Time Periods:

2010-2020

Places:

United States, University

His Majesty’s Dragon

Cover art for His Majesty’s Dragon
by Naomi Novik

Series:

Temeraire

Genres:

Alternate history, Fantasy of manners

Tropes:

Telepathic companion animals

Characters:

Dragon characters, Dragon rider, Ship captain

Time Periods:

1800-1810, Napoleonic War, Regency Era

Places:

England

Trade Me

Cover art for Trade Me
by Courtney Milan

Series:

Cyclone

Genres:

Contemporary romance, New adult fiction

Tropes:

Celebrity relationships, Fake dating, Life swap, Prince(ss) and pauper, Transactional relationship

Characters:

Athlete, Billionaire, Characters in their 20s, Characters with eating disorders, Chinese American main character(s), College student, Straight main character(s), Trans woman side character

Time Periods:

2010-2020

Places:

California, College

The Duke Who Didn’t

Cover art for The Duke Who Didn’t
by Courtney Milan

Series:

The Wedgeford Trials

Genres:

Victorian romance

Tropes:

Childhood friends, Friends to lovers, Secret identity

Characters:

Characters in their 20s, Chinese diasporic main character(s), Entrepreneur, Nobility

Time Periods:

1890-1900

Places:

England

The Goblin Emperor

Cover art for The Goblin Emperor
by Katherine Addison

Series:

The Goblin Emperor

Genres:

Fantasy, Fantasy of manners, Gaslamp fantasy

Tropes:

Assassination, Dysfunctional family, Fealty, Forgotten heir, Mystery plot, Politics

Characters:

Character(s) with PTSD, Characters in their late teens, Introverted main character(s), Royalty, Straight main character

Time Periods:

Places:

Secondary World

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Cover art for Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Series:

Genres:

Coming-of-age fiction, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary romance, Realistic fiction, Romance

Tropes:

Men loving men

Characters:

Latine/North American main character(s), Teen main character(s)

Time Periods:

1980s

Places:

Texas

A Marvellous Light

Cover art for A Marvellous Light
by Freya Marske

Series:

The Last Binding

Genres:

Fantasy of manners, Gaslamp fantasy

Tropes:

Dysfunctional family, Enemies to lovers, Grumpy/sunshine, Magical mystery, Magical society, Men loving men, Secret society

Characters:

Characters in their 20s, Mage, Queer main character(s), White/European main character(s)

Time Periods:

1900-1910

Places:

England

The Devil You Know

Cover art for The Devil You Know
by Kit Rocha

Series:

Mercenary Librarians

Genres:

Post-apocalyptic fiction, Science fiction romance

Tropes:

Corporate overreach, Dystopia, Found family

Characters:

Time Periods:

Short-Term Future

Places:

American South

Check, Please!, Book 2: Sticks & Scones

Cover art for Check, Please!, Book 2: Sticks & Scones
by Ngozi Okazu

Series:

Check, Please!

Genres:

Contemporary romance, Hockey romance, New adult fiction, Sports romance

Tropes:

Celebrity relationships, Coming out, Ensemble cast, Found family, Grumpy/sunshine, Men loving men, Secret relationship, Sports teams, Stress baking

Characters:

Baker, Character with substance abuse issues, Character(s) with anxiety, Character(s) with PTSD, Closeted main character(s), Hockey player, Queer main character(s), Queer side character(s), Student athlete

Time Periods:

2010-2020

Places:

College, Massachusetts

Check, Please! Book 1: #Hockey

Cover art for Check, Please! Book 1: #Hockey
by Ngozi Okazu

Series:

Check, Please!

Genres:

Contemporary fiction, Contemporary romance, Hockey fiction, Hockey romance, New adult fiction, Realistic fiction, Sports fiction, Sports romance

Tropes:

Character blog, Ensemble cast, Found family, Grumpy/sunshine, Men loving men, Pining, Sports teams, Stress baking

Characters:

American main character, Baker, Bisexual main character(s), Canadian main character, Character with substance abuse issues, Character(s) with anxiety, Character(s) with depression, Character(s) with PTSD, Characters in their 20s, Characters in their late teens, Cisgender man main character(s), Closeted main character(s), College student, Figure skater, Gay main character(s), Hockey player, New adult main characters, Queer main character(s), Queer side character(s), Student, Student athlete, White/European diasporic main character(s), White/European main character(s)

Time Periods:

2010-2020, Information Age

Places:

Arena, College, Massachusetts, New England

Feed

Cover art for Feed
by Mira Grant

Series:

Newsflesh

Genres:

Dystopian fiction, Political thriller, Zombie horror

Tropes:

Character blog, Dystopia, Pandemic, Politics, Road trip, Unreliable narrator

Characters:

Blogger, Characters in their 20s, Journalist

Time Periods:

Short-Term Future

Places:

America, California

All Systems Red

Cover art for All Systems Red
by Martha Wells

Series:

The Murderbot Diaries

Genres:

Space opera

Tropes:

Android, Corporate overreach, Dystopia, Found family, Snarky AI

Characters:

Agender main character(s), Asexual main character(s)

Time Periods:

Long-Term Future

Places:

Outer space

Red, White & Royal Blue

Cover art for Red, White & Royal Blue
by Casey McQuiston

Series:

Genres:

Contemporary romance, New adult fiction

Tropes:

Celebrity relationships, Coming out, Enemies to lovers, Epistolary, Fake relationship, Long distance relationship, Men loving men, Politics, Secret relationship

Characters:

Bisexual main character(s), Characters in their 20s, Gay main character(s), Gay side character(s), Latine/Latin American main character(s), Royalty

Time Periods:

2010-2020

Places:

Austin, London, Los Angeles, Paris, Washington, D.C.

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Setting: Time Period

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Content Notes or Warnings

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Exclude:

Genres

Tropes

Character Traits

Setting: Time Period

Setting: Location

Sex Ratings

Language Ratings

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Note that we don't have dates for all the books in our database.

Search Tips

  • use “quotation marks around a phrase” to search for an exact phrase
  • use – in front of a word or quoted phrase to exclude it from the search results, e.g. -“enemies to lovers”
  • right now, the checkbox options aren’t narrowed down as you search, but stay tuned! We’re working on it.

This is an academic research project on crowdsourced tagging and building a vocabulary for fiction.

How does this work?

  1. Add books to our database, if the book you want to tag isn’t already there. You can import your books from StoryGraph or Goodreads if you want to save time.
  2. Add tags to the books. Your tag set is your own, and you’ll be able to come back and edit it if you want. Other taggers can’t view your tag set or overwrite your tags.
  3. View the book, and use the tags to see what other books share your favorite tropes and characters!
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