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Fiction Filters

Trope tagging and searching for books

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Books

Science fiction and fantasy

This is the preferred term. Synonyms are included. You can turn off synonyms.

Broader terms: Speculative fiction

Narrower terms: Fantasy, Science fiction, Sci fi, Sci-fi, Science fiction romance, Urban fantasy, Superhero fantasy, Arcanepunk, Anthropomorphic fantasy, Sword and sorcery, Mythic fantasy, High fantasy, Historical fantasy, New weird fantasy, Slipstream, Fairy tale, Portal fantasy, Crossworlds, Fantasy of manners, Middle-Eastern fantasy, Wuxia, Magical realism, Celtic/Irish mythics, Hindu mythics, Greek mythics, Arthurian fantasy, Roman mythics, Christian mythics, Jewish mythics, Islamic mythics, Medieval fantasy, Gaslamp fantasy, Flintlock fantasy, Gunpowder fantasy, Fairy tale retelling, Classic fairy tale, Fable, Contemporary fairy tale, Xianxia, Dystopian fiction, Alternate history, Space opera, Cyberpunk, Military science fiction, Military sci-fi, Military sci fi, Science fiction horror, Sci fi horror, Sci-fi horror, Voyages extraordinaire, Biopunk, Robotic fiction, Time travel, Alternate universe fiction, AU fiction, Solarpunk, Social science fiction, Superhero science fiction, Alien science fiction, Alien sci fi, Extraterrestrial sci fi, Extraterrestrial science fiction, Afrofuturism, Hard science fiction, Near future science fiction, Ecofiction, Post-apocalyptic fiction, Dying Earth, Apocalyptic fiction, Steampunk, Retro-futurism, Lost worlds, Parallel world fiction, First contact, Alien invasion, Extraterrestrial invasion, Alien conspiracy, Extraterrestrial conspiracy

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

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

A Natural History of Dragons

Cover art for A Natural History of Dragons
by Marie Brennan

Series:

Memoirs of Lady Trent

Genres:

Alternate history, Fantasy of manners

Tropes:

Travel

Characters:

Naturalist

Time Periods:

Victorian Era

Places:

Secondary World

Scales and Sensibility

Cover art for Scales and Sensibility
by Stephanie Burgis

Series:

Regency Dragons

Genres:

Alternate history, Fantasy of manners, Regency romance

Tropes:

Characters:

Time Periods:

Regency Era

Places:

England

Petty Treason

Cover art for Petty Treason
by Madeleine E. Robins

Series:

Sarah Tolerance

Genres:

Alternate history, Fantasy of manners, Historical mystery

Tropes:

Characters:

Detective, Swordswoman

Time Periods:

Regency Era

Places:

London

Point of Honour

Cover art for Point of Honour
by Madeleine E. Robins

Series:

Sarah Tolerance

Genres:

Alternate history, Fantasy of manners, Historical mystery

Tropes:

Characters:

Detective, Swordswoman

Time Periods:

Regency Era

Places:

London

Shades of Milk and Honey

Cover art for Shades of Milk and Honey
by Mary Robinette Kowal

Series:

Glamourist Histories

Genres:

Fantasy of manners, Regency romance

Tropes:

Magical society

Characters:

Magic user

Time Periods:

1800-1810, Regency Era

Places:

England

Tooth and Claw

Cover art for Tooth and Claw
by Jo Walton

Series:

Genres:

Fantasy of manners

Tropes:

Complicated inheritance

Characters:

Dragon characters

Time Periods:

Victorian Era

Places:

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

The Left Hand of Darkness

Cover art for The Left Hand of Darkness
by Ursula K. Le Guin

Series:

Hainish Cycle

Genres:

Science fiction, Science fiction and fantasy

Tropes:

Characters:

Adult characters, Envoy

Time Periods:

Long-Term Future

Places:

Fictional planet

A Hero Born

by Anna Holmwood (Translator), Jin Yong

Series:

Legends of the Condor Heroes, The Condor Trilogy

Genres:

Family saga, Wuxia

Tropes:

Arranged marriage, Band of misfits, Coming of age, Dysfunctional family, Fish out of water, Playing the long game, Shoot first ask questions later, Time skip

Characters:

Adult characters, Child characters, Daoist priest, East Asian main character(s), Martial artist, Oblivious hero, Teen main character(s)

Time Periods:

Jin Dynasty, Southern Song Dynasty

Places:

China, Mongolia

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

Infomocracy

Cover art for Infomocracy
by Malka Ann Older

Series:

Infomocracy

Genres:

Near future science fiction, Political thriller, Science fiction

Tropes:

Corporate overreach, Dystopia

Characters:

Time Periods:

Short-Term Future

Places:

Spelunking Through Hell: A Visitor’s Guide to the Underworld

Cover art for Spelunking Through Hell: A Visitor's Guide to the Underworld
by Seanan McGuire

Series:

InCryptid

Genres:

Urban fantasy

Tropes:

Interdimensional travel

Characters:

Ageless or immortal characters, Bounty hunter, Mage, Straight main character(s), Warrior, White/European diasporic main character(s)

Time Periods:

2010-2020

Places:

Alternate dimension, Fictional planet, Michigan

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

The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water

Cover art for The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water
by Zen Cho

Series:

Genres:

Wuxia

Tropes:

Band of misfits, Religious artifacts, Secret backstory, Transporting important cargo, Travel

Characters:

Bandits, Chinese-coded main character(s), East Asian main character(s), Gender nonconforming main character(s), Malayan-coded main characters, Mercenary, NBLW, Nun

Time Periods:

Malayan Emergency inspired time period, Wuxia time period

Places:

China inspired setting, Malaya inspired setting

The Ministry for the Future

by Kim Stanley Robinson

Series:

Genres:

Science fiction, Social science fiction

Tropes:

Characters:

Time Periods:

Short-Term Future

Places:

Switzerland

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

Leviathan Wakes

Cover art for Leviathan Wakes
by James S.A. Corey

Series:

The Expanse

Genres:

Space opera

Tropes:

Band of misfits, Ensemble cast, Gateways and wormholes, Ghost ship, Mystery plot, Politics

Characters:

Middle-aged characters

Time Periods:

Long-Term Future

Places:

Outer space
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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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