Books like 'A Tiny Upward Shove'
Readers who enjoyed A Tiny Upward Shove by Melissa Chadburn also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary fantasy horror mystery magical-realism myths literary-fiction paranormal dark lgbtq
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Collected Fictions by Jorge Luis Borges
Rated: 4.41 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsJorge Luis Borges has been called the greatest Spanish-language writer of our century. Now for the first time in English, all of Borges' dazzling fictions are gathered into a single volume, brilliantly translated by Andrew Hurley... -
![Piranesi by Susanna Clarke]()
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 70 ratingsPiranesi's house is no ordinary building: its rooms are infinite, its corridors endless, its walls are lined with thousands upon thousands of statues, each one different from all the others. Within the labyrinth of halls an ocean is imprisoned; waves thunder up staircases, rooms are flooded in an instant... -
![Set This House in Order by Matt Ruff]()
Set This House in Order by Matt Ruff
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAndy Gage was born in 1965 and murdered not long after by his stepfather. . . . It was no ordinary murder. Though the torture and abuse that killed him were real, Andy Gage's death wasn't. Only his soul actually died, and when it died, it broke in pieces. Then the pieces became souls in their own right, coinheritors of Andy Gage's life. . .Categorized as:
dark historical-fiction lgbtq literary-fiction magical-realism myths 21st-century abuse -
![Del tiempo y sus demonios by Diego Armando Arciniegas Malagón]()
Del tiempo y sus demonios by Diego Armando Arciniegas Malagón
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsDEL TIEMPO Y SUS DEMONIOS: PERSIGUIENDO LA VERDADEsta novela se desarrolla en un pequeño y misterioso pueblo. En un territorio hermoso, inhóspito a la luz de aquellas certezas que las mayorías consideran irrefutables. Lejos del tiempo que, arbitrariamente, tomara la sabia decisión de separar el bien del mal...Categorized as:
magical-realism literary-fiction paranormal historical-fiction dark mystery fiction horror -
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![The Order of Brigid's Cross by Terri Reid]()
The Order of Brigid's Cross by Terri Reid
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsDetective Sean O’Reilly is called in to interrogate a young boy who is the only witness to a massacre during a gang war. The child’s story is too far-fetched for most of the Chicago Police Force to believe – claims of an army of other-worldly creatures who attacked and dismembered the rival gangs. But Sean O’Reilly believes him, because he’s seen them himself... -
![The Ringmaster by Kathryn Ann Kingsley]()
The Ringmaster by Kathryn Ann Kingsley
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsAs above, so below…who was once friend is now a foe.The Faire is alive. It’s alive, it’s sentient, and it wants more from Cora Glass. Reeling from the revelations that Clown left her with, she struggles once more to find her footing. She never gets the chance.Harrow Faire wants Cora for murder. She assumed it was her death that it was after. She was wrong. It wants her to kill…to save them all... -
![The Deptford Trilogy by Robertson Davies]()
The Deptford Trilogy by Robertson Davies
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsThe complete volume of Robertson Davies's acclaimed trilogy, featuring Fifth Business, The Manticore, and World of Wonders, with a new foreword by Kelly Link Fifth Business Ramsay is a man twice born, a man who has returned from the hell of the battle-grave at Passchendaele in World War I decorated with the Victoria Cross and destined to be caught in a no man's land where memory, history, and... -
![Memory and Dream by Charles de Lint]()
Memory and Dream by Charles de Lint
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFrom World Fantasy Award-winning author Charles de Lint, a tale of love, courage, and the transforming power of imagination Isabelle Copley's visionary art frees ancient spirits. As the young student of the cruel, brilliant artist Vincent Rushkin, she discovered she could paint images so vividly real they brought her wildest fantasies to life...Categorized as:
low-fantasy magical-realism myths paranormal retellings action-adventure anthologies audiobook -
![The Neil Gaiman Reader: Selected Fiction by Neil Gaiman, Marlon James]()
The Neil Gaiman Reader: Selected Fiction by Neil Gaiman, Marlon James
Rated: 4.49 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsAn outstanding array—52 pieces in all—of selected fiction from the multiple-award-winning, #1 New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman, curated by his readers around the world, and introduced with a foreword by Booker Prize-winning author Marlon JamesSpanning Gaiman’s career to date, The Neil Gaiman Reader: Selected Fiction is a captivating collection from one of the world’s most beloved...Categorized as:
dark literary-fiction low-fantasy magical-realism myths paranormal retellings 21st-century -
![In an Absent Dream by Seanan McGuire]()
In an Absent Dream by Seanan McGuire
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 41 ratingsThis fourth entry and prequel tells the story of Lundy, a very serious young girl who would rather study and dream than become a respectable housewife and live up to the expectations of the world around her. As well she should.When she finds a doorway to a world founded on logic and reason, riddles and lies, she thinks she's found her paradise...Categorized as:
dark historical-fiction lgbtq low-fantasy magical-realism paranormal retellings action-adventure -
![Spirits Abroad by Zen Cho]()
Spirits Abroad by Zen Cho
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratings"If you live near the jungle, you will realize that what is real and what is not real is not always clear. In the forest there is not a big gap between the two."A Datin recalls her romance with an orang bunian. A teenage pontianak struggles to balance homework, bossy aunties, first love, and eating people... -
![The Silver Dark Sea by Susan Fletcher]()
The Silver Dark Sea by Susan Fletcher
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsOn the island of Parla some believe in the ancient tale of the Fishman, others believe in nothing. All carry with them the mourning and sadness for what the sea has taken away. But when a man with no name is washed up on the stones of Sye, it appears the mythical figure has returned... -
![Ghosts of Greenglass House by Kate Milford, Jaime Zollars]()
Ghosts of Greenglass House by Kate Milford, Jaime Zollars
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsWelcome back to the irresistible world of Greenglass House where thirteen-year-old Milo is, once again, spending the winter holidays stuck in a house full of strange guests who are not what they seem. There are fresh clues to uncover as friends old and new join in his search for a mysterious map and a famous smuggler’s lost haul...Categorized as:
historical-fiction low-fantasy magical-realism myths paranormal poc-mc retellings action-adventure -
![Redwood by Mark Z. Danielewski]()
Redwood by Mark Z. Danielewski
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe Season One finale of this riveting multisensory masterpiece from the visionary author of House of Leaves... -
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![Lesser Known Monsters by Rory Michaelson]()
Lesser Known Monsters by Rory Michaelson
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsBeing the chosen one isn’t always a good thing...Oscar Tundale is not a hero. Anxious, indecisive, and awkward, he can barely get through a normal day. Now he’s about to find out monsters are real. Oscar’s friends: brave, stubborn Zara, and hyperactive, paranoid Marcus, might help discover what hunts him, and unravel the truth about the handsome doctor he pines for... -
![Never Have I Ever by Isabel Yap]()
Never Have I Ever by Isabel Yap
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratings“Am I dead?”Mebuyen sighs. She was hoping the girl would not ask.Spells and stories, urban legends and immigrant tales: the magic in Isabel Yap’s debut collection jumps right off the page, from the joy in her new novella, 'A Spell for Foolish Hearts' to the terrifying tension of the urban legend 'Have You Heard the One About Anamaria Marquez'... -
![The Raconteur's Commonplace Book by Kate Milford, Jaime Zollars]()
The Raconteur's Commonplace Book by Kate Milford, Jaime Zollars
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsNothing is what it seems and there's always more than one side to the story as a group of strangers trapped in an inn slowly reveal their secrets...The rain hasn't stopped for a week, and the twelve guests of the Blue Vein Tavern are trapped by flooded roads and the rising Skidwrack River. Among them are a ship’s captain, tattooed twins, a musician, and a young girl traveling on her own... -
![Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung]()
Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsCursed Bunny is a genre-defying collection of short stories by Korean author Bora Chung. Blurring the lines between magical realism, horror, and science-fiction, Chung uses elements of the fantastic and surreal to address the very real horrors and cruelties of patriarchy and capitalism in modern society...Categorized as:
dark literary-fiction magical-realism paranormal 21st-century adult anthologies contemporary -
![Chapel of Ease by Alex Bledsoe]()
Chapel of Ease by Alex Bledsoe
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe latest installment in Alex Bledsoe's critically-acclaimed Tufa series that Kirkus Reviews calls "powerful, character-driven drama...a sheer delight." (starred review)When Matt Johanssen, a young New York actor, auditions for "Chapel of Ease," an off-Broadway musical, he is instantly charmed by Ray Parrish, the show's writer and composer...Categorized as:
historical-fiction lgbtq low-fantasy magical-realism myths paranormal retellings adult -
![The Eagle's Gift by Carlos Castaneda]()
The Eagle's Gift by Carlos Castaneda
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsCarlos Castaneda takes the reader into the very heart of sorcery, challenging both imagination and reason, shaking the very foundations of our belief in what is "natural" and "logical... -
![Lanny by Max Porter]()
Lanny by Max Porter
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsThere’s a village sixty miles outside London. It’s no different from many other villages in England: one pub, one church, red-brick cottages, council cottages and a few bigger houses dotted about. Voices rise up, as they might do anywhere, speaking of loving and needing and working and dying and walking the dogs...Categorized as:
dark historical-fiction literary-fiction low-fantasy magical-realism myths paranormal retellings -
![Hell's Horizon by D.B. Shan, Darren Shan]()
Hell's Horizon by D.B. Shan, Darren Shan
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 21 ratingsWhen Al Jeery is seconded by The Cardinal from guard duties at Party Central to investigate the murder of a woman at a hotel he little suspects that the dead woman will turn out to be his girlfriend. Soon he is involved in a terrifying mystery... -
![The Little Country by Charles de Lint]()
The Little Country by Charles de Lint
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsWhen folk musician Janey Little finds a mysterious manuscript in an old trunk in her grandfather's cottage, she is swept into a dangerous realm both strange and familiar. But true magic lurks within the pages of The Little Country, drawing genuine danger from across the oceans into Janey's life, impelling her--armed only with her music--toward a terrifying confrontation...Categorized as:
historical-fiction low-fantasy magical-realism myths paranormal retellings action-adventure adult -
![Tales From the Hinterland by Melissa Albert]()
Tales From the Hinterland by Melissa Albert
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA gorgeously illustrated collection of twelve fairy tales by the author of The Hazel Wood and The Night Country!Journey into the Hinterland, a brutal and beautiful world where a young woman spends a night with Death, brides are wed to a mysterious house in the trees, and an enchantress is killed twice―and still lives...Categorized as:
dark historical-fiction low-fantasy magical-realism myths paranormal retellings action-adventure -
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![Demon Road by Derek Landy]()
Demon Road by Derek Landy
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe mind-blowing new supernatural thriller from bestselling author DEREK LANDY, creator of international sensation Skulduggery Pleasant.Full of Landy’s trademark wit, action and razor-sharp dialogue, DEMON ROAD kicks off with a shocking opener and never lets up the pace in an epic road-trip across the supernatural landscape of America... -
![The Keepers of Metsan Valo by Wendy Webb]()
The Keepers of Metsan Valo by Wendy Webb
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe spirits of Nordic folklore come calling in this entrancing tale of family secrets and ancient mysteries by the #1 Amazon Charts bestselling author of The Haunting of Brynn Wilder.In Metsan Valo, her family home on Lake Superior, Anni Halla’s beloved grandmother has died. Among her fond memories, what Anni remembers most vividly is her grandmother’s eerie yet enchanting storytelling...Categorized as:
paranormal myths magical-realism historical-fiction retellings low-fantasy mystery fantasy -
![Last Call by Tim Powers]()
Last Call by Tim Powers
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsTwenty years ago Scott Crane abandoned his career as a professional poker player and went into hiding, after a weird high-stakes game played with Tarot cards. But now the cards - and the supernatural powers behind them - have found him again.Crane's father killed gangster Bugsy Siegel in 1948 to become the Fisher King, and to keep that power he is determined to kill his son...Categorized as:
dark historical-fiction low-fantasy magical-realism myths paranormal retellings 20th-century -
![Monkey Beach by Eden Robinson]()
Monkey Beach by Eden Robinson
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsLisamarie Hill, the protagonist of Eden Robinson's coming-of-age novel Monkey Beach, is a terror. She'll run out of an evacuating car to get a better view of a tidal wave. She'll drag you unconscious to a deserted island with nothing but cigarettes, marshmallows, and the need to get you talking. Whatever her age, she'll ask awkward questions...Categorized as:
grief historical-fiction literary-fiction low-fantasy magical-realism myths poc-mc retellings -
![We Are All So Good at Smiling by Amber McBride]()
We Are All So Good at Smiling by Amber McBride
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsThey Both Die at the End meets The Bell Jar in this haunting, beautiful young adult novel-in-verse about clinical depression and healing from trauma, from National Book Award Finalist Amber McBride.Whimsy is back in the hospital for treatment of clinical depression. When she meets a boy named Faerry, she recognizes they both have magic in the marrow of their bones...Categorized as:
magical-realism poc-mc grief retellings low-fantasy young-adult fantasy mental-illness -
![Night of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror & Delight by Ryan Douglass, Kalynn Bayron]()
Night of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror & Delight by Ryan Douglass, Kalynn Bayron
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsNight of the Living Queers is a YA horror anthology that explores a night when anything is possible, exclusively featuring queer authors of color putting fresh spins on classic horror tropes and tales.No matter its name or occasion, Halloween is more than a Hallmark holiday, it’s a symbol of transformation... -
![The Barrow Will Send What it May by Margaret Killjoy]()
The Barrow Will Send What it May by Margaret Killjoy
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsMargaret Killjoy’s Danielle Cain series is a dropkick-in-the-mouth anarcho-punk fantasy that pits traveling anarchist Danielle Cain against eternal spirits, hypocritical ideologues, and brutal, unfeeling officers of the law... -
![The Shadow Pavilion by Liz Williams]()
The Shadow Pavilion by Liz Williams
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsDetective Inspector Chen is back! The Snake Agent returns in The Shadow Pavilion, the fourth Detective Inspector Chen novel from Liz Williams. When Chen’s partner, the demon Seneschal Zhu Irzh, disappears, Chen must enlist all of his allies and assets in order to locate him... -
![Feast While You Can by Mikaella Clements, Onjuli Datta]()
Feast While You Can by Mikaella Clements, Onjuli Datta
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsFor readers of Nightbitch and We Ride Upon Sticks, this strange and sexy novel of queer love in a small town is an unsettling reminder that the horrors of modern life are monsters ready to possess us all.In the valley at the intersection of three towering mountains sits Cadenze, an ugly, remote town with little to its name... -
![The Lost Ones by Christopher Golden]()
The Lost Ones by Christopher Golden
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBestselling author Christopher Golden’s epic, innovative trilogy, the Veil, comes to an astonishing conclusion as the mythic realm of heroes and monsters becomes the site of humanity’s last—and greatest—showdown... -
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![It Waits in the Forest by Sarah Dass]()
It Waits in the Forest by Sarah Dass
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsUnlike the other residents of the small Caribbean Island of St. Virgil, Selina DaSilva does not believe in magic. With a logical mind and a knack for botany, Selina used to dream of leaving the island to study Pharmacology—until a vicious, unsolved attack left her father dead and her mother in a coma... -
![Winterset Hollow by Jonathan Edward Durham]()
Winterset Hollow by Jonathan Edward Durham
Rated: 3.97 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsEveryone has wanted their favorite book to be real, if only for a moment. Everyone has wished to meet their favorite characters, if only for a day. But be careful in that wish, for even a history laid in ink can be repaid in flesh and blood, and reality is far deadlier than fiction . . . especially on Addington Isle... -
![High Moor by Graeme Reynolds]()
High Moor by Graeme Reynolds
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsWhen John Simpson hears of a bizarre animal attack in his old home town of High Moor, it stirs memories of a long forgotten horror. John knows the truth. A werewolf stalks the town once more, and on the night of the next full moon, the killing will begin again. He should know. He survived a werewolf attack in 1986, during the worst year of his life... -
![The Fisherman by John Langan]()
The Fisherman by John Langan
Rated: 3.96 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsIn upstate New York, in the woods around Woodstock, Dutchman's Creek flows out of the Ashokan Reservoir. Steep-banked, fast-moving, it offers the promise of fine fishing, and of something more, a possibility too fantastic to be true...Categorized as:
dark grief historical-fiction literary-fiction myths paranormal retellings 21st-century -
![The Honeys by Ryan La Sala]()
The Honeys by Ryan La Sala
Rated: 3.95 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsFrom Ryan La Sala, the wildly popular author of Reverie, comes a twisted and tantalizing horror novel set amidst the bucolic splendor of a secluded summer retreat.Mars has always been the lesser twin, the shadow to his sister Caroline's radiance... -
![The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina by Zoraida Córdova]()
The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina by Zoraida Córdova
Rated: 3.99 of 5 stars · 37 ratingsThe Montoyas are used to a life without explanations. They know better than to ask why the pantry never seems to run low or empty, or why their matriarch won’t ever leave their home in Four Rivers—even for graduations, weddings, or baptisms...Categorized as:
historical-fiction lgbtq literary-fiction magical-realism myths paranormal poc-mc action-adventure -
![Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite]()
Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA young woman must shake off a family curse and the widely held belief that she is the reincarnation of her dead cousin in this wickedly funny, brilliantly perceptive novel about love, female rivalry, and superstition from the author of the smash hit My Sister, the Serial Killer (“A bombshell of a book..Categorized as:
literary-fiction magical-realism paranormal poc-mc low-fantasy fiction contemporary fantasy -
![Ironhand by Charlie Fletcher]()
Ironhand by Charlie Fletcher
Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsGeorge makes a promise to Edie that anything and anyone trying to get her will have to get past him first. But George is unaware that high on the rooftops an unseen gargoyle is watching them hungrily. The thing on the roof knows that nothing is over, nothing is finished... -
![Things We Say in the Dark by Kirsty Logan]()
Things We Say in the Dark by Kirsty Logan
Rated: 3.93 of 5 stars · 15 ratings'Gripping . . . You won't put it down' Sunday TelegraphA shocking collection of dark stories, ranging from chilling contemporary fairytales to disturbing supernatural fiction.Alone in a remote house in Iceland a woman is unnerved by her isolation; another can only find respite from the clinging ghost that follows her by submerging herself in an overgrown pool... -
![Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo]()
Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo
Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars · 5 ratingsAlex Stern returns in another tale of murder and dark magic set among the Ivy League elite…Galaxy “Alex” Stern is determined to break Darlington out of hell—even if it costs her a future at Lethe and at Yale. But Alex is playing with forces far beyond her control, and when faculty members begin to die off, she knows these aren’t just accidents... -
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![Battle Hill Bolero by Daniel José Older]()
Battle Hill Bolero by Daniel José Older
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn the third in the richly detailed and diverse (io9) urban fantasy series, the time has come for the dead to rise up against the shady powers-that-be... "The time has come for the dead to rise up..." Trouble is brewing between the Council of the Dead and the ghostly, half-dead, spiritual, and supernatural community they claim to represent... -
![Christmas Days: 12 Stories and 12 Feasts for 12 Days by Jeanette Winterson]()
Christmas Days: 12 Stories and 12 Feasts for 12 Days by Jeanette Winterson
Rated: 3.97 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsFrom the New York Times bestselling author of "Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?" comes an enchanting collection of stories for the holiday season.For years Jeanette Winterson has loved writing a new story at Christmas time and here she brings together twelve of her brilliantly imaginative, funny and bold tales...Categorized as:
lgbtq literary-fiction low-fantasy magical-realism myths paranormal retellings 21st-century -
![Bad Cree by Jessica Johns]()
Bad Cree by Jessica Johns
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 15 ratingsIn this gripping debut tinged with supernatural horror, a young Cree woman's dreams lead her on a perilous journey of self-discovery that ultimately forces her to confront the toll of a legacy of violence on her family, her community and the land they call home.When Mackenzie wakes up with a severed crow's head in her hands, she panics... -
![The Vampire Archives by Otto Penzler, Kim Newman]()
The Vampire Archives by Otto Penzler, Kim Newman
Rated: 3.88 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe Vampire Archives is the biggest, hungriest, undeadliest collection of vampire stories, as well as the most comprehensive bibliography of vampire fiction ever assembled. Dark, stormy, and delicious, once it sinks its teeth into you there’s no escape. Vampires! Whether imagined by Bram Stoker or Anne Rice, they are part of the human lexicon and as old as blood itself...Categorized as:
historical-fiction myths paranormal retellings anthologies audiobook classics contemporary -
![Pretty Little Dead Girls by Mercedes M. Yardley]()
Pretty Little Dead Girls by Mercedes M. Yardley
Rated: 3.88 of 5 stars · 8 ratings"Run, Star Girl." BRYONY ADAMS IS DESTINED TO BE MURDERED, but fortunately Fate has terrible marksmanship. In order to survive, she must run as far and as fast as she can. After arriving in Seattle, Bryony befriends a tortured musician, a market fish-thrower, and a starry-eyed hero who is secretly a serial killer bent on fulfilling Bryony’s dark destiny. Mercedes M...Categorized as:
dark magical-realism paranormal retellings audiobook book coming-of-age contemporary -
![Sing Sweet Nightingale by Erica Cameron]()
Sing Sweet Nightingale by Erica Cameron
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsMariella Teagen hasn't spoken a word in four years.She pledged her voice to Orane, the man she loves--someone she only sees in her dreams. Each night, she escapes to Paradise, the world Orane created for her, and she sings for him. Mariella never believed she could stay in Paradise longer than a night, but two weeks before her eighteenth birthday, Orane hints that she may be able to stay forever...
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