I’ve been noticing a certain type of story I’ve find very appealing. In this type of media, there is an extremely disturbing and messed up world, but the main characters still retain their goodness despise existing in the worst possible conditions.
Examples of media that embody this very well:
* The Road by Cormac McCarthy: >!Worst case scenario post-apocalypse. Cannibals, murder, etc, but the two main characters still carry the fire. !<
* The Plague Tale video games: >!Takes place during the late 1340s in France during the black death and the English invasion. Even though everybody seems to either enact violence on the main characters or tries to use them for their own gain, the main characters are still generally good. !<
* Brienne of Tarth’s Story in ASOIAF>!: She still embodies what a true Knight should be even while in the midst in the war ravaged Riverlands, a place where atrocities of war are the new normal.!<
I have no genre preference. Thanks for any and all suggestions!
by Healthy-sama
4 Comments
Never Let Me Go, The Marriage Portrait, I Who Have Never Known Men, Severance
Anne Bishop. Contrasting incredibly dark subject matter with some of the most wholesome character dynamics in fiction is pretty much her hallmark.
Pretty much anything, but *Written in Red* (book one of The Others) is probably the best starting point, and *Daughter of the Blood* (Black Jewels book 1) is good as well.
The Heartstriker Series by Rachel Aaron, starting with Nice Dragons Finish Last. Maybe not the most messed up world, but pretty shitty
The Small Backs of Children by Lidia Yuknavitch