Exploring from

Understand

Ted Chiang

Find similar books by

Combine common axes

Similar in characterization + relationships

These books are ranked using the characterization + relationships labels extracted for Understand. Books rank higher when they are close on every selected axis.

Characterization labels used: superintelligent protagonist, cold protagonist, unlikeable protagonist, arrogant genius, socially unaware, paranoid, self-absorbed, humanity loss, enhanced mind, government scientists, opposing superintelligence

Relationships labels used: patient-doctor, government oversight, intellectual rivalry, adversarial duel, human vs enhanced, baseline vs enhanced, individual vs state

This does not mean the books share the same plot, setting, quality, or difficulty. It means their characterization + relationships embeddings are close.

Exclude same author

Max ratings No limit

The Terminal Man

Michael Crichton · 2002

An experimental brain surgery meant to stop violent seizures instead turns one patient into a deadly threat.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: psychiatrist · surgeon · scientist · doctor · patient as test subject · violent protagonist · psychotic protagonist · paranoid protagonist · brilliant but unstable · arrogant experts · female doctor · beleaguered psychiatrist · paper-thin characters · limited character development

Relationships labels: doctor-patient · medical team · professional rivalry · authority vs patient · institutional power · patient under guard · human-machine relation · man-machine conflict

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1761

Continue from here

The Invisible Man

H.G. Wells · 1897

A reclusive scientist makes himself invisible, only to spiral into fear, crime, and violent ruin.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: arrogant protagonist · mad scientist · genius gone wrong · alienated outsider · antisocial · violent · selfish · narcissistic · unreliable sympathy · bullying · paranoid · mentally unstable · reclusive

Relationships labels: society vs individual · villager suspicion · authorities vs fugitive · betrayal · isolation · mob pursuit · power imbalance · community hostility

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2003

Continue from here

مثل إيكاروس

Ahmed Khaled Towfik, أحمد خالد توفيق · 2015

A troubled man who can read the past and future becomes a target as his gift turns knowledge into a curse.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: outcast · isolated protagonist · enigmatic protagonist · psychically gifted · self-destructive · intellectual · obsessive · skeptical observer · psychiatrist narrator · political operator · scientist · writer · religious character · Darwinist

Relationships labels: marriage · familial pressure · doctor-patient · state surveillance · power imbalance · social alienation · opportunistic interest · ideological conflict

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2024

Continue from here

His Master's Voice

Stanisław Lem · 1995

A mathematician in a secret desert project tries to decode a mysterious neutrino message that may be alien—or unknowable.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: mathematician protagonist · scientist narrator · brilliant intellect · misanthrope · skeptic · erudite · pompous voice · collegial debate · research team

Relationships labels: scientific collaboration · government control · military sponsorship · academic rivalry · institutional distrust · expert community · human-versus-inhuman · individual vs state

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2079

Continue from here

Hospital

Han Song · 2023 · Hospital

A business trip turns nightmarish when a mysterious illness traps one man inside a dystopian hospital system.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: hapless protagonist · confused protagonist · middle-aged man · patient protagonist · bureaucratic functionaries · doctors · medical punk · flat characters · delirious protagonist · imaginative protagonist

Relationships labels: doctor-patient power imbalance · institutional control · family breakdown · family conventions · bribery · coercion · dependency · authority conflict · gendered hostility · parent-child tension

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2117

Continue from here

Juggler of Worlds

Larry Niven, Edward M. Lerner · 2008 · Fleet of Worlds

A paranoid Earth agent and a secretive alien strategist play a galaxy-spanning game of hidden motives and conspiracies.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: paranoid protagonist · covert agent · intelligence agent · investigator · alien strategist · secretive alien · cynical · genius · borderline paranoid · morally ambiguous · dogged · obsessive

Relationships labels: spy rivalry · human-alien conflict · cat-and-mouse · power struggle · political intrigue · trust issues · manipulation

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2123

Continue from here

Bílá nemoc

Karel Čapek

A doctor with a cure for a deadly epidemic demands peace, confronting a war-crazed ruler and a manipulated public.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: idealistic doctor · war-mongering ruler · power-hungry leader · typified characters · moral absolutism · humanitarian protagonist

Relationships labels: doctor vs ruler · power vs conscience · individual vs state · public vs propaganda · leader and masses · medicine and politics · victim and authority

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2133

Continue from here

We Are Legion (We Are Bob)

Dennis E. Taylor · 2016 · Bobiverse

A dead engineer wakes as an uploaded AI and must replicate itself to explore space and secure humanity’s future.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: geek protagonist · sarcastic narrator · loner · engineer protagonist · smartass · resourceful · self-replicating selves · clone variants · strong moral compass · introvert

Relationships labels: self-duplication · self-dialogue · comradeship · rivalry · competition · state control · dependency on government · limited romance

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2142

Continue from here

Who?

Algis Budrys · 1964

A maimed scientist returns from enemy hands rebuilt with metal parts, and security must decide if he’s really himself.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: brilliant scientist · socially awkward · analytical mind · detached personality · security agent · intelligence officer · unorthodox physicist · cyborg protagonist · outcast figure · machine-like character

Relationships labels: state mistrust · surveillance · interrogator-subject · allied-versus-soviet rivalry · bureaucratic suspicion · identity verification · alienation from society · strained reunion · professional dependency

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2187

Continue from here

Moon Knight, Vol. 2: Reincarnations

Jeff Lemire · 2017 · Moon Knight (2016)

Moon Knight’s identities splinter into separate realities, forcing a surreal battle to understand what’s real and who he is.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: fractured protagonist · multiple alter egos · antihero · mentally unstable protagonist · conflicted self · unreliable protagonist · self-reckoning · character study · identity integration · less traditional superhero

Relationships labels: self vs self · internal conflict · persona rivalry · split-self dynamic · supporting cast · authority conflict

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2188

Continue from here

All My Sins Remembered

Joe Haldeman · 2003 · Confederación

A pacifist recruit is turned into a deep-cover assassin through hypnosis and body alteration, then sent across alien worlds.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: idealistic protagonist · pacifist protagonist · conflicted protagonist · reluctant agent · tragiс figure · decent core · moral decline · psychological deterioration · identity loss · trained operative · young man · spy · thief · assassin

Relationships labels: government control · handler relationship · bureaucratic domination · mentor authority · institution versus individual · self versus persona · debriefing relationship · forced obedience · alien-human coexistence · civilian collateral harm

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2224

Continue from here

Transmetropolitan, Vol. 7: Spider's Thrash

Warren Ellis · 2002 · Transmetropolitan (Collected Editions)

An exiled gonzo journalist keeps fighting a corrupt president while uncovering the city’s darkest social truths.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: gonzo journalist · antihero · cynical protagonist · angry protagonist · profane protagonist · relentless truth-seeker · morally driven antihero · physically deteriorating protagonist · supportive assistants · authoritarian president · corrupt officials

Relationships labels: protagonist versus president · assistant-protagonist team · adversarial power struggle · public versus private · state versus citizen

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2238

Continue from here