Exploring from

Radicalized

Cory Doctorow

Find similar books by

Combine common axes

Similar in characterization + relationships

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

Characterization labels used: refugee protagonist, superhero protagonist, alien superhero, desperate husband, wealthy survivalist, doomsday prepper, angry men, working-class protagonist, immigrant protagonist, collective actors, activist-minded characters

Relationships labels used: family, husband-wife, community solidarity, neighbor support, allyship, friendship, power imbalance, class conflict, police-civilian conflict, corporate-user conflict, leader-follower

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 Jakarta Pandemic

Steven Konkoly · 2013 · Alex Fletcher

A prepared former Marine tries to protect his family as a lethal flu pandemic triggers neighborhood breakdown.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: prepper · ex-marine · Iraq War veteran · pharmaceutical rep · survivalist · paranoid · judgmental · mouthy · antagonistic · flawed hero · protective father · family man · organized · resourceful · cocky · vulnerable · likable hero (mixed) · neighbor cast · sociopaths · desperate strangers · villainous outsiders · well-prepared family · secondary characters

Relationships labels: family unit · husband-wife · parent-child · neighbors · community tension · friendship · rivalry · distrust · dependency · protective instincts · betrayal · us vs them · communal breakdown

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1743

Continue from here

Escaping Home

A. American · 2013 · The Survivalist

In a grid-down America under martial law, a family and allies must choose between holding home and bugging out.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: survivalist · prepper · family man · protective father · loose cannon · ex-soldier · military crew · resourceful protagonist · realistic characters · female characters underdeveloped · children learning self-defense · character development

Relationships labels: family bonds · friend group · allied group · group cohesion · trust issues · parent-child · husband-wife conflict · community solidarity · power imbalance · protective relationship

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1815

Continue from here

The Running Man

Richard Bachman, Stephen King · 1999

A desperate father enters a deadly televised manhunt to save his sick child in a ruthless near-future America.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: desperate protagonist · anti-hero · working-class protagonist · resourceful survivor · angry protagonist · bitterness · family-driven motivation · cunning · flat characters (mixed)

Relationships labels: father-daughter · marriage · family provision · class conflict · authority conflict · citizen informants · hunter-prey dynamic · government versus individual · community distrust · betrayal

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1868

Continue from here

Skitter

Ezekiel Boone · 2017 · The Hatching

A worldwide spider outbreak enters a second, deadlier phase as survivors, scientists, and leaders scramble to contain it.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: scientist · president · agent · survivalist · soldier · political leader · spider expert · advisors · one-off characters · throwaway characters · recurring characters · survivors · doomsday preppers

Relationships labels: team effort · government hierarchy · advisor conflict · family unit · romantic partners · husband wife · parent child · community survival · human alliance · power struggle · reliance on others

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1887

Continue from here

El Eternauta

Héctor Germán Oesterheld, Francisco Solano López · 2006 · El Eternauta

A Buenos Aires card game becomes a battle for survival when deadly snow hides an alien invasion and a resistance forms.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: ordinary man · family man · scientist · collective protagonist · survivor group · resourceful · brave · rationalist · military opposition

Relationships labels: friend group · family bonds · marriage · parent child · teamwork · solidarity · mutual dependence · community resistance · collective action · us vs them

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1913

Continue from here

Scary Monsters

Michelle de Kretser · 2022

A reversible two-part novel follows two Asian migrants in past France and near-future Australia as racism and conformity tighten.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: immigrant protagonists · female protagonist · male protagonist · young woman · middle-aged man · bureaucrat · teacher · bureaucrat protagonist · ambitious wife · elderly mother · creepy neighbor · underconfident

Relationships labels: mother-son · husband-wife · friendship · romantic tension · landlord-tenant · colleague friendship · power imbalance · family dependency · peer influence

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1931

Continue from here

Displaced

Stephen Drake · Displaced

Stranded survivors on an alien world must outlast hunger, winter, and a power-hungry leader while one man tries to survive alone.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: survivalist protagonist · political antagonist · power-hungry leader · individualist hero · martial arts expert · outdoorsman · self-reliant · arrogant hero · caricatures · flat characters · two-dimensional characters · villainous tyrant

Relationships labels: group conflict · leader-followers · power hierarchy · romantic rivalry · polygamy · sister wife · protective alliance · betrayal · rape (as an issue) · community breakdown · family-like clan

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1943

Continue from here

Fractured

D.J. Molles · 2013 · The Remaining

In a shattered post-plague America, scattered survivors face internal revolt, infected threats, and brutal choices.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: military protagonist · commanders · survivors · political antagonist · despots · religious fanatics · infected humans · morally ambiguous characters · character growth · survivalist cast

Relationships labels: coup · betrayal · loyalty · faction conflict · friendship · comradeship · family bonds · parent-child relationship · power struggle

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1956

Continue from here

The Screwfly Solution

Raccoona Sheldon, James Tiptree Jr. · 1977

A fragmented sci-fi horror tale follows a worldwide surge of violent misogyny, ending in a chilling alien explanation.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: scientist protagonist · scientist husband · wife protagonist · family focus · ordinary people · male aggression · female vulnerability · limited character development

Relationships labels: husband-wife · parent-child · family separation · gender conflict · power imbalance · male-female conflict · community breakdown · cult allegiance · dependency · protective concern

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1983

Continue from here

Silo Stories

Hugh Howey

Three linked post-apocalyptic short stories expand a silo-based universe before, during, and after the world’s collapse.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: survivors · founders · political insider · intelligence agent · black ops agent · inoculated survivors · family members · reunion characters · resource-strapped characters · mistrustful characters

Relationships labels: family · sister relationship · husband-wife · romance · affair · community · reunion · factional conflict · betrayal · power imbalance

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1995

Continue from here

Broken Lines

James Hunt · 2019 · EMP Survival in a Powerless World

After an EMP blackout, a prepared father fights through a collapsing society to reach his family before they vanish.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: prepper · family man · protective father · survivalist · neighbor companion · community pillar · helpless survivors · biker gang · rich mastermind · everyman · prepared protagonist · resourceful survivor

Relationships labels: family separation · family reunion · parent-child · marriage · neighbor bond · community collapse · protective caregiving · found family · power struggle

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2047

Continue from here

The Last Colony

John Scalzi · 2007 · Old Man's War

A retired soldier turned colonial ombudsman is pulled into leading a new settlement whose hidden purpose sparks galactic intrigue.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: retired soldier · ombudsman · police officer · family unit · wisecracking protagonist · sarcastic protagonist · sympathetic characters · colonial administrator · teen protagonist · alien guardians

Relationships labels: married couple · adoptive family · parent-child · family loyalty · comradeship · power struggle · human-alien alliance · betrayal · leadership

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.2048

Continue from here