For me, The Unbearable Lightness of Being-Milan Kundera; On Earth we are Briefly Gorgeous-Ocean Vuong; Love in the Time of Cholera-Gabriel Garcia Marquez. The most tragic, painful, human suffering can be presented and these writers present it in the most excruciatingly beautiful prose.
On Earth we are Briefly Gorgeous-“A woman stands on the shoulder of a dirt road begging, in a tongue made obsolete by gunfire, to enter the village where her house sits, has sat for decades. It is a human story. Anyone can tell it. Can you tell? Can you tell the rain has grown heavy, its keystrokes peppering the blue shawl black?”
What is the beauty for you?
Ok, love some beautiful prose, but also have some maybe beautiful is the wrong word. Striking?
The Eisenhorn trilogy by Dan Abnett, from the Warhammer 40k Universe. Had a friend turn be on to it. And I put down the first in the middle and called him to be like. Wtf bro. This is supposed to be sci fi adventure pulp. This is… this is ART.
The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie - the intro scene is one of the best action scenes I have ever read. Something about the description makes it so visceral that I had to slow down to appreciate every bit instead of skimming for the gist.
For those who said Piranesi - I can’t remember any specific lines, but the mental picture I have of the house, the statues, the tides… is so tangible.
The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle - did a reread just because I caught myself admiring the analogies so much.
This is How You Lose the Time War - already mentioned, but is amazing.