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erebus53's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Necromages are fighting to save the universe from world-eating monsters, and that's not the weird bit. This is a labyrinthine ride through visceral fight scenes (with ... lots of viscera, and bones and connective tissues.. elaborate in the details thereof), half remembered memories or dubious reliability, weird hallucinations that often make almost sense, tea and gingernuts, backstory overheard in snippets lacking context, ribald humour, assassins, and spooky weird ghosty stuff.
There are times where I wish I was capable of reading proper, honest to goodness, paperback books, but seeing as I'm bound to Audiobooks due to my infirmities, all I can say is OUCH.
Tamsyn Muir writes with a sensual love of words, that does not make the content of her prose accessible to most people. To say it plainly - she uses big words, and weird words. a lot. I am well at home in anatomical and psychological textbooks, and literary critique; one of my friends suggested that in conversation with me it would be easiest to carry a notebook to write down all the odd words I use to look up later... and even _I_ needed to read this with a dictionary nearby. It seems quite clear that the author was mauled or possibly traumatically wounded by a feral thesaurus as a child.
I'm sorry, Moira Quirk. Your work on this audio narration was ok, but you fail to catch the Kiwi parlance. It sounds SO weird to hear kiwi idioms in your accent (we don't pronounce a$$ like that) and your attempt at te reo Māori words was wince-inducing. Thankfully that was only one line.
I'm doubling down on my comparison from the first book. This is definitely like an anime. Great chunks of this book feel a bit like watching Neon Genesis: Evangelion. A good proportion of the narrative is in second person perspective, which definitely leans hard into the claustrophobic and unhinged aesthetic. You spend the first half of the book trying to figure out why things in this book don't tally with the happenings in the previous book. That was kind of cool and didn't leave me feeling anywhere near as confused as I thought I would. There were enough breadcrumbs to keep me from feeling too lost in the woods.
Upside of the audiobook was the similarity I was amused by in the fast travel; I was reminded of Douglas Adams's, Hitchhiker's Guide, specifically his description of hyperspace, and the Infinite Improbability drive. "The River" having weird brain melting effects on a backdrop of a woman's voice calling out time-stamps felt so much like HHGTG with Trillian in the Heart of Gold.
Many twists and turns, the reappearance (in various forms) of characters who were bumped off in the last book, the list at the front of the book of the dramatis personae (alive and dead) being actually useful, and a sense that you still don't know quite wtf is going on.. all leads me to think that the third book could go either way in my estimation. I'll have to see what it's like.
There are times where I wish I was capable of reading proper, honest to goodness, paperback books, but seeing as I'm bound to Audiobooks due to my infirmities, all I can say is OUCH.
Tamsyn Muir writes with a sensual love of words, that does not make the content of her prose accessible to most people. To say it plainly - she uses big words, and weird words. a lot. I am well at home in anatomical and psychological textbooks, and literary critique; one of my friends suggested that in conversation with me it would be easiest to carry a notebook to write down all the odd words I use to look up later... and even _I_ needed to read this with a dictionary nearby. It seems quite clear that the author was mauled or possibly traumatically wounded by a feral thesaurus as a child.
I'm sorry, Moira Quirk. Your work on this audio narration was ok, but you fail to catch the Kiwi parlance. It sounds SO weird to hear kiwi idioms in your accent (we don't pronounce a$$ like that) and your attempt at te reo Māori words was wince-inducing. Thankfully that was only one line.
I'm doubling down on my comparison from the first book. This is definitely like an anime. Great chunks of this book feel a bit like watching Neon Genesis: Evangelion. A good proportion of the narrative is in second person perspective, which definitely leans hard into the claustrophobic and unhinged aesthetic. You spend the first half of the book trying to figure out why things in this book don't tally with the happenings in the previous book. That was kind of cool and didn't leave me feeling anywhere near as confused as I thought I would. There were enough breadcrumbs to keep me from feeling too lost in the woods.
Upside of the audiobook was the similarity I was amused by in the fast travel; I was reminded of Douglas Adams's, Hitchhiker's Guide, specifically his description of hyperspace, and the Infinite Improbability drive. "The River" having weird brain melting effects on a backdrop of a woman's voice calling out time-stamps felt so much like HHGTG with Trillian in the Heart of Gold.
Many twists and turns, the reappearance (in various forms) of characters who were bumped off in the last book, the list at the front of the book of the dramatis personae (alive and dead) being actually useful, and a sense that you still don't know quite wtf is going on.. all leads me to think that the third book could go either way in my estimation. I'll have to see what it's like.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Child death, Violence, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Vomit, Blood, Dementia, Dysphoria, Genocide, Grief, Pregnancy, Cursing, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Medical trauma, and Murder
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Toxic friendship
Minor: Miscarriage
mossgoblins's review against another edition
challenging
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This book feels like a fever dream and I adore it. Definitely worth at least 2 reads.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Gun violence, Gore, Medical content, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Cursing, Toxic relationship, Genocide, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Chronic illness, Grief, Terminal illness, Alcohol, Child death, and War
andirew's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Body horror, and Death
Moderate: Genocide
natdrinkstea's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I read this entire book in twenty four hours and I truly don't think I understood any of it. It was incredible.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror and Gore
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide attempt, Child death, Murder, and Genocide
Minor: Gun violence, Vomit, Alcohol, and Toxic relationship
armand's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
a beautifully crafted masterpiece. not an easy read at all, but certainly a very rich one. muir is easily one of my favorite writers of all time and this book cemented it!!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Self harm
Moderate: Cannibalism and Genocide
mooshake's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
hahaha what the fuck
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Grief, Murder, Blood, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Cursing, Vomit, Genocide, and Sexual content
vaxis's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I'd heard a lot of talk about how book two is jarring, confusing, and that it takes too long to make sense. Honestly, it's not that bad. Make sure you remember who characters are, and it's fine. It's a mystery, so nothing is supposed to make sense at every step, or even for a while.
The narrative switches between third person limited, usually during a flashback, and second person. Normally I really dislike second person; this is handled as though someone is narrating Harrow's actions and responses to her. It's not a narrative trying to get you to imagine yourself as the character, but someone explaining what is going on to someone who is having some memory difficulties.
The other thing I heard is that this is a book that gaslights you, and that is largely due to a lot of contradictory information that differs from Gideon and is clarified later. Spoiler explainer:Harrow altered her own memories to forget what actually happened in book one, and regains true memories before the end of the book.
The narrative switches between third person limited, usually during a flashback, and second person. Normally I really dislike second person; this is handled as though someone is narrating Harrow's actions and responses to her. It's not a narrative trying to get you to imagine yourself as the character, but someone explaining what is going on to someone who is having some memory difficulties.
The other thing I heard is that this is a book that gaslights you, and that is largely due to a lot of contradictory information that differs from Gideon and is clarified later. Spoiler explainer:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Violence, Body horror, Blood, Gaslighting, War, Vomit, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Suicide, and Colonisation
Moderate: Religious bigotry and Pregnancy
Minor: Miscarriage
purplepenning's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
I've never read such a fascinating, brain-breaking, frustrating, stomach-turning, compelling, off-putting, word-feast of an epic science fantasy horror mystery in my life. Muir is a heck of a writer (the humor! the viscera! the metaphor! the meter! the characters! the action!) but I'd have to read both Gideon and Harrow again to feel like I understand enough to say more. And I'm not likely to do that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Violence, Body horror, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Blood, Child death, and Gore
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Genocide, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Sexual content, War, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Cursing, and Mental illness
Minor: Pregnancy
anxiousnachos's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
5.0
Where do I even start to review this absolute masterpiece of a second novel? It has taken me an embarrassing amount of time to pick up Harrow and I’ll fully admit it’s because I wasn’t quite as in love with Gideon the Ninth as I expected to be. But I saw this book in the library and thought what the hell, it’s time. And what a fucking idiot I’ve been when I could have made this book my entire personality OVER A YEAR AGO if I’d only read it then.
This book is a master class in point of view, plot structure, horror as comedy, the exceptional use of gothic genre, and divinity. I’d like to discuss each of these in turn.
Point of view
I think second person POV gets a real bad rep in the book community but I am a big fan of it, it’s one of my favourite tools Muir used in this book. I think this showed the same expertise that Jemisin showed in her use of second-person POV in the The Broken Earth trilogy. This tense creates such an element of mystery and omnipotence and horror - it is a POV for horror and it is used expertly in Harrow.
Structure
I know lots of people found Harrow’s structure confusing, but somehow I actually found this one less confusing than Gideon. Maybe because of my love of books with timelines that jump around and you kind of just accept not knowing what’s going on and go along for the ride?? But I loved not knowing what the fuck was happening, loved the timeline structure that gave us past and future Harrrow, I thought it allowed us a much deeper sense of who Harrow was and a much closer connection to her which made the events of the book so much more horrific for the reader and so much more unbearable in their grief.
Horror as comedy
Have I ever read a funnier book? I definitely can’t quite remember ever laughing at one quite so much as this. Page after page, I just could not stop laughing. The soup scene absolutely undid me, and I want it to get the love it deserves as peak humour and utter genius.
Gothic
Where do I even begin? This entire book is a masterclass in the idea of gothic genre as haunting; Harrow as haunted by past, by trauma, by loss, by the genocide of her conception, by grief. It it fantastic, and it is so deeply traumatic to read, I never wanted to stop and yet it also felt like I was being repeatedly punched in the chest, and then I read the author's note and it made sense. Muir gets Harrow because Muir has lived Harrow.
Divinity
The twist to such has intimate relationship with, and worship of, divinity in Harrow was an interesting choice but one which I loved because I am of course always obsessed with the portrayal of religion in SFF. I am deeply looking forward to delving closer into divinity on reread as I feel this will be an area that so much more is noticed on reread. But all I can say is I loved the fatherly vibes, I loved the subtle darkness below the surface, I loved the relationships God had with each of his companions and how that manipulated the relationships they had with each other, I loved loved loved it.
This book is a masterpiece of gothic science fantasy, it will emotionally haunt me as Harrow is haunted by a 10,000 year old corpse.
Content warnings: hallucinations, depictions of severe mental health crisis, grief, mass child death, genocide, graphic blood and gore, war, body horror, vomit, self-harm (for magic), graphic descriptions of corpses, murder, necrophilia, sex, death of parent, death of loved one, suicide, physical abuse, emotional abuse, amputation
----
Finished it with 3 minutes left of sapphic September to spare!! A MASTERPIECE. Full review incoming after I sleep.
This book is a master class in point of view, plot structure, horror as comedy, the exceptional use of gothic genre, and divinity. I’d like to discuss each of these in turn.
Point of view
I think second person POV gets a real bad rep in the book community but I am a big fan of it, it’s one of my favourite tools Muir used in this book. I think this showed the same expertise that Jemisin showed in her use of second-person POV in the The Broken Earth trilogy. This tense creates such an element of mystery and omnipotence and horror - it is a POV for horror and it is used expertly in Harrow.
Structure
I know lots of people found Harrow’s structure confusing, but somehow I actually found this one less confusing than Gideon. Maybe because of my love of books with timelines that jump around and you kind of just accept not knowing what’s going on and go along for the ride?? But I loved not knowing what the fuck was happening, loved the timeline structure that gave us past and future Harrrow, I thought it allowed us a much deeper sense of who Harrow was and a much closer connection to her which made the events of the book so much more horrific for the reader and so much more unbearable in their grief.
Horror as comedy
Have I ever read a funnier book? I definitely can’t quite remember ever laughing at one quite so much as this. Page after page, I just could not stop laughing. The soup scene absolutely undid me, and I want it to get the love it deserves as peak humour and utter genius.
Gothic
Where do I even begin? This entire book is a masterclass in the idea of gothic genre as haunting; Harrow as haunted by past, by trauma, by loss, by the genocide of her conception, by grief. It it fantastic, and it is so deeply traumatic to read, I never wanted to stop and yet it also felt like I was being repeatedly punched in the chest, and then I read the author's note and it made sense. Muir gets Harrow because Muir has lived Harrow.
Divinity
The twist to such has intimate relationship with, and worship of, divinity in Harrow was an interesting choice but one which I loved because I am of course always obsessed with the portrayal of religion in SFF. I am deeply looking forward to delving closer into divinity on reread as I feel this will be an area that so much more is noticed on reread. But all I can say is I loved the fatherly vibes, I loved the subtle darkness below the surface, I loved the relationships God had with each of his companions and how that manipulated the relationships they had with each other, I loved loved loved it.
This book is a masterpiece of gothic science fantasy, it will emotionally haunt me as Harrow is haunted by a 10,000 year old corpse.
Content warnings: hallucinations, depictions of severe mental health crisis, grief, mass child death, genocide, graphic blood and gore, war, body horror, vomit, self-harm (for magic), graphic descriptions of corpses, murder, necrophilia, sex, death of parent, death of loved one, suicide, physical abuse, emotional abuse, amputation
----
Finished it with 3 minutes left of sapphic September to spare!! A MASTERPIECE. Full review incoming after I sleep.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicide, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Vomit, and War
whiterabbitslibrary's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Just been bullied by this book for 3 days straight and you know I’m gonna read it again!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Grief, and War
Moderate: Death of parent, Mental illness, Blood, Body horror, Genocide, and Gore
Minor: Child death, Child abuse, Infertility, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, and Terminal illness