Reviews tagging 'Self harm'

Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

90 reviews

thewildmageslibrary's review against another edition

5.0

I have no idea WTF I just read. I didn't understand half of it. Nevertheless, 5 stars.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Gore, Gun violence, Self harm, Vomit, Medical content, and Grief

Minor: Child death

mcbenzie's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Delivers on the promise of the first book but comes at you sideways. Provides some answers and revelations, and expands the universe of the Nine Houses, but preserves enough mystery that you’ll be hungry for the next one. It’s really hard to say much else without spoilers!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Mental illness, Self harm, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment

Minor: Sexual content

hetzelah's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, and Vomit

isleoflinds's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Violence, Blood, Vomit, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Animal death, Self harm, Suicide, and Alcohol

Minor: Pregnancy and Abandonment

_anzo_'s review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Mental illness, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, and Murder

cal_the_queer's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Blood, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Cancer, Terminal illness, and Pregnancy

kjoli's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Chronic illness and Terminal illness

faevolution's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-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

Harrow the Ninth is a masterpiece with a story to tell between the lines. At one point a character describes two immortal magicians as having a conversation "simply by reading each other's gestures and expressions and maybe a grunt, an indecipherable code based on familiarity". Harrow the Ninth is that book.

The impact of the moment-to-moment reveals and motivations of the characters make for a fast-paced first read, but there is a stunning depth to this book that only becomes obvious after all the dust has settled and the last page has turned. People suffer deeply here, and the glimmers of their hope and light and passion are made pivotal in that contrast.

You owe it to yourself to read the Locked Tomb series. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Pregnancy

peach_pie's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

kaylamoran's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

This book was so enormously disappointing to me.  I adored Gideon the Ninth, and this felt like an entirely different series.  I couldn't handle the pacing, I was so bored.  I hated the second person, even though in the end it all made sense.  And Harrow is just so much more boring than Gideon.  None of what made the first book special to me was present in book two.

And honestly, I just spent the entire book confused.  I still frankly have no idea what happened in this book and I couldn't summarize it if I tried.

I'll still continue the series.  I loved book one enough for that.  But this is without a doubt my biggest disappointment so far of 2021.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Chronic illness, Gun violence, Cannibalism, Gaslighting, and Alcohol