Reviews tagging 'Murder'

Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

186 reviews

meat_muffin's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, Death, Death of parent, Genocide, Medical content, Violence, War, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Gaslighting, Cursing, Toxic relationship, Colonisation, and Confinement

Minor: Pregnancy and Suicidal thoughts

tylercrow's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Murder, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

shadereads's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious 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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Body horror, Blood, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Gore

Moderate: Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, Xenophobia, and Vomit

Minor: War, Medical content, Genocide, Colonisation, and Medical trauma

ivan_tw's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious 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

4.25

While "Gideon" was a fun and funny genre experiment, a sci-fi haunted house murder mystery, "Harrow" takes that basic setting and tweaks pretty much everything about it. It operates, at least at first, as a fun-house mirror version of "Gideon", where everything seems similar but just different enough to make you wonder what's going on. It plays with memory a lot, both for the characters and for you as a reader. And in those experiments, it shows just how strong of a writer Muir really is. I'm looking forward to Book 3.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Death, and Gore

Moderate: Medical trauma, Murder, Bullying, and Medical content

lbelow's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

A dear friend of mine takes issue with the transparency of the ending of this book, but I disagree. To me, the plot against the emperor is a subplot rather than the main thrust of the novel. The focus of this book is Harrowhark, her relationship with Gideon, and the insanity brought upon her through grief. And it is a MASTERPIECE. Parts of this book I initially believed to be there only to prop up her delusions turn out to have deeper meaning. I've read this book three times now and I'm still picking out nuances of foreshadowing not only for this book, but also for Nona. As fantastic as the first book is, it is this book that is the peak of Muir's mastery. I can think of no other author who can mix first, second, and third POV AND throw in what is essentially fanfiction of her own book and pull it off with such panache! Honestly, this book is a trip, and one you'll love to read multiple times for all the little details. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Murder, Gore, Violence, Mental illness, and Grief

Minor: Chronic illness

andreeagrc's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Murder, Grief, and Blood

shelbymarie314's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective 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

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Medical trauma, Body horror, Violence, Murder, Stalking, and Death

Minor: Cannibalism

whatdoiknowjr's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Body horror, Blood, Colonisation, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Torture

hayleyvem's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Mental illness, Chronic illness, Gaslighting, Cannibalism, Gun violence, Murder, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Violence, and Bullying

Moderate: Pregnancy, Chronic illness, Genocide, Infertility, Terminal illness, Alcohol, Cancer, and Suicide

Minor: Child death and Death of parent

provo'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? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I knew before reading this that the plot would not make sense until 2/3 trough, so I was prepared for the confusion.
The finale was something else and bumped my rating from 4 to 5 stars, incredibly satisfying to unwind all the what-the-fuck-is-going-on.
But: check trigger warnings before reading, like there’s a lot of really graphic stuff.
Also maybe not a book anyone should read during an active psychotic episode (this is not a joke).

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Alcohol, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Violence, Chronic illness, Gaslighting, Genocide, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Vomit, War, Death of parent, Body horror, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Mental illness, Murder, Abandonment, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Child death, Gun violence, and Suicide attempt