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c_dmckinney's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Gaslighting, Terminal illness, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gore, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Toxic friendship, Murder, Animal death, Blood, Colonisation, Genocide, Slavery, Child death, Chronic illness, Classism, Cursing, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
alainral's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Toxic friendship, Gore, Terminal illness, and Slavery
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Murder, Cannibalism, Cursing, Medical trauma, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, and Cancer
amyteurhour's review against another edition
Content warning: violence/gore, enslavement, emotional and physical abuse, hints at unequal power dynamic re: romantic relationships
Even after getting through 3 hours of the audiobook, I was only 18% of the way through and could not see myself enjoying the next 13+ hours left. The beginning drops you into the story with little explanation or context, just that Gideon has been trapped in this prison/house her whole life and she is attempting her, what she hopes to be, final attempt at escape. She gets beaten and tricked into staying by the ruler of the house, Harrow, and then coerced into participating in a scheme with Harrow.
I ultimately stopped because I got the feeling that Gideon and Harrow would be the romantic arc that's mentioned in the synopsis, and honestly I'm not here for it. Harrow's treatment of Gideon is gross and cruel, and I just don't see myself rooting for/being satisfied with a storyline where they are in a relationship.
Stopped at Act 2 - Chapter 9 (3:04:15)
Even after getting through 3 hours of the audiobook, I was only 18% of the way through and could not see myself enjoying the next 13+ hours left. The beginning drops you into the story with little explanation or context, just that Gideon has been trapped in this prison/house her whole life and she is attempting her, what she hopes to be, final attempt at escape. She gets beaten and tricked into staying by the ruler of the house, Harrow, and then coerced into participating in a scheme with Harrow.
I ultimately stopped because I got the feeling that Gideon and Harrow would be the romantic arc that's mentioned in the synopsis, and honestly I'm not here for it. Harrow's treatment of Gideon is gross and cruel, and I just don't see myself rooting for/being satisfied with a storyline where they are in a relationship.
Stopped at Act 2 - Chapter 9 (3:04:15)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gore, Violence, Toxic relationship, Physical abuse, and Slavery
beefthedwarf's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
slow-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
5.0
Edit: after a few years, I've bumped this up to 5 stars. I'm obsessed with the series and the gripes I had were resolved after re-reading (high re-read value!) and understanding the characters better.
The writing was incredible and unique, and I found myself loving Gideon more than I ever thought I could love a main character. Due to the later plot twists and complex story, it also has a very satisfying re-read value.
My biggest gripe is that Harrowhark did very little to redeem herself, and it was consistently difficult and heartbreaking to see Gideon be treated like absolute garbage, yet still cow to Harrow in a heartbeat. In my honest opinion, it takes more than a tearful apology and a confession of suicidal guilt to make up for the years of slavery, beatings, and abuse Harrow and her family put Gideon -- and all their slaves -- through.
I think the book also suffers a bit from being the prequel/world building intro to the rest of the series.
Regardless, the book left me enamored and intrigued enough to add Harrow the Ninth to my reading list.
The writing was incredible and unique, and I found myself loving Gideon more than I ever thought I could love a main character. Due to the later plot twists and complex story, it also has a very satisfying re-read value.
My biggest gripe is that Harrowhark did very little to redeem herself, and it was consistently difficult and heartbreaking to see Gideon be treated like absolute garbage, yet still cow to Harrow in a heartbeat. In my honest opinion, it takes more than a tearful apology and a confession of suicidal guilt to make up for the years of slavery, beatings, and abuse Harrow and her family put Gideon -- and all their slaves -- through.
I think the book also suffers a bit from being the prequel/world building intro to the rest of the series.
Regardless, the book left me enamored and intrigued enough to add Harrow the Ninth to my reading list.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Incest, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Slavery, Cannibalism, Body horror, Colonisation, Child death, Gaslighting, Genocide, Gore, Child abuse, Classism, Emotional abuse, and Death
delvesinshelves's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Gore, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Slavery and Death of parent
Minor: War
evierysik's review against another edition
It was so slow and boring and a little confusing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery, Torture, Blood, Gore, Death, Bullying, Violence, and Cursing
Moderate: Suicide
vyralvyris's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
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? N/A
4.75
Super fascinating world building, interesting magic system, and great cast of characters. Basically haunted clue in space with lesbians. Points off for being a little hard to follow sometimes but rarely an issue.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing and Death
Moderate: Slavery, Violence, Murder, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Classism, Confinement, and Grief
thesapphiccelticbookworm's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
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? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Slavery, and Murder
Moderate: Genocide, War, and Body horror
tobibi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
sad
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? It's complicated
4.0
This really reinvigorated my reading mood. It took a bit to build up, but the world building is presented very well (little to no infodumps) and the characters are introduced slowly, so you get a general feel for them throughout the book. The horror elements are good, though a bit less striking than I thought they would be, but that's likely due to our POV (Gideon). I enjoyed seeing the back and forth in Griddlehawk's relationship progression, and the ending was heartbreakingly good. I'm looking forward to reading the next book.
favorite lines
"... Where I'm going, I promise to piss fidelity all the livelong day. I have lots of fealty in me. I fealt the Emperor with every bone in my body. I fealt *hard*." (p. 43)
"With the proper motivation, Griddle could wield two swords in each hand and one in her mouth. While we were developing common sense, she studied the blade." (p. 53)
"Harrow said, "No."
"I want to go," said Gideon.
"This sounds impossibly vapid."
"I want to eat a dessert."" (p. 167)
Harrow's voice, almost a whisper: "A light, Nav."
"What?"
"You *did* bring a torch."
"This is a service I was unaware I was meant to provide," said Gideon. (p. 204)
... "Thoughts?"
Gideon said, "Did you know that if you put the first three letters of your last name with the first three letters of your first name, you get 'Sex Pal'?" (p. 274)
"Ask me how I am and I'll scream," she said.
"How are you," said Camilla, who was a pill.
"I see you calling my bluff and I resent it," said Gideon... (p. 305)
Once Gideon would have loved to hear Corona talk to her with that low, breathy intensity, maybe saying "Your biceps... they're eleven out of ten," but right now she did not want anyone to talk to her at all. (p. 327)
"... Look, Nav. You ratted out your childhood nemesis to get her in trouble. You didn't kill her parents, and she shouldn't hate you like you did, and *you* shouldn't hate you like you did."
He was peering at her through his spectacles. "Hey," she objected lamely, "I never said I hated myself."
"Evidence," he said, "outweighs testimony." (p. 336)
... "I'm an abomination. The whole universe ought to scream whenever my feet touch the ground. My parents committed a necromantic sin that we ought to have been torpedoed into hte centre of Dominicus for. If any of the other Houses knew of what we'd done they would destroy us from orbit without a second's thought. i am a *war crime*." (p. 353)
"... I made myself watch, when my parents -- I could not do the slightest thing my House expected of me. Not even then. You're not the only one who couldn't die." (p. 355)
... "You apologize to me now? You say that you're sorry when I have spent my life destroying you? You are my whipping girl! I hurt you because it was a relief! I exist because my parents killed everyone and relegated you to a life of abject misery, and they would have killed you too and not given a second's goddamned thought! I have spent your life trying to make you regret that you weren't dead, all because -- I regretted I wasn't! I ate you alive, and you have the temerity to tell me that *you're sorry*?" (p. 356)
"Hm," said Camilla neutrally, and Gideon knew immediately that she organized Palamedes's and her socks by color and genre. (p. 365)
... She didn't need a very long look to tell that Dyas was dead. For one thing, her skeleton and her body had apparently tried to divorce. (p. 372)
"She took Babs," she said, which seemed fair enough.
But then Corona started crying again, big tears leaking out of her eyes, her voice thick with misery and self-pity. "And who even cares about Babs? Babs! She could have taken *me*." (p. 394)
Harrow said, with some difficulty. "I cannot conceive of a universe without you in it."
"Yes, you can, it's just less great and less hot," said Gideon." (p. 437)
favorite lines
"I want to go," said Gideon.
"This sounds impossibly vapid."
"I want to eat a dessert."" (p. 167)
"What?"
"You *did* bring a torch."
"This is a service I was unaware I was meant to provide," said Gideon. (p. 204)
Gideon said, "Did you know that if you put the first three letters of your last name with the first three letters of your first name, you get 'Sex Pal'?" (p. 274)
"How are you," said Camilla, who was a pill.
"I see you calling my bluff and I resent it," said Gideon... (p. 305)
He was peering at her through his spectacles. "Hey," she objected lamely, "I never said I hated myself."
"Evidence," he said, "outweighs testimony." (p. 336)
But then Corona started crying again, big tears leaking out of her eyes, her voice thick with misery and self-pity. "And who even cares about Babs? Babs! She could have taken *me*." (p. 394)
"Yes, you can, it's just less great and less hot," said Gideon." (p. 437)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Gore, Grief, Emotional abuse, Confinement, Child abuse, Child death, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Murder, Classism, Death, Torture, Cursing, Death of parent, Suicide attempt, Blood, Body horror, Violence, Slavery, and Abandonment
jodean's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Kelsey has been trying to get me to read this for a while. Glad I finally listened.
I will say the audio book specifically is done very well. I switched to it from the paper version and was able to follow much better
I will say the audio book specifically is done very well. I switched to it from the paper version and was able to follow much better
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Blood, Body horror, Death, Suicide, Child death, Cursing, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Cancer, Murder, Vomit, Bullying, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Slavery, War, and Self harm