Reviews with content warning for Drug use - Ninth House

Slow start, but an exciting end with lots of twists and turns.
About a girl who is hired by Yale to monitor the secret societies. She is forced to face some of her past ‘demons’ when a suspicious murder occurs near campus. Without the help of her mentor, she must determine if the murder was related to magic and the secret societies.

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seakingnur's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

It's a very intriguing world. I think the ending makes sense. Everything in the story builds into that and all the loose ends are tied. It's a well written story.

I feel like you can figure out who the culprit likely is. You read this book more for all the moments in-between. All the close calls Alex has to go through in order to find the evidence she needs. The ways she interacts with Darlington, Dawes, her roommates, the people from her past. The story is driven very much by the main character. You want to know more about her, what she's gone through, how she's going to react to everything that's being thrown at her.

It's a well-built complex magical system that's woven into our own world. I think I prefer stories like that rather than having a magical world completely separate from our own.

This can be a very heavy book. I recommend it but also be cautious while reading it.

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tranvnguyen's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark funny informative inspiring 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 want to give this 5 stars but after doing the reread, it’s just so dense information wise that I’m not sure I could get through it again. It also took until 55/65% of the way through to really get good. But when when it gets good, buckle up buttercup! Literally, it’s such a wild ride.

I love this cast of characters as well! They are all so lovable and funny, and I would protect them with my life.

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_han_na_'s review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny 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? No

4.75

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caelinsullivan's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No

3.75

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slowry44's review against another edition

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challenging dark 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

4.0

I really like the characters, the writing and the world building, but this book would not let up on the abuse, SA, and constant bleak/grim violence against its characters. The tone is occasionally unbearable to the point of sometimes skipping large chunks of text that are just the author describing the particular manner in which a character is being brutalized this chapter. The magic system is really cool and the creativity in the world design is spectacular. I am glad I got through it cause I quite liked the ending and the answers it brought, but fuck was it a dark and dreary trudge to get there.

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