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zannayo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
Almost lost me at the 40% mark but at about 45% it got really wild.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Body horror, Child death, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Torture, Grief, Gore, and Death of parent
Moderate: Terminal illness, Self harm, Cancer, Suicide, Cannibalism, and War
(Mentions specific character deaths)ekcd_'s review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
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
4.75
One of the first queer lit books I read that wasn’t even remotely queer (in a good way). Being gay was at once core to and irrelevant to the characters and instead of contributing to or juxtaposting the plot it just was.
One of the few books I’ve read where I had to physically shout HOLY FUCK during it.
Right now I have it a 4.75 and I’m not entirely sure where the deduction comes from. Maybe the gore? Maybe I’ll change the stars later
One of the few books I’ve read where I had to physically shout HOLY FUCK during it.
Right now I have it a 4.75 and I’m not entirely sure where the deduction comes from. Maybe the gore? Maybe I’ll change the stars later
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Cursing, Medical trauma, Suicide, War, Chronic illness, Gore, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Vomit, Terminal illness, Torture, Body horror, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Violence
lumberelk's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Body horror, Blood, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Death of parent, Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Suicide, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cancer and War
vintovka's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
First impression, just finished it the night before.
GtN has a very strong beginning. I love the tactic of giving zero exposition. It makes you instantly intrigued in trying to figure out what is even going on with all these people, and also makes you focus on the characters and their dynamics more, since it's the only thing you somewhat understand. These are very strong and eye-catching from the very beginning. GtN has about fifteen characters who are all in some way relevant to the plot, and they're all delightfully distinguishable and colourful.
Gideon is pretty standard as far as heroes of the story go, but she's very likeable. Empathetic, rebellious, moves before she thinks, has mysterious origins; I've seen it all before, but Gideon manages to sold me on these concepts once again through sheer force of her personality. She works best with Harrow, Gideon's relationship with her is the backbone of the whole book.
I love unreliable narrators as much as the next guy, but this particular rendition of it left me a little unsatisfied. For like, half a book Gideon has no idea what is going on and just stumbles around, getting into situations, while you see glimpses of something you don't grasp happening in the distance. The final twist left me absolutely dissapointed, and the book was saved only by the last thirty pages. GtN reads very much like a book that's supposed to bloom only during rereading, which I don't particularly appreciate.
In general, GtN is a good fundament for a series, in the sense that I will be buying the next book. The only thing is I'm not sure I will like it that much.
((also lol russian translation sucks ass, why are the originals so expensive man))
GtN has a very strong beginning. I love the tactic of giving zero exposition. It makes you instantly intrigued in trying to figure out what is even going on with all these people, and also makes you focus on the characters and their dynamics more, since it's the only thing you somewhat understand. These are very strong and eye-catching from the very beginning. GtN has about fifteen characters who are all in some way relevant to the plot, and they're all delightfully distinguishable and colourful.
Gideon is pretty standard as far as heroes of the story go, but she's very likeable. Empathetic, rebellious, moves before she thinks, has mysterious origins; I've seen it all before, but Gideon manages to sold me on these concepts once again through sheer force of her personality. She works best with Harrow, Gideon's relationship with her is the backbone of the whole book.
I love unreliable narrators as much as the next guy, but this particular rendition of it left me a little unsatisfied. For like, half a book Gideon has no idea what is going on and just stumbles around, getting into situations, while you see glimpses of something you don't grasp happening in the distance. The final twist left me absolutely dissapointed, and the book was saved only by the last thirty pages. GtN reads very much like a book that's supposed to bloom only during rereading, which I don't particularly appreciate.
In general, GtN is a good fundament for a series, in the sense that I will be buying the next book. The only thing is I'm not sure I will like it that much.
((also lol russian translation sucks ass, why are the originals so expensive man))
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Grief, Cannibalism, Chronic illness, Gore, Child death, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, and Murder
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Alcohol, Cannibalism, Slavery, Stalking, and War
quirkykayleetam's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
3.5
Forget the "in space" part of "lesbian necromancers in space."
This is a locked room necromantic thriller told from the point of view of a snarky narrator who never wanted to be in this plot (or genre) in the first place. But once there, she cannot help but care about the people around her.
My main issue with this book was pacing. The beginning is a sightly too-long introduction to the world which, while I'm sure it will be important later in the series, plays much less of a part in this book than the interactions between characters. Then the mystery begins with wonderful challenges and character moments...until the book becomes so concerned with narrative twists and surprises that it picks up pace to culminate in a fight scene that takes up literally a 4th of the book.
I found the characters, their growth, and their dynamics incredible. And yes, that includes the side characters. I wish we were given more time to focus on that and their REACTIONS to the mystery's twists than the loose worldbuilding that has little payout here. I will never forget Gideon's character arc, but it felt downplayed in sequel setup.
This is a locked room necromantic thriller told from the point of view of a snarky narrator who never wanted to be in this plot (or genre) in the first place. But once there, she cannot help but care about the people around her.
My main issue with this book was pacing. The beginning is a sightly too-long introduction to the world which, while I'm sure it will be important later in the series, plays much less of a part in this book than the interactions between characters. Then the mystery begins with wonderful challenges and character moments...until the book becomes so concerned with narrative twists and surprises that it picks up pace to culminate in a fight scene that takes up literally a 4th of the book.
I found the characters, their growth, and their dynamics incredible. And yes, that includes the side characters. I wish we were given more time to focus on that and their REACTIONS to the mystery's twists than the loose worldbuilding that has little payout here. I will never forget Gideon's character arc, but it felt downplayed in sequel setup.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Murder, Terminal illness, Death, Body horror, Gore, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: War, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, and Cannibalism
unsuccessfulbookclub's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
I’m going to attempt to tell you what this book is actually about in an effort to get you to read it. It is unique and so funny and now I can’t stop thinking about what it would have been like to be the publisher or editor who read this book the first time? 🤯 I understand the shrug emojis that come from Locked Tomb fans when asked what this series is about though, I really do. It’s hard to boil it down. Additionally, this is a book that makes you feel things and lots of that comes from experiencing the text itself (however you do that!!! Listening counts!!). Muir’s narrative voice is impossible to put into a blurb, but if the little outline below sounds interesting just know that Tamsyn takes this and makes it SO MUCH BETTER.
Gideon the Ninth is a creepy mystery set in a crumbling palace on a planet other than Earth. Gideon Nav, the main character, is an orphan/outcast who gets roped into attending a universe-wide contest as cavalier (warrior/bodyguard) with her necromancer (death magician), Harrowhark Nonagesimus, whom she hates. I mean they hate each other, for many reasons which are revealed throughout the course of the book. The cast of this book includes at least two people from each of eight houses (planets) in this universe plus some odd “staff” in the crumbling palace. The contest/mystery is basically learning how to become immortal but doing so by solving a series of puzzles. And then there are some murders. Okay, lots of murders.
This book is gruesome. It is violent. It is absolutely hilarious. There are reanimated skeletons everywhere, jokes from The Office and totally bananas banter. There are mysterious notes and threads hanging in the story just waiting to be pulled. There are SO MANY characters but you know them all by the end of the book (maybe?).
At its core, it feels like reading a detailed adventure/puzzle game similar to the feeling of playing Zelda: Breath of the Wild, just darker and with more emotions and way more laughs.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Vomit, Violence, Murder, War, and Body horror
wickedgrumpy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
At the end of this book I experienced emotional damage and I fully expect it to make me cry again on re-reading in the future.
I went into this book knowing almost nothing beyond the tag line of Lesbian Necromancers in Space and that it was genre-bending for sci-fi and fantasy. That was enough to sell me on reading it, even though I heard mixed things.
Did it deliver on those premises? Mostly. There are characters that identified as women and showed attraction/flirted with others that also identified as women, some of those characters were also necromancers. With regards to being in space, there is very limited space shuttle travel, so I don't know that I would really quantify it that way, though there is ample room for that to change for the future in the series.
This book was indeed a crossover between sci-fi and fantasy in that it involved a technologically advanced civilization (space travel, and such) but with the deep roots of necromancy that almost took it into dark academia territory. The necromancers are all obsessed in learning new theorems/spells and figuring out things in their specializations, and there are also trials they have to pass and mysteries to solve before they can advance.
There's a lot of tension because it is a competition and you don't really begin to understand the stakes until Act II and then the full whammy hits you near the end.
Also, I feel like I have a conspiracy theory based on the epilogue/info peppered throughout the book so click for spoilers, I guess:
Okay, so Gideon did not die with all the other children even though she was close to the vents for 10 minutes and her parents were hella scared about that. In the epilogue, the Emperor says they couldn't retrieve Camilla (who was last seen alive) or Gideon's bodies so what if Harrow has Gideon's soul, but like, the body/vessel is still alive? And Camilla managed to be resourceful because she definitely is wicked smart and they escaped the First planet...? Or hid until they left? I dunno. Maybe I just don't want Gideon to be dead because her gay panic was so relatable. And everyone else. I loved the Fourth teens with their perpetual embarrassment and the Fifth cav Magnus was so sweet...
I went into this book knowing almost nothing beyond the tag line of Lesbian Necromancers in Space and that it was genre-bending for sci-fi and fantasy. That was enough to sell me on reading it, even though I heard mixed things.
Did it deliver on those premises? Mostly. There are characters that identified as women and showed attraction/flirted with others that also identified as women, some of those characters were also necromancers. With regards to being in space, there is very limited space shuttle travel, so I don't know that I would really quantify it that way, though there is ample room for that to change for the future in the series.
This book was indeed a crossover between sci-fi and fantasy in that it involved a technologically advanced civilization (space travel, and such) but with the deep roots of necromancy that almost took it into dark academia territory. The necromancers are all obsessed in learning new theorems/spells and figuring out things in their specializations, and there are also trials they have to pass and mysteries to solve before they can advance.
There's a lot of tension because it is a competition and you don't really begin to understand the stakes until Act II and then the full whammy hits you near the end.
Also, I feel like I have a conspiracy theory based on the epilogue/info peppered throughout the book so click for spoilers, I guess:
Content Warnings
Minor: Abandonment, Body horror, Cursing, Suicide, Torture, Medical content, Murder, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Cancer, Death, Slavery, Death of parent, Grief, Infertility, Terminal illness, Bullying, Chronic illness, Child abuse, Classism, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Gore, Child death, Stalking, and War
jona3d's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book kicks ass. Its unique sci-fi gothic setting isn't just window dressing; your reading experience will include at least a hundred accounts of the word 'skeleton' and a few trips to google as you learn just how many words relating to blood, guts, veins, skin, and bones there are.
The bones never bore, though, quite the opposite: The book 100% buys into its concept, and it's hard not to feel the same way while reading.
Expect exciting twists, memorable writing, and interesting, messy characters.
This is the first book I've read start to finish in at least two years, and I'm so glad it's this one. I'm just as excited to dive into its sequel.
The bones never bore, though, quite the opposite: The book 100% buys into its concept, and it's hard not to feel the same way while reading.
Expect exciting twists, memorable writing, and interesting, messy characters.
This is the first book I've read start to finish in at least two years, and I'm so glad it's this one. I'm just as excited to dive into its sequel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Gore, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, and Child death
Moderate: Death of parent and Murder
Minor: Cancer and War
thewickedbookworm's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-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
5.0
This is immediately my favorite book of January, and I wouldn't be surprised if it makes my top 10 of the year. I was not expecting the emotional toll and I need to read the sequels immediately. Tamsyn Muir is now an auto-buy author for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Suicide, Murder, Physical abuse, Bullying, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Gore, and Death
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, and Torture
Minor: Religious bigotry, Panic attacks/disorders, War, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Abandonment, Blood, Grief, Self harm, Cancer, and Medical content
boglord's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Body horror, Blood, Child death, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Gaslighting, Suicide, Cancer, Emotional abuse, Classism, Forced institutionalization, Cursing, and Death of parent
Minor: War, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, and Vomit