Reviews tagging 'Genocide'

Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

37 reviews

k_aro's review

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

I took the longest to finish Nona the Ninth, not really out of Nona's failings or anything, I just couldn't get into the grove of having a whole bunch of narratives at once at the same time as an entire new cast of characters/new world. I also think it's the book that's easiest for me to tackle in The Locked Tomb series, both having a better grasp of the writing style/world as well as being structured a little more accessibly.

Off the bat, Nona's internal narrative is much more loving and caring than Gideon and Harrow, which is to say I spent so much more of GtN and HtN actively being confused and annoyed by the various characters, where in Nona they're a lot more understandable. NtN really does pull out to look at what the TLT-verse looks like outside of the Houses (and to a certain degree that life outside of them are in fact so fruitful and lively, which is something I just couldn't really imagine previously).

Ianthe is worse than ever, which is a compliment because I love how terrible she is. Muir really excels at the most horrifying relationships, experienced through shreds of narrative. I agree that NtN really feels like a prologue, but frankly a prologue to what I could not say; this seems to be a running TLT joke where each book is just more confusing and more disorienting than the last. Truly, I could not imagine what Alecto will do.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Police brutality, Dysphoria, Genocide, Gun violence, Violence, Car accident, Death, Body horror, Colonisation, Confinement, Drug use, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Incest, Self harm, Toxic relationship, War, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Terminal illness

Terminal Illness:

Well, whether Nona's illness is terminal per se is up for interpretation, I guess.

bluestjuice's review

dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.0

Oh my goodness. Sometimes a book just crawls inside your consciousness in the best way, you know? This is like that - this isn't the book I was expecting, and I had no idea what was going on through the first third and even less idea through the second third - but godsdamn, I was unquestioningly committed and on board for the entire ride. 

Nona is so, incredibly, real. This is one of Muir's great talents - despite writing a series that is utterly over-the-top space melodrama with gothic elements and skeletons and necromantic flourishes all over everything, they nevertheless create people that feel and act utterly peopley. Many authors can't convincingly write youthful characters even in ordinary circumstances; Muir portrays Nona's uncomprehending childishness in a way that is genuine and feels both true to the experience of the young without being the least bit saccharine. I loved Nona, entirely, and her protagonism resonated with me vigorously despite the twisty, adult, machination-y web of deceit and plotting that surrounded her nearly every step of the way. 

This is the third book in the series, which I have waited for a long time, and which I should clearly have bothered to do a re-read of previous to this because the lore here is deep and the references are layered in as thickly as Griddle's skull makeup back in <i>Gideon the Ninth</i>. On the other hand, having now skidded out the other side (I'm not kidding: I read the last 100 pages in a rare frenzy of <i><b>you don't understand I cannot put this down until I know what happens</b></i>), I have a burning desire to go re-read everything through again, to line up pieces and notice all the many things I'm sure I missed or didn't realize the significance of at the moment they were deployed.

Anyway, I don't even feel qualified to review this really because my emotions are leaking out all over the place and I don't know what to say to explain how enjoyable I find this series and this installment. In all its infuriating circuitous mystery. I can't believe I have to keep waiting to find out what happens next.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Body horror, Gun violence, Cursing, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Blood, Death, and Genocide

Moderate: Grief, Violence, Mental illness, Dysphoria, War, Panic attacks/disorders, and Colonisation

Minor: Religious bigotry, Eating disorder, Cannibalism, Toxic friendship, and Child death

black_rainbow's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Violence, Grief, Genocide, Blood, Suicidal thoughts, Gun violence, War, Eating disorder, and Dysphoria

iane_reads's review

challenging dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious reflective 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Gore, Grief, Hate crime, Medical content, Terminal illness, Suicide, Confinement, Blood, Violence, Xenophobia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death, Religious bigotry, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Murder, Toxic relationship, Racial slurs, Racism, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Cursing, Dysphoria, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mass/school shootings, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Car accident, Forced institutionalization, Abandonment, Genocide, Vomit, Trafficking, and Addiction

Minor: Cannibalism, Alcohol, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Animal cruelty, and War

kierank's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad tense 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? Yes

4.5

I sobbed like a baby

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, Blood, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Suicide, Colonisation, Genocide, Gore, Grief, and War

therealratking's review

dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Gore, Violence, Body horror, Murder, Death, Genocide, War, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Cannibalism

courtneyfalling's review

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

Somehow managed to be more confusing than maybe even Gideon and Harrow combined? It’s been months and I still have no idea what really happened but I liked it? I want more and more endless fan theories? I want Alecto sooner? And the dream sequences with Joddddd. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore and Genocide

vanillaphantoms's review

dark emotional funny mysterious medium-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, Violence, Death, Eating disorder, Body horror, and Gore

hedsek's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious 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? No

3.75

Really really enjoyed this! Again, the form and content match each other very well which made this book a lot more readable than Harrow. I loved getting Nona's perspective and the way her cheerful outlook kind of tricked you into thinking things were fine every once in a while, until you read between the lines and you realise that of course it's not. The stakes did seem a lot lower than the other books up until the very end, and I'm really excited for Alecto. 

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Content Warnings

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

Moderate: Genocide, Gun violence, Eating disorder, and Violence

Minor: Murder, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Drug use

vampire_burrito's review

adventurous dark funny mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

Gideon Nav love of my life, I'm praying you get a happy ending

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Genocide, Gore, and Violence