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A review by themelodyofspring
Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo
5.0
“Alex smiled then, a small thing, a glimpse of the girl lurking inside her, a happy, less haunted girl. That was what magic did. It revealed the heart of who you’d been before life took away your belief in the possible. It gave back the world all lonely children longed for.”
Ok first, I can't believe this was a murder mystery novel. I went in blind (because I forgot what the blurb said), and was thoroughly surprised by the amount of triggering stuff in it, and how I ended up liking the story despite that.
This book had the most confusing beginning ever! Like I was so badly confused for 80 pages because one POV said Darlington was gone/dead/vanished/in Spain, and the other POV was Darlington so like whaaa?! What was the thought process that went behind this decision? (Not that I minded it).
Likes:
- Darlington. The man was literally absent as an active character from the story but his name was in every second sentence.
- Dawes. She was such a cool and introverted character.
- Alex’s roommates.
- Alex kicking ass. She went through a lot of shit and it was very cathartic to see her fight back. The flashback scenes where she goes berserk and kills all the guys – perfect! 100% approved.
Then she kicks Blake’s ass for doing that to her roommate – even better. You go, girl! You’re killing it! Literally and metaphorically.
- The magic element was there but not too overpowering. The part with the Greys and the circle of protection was my favorite. Didn't pay too much attention to the houses.
- Loved the ending, and guessed it correctly! Dante will go to hell and Virgil be your guide through it, very literally because he's already there.
Dislikes:
- All the triggering stuff, and there was a looot of it. Like 3/4th of the book had drug abuse and sexual assault thrown left and right.
- Prognostication. Eww!
- Alex’s old boyfriend, Len, that she thankfully murdered. Asshole!
- Belbalm/Daisy.
- The houses and what each house specialized in and stuff was a bit confusing in the beginning and I just ignored it for the rest of the book. I'm not familiar with Yale or how it works. Doesn't hinder the story though so all good.
Favorite quotes:
“Alex smiled then, a small thing, a glimpse of the girl lurking inside her, a happy, less haunted girl. That was what magic did. It revealed the heart of who you’d been before life took away your belief in the possible. It gave back the world all lonely children longed for.”
"For there is no explorer so intrepid or daring that he would dare walk the road to hell - no matter how it may be paved."
P.S. The writing is very, very different from the Grishaverse. Very brutal but so very good.
Spoiler
*This is a very spoiler heavy review - you've been warned!*Ok first, I can't believe this was a murder mystery novel. I went in blind (because I forgot what the blurb said), and was thoroughly surprised by the amount of triggering stuff in it, and how I ended up liking the story despite that.
This book had the most confusing beginning ever! Like I was so badly confused for 80 pages because one POV said Darlington was gone/dead/vanished/in Spain, and the other POV was Darlington so like whaaa?! What was the thought process that went behind this decision? (Not that I minded it).
Likes:
- Darlington. The man was literally absent as an active character from the story but his name was in every second sentence.
- Dawes. She was such a cool and introverted character.
- Alex’s roommates.
- Alex kicking ass. She went through a lot of shit and it was very cathartic to see her fight back. The flashback scenes where she goes berserk and kills all the guys – perfect! 100% approved.
Then she kicks Blake’s ass for doing that to her roommate – even better. You go, girl! You’re killing it! Literally and metaphorically.
- The magic element was there but not too overpowering. The part with the Greys and the circle of protection was my favorite. Didn't pay too much attention to the houses.
- Loved the ending, and guessed it correctly! Dante will go to hell and Virgil be your guide through it, very literally because he's already there.
Dislikes:
- All the triggering stuff, and there was a looot of it. Like 3/4th of the book had drug abuse and sexual assault thrown left and right.
- Prognostication. Eww!
- Alex’s old boyfriend, Len, that she thankfully murdered. Asshole!
- Belbalm/Daisy.
- The houses and what each house specialized in and stuff was a bit confusing in the beginning and I just ignored it for the rest of the book. I'm not familiar with Yale or how it works. Doesn't hinder the story though so all good.
Favorite quotes:
“Alex smiled then, a small thing, a glimpse of the girl lurking inside her, a happy, less haunted girl. That was what magic did. It revealed the heart of who you’d been before life took away your belief in the possible. It gave back the world all lonely children longed for.”
"For there is no explorer so intrepid or daring that he would dare walk the road to hell - no matter how it may be paved."
P.S. The writing is very, very different from the Grishaverse. Very brutal but so very good.