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A review by mxsallybend
Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
3.0
This was good, but I think the cover blurb set the wrong expectations, which caused me to DNF this three times before finding my way into the story.
"Gideon has a sword, some dirty magazines, and no more time for undead bullshit."
Sounds fun and pulpy and bad-ass, but that's very much not the tone of the book. The dirty magazines are a throwaway line in a single scene, without any such ribald material ever mentioned again. And, yes, Gideon has an attitude, but it's more about her necromancer's bullshit than the undead themselves.
"Lesbian necromancers explored a haunted gothic palace in space!"
Okay, so the gothic palace is haunted, but its firmly planted amidst the oceans of a watery world. Hardly "in space." And, yes, Gideon is a lesbian, and a few other characters may be as well, but all we get is vague flirting and innuendo. There are no relationships to the story, no kisses or caresses, nothing to make this a book about "lesbian necromancers" but instead one with a "lesbian cavalier."
Once I got beyond my own expectations and dealt with the issue of pacing (it takes a very long time for very little to happen), I found the hook and largely enjoyed the read. It had strong characters, interesting magic, and (finally, at the very end) some big-stakes action. Parts of it felt thin, especially the world-building, but once I hit the halfway mark and we began opening doors, I wanted to know where it was all headed. The ending was a twist I didn't see coming, but that's a plus.
I've heard Harrow the Ninth suffers even more from pacing issues, with narrative POV confusion on top, but I'll likely give it a read at some point.
"Gideon has a sword, some dirty magazines, and no more time for undead bullshit."
Sounds fun and pulpy and bad-ass, but that's very much not the tone of the book. The dirty magazines are a throwaway line in a single scene, without any such ribald material ever mentioned again. And, yes, Gideon has an attitude, but it's more about her necromancer's bullshit than the undead themselves.
"Lesbian necromancers explored a haunted gothic palace in space!"
Okay, so the gothic palace is haunted, but its firmly planted amidst the oceans of a watery world. Hardly "in space." And, yes, Gideon is a lesbian, and a few other characters may be as well, but all we get is vague flirting and innuendo. There are no relationships to the story, no kisses or caresses, nothing to make this a book about "lesbian necromancers" but instead one with a "lesbian cavalier."
Once I got beyond my own expectations and dealt with the issue of pacing (it takes a very long time for very little to happen), I found the hook and largely enjoyed the read. It had strong characters, interesting magic, and (finally, at the very end) some big-stakes action. Parts of it felt thin, especially the world-building, but once I hit the halfway mark and we began opening doors, I wanted to know where it was all headed. The ending was a twist I didn't see coming, but that's a plus.
I've heard Harrow the Ninth suffers even more from pacing issues, with narrative POV confusion on top, but I'll likely give it a read at some point.