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A review by saestrah
Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
mysterious
slow-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
4.0
I'm usually on the side of 'don't put memes in literature' on the basis that memes get outdated very quickly and are hard to contextualise for readers unfamiliar with the memes. In Gideon the Ninth the narrative got away with it very well, as they were more like easter eggs that are easily glossed over. In Harrow the Ninth the memes are a little more.... 'obvious'? If you recognise the meme then it's funny, but for anyone unfamiliar with it, it would be hard to understand what it meant and why the character said it.
The POV change to second person is as jarring as it is compelling, and it's justified with the plot as well as making the world-building and unfolding mysteries all the more immersive. As confused as I was for the majority of the book, everything pulls together in the last quarter as mysteries were finally explained and the strings throughout this book and Gideon the Ninth started to come together. Harrow's narration is incredibly unreliable, and it reflects Muir’s ability to create such distinctive characters and their voices.
Despite the narrative differences, Harrow the Ninth still stays true to the rest of the Locked Tomb series, with internet meme references and sword fights, but also textually explores themes of grief, guilt, and trauma, and the intersection between the three. It’s certainly an ambitious sequel, and tests the reader’s patience at times, but it was impressively executed and guarantees several re-reads to fill the time before Alecto the Ninth is released.
Re-read review: This was much easier to read the second time around, and I was amazed by how many easter eggs and lines of foreshadowing that I'd missed the first time. Now I could focus less on the mystery and more on the story, I found the prose even lovelier and the characters even more fleshed out. This is so far my favourite book in the series.
The POV change to second person is as jarring as it is compelling, and it's justified with the plot as well as making the world-building and unfolding mysteries all the more immersive. As confused as I was for the majority of the book, everything pulls together in the last quarter as mysteries were finally explained and the strings throughout this book and Gideon the Ninth started to come together. Harrow's narration is incredibly unreliable, and it reflects Muir’s ability to create such distinctive characters and their voices.
Despite the narrative differences, Harrow the Ninth still stays true to the rest of the Locked Tomb series, with internet meme references and sword fights, but also textually explores themes of grief, guilt, and trauma, and the intersection between the three. It’s certainly an ambitious sequel, and tests the reader’s patience at times, but it was impressively executed and guarantees several re-reads to fill the time before Alecto the Ninth is released.
Re-read review: This was much easier to read the second time around, and I was amazed by how many easter eggs and lines of foreshadowing that I'd missed the first time. Now I could focus less on the mystery and more on the story, I found the prose even lovelier and the characters even more fleshed out. This is so far my favourite book in the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Cursing, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Bullying