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A review by swaye
Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
4.0
I don't think I've ever been so torn on whether a book is deserving of 4 or 5 stars. I think this might be the only time I thought that those half-stars would be a good idea.
This book is brilliant in so many ways. Tamsyn Muir can write! Holy shit. Every character was so well-fleshed out. On the downside, it took me ages to keep them all straight because there are a lot of them. Maybe too many, honestly. I had to use the infographic of the characters so many times to be like, "Ohhh, that character!" before I could move on.
This book genuinely surprised me. I know it has so many rave reviews, but I was wary because of the horror element. I'm happy to say, for all my fellow scaredy-cats, I personally didn't find this scary. Granted, some parts were shocking and even gory at times, but not scary.
What I loved most about Gideon the Ninth and what kept inching it closer to that perfect 5 stars for me was how it all came together at the end. The themes of love and sacrifice, amidst a world engulfed in utter turmoil and chaos, struck a profound chord with me, especially during this particular time in my life. This year has been brutal, and just as I reached the end of the book, life dealt me another heavy blow, but Gideon's courage and her love for Harrow showed me a lot about who I am, and what makes life worth living. When you love someone, your heart stays intact despite all the pain because of them.
In the words of John Wayne, “Life is getting up one more time than you've been knocked down.” And Maya Angelou's wisdom echoes through the pages of Gideon the Ninth: "Have enough courage to trust love one more time and always one more time."
Gideon the Ninth reminded me that even in the darkest of times, love makes it all worth it. I may not have given it a perfect 5 stars, but it has certainly left an indelible mark on my heart.
This book is brilliant in so many ways. Tamsyn Muir can write! Holy shit. Every character was so well-fleshed out. On the downside, it took me ages to keep them all straight because there are a lot of them. Maybe too many, honestly. I had to use the infographic of the characters so many times to be like, "Ohhh, that character!" before I could move on.
This book genuinely surprised me. I know it has so many rave reviews, but I was wary because of the horror element. I'm happy to say, for all my fellow scaredy-cats, I personally didn't find this scary. Granted, some parts were shocking and even gory at times, but not scary.
What I loved most about Gideon the Ninth and what kept inching it closer to that perfect 5 stars for me was how it all came together at the end. The themes of love and sacrifice, amidst a world engulfed in utter turmoil and chaos, struck a profound chord with me, especially during this particular time in my life. This year has been brutal, and just as I reached the end of the book, life dealt me another heavy blow, but Gideon's courage and her love for Harrow showed me a lot about who I am, and what makes life worth living. When you love someone, your heart stays intact despite all the pain because of them.
In the words of John Wayne, “Life is getting up one more time than you've been knocked down.” And Maya Angelou's wisdom echoes through the pages of Gideon the Ninth: "Have enough courage to trust love one more time and always one more time."
Gideon the Ninth reminded me that even in the darkest of times, love makes it all worth it. I may not have given it a perfect 5 stars, but it has certainly left an indelible mark on my heart.