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boyoass 's review for:
Harrow the Ninth
by Tamsyn Muir
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
i like this book significantly more than gideon the ninth. in a way, these two books are indivisible from each other. gideon the ninth was a pretty run of the mill fantasy novel (albeit queerer than normal), but harrow the ninth revisits the events of the first book and challenges your memory of it.
i like that the book doesnt immediately make itself clear to you. the narrative of harrow's struggle is enhanced by making the reader figure everything out alongside her. as the book calls harrow's memory/sanity into question, it becomes difficult to parse the true sequence of events. though the reader has their memory of the first book to rely upon, the new perspective shown in the sequel casts doubt on that story. the 2nd person point of view is a jarring break from form that isnt explained right away. the fact that there are also two alternating timelines within this book additionally makes it difficult for the reader to get their bearings. all of these changes and juxtapositions put the reader in a state of mind more similar to harrow's, which i think strengthens the story. in this way, you could also say that gideon the ninth was a story that aligned the reader with gideon's mindset, given that it was more straightforward and lighthearted. (there are actually a lot of ways that the way harrow the ninth is written make me go back and consider gideon the ninth more. i think that's what i enjoyed most about this read.)
i do feel like i missed a couple details in the last couple chapters, so i plan to reread those and update. a little confused about the ending. i trust that its either my fault or it will be fleshed out in the following book.
i like that the book doesnt immediately make itself clear to you. the narrative of harrow's struggle is enhanced by making the reader figure everything out alongside her. as the book calls harrow's memory/sanity into question, it becomes difficult to parse the true sequence of events. though the reader has their memory of the first book to rely upon, the new perspective shown in the sequel casts doubt on that story. the 2nd person point of view is a jarring break from form that isnt explained right away. the fact that there are also two alternating timelines within this book additionally makes it difficult for the reader to get their bearings. all of these changes and juxtapositions put the reader in a state of mind more similar to harrow's, which i think strengthens the story. in this way, you could also say that gideon the ninth was a story that aligned the reader with gideon's mindset, given that it was more straightforward and lighthearted. (there are actually a lot of ways that the way harrow the ninth is written make me go back and consider gideon the ninth more. i think that's what i enjoyed most about this read.)
i do feel like i missed a couple details in the last couple chapters, so i plan to reread those and update. a little confused about the ending. i trust that its either my fault or it will be fleshed out in the following book.