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koalaautumn 's review for:
Ninth House
by Leigh Bardugo
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
First, an upfront warning: if there are certain topics you do not read, please check the content warnings before picking this up. This book puts the dark in dark academia. There are several graphic, gory, and descriptive scenes, including (but not limited to) child molestation, rape, substance abuse, and drug overdoses. These scenes are not romanticized or added for simple shock value; the characters are affected by them deeply, and the consequences of all these events (for the characters, their emotions, and their motivations) are explored in detail. However, these scenes are very hard to read, even for someone without these triggers—so please, take care of yourself. Reading this book is not more important than maintaining your well-being.
In addition to the dark subject matter, this book is hard to read because there's just so much going on. In Ninth House, we are immediately dropped into the unfamiliar world of Yale University, a broody campus full of magic and ghosts, secret societies and tombs (which are real!), and oddly-named college buildings and landmarks. Characters and locations are mentioned in passing as if we're already acquainted. This—along with non-linear narratives and multiple POVs—may be off-putting to some readers, but I enjoyed the extra element of mystery that these stylistic choices added. As the novel progresses, the reader must unravel the campus's and other characters' mysteries just as the protagonist, Galaxy "Alex" Stern, does.
On that note, let's talk some more about Alex and the plot of this whole thing. Alex is not the typical protagonist one might expect in the dark academia genre. She's a biracial high-school dropout and recovering addict. Unlike other students at Yale, Alex isn't academically or athletically skilled. Her family doesn't have money or power. However, Alex has a natural talent all her own: she can see ghosts ("Grays"). This talent is highly desirable to the secret societies at Yale, and as such, Alex gets a free ride to attend the University, on the condition that she offers her services to Lethe House as a sort of "magical hall monitor" to ensure the safety, security, and secrecy of the other societies. When a townsperson turns up murdered under suspicious circumstances, Alex is suddenly thrust into the dangerous epicenter of uncovering a mystery that others desire to keep hidden.
With her underprivileged background, Alex acts as a foil to the typical Ivy League student. On numerous occasions, the classist privilege afforded to the well-connected young (white) men of these institutions is called out on the page. Those who benefit from privilege are asked to answer for it. Other societal injustices are called out, too, including racism and sexism. (Sometimes, these callouts can feel a little too gratuitous, but I'd rather have an overly-aware author than one who injects bias in their books.) I wish Alex's heritage was fleshed out a bit more to give more justice to her background, but perhaps it was left semi-ambiguous because our character herself is not intimately familiar with her family either.
Overall, I enjoyed this book! It was slow at times, and occasionally I questioned plot lines or motives, but I always felt drawn to the moody atmospheres and mysteries woven throughout the pages. I greatly appreciated the depth of Bardugo's research into Yale's and New Haven's history and on world mythologies, literature, art, and other erudite topics. (It was super cool to see Bardugo's notes on the first chapter of this book. You can see how she spent great attention in tying her book together. I liked that a lot.) Like many others, I loved Darlington and Dawes. I'm hoping to see more of them in the sequel, Hell Bent. If you generally like darker, occult tales steeped in mythos and mystery (and you're also not opposed to watching Criminal Minds or Law & Order in your free time), then give this a try!
In addition to the dark subject matter, this book is hard to read because there's just so much going on. In Ninth House, we are immediately dropped into the unfamiliar world of Yale University, a broody campus full of magic and ghosts, secret societies and tombs (which are real!), and oddly-named college buildings and landmarks. Characters and locations are mentioned in passing as if we're already acquainted. This—along with non-linear narratives and multiple POVs—may be off-putting to some readers, but I enjoyed the extra element of mystery that these stylistic choices added. As the novel progresses, the reader must unravel the campus's and other characters' mysteries just as the protagonist, Galaxy "Alex" Stern, does.
On that note, let's talk some more about Alex and the plot of this whole thing. Alex is not the typical protagonist one might expect in the dark academia genre. She's a biracial high-school dropout and recovering addict. Unlike other students at Yale, Alex isn't academically or athletically skilled. Her family doesn't have money or power. However, Alex has a natural talent all her own: she can see ghosts ("Grays"). This talent is highly desirable to the secret societies at Yale, and as such, Alex gets a free ride to attend the University, on the condition that she offers her services to Lethe House as a sort of "magical hall monitor" to ensure the safety, security, and secrecy of the other societies. When a townsperson turns up murdered under suspicious circumstances, Alex is suddenly thrust into the dangerous epicenter of uncovering a mystery that others desire to keep hidden.
With her underprivileged background, Alex acts as a foil to the typical Ivy League student. On numerous occasions, the classist privilege afforded to the well-connected young (white) men of these institutions is called out on the page. Those who benefit from privilege are asked to answer for it. Other societal injustices are called out, too, including racism and sexism. (Sometimes, these callouts can feel a little too gratuitous, but I'd rather have an overly-aware author than one who injects bias in their books.) I wish Alex's heritage was fleshed out a bit more to give more justice to her background, but perhaps it was left semi-ambiguous because our character herself is not intimately familiar with her family either.
Overall, I enjoyed this book! It was slow at times, and occasionally I questioned plot lines or motives, but I always felt drawn to the moody atmospheres and mysteries woven throughout the pages. I greatly appreciated the depth of Bardugo's research into Yale's and New Haven's history and on world mythologies, literature, art, and other erudite topics. (It was super cool to see Bardugo's notes on the first chapter of this book. You can see how she spent great attention in tying her book together. I liked that a lot.) Like many others, I loved Darlington and Dawes. I'm hoping to see more of them in the sequel, Hell Bent. If you generally like darker, occult tales steeped in mythos and mystery (and you're also not opposed to watching Criminal Minds or Law & Order in your free time), then give this a try!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Rape, Sexual assault, Excrement