A review by wanderlustlover
Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

3.0

Winter 2020 (December);

A 3, because it would bother me to put it in the 2's.

Everyone who was everyone in my life kept saying last year that I should read this book. I wonder if that built it up too much in my head (or if I really owe Muir an apology because all I've been reading is Sanderson for basically the last month and a half's or longer 90% of my books, and trying to read a novice first-publication with that bulwark to compare itself to is nye on cruelty).

This book was true to it's selling points. It was a space story full of sword fights, children playing at politics, and lesbian necromancers. I definitely leaned toward Harrow more than Gideon, basically from the beginning of the book almost, so I'm a little relieved that I'll get to have another book with her. I think my greatest lingering disappointment with the novel is that I predicted who the main villain/culprit was long around 25% into the book and kept trying to convince myself I was wrong, especially as each red herring was used, except I wasn't.

That said, I stilled vaulted right into [b:The Mysterious Study of Doctor Sex|53465671|The Mysterious Study of Doctor Sex (The Locked Tomb, #0.5)|Tamsyn Muir|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1590235572l/53465671._SY75_.jpg|83475080] & [b:Harrow the Ninth|39325105|Harrow the Ninth (The Locked Tomb, #2)|Tamsyn Muir|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1602323622l/39325105._SY75_.jpg|60943273] (and, yes, I have already gotten the warning that a lot of people were super put off by the confusion of how the second book starts before it settles out, so I'm prepared). Thus, more reviews to come soon.