I understood that murder and mayhem would be involved in Ninth House, but I wasn’t quite expecting it to be so much like a detective story. The fact that a lot of it was presented in the shape of a paranormal crime story maybe didn’t help me personally. So, there were some aspects I really enjoyed (especially the emancipation and handling of different female characters) and others I did not understand or connect to as much as I had hoped. That is the danger in keeping company with survivors.”

Where a lot of things felt like pre-established fixtures, at least this was something that felt like it was still in the making. But I enjoyed the dynamic among all characters and the way we still got to explore how some of these relationships were formed. Also, Turner was a big upside of the book for me, because he felt like the lawful good person the story needed. That’s maybe why I found golden boy Darlington (who I need back desperately and who will be the main reason I will pick up the sequel) and quiet but caring Dawes more accessible. I understand her anger and her way of keeping people at bay, but at the same time, I felt like I was kept at bay sometimes. Her past is hard to swallow and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. To me, connecting with the people on the page and their journey is so important, but there were so many blanks that eventually got filled in, but it took me a good 100 pages to really get into it.Īlex Stern, the main character of the series and who’s real name is actually Galaxy, is a mystery wrapped in an enigma. I thought we would gradually get eased into the matter, but instead you start into the midst of it all, and believe me when I say it is a mess.Īside from the confusing societies, it takes a while to get to know the characters and therefore really get into the story. But then there are also the actual magical societies. Aside from Gilmore Girl’s Rory, I really have no connection to it if I think about it some more. I’ve never been to the Yale campus and even with a map, there were so many details I had a hard time connecting with. Bardugo is great at creating a whole universe with magic, and rules that apply to it, that feels real and accessible, but I was just lost. And it’s not that this book didn’t deliver on what it advertised, it just turned out that I wasn’t really the right reader for it.įirst of all, you get thrown into a world you understand very little of. When it was announced that she had written her first adult book in a sort of dark academia setting, I was fully on board.

I have not, in fact, read everything she has written, but just like about every human on earth, I have really enjoyed the Six of Crows duology and could easily have seen her become one of my household favourite authors. **CW: rape, sexual assault, abuse, self-harm, murder, violence, vomiting, gore**

Ninth house book 2