Book ReviewGalaxy “Alex” Stern is a high-school-drop-out, drug dealer, and the most unlikely member of Yale’s freshman class. After being involved in a terrible, unsolved homicide, Alex was given the chance at a redo if she agrees to become a part of the secret societies at Yale that deal with everything magical. But as she finds herself involved in a murder investigation that is bigger than original imagined, Alex begins to wonder if she’ll make it out of the year alive or as one of the grays(ghosts) that she can see. I fell in love with Leigh Bardugo’s duology Six of Crows a couple years ago, so when I learned that my old book box subscription had Ninth House as one its picks for November I didn’t even look at the other options before adding it to my box. Mr. Purrfect decided he needed to read it first since he introduced me to Bardugo’s books, and then took FOREVER to only give up on it. So I’ve finally had the chance to dive in, and while I was really hesitant at the beginning of the book, about 1/3 way through I was hooked! This book has a lot of mixed reviews. Before finalizing my review, I always like to read through others to get different perspectives to consider. People either love or hate this book. And they either hate it because it isn’t enough like Leigh’s other books, or its too much while being different. Other people had problems with it for a list of trigger warnings they feel should come with the novel (sexual assault, drug addiction, overdose, gore, self-harm, etc). I personally did not have many issues with the triggers present for me (sexual assault, self-harm, suicide), but everyone experiences trauma different and reacts in their own way to triggers, so wanted to note these things for awareness. Even though Alex is the main character, I have to start by talking about Daniel Arlington (aka Darlington aka my favorite person in the novel). Darlington is the definition of the perfect book boyfriend; he’s a gentleman, smart, brave, and basically perfect. And I always preferred chapters from Darlington’s POV. Alex is a great character, don’t let my book crush confuse you. She is strong, but also cold and guarded (tbh, sort of reminded me of Inez from Six of Crows). Bardguo took a different take on ghosts (which are called grays in the book) which I loved. The whole plot was very much in the Bardugo style, which complicated plot twists and a world you want to learn everything about. I am now a full believer that Yale University is a front for magic. And I love it. While I loved the world, I do wish it was better presented. With the beginning of the book going back in forth between different POVs and time periods, as readers we are thrown a lot of information we don’t really understand at first. I found this really off putting, but pushed through because I love Bardugo, and about 1/3 of the way through it becomes a lot better. My one other thing is that the ending felt rushed, and I’m not sure how I feel about the overall ending. It was little much for me, and is the cause of a star loss. What I loved most about this novel is Alex’s ability to see gray’s and the different ways Bardugo uses ghosts in this story. It’s different from what I’ve seen before, and it made the story really interesting and added some depth to Alex as a character. The whole concept felt very Leigh to me, and since she gave me hope in YA fantasy again, any new fantasy element she wants to present I’m almost always going to love. Overall, I give the novel 👻 4/5 grays. It has the classic Leigh Bardugo feel to it that I love, and a world I want to settle into (now that I understand it). I know there will be a sequel and I am anxiously awaiting it! FEminist AnalysisThis is another torn analysis. Alex is definitely feminist. Even though she started off reserved and hiding her true self to keep others happy by trying to be more pleasant and friendly, she did become true to herself, breaking some gender norms, and being an overall badass on the way.
The side characters felt a little bit more stiff to me in these terms. They were either the quiet, helpful, angel of the house who had no story of their own, or were demons and evil and had unoriginal backstories. Overall, I will give it a 3/5. There were sexual assaults and while they didn’t add too much to the narrative, it did play a role in the plot. Alex is a badass who breaks gender norms and is unabashedly her. It just doesn’t push the envelope to new levels the way I need something to do in order to get a higher rating.
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Hello, love! Please, don't mind the cat hair. I'm a lover of all genres (except romance, ironic, I know), and potentially --accidentally-- obsessed with feminist literary theory. Feel free to scroll around, hopefully see a few cats, and find a good new book or two!
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