Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

Ninth House is the first novel in the Alex Stern series by Leigh Bardugo. It should also be noted that this is Bardugo’s first foray outside the world of young adult novels. And it is a novel unafraid to dive into humanity’s deepest and darkest parts.

New Haven is a place of secret societies and magic. They’ve learned to harness some spells – from the basic to fairly powerful. But there’s a price. There is always a price. Enter Alex Stern. It’s her job to keep the peace between these groups. And to make sure they don’t do lasting damage to the nonmagical nearby. And, of course, she’s meant to protect the societies from the ghosts – greys – lurking in the shadows.

For better or for worse, Alex has a unique gift that brought her to the attention of the higher-ups within Yale. You see, she can see ghosts. This ability has been a constant fact and torment for as long as she can remember. But perhaps now she can finally gain control over it. And over her life in the process.

A Few Warnings

Ninth House has been getting a lot of ink ever since it was announced. And with good reason. For one thing, it’s a brilliant – but dark and foreboding – world full of fascinating characters and motives.

But it’s also the most unsettling novel that Bardugo has ever written. She and her publisher have made a significant effort to make sure that fans know what they are in for with this novel. It is not a young adult novel. It covers a lot of heavy and distressing subjects. Some scenes depict abuse, drug usage/overdose, sexual assault/ rape of adults and a child, drowning, gore, and self-harm. So please do consider yourself warned before picking this novel up.

Writing

Ninth House was a beautifully written novel. It’s the sort of novel that digs its way into your subconscious, making it difficult, if not impossible, to put down. The world was as vibrant as it was distressing, full of details that made it feel alive.

Bardugo used a specific storytelling style to tell her story and increase the tension along the way. The novel is told through multiple perspectives and a few different points in time. Alex’s side of the story is told in two parts: her past and present. Darlington’s side is told from the point of the near past. Together, the whole story is slowly revealed, leading the readers through a tumultuous adventure.

The characters, Alex especially, were dynamic and full of warring and unique motivations for their actions. These actions made more sense as the novel went on, and we learned more about each character involved. It was captivating to see how it all unfolded.

Development

Ninth House was a steadily paced novel, and thank goodness for that. The multiple perspectives and time jumps ensured that something was always happening at any given point. But it also increased the foreboding feeling within the novel.

There were countless emotional ups and downs within these pages. Bardugo knew how to elicit an emotional reaction from her readers, and she wasn’t afraid to make us feel for the main characters or their situations.

Everything has a price. Especially magic. That was a theme in this novel, and it was only one of many themes vying for attention in Ninth House. The complex nature of this story made it impossible to look away or put down. Perhaps that is why these 480 pages will feel like they’re flying by.

Conclusion

Ninth House is a novel that will rip out your heart, stomp on it, and then proudly hand it back to you. And you’ll thank it for the treatment. Seriously though, Ninth House was an amazing read – even if it was dark and by far the most emotional and disturbing novel I’ve read in quite some time.

I have no regrets about reading Ninth House except for the time I have to wait for the next novel to be revealed and released.

This review was originally written for Word of the Nerd, but has been ported over to Quirky Cat’s Fat Stacks now that the site has shut down.

Quirky Cat’s Fat Stacks | Quirky Cat’s Comics | The Book Review Crew | Monkeys Fighting Robots | Storygraph | Bookhype | Bookstagram | Twitter | Tumblr | Reedsy