The Ancient Nine

by Ian K Smith

"Ian Smith, M.D. is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Blast the Sugar Out, SHRED, SUPER SHRED, The SHRED Power Cleanse and twelve other top-selling titles. A graduate of Harvard, Columbia, and the University of Chicago's Pritzker School of Medicine, Smith is the author of one previous novel, The Blackbird Papers."--

""Pulls you into the depths of a secret world from the first page. Ian Smith's novel is unmissable." --Harlan Coben, author of Missing You Spencer Collins thinks his life at Harvard will be all about basketball and pre-med; hard workouts and grinding work in class. The friends he's made when he hits the storied ivy-clad campus from a very different life in urban Chicago are a happy bonus. But Spencer is about to be introduced to the most mysterious inner sanctum of the inner sanctum: to his surprise, he's in the running to be "punched" for one of Harvard's elite final clubs. The Delphic Club is known as "the Gas" for its crest of three gas-lit flames, and as Spencer is considered for membership, he's plunged not only into the secret world of male privilege that the Gas represents, but also into a century-old club mystery. Because at the heart of the Delphic, secured deep inside its guarded mansion club, is another secret society: a shadowy group of powerful men known as The Ancient Nine. Who are The Ancient Nine? And why is Spencer--along with his best friend Dalton Winthrop--summoned to the deathbed of Dalton's uncle just as Spencer is being punched for the club? What does the lore about a missing page from one of Harvard's most historic books mean? And how does it connect to religion, murder, and to the King James Bible, if not to King James himself? The Ancient Nine is both a coming of age novel and a swiftly plotted story that lets readers into the ultimate of closed worlds with all of its dark historical secrets and unyielding power."--

• ISBN10: 1250182395
• ISBN13: 9781250182395
• Publish Date: 18 September 2018
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 14 June 2023
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: St Martin's Press
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 432
• Language: English

Reviews

[chymerra]

The Ancient Nine intrigued me when I first got the invite from the publisher. I like reading about secret societies/clubs. Heck, I even watch documentaries about them if I see them on TV. So when I read the blurb for The Ancient Nine, I needed to read this book. While the book was well written, it bored me in parts. It was also slow and because of that, I struggled to finish it. So why 3.5 stars? It comes down that the author did do a fantastic of keeping that secret room in the Delphic club under wraps until the end of the book.

I liked Spenser. He was down to earth and relatable. But I found myself getting frustrated with him. While he kept saying that he didn’t want to be in any of these “final” clubs, deep down inside he was excited about it. I kept wanting to go into the book and say “Dude, own being punched. Who cares what other people think. They chose YOU!!“. Of course, when it was revealed why he was chosen, I took those words back. But still. I also felt that he was easily led by Dalton. I felt that he wouldn’t have gotten as deep into the mystery of The Ancient Nine, the disappearance of Erasmus Abbott and the mystery of the secret room.

I didn’t like Dalton. He rubbed me the wrong way. He was too pushy about finding out about things. I mean, he stole his dying Uncle’s garter and dangled it in front of Spenser. He kept dragging Spenser off for trips to Florida, Rhode Island, Connecticut to chase after the clues that kept cropping up. He didn’t take into consideration that Spenser was at Havard on an athletic scholarship and he needed to keep his grade up. Even the way he treated his parents was ridiculous. The way he acted during that dinner cemented my dislike of him. But, through everything, he was a true friend. He cared about Spenser.

This book starts off fast. The mystery of what happened to Erasmus was addressed in the first chapter. Then Spenser was introduced and it continued to go at a fast clip. It kept up the pace until after the first meeting. Then it slowed down. After Dalton’s uncle died and that book was recovered from the safe deposit box, it slowed way down. By the time the book got around to Spenser doing his research on Erasmus and other clues, it was crawling. It was at that point where I kept falling asleep. And it continued that way until the end of the book.

There was a small romance angle that I almost wish wasn’t there. Spenser and Ashley’s romance, while cute and a welcome distraction wasn’t needed in the book. I could have done without reading about his feelings for a girl who didn’t seem to like him back. But it was there. It did add more depth to Spenser’s character.

The mystery/suspense/thriller angle of the book was wonderfully written. I liked how the author kept everything under wraps until the end of the book. I did figure out the mystery of Moss Sampson about halfway through the book. But, how it was revealed and who revealed was a twist that I didn’t see coming.

The end of the book disappointed me. I don’t know what I expected but I expected some more fireworks. It was almost anti-climatic. After everything that Spenser went through, I thought that there would be more. I did like the epilogue but again, felt that same sense of disappointment.

What I liked about The Ancient Nine:

A) It’s about secret clubs/societies

B) Spenser

C) Mystery/thriller/suspense angle was wonderfully written

What I disliked about The Ancient Nine:

A) Book bored me in parts

B) Dalton

C) Romance angle wasn’t needed

I gave The Ancient Nine a 3.5 rating. While I liked this book and, for the most part, enjoyed it, the book dragged from the middle on for me. I struggled to finish it. I would recommend this book if you like books about secret societies/clubs. But with a warning about it being boring in parts.

I gave The Ancient Nine an Adult rating. There is sex but it is not graphic. There is language. There is violence. I would suggest that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread The Ancient Nine. I would also recommend it to family and friends.

I would like to thank St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review The Ancient Nine.

All opinions stated in this review of The Ancient Nine are mine.

**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**