Item: Ninth House
Rating: 4.00
Author: biblioholicbeth

by Leigh Bardugo

The instant SUNDAY TIMES and NEW YORK TIMES bestseller, and Goodreads Choice Award winner, that Stephen King calls 'Impossible to put down'

The mesmerising adult debut from Leigh Bardugo. A tale of power, privilege, dark magic and murder set among the Ivy League elite.

Alex Stern is the most unlikely member of Yale's freshman class. A dropout and the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved crime - the last thing she wants is to cause trouble. Not when Yale was supposed to be her fresh start. But a free ride to one of the world's most prestigious universities was bound to come with a catch.

Alex has been tasked with monitoring the mysterious activities of Yale's secret societies - societies that have yielded some of the most famous and influential people in the world. Now there's a dead girl on campus and Alex seems to be the only person who won't accept the neat answer the police and campus administration have come up with for her murder.

Because Alex knows the secret societies are far more sinister and extraordinary than anyone ever imagined.

They tamper with forbidden magic. They raise the dead. And, sometimes, they prey on the living . . .

'Ninth House is the best fantasy novel I've read in years, because it's about real people. Bardugo's imaginative reach is brilliant, and this story, full of shocks and twists, is impossible to put down' Stephen King

'Ninth House is one of the best fantasy novels I've read in years. This book is brilliant, funny, raw and utterly magnificent - it's a portal to a world you'll never want to leave' Lev Grossman, bestselling author of The Magicians trilogy

'Ninth House rocked my world. I could not get enough of Alex Stern, a heroine for the ages. With a bruised heart and bleeding knuckles, she risks death and damnation - again and again - for the people she cares about. I was cheering her on the whole way: from the first brilliant sentence of this book to the last' Joe Hill, bestselling author of N0S4A2

Ok, I'm just going to say it. I've not read the grisha-verse novels. None. Zero. Zip. Not for any particular reason, but just because there's ALWAYS ANOTHER BOOK. However, Ninth House caught my eye, so I decided to give it a shot - and I *really* liked it. As in: Stay-Up-Until-1am-The-Night-Before-Work liked it.

The story takes magic in a completely different direction that what I've ever read, and it's fascinating. Yale has so much history, and the school is pretty much another character in the story. Tales of secret societies have abounded, and it's easy to wonder if maybe those tales may be true - and even current. What happens when those secrets start to get out? Who ends up paying the price?

Alex as a character is excellent - prickly and hard, but not to the degree that she's off-putting. Wanting to do the right thing, but doing so in the manner of the proverbial bull in the china shop. I started off sort of annoyed by her, but by the end was FIRMLY in her camp. She has experienced so much trauma, and it has definitely changed her - but she works VERY hard not to let it define her, but instead to *use* it as a catalyst. That's what truly made this book - the characterization, not only of Alex, but of those around her. Evil sometimes wears a pretty face, and sometimes those we see as the most guilty may not be.

Without spoilers, I would be thrilled if there was a sequel. It sounds like it could be one Hell of a trip.

Ninth House

by Leigh Bardugo

Reviewed by Beth C. on Jun 5, 2019

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