therealratking's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, Violence, Body horror, Murder, Death, Genocide, War, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Cannibalism
courtneyfalling's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Somehow managed to be more confusing than maybe even Gideon and Harrow combined? It’s been months and I still have no idea what really happened but I liked it? I want more and more endless fan theories? I want Alecto sooner? And the dream sequences with Joddddd.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Genocide
vanillaphantoms's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, Violence, Death, Eating disorder, Body horror, and Gore
hedsek's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Really really enjoyed this! Again, the form and content match each other very well which made this book a lot more readable than Harrow. I loved getting Nona's perspective and the way her cheerful outlook kind of tricked you into thinking things were fine every once in a while, until you read between the lines and you realise that of course it's not. The stakes did seem a lot lower than the other books up until the very end, and I'm really excited for Alecto.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Genocide, Gun violence, Eating disorder, and Violence
Minor: Murder, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Drug use
vampire_burrito's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Spoiler
Gideon Nav love of my life, I'm praying you get a happy ending
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Genocide, Gore, and Violence
rlgreen91's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
My cover of this book has a quote that "You'll love Nona, and Nona loves you" or something along those lines and that is certainly true. I really enjoyed this book. I love that Muir keeps slowly expanding the world and universe containing our characters, usually in a way that just manages to make me rethink my earlier conclusions without becoming out-and-out retcons. I think I mentioned this in my review for Harrow the Ninth as well and I'm glad to see a continuing trend here.
As usual, reading Nona the Ninth has answered some questions I had earlier in the series and left me with like twice as many new questions. At this point, I think I might need to try to cobble together my best guess at a timeline for events to keep things generally straight. Actually, that would be really useful because there are so many pop culture, literary, and Biblical references throughout the series that it can be hard to tell which ones refer to actual plot points we need to be aware of vs clever references to different jokes.
One last thing: I loved the depiction of Nona, Hot Sauce, and the gang just being kids. Maybe it's because I read this over the summer, which to kid me always felt like a magical time where anything could happen. I just think Muir does a fantastic job of capturing that sensation here, of just a set of friends hanging out and getting up to anything, everything, and nothing.
Looking forward to Alecto the Ninth and maybe another short story in the meantime? I can dream right? 4 stars.
As usual, reading Nona the Ninth has answered some questions I had earlier in the series and left me with like twice as many new questions. At this point, I think I might need to try to cobble together my best guess at a timeline for events to keep things generally straight. Actually, that would be really useful because there are so many pop culture, literary, and Biblical references throughout the series that it can be hard to tell which ones refer to actual plot points we need to be aware of vs clever references to different jokes.
One last thing: I loved the depiction of Nona, Hot Sauce, and the gang just being kids. Maybe it's because I read this over the summer, which to kid me always felt like a magical time where anything could happen. I just think Muir does a fantastic job of capturing that sensation here, of just a set of friends hanging out and getting up to anything, everything, and nothing.
Looking forward to Alecto the Ninth and maybe another short story in the meantime? I can dream right? 4 stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Gore, Body horror, Cursing, and Violence
Moderate: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Death
booksthatburn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
NONA THE NINTH deals with a necromantic version of plurality in a way whose groundwork was laid in GIDEON THE NINTH and HARROW THE NINTH. Much as "one flesh, one end" is undeniably queer, Camila and Palamedes display a version of plurality, which is necromantic in its origins, but familiar to me in its general shape. I’m a singlet, not a plural system, but several important people in my life are plural, and so much of how Nona interacts with Camilla and Palamedes echoes my interactions with those people in my own life. There’s a line in the second half of the book that makes it clear that at least some of the characters know about plurality, even if what’s happening with them is a specific magical version which canonically involves souls. In some ways plurality is more canonical to the text than any particular style of queerness (except perhaps for sapphic attraction), though this book (and the whole series) is undeniably and wonderfully queer.
The worldbuilding gets more of a chance to breathe this time around. GIDEON THE NINTH was a murder mystery until other things started being much more important. HARROW THE NINTH is a fever dream of confusion which suddenly snaps into coherence at the 90% mark. NONA THE NINTH is a breath, pausing for a story which has a clear framework, a lovable protagonist, and a sense of rhythm and pattern to her days. This calm amidst the storm is ripped open by a descent into war and the deterioration of her body as the day approaches when the Locked Tomb will open. I like the interludes as John tells the story of how this started. These sections helped with pacing and framing, as well as bringing the extremely welcome event of someone actually explaining what the fuck is going on for once.
As the third book in the series, NONA THE NINTH continues Several things begun in earlier books, specifically, but not only, the fates of a great many characters such as Camila and Palamedes. There's so much in each book that it's very difficult to know which details will be picked up later and which ones have been completely handled in their first treatment, but this does eventually give some answers about things first raised in earlier books. There’s an entirely new storyline related to Nona, her relative newness, and everyone she cares about at home and the school. She’s just so happy in a way that incorporates strangeness and allows for a joking grotesquerie, effortlessly finding beauty in weirdness. It also leaves a huge thing for later, promising that the Locked Tomb will be opened, even counting down to that promised day before leaving the aftermath of its opening to be handled in the next book, ALECTO THE NINTH.
There are many fewer memes than the previous books, but the few that are in there are expertly chosen to devastating effect. There's one near the very end that I refuse to spoil which threads the needs between fantastically illustrating the meaning of the surrounding text and needing to be imperceptible to anyone not already in the know. I applaud the execution of it, even if by its nature it's frustrating that this is what the author decided to include. Masterfully done, I tip my cap.
As was the case for HARROW THE NINTH, if someone tried to read this as their introduction to the series, it would likely make sense almost all the way through... and then the ending would be strange and sideways because it relies on several things established in previous books as well as bringing many returning characters who have been more thoroughly introduced elsewhere. Also, the way that the John interludes are explaining how things came to be like this would be a bit strange without the grounding provided in GTN and HTN.
I think this is my favorite book in the whole series, and I'm looking forward to what ALECTO THE NINTH brings.
The worldbuilding gets more of a chance to breathe this time around. GIDEON THE NINTH was a murder mystery until other things started being much more important. HARROW THE NINTH is a fever dream of confusion which suddenly snaps into coherence at the 90% mark. NONA THE NINTH is a breath, pausing for a story which has a clear framework, a lovable protagonist, and a sense of rhythm and pattern to her days. This calm amidst the storm is ripped open by a descent into war and the deterioration of her body as the day approaches when the Locked Tomb will open. I like the interludes as John tells the story of how this started. These sections helped with pacing and framing, as well as bringing the extremely welcome event of someone actually explaining what the fuck is going on for once.
As the third book in the series, NONA THE NINTH continues Several things begun in earlier books, specifically, but not only, the fates of a great many characters such as Camila and Palamedes. There's so much in each book that it's very difficult to know which details will be picked up later and which ones have been completely handled in their first treatment, but this does eventually give some answers about things first raised in earlier books. There’s an entirely new storyline related to Nona, her relative newness, and everyone she cares about at home and the school. She’s just so happy in a way that incorporates strangeness and allows for a joking grotesquerie, effortlessly finding beauty in weirdness. It also leaves a huge thing for later, promising that the Locked Tomb will be opened, even counting down to that promised day before leaving the aftermath of its opening to be handled in the next book, ALECTO THE NINTH.
There are many fewer memes than the previous books, but the few that are in there are expertly chosen to devastating effect. There's one near the very end that I refuse to spoil which threads the needs between fantastically illustrating the meaning of the surrounding text and needing to be imperceptible to anyone not already in the know. I applaud the execution of it, even if by its nature it's frustrating that this is what the author decided to include. Masterfully done, I tip my cap.
As was the case for HARROW THE NINTH, if someone tried to read this as their introduction to the series, it would likely make sense almost all the way through... and then the ending would be strange and sideways because it relies on several things established in previous books as well as bringing many returning characters who have been more thoroughly introduced elsewhere. Also, the way that the John interludes are explaining how things came to be like this would be a bit strange without the grounding provided in GTN and HTN.
I think this is my favorite book in the whole series, and I'm looking forward to what ALECTO THE NINTH brings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Body horror, Blood, Murder, Death, and Eating disorder
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Gun violence, Police brutality, Confinement, Medical content, Chronic illness, Cursing, Kidnapping, Vomit, Genocide, Terminal illness, Animal death, War, Death of parent, Self harm, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Alcohol, Cancer, Excrement, Sexual harassment, Car accident, Infertility, Domestic abuse, Suicide attempt, Torture, Ableism, Panic attacks/disorders, and Drug use
sealbrecht's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Blood, Death, Cursing, Gun violence, Genocide, and Murder
alexijai98's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Gore, War, Eating disorder, Colonisation, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
leanne_miron's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Xenophobia, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Body horror, Chronic illness, Eating disorder, Genocide, Cannibalism, and Suicidal thoughts