I read Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo as one of my buddy reads for this month. I enjoy Bardugo’s writing; I’ve only read the Grishaverse trilogy so far, but I loved it. When I heard she had an adult book coming out, I had to read it. Then the content warnings and trigger warnings came out (list is courtesy of Roe from Goodreads) and it was all over Twitter. And I became wary…but also a little intrigued. Because as I mentioned in my Banned Books post, when people talk about a book, I need to read it. So, I read it.

Ninth House: Thoughts

Honestly, I’m not really sure how I feel about this book. It was predictable, so for that I didn’t find enjoyment. I also found things too convenient at times. The book was written in multiple aspects, implementing flashbacks as a way to get to know the different characters. I didn’t mind this style and actually at different parts of the story I found myself wishing to read more from different characters point of view because that character’s story was intriguing.

I didn’t really care for Alex, which is a shame since she was the main character. Strong female protagonists are favorites of mine to read about, but I could not get behind her. She was just bland. It may be a bit of an unpopular opinion but I wanted to know more about Darlington, or even Dawes. They seemed interesting. I also wanted some clarity surrounding the societies. They seemed to jumble together for me. Perhaps that’s just for me personally, but I didn’t get a clear sense of them and their differences. They just felt too similar.

Bottomline

Overall, I am not sure Ninth House really was as great as I thought it would be. Will I pick up book two? Yes. After that ending, I have to know what happens. And again, I do love Bardugo’s work. The potentially triggering content that everyone mentioned is there. It’s a lot of gore and sexual violence, and it is throughout the entire book, so you can’t really just skip a certain chapter. Just stay true to yourself and your own limits.