What does fantasy mean to you, as a reader? The genre has taken great strides in the recent past with a plethora of writers putting on their most creative caps to create some of the most imaginative stories that I have ever read. To me, fantasy literature is at its best in a medieval setting with a well defined magical system and mythical creatures. One need not look too far: Robin Hobb and GRRM come to mind immediately. Leigh Bardugo has also made the genre her own, with the Grishaverse series and the Six of Crows duology.
What Leigh Bardugo does in Ninth House is something more difficult and demanding in my perspective: telling a fantasy story in a more contemporary setting. This makes it difficult for me as a reader, as it seems far less believable that a magical world exists in our times. The charm and quaintness that surrounds kingdoms and dragons is lost. But Bardugo more than makes up for this void by creating a thoroughly entertaining protagonist in Galaxy Stern and her unique ability to 'see Greys'.
The first half of the book is quite laborious to read. The magical system seems confusing, at best. But Bardugo craftily introduces not one, but three mysteries into the plot that compel the reader keep turning the pages. The initial lethargy is shed off in the second half, which is action packed. As our heroine starts find her feet, the story gets more and more interesting and finally hurtles toward a MOST SATISFYING conclusion.
This isn't an easy book to read by any stretch of imagination. There are gory and gruesome scenes including sexual assault; which may be triggering for some readers. Through a raw and rough female protagonist, we see some closure to the violence; and that in itself is immensely gratifying. Look out for the secondary characters: Dawes and Darlington who have been fleshed out pretty well. If an intriguing combination of fantasy, Ivy League secret societies and murder mysteries is your cup of tea, then Ninth House is right down your alley.
I hear that more books in the Alex Stern series are in the pipeline (at least five, according to the author's twitter handle), which is very good news indeed!
My rating: 4/5
Image source: amazon.in
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