Nona the Ninth

...is what the back of the book says. And Tamsyn Muir again successfully makes you guess what the everlasting fuck is happening, excuse my language. I was prepared after Harrow, but it's still such a mindfuck. You think you're getting new information about the Locked Tomb universe and how it happened, but at no point are you certain that things are what they are. I absolutely love it. Can't wait for Alecto to be published.

An unexpected change of pace that answers some questions and asks a bunch more. My rating is very much a personal taste thing: this book easily stands alongside the first two, but it's far more laid back and contemplative, at least to begin with. I've already reread Gideon, I fancy going back to Harrow now, but at the moment I feel like this might be more of a chore. I think it's the book it wants to be, but if this is how the series began I'm not sure what I'd have made of it

That all said, Nona herself is an obvious delight. John's interludes are dreamy and informative though exactly how reliable a narrator he might be is extremely debatable. The sixth are an adorable hot mess. I enjoyed the antics of the back half more, but it does start to feel like an Andrew Hussie special at points, particularly once we have much of the gang assembled.

A welcome transition into the endgame, though while enjoyable it ultimately feels like filler and staging for the finale. For which I am now suitably hyped.