Harrow the Ninth

This review is also featured on Behind the Pages: Harrow the Ninth

Harrowhark's new life has come at a terrible cost. As she struggles to become what the emperor needs, her mind and body fight against her every step of the way. Alongside the other children of the undying emperor, Harrow is weak and expendable. She must watch her back constantly, or else be struck down. And time grows short as the soul of a long-dead planet stalks them, intent on killing the necromancer who ended its life. Harrow must fight through the insanity threatening to claim her and learn to embrace her full power before it is too late.

Harrow the Ninth takes a swift departure from the narrative readers knew in Gideon the Ninth. I expected some change, but I did not expect the twisted perspective this book was written in. The timeline is non-linear. Readers will experience flashbacks intermingled with what can be assumed as present times. Although with the narration it is hard to tell. Readers are going to have to put the pieces together themselves as Harrow's mental state is perfectly captured in the way the story is written. Are you confused? So is Harrow, and Tamsyn Muir is a daring and creative author to paint this entire book in a way that makes the reader experience what Harrow feels.

The way Harrow the Ninth is written can best be described as deliciously deceptive. This was a slower read for me as, as my mind was trying to put pieces of the puzzle together and make sense of what I was reading. But Tamsyn Muir's prose is gothic, dark and so emotional that I loved every minute of it. Her use of necromancy in battle is fascinating and the stakes are always high. By the time you reach the end, you will be left with a new understanding of the world and demanding the next book. Because while you may understand the world, the characters have so many more questions to answer.