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A review by entazis
Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
slow-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? It's complicated
5.0
I'll be honest I was a bit worried when I read Muir's interview that Nona the Ninth was actually the first act of Alecto the Ninth book. I was worried that will make Nona more of a filler without any significant resolutions and that it'll ultimately feel unsatisfying. I'm happy to say I was wrong. It was none of these things.
It gives us a very important pov shift--showing us the perspective we were missing from the two first books, exploring the world outside of necromancy. Like an important big puzzle piece that helps with forming a clearer image of a puzzle we're trying to put together. We got so much information about the universe we're in, and how it came to be. Nona as a pov character is also probably the most observant in the series--she's listening to everyone, to the point she feels like a sponge. There are, of course, some mysteries left, a lot of dialogues she heard are missing the context, which can be confusing, and unanswered questions are left for the last book.
Where Muir excels is with the characters and I loved almost all of the cast in this book--she gave me back some old faves but I also easily fell in love with new ones (did not expect to care about the Edenites, but here I am!). Except for Nona. This is probably where I'm alone because it seems everyone loves Nona. But, there are some elements of her character I simply don't like, not to mention I knew right away who she is, so there wasn't much of a mystery to me. However, it was hilarious to see this messed-up, bleak world from her sunny, wholesome perspective. Muir's sense of humor and use of memes is something else.
This book says a lot about love (the main theme of the series), climate change, trauma, but also identity, and the importance of personal names in regards to the latter is a discussion worth having. I have in me a need to write an essay or two or three about The Locked Tomb, but I don't have the time.
I'll end with this: love K and I want nothing more than to see everything that happened in the missing months between books two and three. And as a fan of John, this books delivers for me so much gold; love Muir for that.
Moira Quirk indeed does an amazing job narrating the series, I absolutely recommend the audiobook.
It gives us a very important pov shift--showing us the perspective we were missing from the two first books, exploring the world outside of necromancy. Like an important big puzzle piece that helps with forming a clearer image of a puzzle we're trying to put together. We got so much information about the universe we're in, and how it came to be. Nona as a pov character is also probably the most observant in the series--she's listening to everyone, to the point she feels like a sponge. There are, of course, some mysteries left, a lot of dialogues she heard are missing the context, which can be confusing, and unanswered questions are left for the last book.
Where Muir excels is with the characters and I loved almost all of the cast in this book--she gave me back some old faves but I also easily fell in love with new ones (did not expect to care about the Edenites, but here I am!). Except for Nona. This is probably where I'm alone because it seems everyone loves Nona. But, there are some elements of her character I simply don't like, not to mention I knew right away who she is, so there wasn't much of a mystery to me. However, it was hilarious to see this messed-up, bleak world from her sunny, wholesome perspective. Muir's sense of humor and use of memes is something else.
This book says a lot about love (the main theme of the series), climate change, trauma, but also identity, and the importance of personal names in regards to the latter is a discussion worth having. I have in me a need to write an essay or two or three about The Locked Tomb, but I don't have the time.
I'll end with this: love K and I want nothing more than to see everything that happened in the missing months between books two and three. And as a fan of John, this books delivers for me so much gold; love Muir for that.
Moira Quirk indeed does an amazing job narrating the series, I absolutely recommend the audiobook.