Ninth House
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4.4 • 104 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
"The best fantasy novel I’ve read in years, because it’s about real people... Impossible to put down." —Stephen King
Enter a mesmerizing world of power, privilege, and dark magic among the Ivy League elite in the first book in the Alex Stern series.
Goodreads Choice Award Winner
Locus Finalist
Galaxy “Alex” Stern is the most unlikely member of Yale’s freshman class. Raised in the Los Angeles hinterlands by a hippie mom, Alex dropped out of school early and into a world of shady drug-dealer boyfriends, dead-end jobs, and much, much worse. In fact, by age twenty, she is the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved multiple homicide. Some might say she’s thrown her life away. But at her hospital bed, Alex is offered a second chance: to attend one of the world’s most prestigious universities on a full ride. What’s the catch, and why her?
Still searching for answers, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yale’s secret societies. Their eight windowless “tombs” are the well-known haunts of the rich and powerful, from high-ranking politicos to Wall Street’s biggest players. But their occult activities are more sinister and more extraordinary than any paranoid imagination might conceive. They tamper with forbidden magic. They raise the dead. And, sometimes, they prey on the living.
Don't miss the highly-anticipated sequel, Hell Bent.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Leigh Bardugo’s first novel for adults is set at a fictional version of Yale, where secret societies gain their influence not just from money and privilege but from occult powers. Galaxy “Alex” Stern, a tough girl who barely survived her childhood, is recruited into this world of ghost summoning and deadly pacts by an enigmatic figure who offers her a deal: Sneak in as a spy and we’ll pay your way through school. Bardugo, the best-selling author of two young-adult fantasy series, is a Yale graduate, which explains why this spooky, fast-paced story feels so authentic (what Ivy League secrets does she know?!). A tantalizing blend of fantasy, mystery, and horror, Ninth House is a very fun read.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Bardugo's excellent first fantasy novel for adults (following her highly regarded Six of Crows and Shadow and Bone YA series) introduces an antihero who is just the right person to take on rising dangers in an elitist society. Galaxy "Alex" Stern's early life was wrecked by her unusual ability to see "Grays" earthbound ghosts but that same ability gains her admission into one of the magic-based houses at Yale. As she struggles to adjust to college life, she's forced to confront evil powers swirling under the thin veneers of tradition and ritual. When a young woman is killed, Alex becomes determined to find the murderer, even if it means dodging attempts on her life and striking eldritch bargains. Alex is the story's gritty, rock-solid heart. While other characters refuse to admit what's happening, too insulated by their own privilege or distracted by banal needs such as funding, Bardugo gives Alex a thoroughly engaging mix of rough edge, courage, and cynicism, all of which are required to get things done. Much of the book's white-knuckled tension comes from the increasingly horrific flashbacks revealing Alex's past, which is still very present in her mind. Fantasy readers, particularly those who love ghosts, will hungrily devour this novel.
