Gideon the Ninth.
Tor. 2019
Gideon Nav, bonded servant, and Harrowhark Nonagesimus, Daughter of the House, are the only members of their generation in the Ninth House, and have hated each other since birth. Which is a pity, as the Emperor has summoned representatives from each House, and they must go as Necromancer and Cavalier, and work together, or die.
This is difficult to classify. After a few grim chapters in the fantastical Ninth House, the pair travel off-world to a 10,000 year old decaying palace, where they meet the representatives of the other Houses, and are set a task. The old palace is extraordinarily atmospheric, and the tale changes to exploration of a decayed technological civilisation, then becomes a murder mystery, then a monster fight, then… Well, there’s a lot going on.
I was bored to start, then swept up in the old palace, then confused, then struggling to follow the mystery, then excited by the monsters, then… Well, it twists and turns a lot.
When I finished it, I thought “that was interesting, I think I enjoyed that, and I never want to read anything in that universe ever again”, and then went and bought the sequel immediately. Yes, it’s confusing.
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