Welcome to Litsy!

I have this marked as read on Goodreads, but I remember absolutely nothing about it, so I‘ve been rereading it. Wow, it‘s a trip. I must have marked it as read by mistake, I don‘t think I could forget this! I am enjoying the audiobook immensely.

Finally reporting my books read for March. This was a long-book month, and I was only 2 days away from finishing Cashelmara, which will show up in my April books read. I tagged my favorite book this month. Challenge update:

#foodandlit #Nepal (from last month) 2 (Katmandú Killers & Eight Mountains)
#foodandlit #Ireland 3+ most of Cashelmara
#foodandlit #Italy #Jubilee 1 (Eight Mountains)
#authoramonth (Bardugo) 2+ 1/2 of Wonder Woman

4.5/5 ⭐️
Aaaaand DONE! I really enjoyed this one. It‘s been on my shelf forever. I‘m glad #authoramonth prompted me to finally read it.
Alex Stern is a great character and the premise was really interesting. It took me a minute to get into the format and timelines but it was worth it. I added the second book to my BOTM. Offspring was thrilled that I liked it. She read a while ago and can‘t find anyone who liked it 🤣.

@Soubhiville

“There were always excuses for why girls died.”

#authoramonth

Going to #HailTheBail on this one @Read4life . I think this is more a me thing! I got half way through and just couldn't get into this book. I guess ghosts and secret societies are not for me. I wasn't a fan of back and forth time periods in such a short span. I also didn't feel like the book really progressed at all for the entire first half. May pick it up again in the future but on to other books for now!

#AuthorAMonth @Soubhiville

I did not expect to like this book, but it drew me in, and by the 2nd half, I couldn't put it down! The storytelling, world building, characters, and magic all hooked me! I wasn't wild about Six of Crows, the only other one of Bardugo's I have read, but I decided to give her another try since she is our March #AuthorAMonth. I'm so glad I did! I will definitely pick up the sequel and continue with this story! @Soubhiville

About half way into this book and struggling to get through it. I guess ghosts and secret societies are not my thing. I'm going to see how much I get through this weekend and then make a call on continuing. I just can't seem to get into it and couldn't care less about what happens to the characters for some reason. I think if I don't finish I might try at a later date because maybe it's just my current reading mood.

Magic at Yale! Alex, a druggie who barely survived a murderous rampage, is recruited to go to Yale so that during her spare time she can go undercover at the Ninth House—Lethe. Not because she‘s brilliant but because of her unique ability to see ghosts. Lethe helps the other 8 houses during their ritual magic ceremonies by keeping ghosts at bay, from interfering with the magic. But Alex is a girl from the streets so she approaches her job quite ⬇️

“By the time Alex managed to get the blood out of her good wool coat, it was too warm to wear it.”

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl
Reading this for #authoramonth @Soubhiville

Spring weather is finally here!! This evening I'm starting Ninth House for #authoramonth while I munch on some aged cheddar cheese on baguette with a side of olives. I'm not really sure if I'll like this book - horror just isn't for me - but I'm going to give it a try.

#CoverStories #Reptile
@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs

Thank you @Soubhiville and the #AuthorAMonth readers for introducing me to Leigh Bardugo!

Smart and a little sassy. Dark subjects, dark magic, dark humor. A fun and fast-paced read.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Always great to have a map!

My son toured the campus when looking at universities because Yale was heavily recruiting him. Fortunately he stayed closer to home, albeit still two states away. So this map made me think of him. Missing him a lot but will see him in one week when his spring break starts

#authoramonth @Soubhiville

This is my next book. #authoramonth @Soubhiville

4/5 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑

“I want to survive this world that keeps trying to destroy me.”

#fantasy #thriller

🖤🖤🖤
Death was light and slipped in through the lock.

Ancient dark magic mixed with murder mystery – why haven't I read this sooner?
Such an elaborate world created by LB yet again. I was in love with the characters and hooked from the beginning. There was always something exciting happening, the story never got boring. I'm off reading the sequel! 🐍🔮

A very nice and interesting story. I love the university setting. Sometimes I missed some details, of whole passages, because it all went a bit too quick. But overall the main plot was clear and captivating. I'm looking forward to part two.

(audiobook)

#WickedWhispers Day 18: There are a lot of #Evil ghosts in this book, like seriously creepy. Too much exposition for the world-building and too plot driven for my usual fare, but ey its Leigh Bardugo, so will trudge on, hoping it improves towards the end.

Whoosh that was a hard word to find! #HauntedShelf #Flerken

The book starts with a lot of info dumping. It takes about 200 pages before anything happens. I kept going because I've heard how amazing it was.

For me, it did not improve. There was too much narration, hardly any dialogue, and I was bored.

#HauntedShelf #Flerken #Trappedinaspookyhouse @Catsandbooks

Okay read but I'm just not into this sort of book. Not a horror fan. I also kept thinking it copied a movie I'd seen about Skull and Bones (which I also didn't really enjoy very much).

#HauntedShelf #SkeletonCrew

Several trigger warnings apply to this one.

It is DARK. As much from magic-less men wielding societal power & privilege to prey on others, as it is from supernatural monsters or the nefarious rites & spells.

But Alex Stern comes out swinging, against the world‘s darkness & her own, & that‘s one of my favorite kind of protagonists. The ones that aren‘t sure they can win, but plan to put up a helluva fight all the same.

Here's my October TBR. Not all seasonal but more than normal for me.
#HauntedBookshelf #SkeletonCrew

Took me forever to finish this, but having the audiobook helped and I ended up having a good time with it.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Fan art by PhantomRin on tumblr. https://phantomrin.tumblr.com/post/190381630015/alex-stern-sketch-ninth-house-by...

A rec for #HauntedShelf. I love this partially for Alex, who is tough, battered, and fiercely loyal and partially for the Dark Academia metaphors about human exploitation.

#FrightClub

#CoverLove @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs
#Snake

#CoverLove #Snake

Been on the fence about reading this for years, let‘s see how it goes…

Alex can see ghosts. She is recruited into Lethe, the ninth of the secret societies at Yale. Her mentor goes missing and a town girl is murdered.

This book is so good at everything. I wish I hadn't taken so long to get to it, but that means the sequel is already out and I don't have to wait.

Not the right book at the right time. I skimmed a lot.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I don‘t even know where to begin to review this book. It was dark - at times, very - and gritty, nothing like Bardugo‘s other work I‘ve read, and I loved it.
The audiobook narrators were very good, and I am so interested to see where this story goes next.

“By the time Alex managed to get the blood out of her good wool coat, it was too warm to wear it.”

Such a good first line!
#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

This was a reread for me before I read the sequel, so I tried the audiobook version and it was fantastic! An added bonus was the interview with Leigh Bardugo afterwards.

The Houses of the Veil had too much power, and the rules they put in place were really about controlling access to that power, not limiting the damage it could do.

I'm so glad I read this again before the sequel. I still loved it the second time. This book sparked my love of reading again back in 2020 after a long hiatus. It will forever have a special place in my heart, along with just being a really good book. ❤️

Of course I chose a 500 page book for the first of the year. And it was a fantastic choice! Another grim, epic not so fairy tale full of magic and tragedy and connection. Alex was prickly and anxious but smarter than she realized. Darlington was, well we‘ll see what he was or is in the next book in the series!!! Mystical fantasy for the win. Book #1 in 2024

Just what the doctor ordered for a cold rainy weekend. Ambient music provided by toxic drunker via YouTube. The read called for dark academia. Iykyk

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“Ninth House” is full of dark and gothic academia vibes. It was slow to start, but the plot and story itself gradually became more suspenseful with several plot twists. I enjoyed Alex‘s character arc, and I also enjoyed the murder mystery element that was included. I‘m not sure when I‘ll read the sequel, but I‘m intrigued to see what happens next.

I read Ninth House back in 2020 as my first book for my personal "read more" challenge and it honestly pole vaulted me back into a love of books I hadn't felt in years. But I rented it from the library. I'm so happy I've finally added it to my personal collection along with the second book recently released. I can't wait to re-read Ninth House and then continue the story with Hell Bent ❤️

#AutumnPlease
Day 28 #Dark
#BlackCatCrew #Scarathlon
@Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

This was a thrilling but tough read. The subject matter ended up much heavier and darker than I anticipated😅 Alex is pulled from her drug hazed life in LA and becomes the Dante of Lethe one of the secret societies of Yale due to her ability to see the dead. Afier the disappearance of her mentor and a sudden homicide, Alex finds herself investigating occurances than the other houses want to keep covered up and will do anything to keep it that way

Week one and two points! #scarathlon #batbrigade

At the beginning of this story members of my book club and myself were confused. There are two time lines present and past where the past happened a couple of months before. A dark academia with fantasy elements. Alex didn‘t finished HS, was using drugs with other problematic situations but one day while she was in the hospital, the Dean offered her to enter to Yale University. But, why? Does she have a special skill? ⬇️

And for the #scarathlonphotochallenge today we have one of the best books with a black cover I‘ve read recently! The fabulously spooky and dark academic Ninth House. I‘ll read any dark academia kind of book and this was wonderful, exactly what I was after

#skeletoncrew @Clwojick @StayCurious

Dear GOD I forgot just how much the action ramps up at the end of this book! Alex is the best type of character - unconventional with a strong sense of justice and an ability to roll with the uncanny. I also have a soft spot for Darlington, because who doesn't? #reread #urbanfantasy #darkacademia

I had to jump into spooky season a few days early with the audio of Ninth House. I love dark academia, and this is one of the best examples of the genre I‘ve seen! There are one or two good surprises buried in this, but it mostly shines in how perfectly it evokes New England college life, blends it with the occult, and lets you live there for a few hours, getting swept up in a world where you‘re 20 again and magic is real.

Thanks @Blerdgal_Fenix I got that great package you sent. Everything is lovely! I love the tote bag!!!!! Can‘t wait to start these books.

@Bookgoil @Deblovestoread

My review of this book can be found on my YouTube Vlog at:

https://youtu.be/EpWTVq21TVU

Enjoy!