I’ve realized part of reading The Locked Tomb series is just a general state of confusion. While it took me forever to get through Harrow the Ninth, I ended up breezing through Nona the Ninth. That has to be for two factors: audio books and found family. Keep reading this book review of Nona the Ninth for my full thoughts.
Summary
Her city is under siege.
The zombies are coming back.
And all Nona wants is a birthday party.
In many ways, Nona is like other people. She lives with her family, has a job at her local school, and loves walks on the beach and meeting new dogs. But Nona’s not like other people. Six months ago she woke up in a stranger’s body, and she’s afraid she might have to give it back.
The whole city is falling to pieces. A monstrous blue sphere hangs on the horizon, ready to tear the planet apart. Blood of Eden forces have surrounded the last Cohort facility and wait for the Emperor Undying to come calling. Their leaders want Nona to be the weapon that will save them from the Nine Houses. Nona would prefer to live an ordinary life with the people she loves, with Pyrrha and Camilla and Palamedes, but she also knows that nothing lasts forever.
And each night, Nona dreams of a woman with a skull-painted face…
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
The key to me enjoying Nona the Ninth and any of the locked tomb books are audio books. Normally I’d get so confused and frustrated at my confusion. To be fair, I’m accepting that reading Muir is always going to be that way. The Locked Tomb just requires so many brain cells and also each one manages to feel unique, but also connected? Don’t even ask me how Muir does it. But the audio book narration always pulls me through. Moira Quirk did a phenomenal job. Although it was close with Harrow the Ninth.
But what saved me and pulled me through the confusion – and why I liked it – was the found family dynamics. We can see a found family forming around Nona. It was in the way Nona sees the world, loves the ones around her, knows so much and also so little. Yes there’s the mystery around it, but it feels so startingly domestic? And I loved it. I loved seeing the routing of Nona’s mornings, who picks her up, and what she eats. She felt like someone you want to protect, but has also no problem protecting herself.
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And Moira Quirk’s narration of Nona had to be my favorite. We can feel her confusion, her intelligence, and her personality. There’s a sense of humor, naivety, and love which shines through. This might be my favorite of the series. It’s one where you can feel the humanity unveiled. All the things we forget to see, to even try to fight for. Find Nona the Ninth on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop.org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.