Tag: trope: x in space

Review – Gideon the Ninth

Posted on by Taking One Step at a Time

Lesbian necromancers IN SPACE!!! This is one of the descriptions of Gideon the Ninth, and it’s accurate if a little misleading. This is difficult book for me to describe, or even state if I enjoyed. I generally don’t like stories in which necromancy is a key factor, and I don’t like horror, which most stories about necromancy have as a factor. I’m not sure I can say that I enjoyed the book, but it’s a good one, once it gets started. For me, this was a slow start.

The book follows Gideon Nav, a young woman of the Ninth House (Keepers of the Locked Tomb) who hates her house and wants to escape; however, she is blocked by the head of the house, Reverend Daughter Harrowhark Nongesimus. During the current attempt, Harrow receives a summons from their Emperor, that she and her cavalier are to report to Canaan House to (try to) become a Lyctor. Since her cavalier has successfully left, Harrow convinces Gideon to pretend to be her cavalier and go with her.

Yes, the names are something else. Most of the last names have to do with the number of the house. And the events at Canaan House are intense. Without spoiling the plot, it’s hard to discuss what happens there, but a lot is going on, and things we are told in the beginning turn out to be either wrong or not quite what was first assumed.

This book was nominated for the Hugo and Nebula awards for its year, among others. It won the Locus Award for first novel and the William L. Crawford award for first fantasy novel. It is also the first book of The Locked Tomb series; the most recent of which was published last year and the last is to be published next year.

Muir, Tamsyn. Gideon the Ninth. New York, New York: Tordotcom Books, 2019. 141,992 words. 4 stars.

Review – The Spare Man

Posted on by Taking One Step at a Time

The Spare Man is the last of the stand-alone novels that has been nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novel for 2023. For me, it is actually a reread, since I read it initially when it first came out; I enjoy Kowal’s work. This is a delightful novel, which I enjoyed rereading.

This is a murder mystery set on a cruise (space)ship during the main character’s honeymoon. Although I’ve never read or watched the Nick and Nora mysteries, the descriptions of them are similar, in type if not in the specifics, of that type of mystery.

Although I suspect Kowal is being incredibly optimistic in the acceptance of diversity (pronouns are expected to be announced on introductions, LGBTQ+ characters of all kinds abound, the one character who is less than accepting is called out as such), it is encouraging to see it play out in fiction. The main character is cisgender and in a heterosexual relationship, but she is severely, mostly invisibly, disabled. Her issues are important to the plot, but the only people who treat her as less because of them are called out on it.

I’ve never been any good at solving the mysteries of a mystery novel; I no longer even try. I read mysteries to enjoy the intricacy of the plot and the clues. For those of you who enjoy trying to solve the mystery, I can’t really say how “honest” the book is in it. I can say that it is complicated and twisty and I found the denouement satisfying.

Of the nominees that I have read to date (all of them but Nona the Ninth), this is my favorite to win. It has more “weight” than the two that I rated higher (The Kaiju Preservation Society and Legends & Lattes). I don’t expect it to win the award, but it’s a worthy entry.

Kowal, Mary Robinette. The Spare Man. New York, New York: Tor Books, 2022. 108,377 words. 4 stars.