Dead Beat (Ninth House Trilogy, #3)
About the book
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Publisher: Flatiron
More info:
The StoryGraph | Goodreads
Note: Content and trigger warnings are provided for those who need them at the bottom of this page. If you don’t need them and don’t want to risk spoilers, don’t scroll past the review.
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Bookshop.org (print or ebook) | Libro.fm (audio)
My review
It’s going to be hard to review this without any spoilers for the first two books (mostly because AHHHHHH), but I will endeavor to do my best!
Leigh Bardugo is an auto-buy, auto-read author for me (and many other people). We have been waiting YEARS AND YEARS for the conclusion of the Alex Stern trilogy, which began with Ninth House back in 2019. I am happy to report that the wait was well worth it, as this conclusion somehow managed to satisfy me (aka give me things I expected/wanted) and surprise me (aka go above and beyond my expectations).
I also think this was my favorite of the trilogy, mostly because we finally get all our main characters both present and willingly working together for the first time. The character dynamics of their little family were unmatched! (The exception was Alex’s fraught relationship with one particular character (IYKYK), which made me sad but was also so understandable and well written from a character development perspective. Leigh is the master, y’all.)
I also think it was super impressive how she managed to tie up all the loose ends, of which there were many (Chekhov’s missing dad, anyone?), even if there wasn’t always time to explore them as thoroughly as I might have liked. Some might call that a flaw, but in the last book of a series, it’s hard to balance the introduction of new narrative threads without tangling up the existing ones. I’d much rather the balance swing this way than the other.
Last but not least, I am so glad that we live in a world where one of the modes of resistance to unchecked privilege and power can be books like this. Alex is everyone who has ever run up against the system that was built to reward and protect itself. And I, for one, will root for her (and us) every time.
Finally, for those in the know: glowstick foreverrrrr. 😈
Content and trigger warnings
Violence, murder, and death
Rape (briefly remembered)
Sexual content
Suicide (discussed from the past)
