#gtn third read summaries

[locking-the-tomb]

Third Read Notes & Soundtrack

I wallowed for about 14 hours after finishing my Nona reread and decided to start over again and write myself some summaries during The Wait.

Gideon the Ninth Chapter 1

In which we learn Gideon is a goob but we love her.

Gideon is escaping. She stole a security cuff key but left the cuff on until the morning of. She's taking her sword, her "shoes" - later called steel toed boots- , and her smut mags. Her clothes are all synthetics. She has enough hair to brush. She knows about chocolates and fancy hotels, somehow ... from mags? From Wake/mom's niche is 22 flights of stairs up to the landing field, which is still at the bottom of a deep tunnel. There are lamps on but they're low. She's kicking apart lumps of "rubble" but that's not further described. She eats porridge from a plastic bag then throws the bag over a rail somewhere. There's a balcony area. Skeletons with red eyes go to pick snow leeks.

There are white castle doors at the bottom, "three bodies wide and six bodies tall". She talks about the figures carved into the area above the doors and remembers screaming as a kid about them creeping her out. I wonder what they are, maybe related to the killed generation? How much trauma from a two year old survivor of all the kids dying?

Muster call (20 Bells) calls back the skeletons.

That's when the Marshall/Crux stomps in to accuse her. Gideon says, "say my shuttle exploded, I died and it was such a shame". 😳 (Crux thinks great idea, will do) Introduces Frontline Titties of the Fifth. He calls her chattel. He wears a big knife over a shoulder.

He gives an impressive number of threats. Gideon wasn't bothered by Crux's threats. But then he invoked Harrow and her "palms prickled". He leaves and Aiglamene enters. Gideon says she's tried to enlist 33 times. Aiglamene has a badly repaired missing leg and a scarred face.

Gideon lists what's happened when she's tried to leave before: jammed in lift, turned off heat frostbite in three toes, poisoned. She clarifies that she's indentured not a slave and claims she's not of fiscal use there. She says she will "you can quote me 'do my duty to the ninth' ". Gideon goes on a rant about "your lady" with a host of great insults, then gets slapped.

"Nobody had ever loved her in the ninth". Aiglamene was the reason she got to have a sword and training. "I'm naturally demeaning". Aiglamene walks away and Gideon falters a bit but sticks.

"Nav was a Niner name". Mentions the prison as a bubble halfway up in the atmosphere. At the end of the chapter we get the limited story of day-old Gideon being in a bio container plugged into the suit of a braindead woman who had fallen in a suit down the shaft 18 years ago. None of the Ninth necromancers could get her ghost to do more than scream Gideon three times then she fled.

"They chipped her, surnamed her, and put her in the nursery". I don't think they mention the chips again, interesting. She was kid #201. Where did the kids come from? Had they been harvesting gametes and growing them? Because the "old" people going into the doors were heavily outnumbered by skeletons. Then two years later it was just her, Harrow (who still hasn't been directly introduced as other then Lady), and Ortus. By 10 she "knew too much and that she could never be allowed to go". Of course. Because that's when Harrow had opened the tomb and her parents had died. She had started trying to escape when she was 4.

Thoughts. What's up with all the plastic? Isn't plastic from petroleum? How would Pluto have petroleum?

[commander--wake]

nice to see all the new followers here for my smutty ficlets, let's do an intro post about my fics for those who haven't read my back catalog ! :) listed in reverse chronological order of update

big series I care about a lot

AND ALL THREE OF US LIVED TO REGRET IT: my wake/pyrrha/g1deon chef-d'oeuvre with one story left to write, canonverse, if you read only one thing of mine make it this series—character study, angst, filthy smut, gore, 18.4k (with more to come), M to E

the ordeal of st. agatha; or, the descent of inanna: a vivisecting exploration of the themes of incestuous abuse and body horror in HTN, mostly harrianthe; part 2 in this series is probably my most ambitious work ever—whump, noncon, gore, character study, 16.8k, M to E (but read the tags for real)

cytherea wrecks gideon

tight fade: modern AU, abusive/manipulative dom cytherea and her sub butch wifey loveday torture bdsm-newbie gideon—pure pornography, dubcon, 9k, E

now we're feeling just the same: post-GTN AU where cytherea wins and takes gideon along in her shuttle as her new pet—whumpy horrid smut, 1.6k, E

tight hot skin: GTN missing scene, where gideon gets a sunburn for the first time and "dulcinea" helps her—hurt/comfort but make it manipulative and slightly violating, 1.9k, T

plot = excuse for smut, and also campal is there

off the leash: silly modern BDSM AU with camgideon as pups on a playdate and paldulcieharrow as their proud owners—tooth-achingly fluffy smut, 7k, E

always too enamoured of the body: campal missing scene at canaan house where the third-house trial is sex pollen lol—pure filth & repressed romance with a happy-ending chaser, 7.1k, E

angsty griddlehark (i know what the people are here for 😔)

mercy call: harrow nova AU at canaan house where rev daughter gideon heals her dueling wound—gore and hurt/comfort, 10.6k, M

protocol violation: gideon raised by blood of eden AU, BOE captures harrow on her way to canaan house and gideon is assigned to interrogate her—whump and character study, 7.8k, E

firesmoke: part 3 of my ordeal of st. agatha series, I gave a little summary at the top so you don't have to read the whole series in order to read this one—angsty and painful hurt/comfort, 2.8k, M

and the rest...

UNTITLED ENTRY: BOE-era jodybeth where judith is in a cohort-issue chastity belt—angsty/dysfunctional smut, 2.2k, E

filament-fine: canaan-era pyrrha/g1deon ficlet designed to crush your soul—angst, 0.2k, G

[jadejedi]

Sci-fi/Fantasy Book Review: The Locked Tomb (Books 1 and 2) by Tamsyn Muir

JJ’s rating 5/5

How feral did it make me 5/5

My book reviews

So, I initially picked up these books because I was looking for something similar to Ocean’s Echo by Everina Maxwell. I think I saw someone on reddit compare The Locked Tomb to Ocean’s Echo due to both of them having the sort of soul-merge-y stuff, and that is absolutely true. If you want books that are like “what if two fucked up people want to lose themselves in someone else, only to realize that they can’t actually do that and have a healthy, functioning relationship?”, then both Ocean’s Echo and The Locked Tomb definitely both do those things. Also, they are also both about gays in space. So, I went into TLT with very few expectations. BUT GUYS THE LOCKED TOMB BOOKS ARE SO GOOD HOLY SHIT. I truly could not have guessed how incredible these books are when I started them. 

It’s possible that if you spend a lot of time on tumblr dot com that you have heard of these books because they are, like, exactly tumblr’s jam lmao. If ACOTAR was written perfectly for the booktok/bookstagram crowd, then this series was written perfectly for tumblr. It’s gay, full of ridiculous meme references, and genuinely laugh-out-loud funny while still delivering gut wrenching emotions. I will say I’ve never had two such different reading experiences for books in the same series. Gideon the Ninth is absolutely one of the most fun reading experiences I’ve ever had. Harrow the Ninth, on the other hand, is one of the most confusing. But, it is important to note that it is absolutely confusing on purpose. I genuinely think Tamsyn Muir was like, “what can I do to push the limits of the reading experience in two completely opposite ways” for these books. I fear for my life going into the third book, tbh. 

I just finished my first read of HtN last week, and have since reread GtN and have started rereading HtN and I have never had a more rewarding reread experience in my LIFE. Unless you take extensive notes, there are so so many clues and instances of subtle foreshadowing that will only make sense on a reread. There have already been dozens of times in this reread where something that didn’t quite make sense the first time, or in some cases, didn’t even register as odd on a first read through, makes me go “oh SHIT” and it is so satisfying. 

Here’s the summary (jesus trying to summarize this series in a paragraph is HARD): 10,000 years ago humanity was wiped out on its nine planets. The emperor resurrected everyone, gave some of those people necromantic abilities and became God. Each of the nine planets has a ruling house that specializes in a form of necromancy. The Ninth House specializes in bone magic, and has the special task of guarding The Locked Tomb, which holds the one thing that could destroy the Emperor and therefore all human life. Our story centers on Gideon Nav, an orphan and indentured servant of the Ninth House who desperately wants to escape and become a soldier. Her nemesis is Harrowhark Nonagesimus, the heir to the Ninth House. They hate each other, but in a “I am completely and utterly obsessed with you” kind of way. Harrow is invited to go to the First House to try to become one of God’s immortal body guards (Lyctors), but needs a bodyguard (cavalier) of her own for this trial/competition thing, so she basically backs Gideon into a corner where her only way to leave the Ninth is to go with her to the First House, because Gideon is a hella good swordswoman. Once they get to the First House, they meet the heirs and cavaliers of Houses 2-8 and they all try to figure out how to become Lyctors. Book Two follows Harrow in the nine months following this competition and that’s all I can say about it without completely spoiling everything. 

If you want to read these books (which you absolutely should), I would recommend going in as blind as possible. However, especially as you are reading Harrow the Ninth, you feel a little confused. Or a lot confused. I recommend going to r/theNinthHouse on Reddit and searching for the “hot tomb summer” reread-along. It covers both of these two books and goes in about five chapter sections. All spoilers are hidden so it is safe to use on a first read.

These books are absolutely one of a kind, and they are PHENOMENAL. The dynamic between Harrow and Gideon is absolutely delicious. Do you like enemies to (hopefully) lovers? Do you like some good ole fashioned fealty? Do you like one character being like “please use me, consume me, eat me, please” and the other being like “I will show my love by not using, consuming, or eating my love interest”? Do you like devastating heart-to-hearts in a pool? Do you like references to the Bible and Shakespeare right next to semi-obscure meme references? Have you ever looked at a fictional couple and thought, “You know what would really put them over the top? SKULL FACEPAINT!”? Then these books are for you!!! I genuinely haven’t stopped thinking about these books since I finished Harrow. GtN was one of my best reads of 2023, and I already know that HtN is one of my best reads of 2024. I genuinely cannot recommend them enough.

[skeleputty]

I have to say, something that struck me reading (and rereading!) Gideon the Ninth is that, for all intents and purposes, there is not really a “traditional cavalier-necromancer” relationship. Let me elaborate.

In the summary and beginning of GtN, we as an audience are led to believe that “oh they’re Not Like The Other Girls (necro-cavs)!” Like, their relationship is weird and the point is to hide the fact that Gideon isn’t comfortable with the rapier, or Harrow hates her cavalier. But! But. Then they get to Canaan House. And right away the Third has three people. And then the Fifth are married. And the Sixth have a cavalier who also might be hiding a lack of favour to the rapier. And it all goes against the necro-cav rulebook we get at the end.

In fact, maybe the only “typical” necro-cav relationship we get is the Fourth and Second (?), which is such an interesting direction to take. Most books that feature going-against-the-grain protagonists don’t do that- they keep the protagonist continually Othered. Muir, on the other hand, subverts the expectations and does something unique: sure, the Ninth ARE othered, but so is everyone else, in some way. Something something, every character gets their own story and are fleshed out, something something, the care that went into the entirety of the world building, something something, there is no traditional necro-cav relationship.

[locking-the-tomb]

Third Read Notes

Gideon Chapter 4 & Soundtrack

In which a cavelier is created

Situps and magazines. Harrow shows up after a week.

Gideon is sulking in her room, cuff back on.

"Go choke on a dick"

"I have a job for you"

"Nonagesimus. The only job I'd do for you would be if you wanted someone to hold the sword as you fell on it." Then she continues on with a few more graphic but less foreshadowy suggestions. Then Harrow uses a bone stud turned into a hand to undo the lock.

Harrow takes Gideon to the catacomb. Gideon has to wear her "church gown". Why? Because of the cold? They get in the lift. They go down deep into a level where there were cages with machines "that nobody knew how to work anymore". Aiglamene is there sorting through swords. She says Ortus was a terrible swordsman. She and Harrow disagree about offhand weapons, Harrow likes powder or chains. Gideon doesn't catch on quickly to what's happening. She cracks up when Harrow explains. Then "Like hell I will, Nonagesimus".

Harrow tries to offer riches.

"You don't own me". "Oh Griddle, but I do!".

Gideon points a sword at her head.

"I. Will never. Trust you. Your promises mean nothing. You've got nothing to give me."

Remember that for the later discussion of earning trust.

Then Harrow goes for the guts.

"Oh, I have hurt your heart"

"I boo-hooed for hours"

Then the kicker: "It won't be the last time I make you weep" At this stage in first read I took it for the shallow face. With a recent reread behind me, this one stings. That damned splinter again.

Aiglamene yells at them, then tells Gideon to take the deal, then vouchsafes the deal. Then says to Harrow, "If she satisfies you, you must let her go". Another one that seems shallowly plot relevant but is meant for rereaders. Harrow nails that down saying Gideon can be anything she likes, have all the glories, preferably on the other side of the universe from where she is. 😳

I'm imagining this song in a tennis match style duet.

After Harrow leaves, Aiglamene lets Gideon know the Ninth House is in big trouble, "I think we're waiting to die". And reiterates that she thinks Gideon should do it. Hidden in there is an amazing compliment about Gideon being "the best swordsman that the Ninth House has produced, maybe ever".

This chapter gave us the quest to drive the plot away from the Ninth House. It let us know how good Gideon is, that she's not just a buffoon (because so far we only saw her lose to skeletons and without the scope of film we can't see the scale of it). It gave Gideon a moment to be vulnerable (boo-hooed for hours) and Harrow a chance to stay hard and mean which she does.

[locking-the-tomb]

Third Read Notes & Soundtrack

Gideon Chapter 2

In which we learn that Harrow is a lying bitch

Love that the first line of this says so much about Gideon: five minutes to go when her "87th" escape plan got messed up. Pretty sure last chapter said 33 previous attempts. No I'm wrong, she had tried to enlist 33 times. She was headed for "Trentim"?

Here's where we hear "Griddle" for the first time. Harrow's introduced as being 17, wearing slightly soiled black robes of the house, and sneering. She has a hood and gloves on. Short-cropped hair ("dead crow colored").

Duet -style, focusing on one then the other:

The two start throwing their plots at each other. Gideon threatens to squeal, "I'll tell them everything. You know what I know. And I'll tell them the numbers." Harrow is likened to a bird. They have a moment of 'you'd do all that, get in all that trouble, all because...' and Gideon finishing "BECAUSE I completely fucking hate you. BECAUSE you are a hideous witch from hell. No offense". I love the strange no offense thrown in. I expected it to be no offense to witches. 😂 But it's followed with the painfully snide big quote, "But I don't even remember about you most of the time". Which is at the moment just shitty, minimizing bullshit. But with later context is of course lovely foreshadowing.

Gideon's lopsided smile is introduced (seen later in AUs). They start bargaining, and Gideon's interpretation of what Harrow's offers would be is snarky and hilarious. We're shown how impressive real paper is: Harrow offers bond, basically buying Gideon an officer seat. The terms show just how ridiculous the indenture is: that G would be bought clear in 5 years of good behavior ... instead of 30(!).

Another exchange, "you can't say I don't care". "You Don't care. You'd have the nuns eat each other if you got bored. You are a psychopath."

We're shown how much effort Gideon put into this escape attempt. Gideon refuses Harrow's offer, saying she won't go into Drearbruh.

Harrow's clothes are described more, we have the white human ribcage with silver snaps, the robes are called ornate. Bone bracelets, teeth necklace, bone studs in ears. She takes them off and is in shirt, trousers, gloves and boots. Gideon wears a bandeau under her shirt.

Harrow is signing the paper with her mother's name but her own blood - from her cheek.

Gideon recognizes that to take the terms of the fight offered would be a mark of cruelty, being an asshole, a douchebag. Of course she takes it. "You didn't get anywhere through softness. The house was hard as iron. You smashed iron where it was weak."

She asks Harrow to swear it's a fair fight. Harrow says she swears there's "nothing on her". (Oops) Aiglamene tries to intervene, maybe to save G? Gideon says, "I gave her my whole life". Ohhhhh. I know I hear that again. That's when Harrow lets on that she knew and had planned and dug all night. All it took was Gideon seeing Harrow's hands to know. This is where we hear first about blood sweat, and where we see how good Harrow is: tidal wave of skeletons.

Gideon passes out.

This chapter introduced the relationship of Gideon and Harrow, and explained Gideon's position. And ... introduced necromancy.

[locking-the-tomb]

Third Read Notes & Soundtrack

Gideon the Ninth Chapter 6

In which they leave

Gideon is training with Aiglamene to be a cavelier. She's forced to wear the ((goddamn)) paint by threat of her heat being turned off.

She had to train in following Harrow around blankly. She uses the time to try to eavesdrop.

We hear that the third and second house are Aiglamene's worry. The sixth is Harrow's. ((I love you, Camilla))

Eleven weeks pass.

She's given new clothes/robes. She's been putting her big sword into her trunk in a secret compartment.

She's given her weapons, a plain black rapier and plain obsidian knuckles.

Aiglamene is giving her last minute training advice. It includes, "Don't let them get inside your guard". Hrmmm. Says that her hands are sisters, "One executes the primary action and the other supports the move".

It's the equinox.

When it's time to board the shuttle, Harrow announces that her parents have walled themselves off in the tomb passageway. Leaves Crux and Aiglamene in charge.

Gideon is finally a little eager to be able to go, suspicious it might actually happen. She looks around and sees not a single kind face but Harrow seems to have feelings.

They introduce the Ninth House prayer ("I pray the tomb is locked forever...").

Gideon starts to imagine the House dying with joy. She snarkily asks Harrow, "Do you want my hanky?"

"I want, to watch you die."

"Maybe, Nonagesimus, but you sure as hell won't do it here. "

[locking-the-tomb]

Third Read Notes & Soundtrack

Gideon Chapter 5

In which Gideon trains

Gideon and Harrow are in a library ("musty" per Gideon). Books everywhere, lots of which Harrow's written in. Harrow is on a couch without her robes. Gideon is painting her face white, which she hates. She's rereading another letter from Jod and bemoaning the fact that they're to go to the First House, not somewhere interesting (the third or fifth). She ruminates on thanergy which she calls death juice, thinking "never send an adept to do a soldier's job" about necromancers in actual space.

Harrow snarkily tells her to look at specific lines that tell them that there won't be anybody there. Gideon thinks that means she should get to dress how she wants and use the longsword. Harrow calls on tradition, it means nothing to Gideon. Harrow thinks the political/social implications of Gideon being cavalier are really bad. Which is pretty funny considering that she doesn't actually have social standing with anyone there. So she should definitely be going for open intimidation (ergo, big sword).

They go a few rounds about "act accordingly" meaning being secretive and weird.

Harrow tries to hand-force move Gideon's face to be painted and Gideon bites her. Harrow threatens her by fiddling with a bone hand. The face is painted and Harrow demands Gideon stay painted and wear robes. Gideon tries to negotiate and is shot down. Gideon asks for intel and Harrow refuses.

This chapter is a lull, with a lot of dialogue. We get a little bit of introduction to the reputations of other houses and the standing of the Ninth. Harrow makes her motivations clear to Gideon but not much else.

[locking-the-tomb]

Third Read Notes & Soundtrack

Gideon Chapter 3

In which the plot is introduced

Crux hauls Gideon down all the stairs to the sanctuary. She rouses and makes a feeble escape attempt, but he kicks her in the head and she passes out. She comes to sitting or laying on a pew. It's so cold that she can see her breath and her skin is frozen to the pew. The church service is explained, and it sounds so weird. Maybe less weird to Catholic people, dunno. All of the nuns are using bones knotted on cords for prayers. However they're not praying out loud, so you can just hear a bunch of bones rattling. Gideon says that half of the sanctuary is filled with skeletons. She said that the sanctuary could fit a thousand so that suggests like 500 skeletons. The section made me really wonder about who is left on the 9th period and what happened after all the kids were killed. Did all the parents commit suicide after that, or were there not really parents there. Or did they find some way to make their peace and now they are nuns or what do they say, hermits? Solitairies? The sanctum has one row of gas light that is dim, and there is bioluminescent powder dusted on arches. Harrow has the bioluminescent powder dusted on her face, which sticks to the blood trails coming from her nose. Gross.

The nuns are described so oddly. Two are blind, and have black strips of cloth across their faces with eyes painted on.

Then ... Then we become A-okay with Gideon hating Harrow, and we hate her too. Except for a little tiny piece of knowing her that slips in beside. And that piece hurts like a splinter.

Harrow at church is simpering. She reads the summons from Jod. [[It is such a lie, Cytherea or no Cytherea, such a lie]]

Ortus and his mother are sad and loud. Harrow obviously plotting more. Then at the end, when Harrow tells Gideon that she's known for a week. That she chose not to do it then because she wanted to wait until Gideon thought she was actually away, to take it from her. Harrow's expression, Gideon thinks, is the same as it was the day they found Harrow's parents' bodies: blank.

Then Harrow yanks us back from that splinter of sympathy, "Because I completely fucking hate you. No offense."

This chapter clued us in on the weird cultishness of the Ninth House, needed for when they meet the others. It gave more backstory on Harrow. And it furthered the aggression between them. Given that it's Gideon's perspective we don't get a ton of sympathy for Harrow yet.

[locking-the-tomb]

Third Read Notes & Soundtrack

Gideon the Ninth Chapter 7

In which they arrive

Everything is bright on the First. There are "floating chains of squares and rectangles". It's the first we hear that god hasn't been back in more than 9000 years.

The shuttle has no pilot. It's taken about an hour. Gideon is At the Window staring. Harrow is a mess. She didn't take grave dirt along. Gideon thinks about attacking her, decided it would be embarrassing. Gideon says the planet is gorgeous. Harrow says it's a grave.

Gideon is shading her eyes but amazed by the sight. Harrow is using a veil. She wants Gideon to wear one too. Gideon says, "I came prepared, my sweet".

We learn that the sun is Dominicus, and that the Houses aren't in planet order: 7th and 6th are closer than 1st. There are 7 other shuttles there. They're all made to wait. Harrow's trembling and sweating. Harrow tells Gideon to hide her "ridiculous hair" and threatens violence.

Gideon says, "But then you couldn't have admired ... THESE".

Thin black frames, mirrored lenses. Then the door opens.

They're on the giant docking bay of a palace with terraces and towers. Gideon thinks it's the most impressive thing she'd ever seen. But it's crumbling. "but hot damn, what a beautiful corpse".

The doors open and seeing Harrow kneel and start to silently pray on the docking bay, Gideon - hood and sunglasses- kneeled silently next to her. "Showtime" she thinks. "The clacking beads almost made her feel normal". That's a big, hidden statement, addressing the fact that the Ninth House was Gideon's only home.

"Teacher" is introduced and his belt is described in great detail.

Both the third and the seventh houses are presenting "inconsistencies". We learn that the third house pushes boundaries.

The other Houses are disembarking. The Third House is described hilariously by Gideon. Ianthe is described as canned butter.

"Yo. Step off. This isn't a warning. I'm just saying, give her some air"

The Seventh arrives, with the starling collapse of the adept. Gideon does heroics.

The Seventh cavelier pokes her with his sword.

Harrow's testy, Dulcinea is apologetic, Pro is hulking. Gideon is wowed by seeing Coronabeth and touching Dulcinea. Teacher is fretful. Quiet politics mostly by means of glares, and one wink. We learn about the Seventh House blood cancer situation.

This is the partial setup for the group. We haven't met the second, fourth, technically the third, fifth, sixth, or eighth.