The Locked Tomb (also known as lesbian necromancers IN SPACE, also known as Shakespeare with more bones and more gay)

I can see a little of Dave in Gideon's character, and a little of Karkat in Harrow's.

For me it's mostly that (potential spoilers for Harrow the Ninth because I forget when this happens, be warned) Ianthe losing an arm really solidifies her as a huge 8itch.

that does happen at the very end of Gideon the Ninth, but it's not confirmed/clarified until the very start of Harrow the Ninth.

Okay, now I'm worried. The first book started with Gideon and Harrow hating each other but having to work together, and gradually developing into something of an item, and now the second book starts with Harrow and Ianthe hating each other but having to work together. I already had my alarm bells going off before I got to the chapter with Harrow swears loyalty to Ianthe just like Gideon swore loyalty to her in the last book, and also has to kiss her. Is this book seriously gonna lead into a Harrow/Ianthe ship?

This is a spoiler from much, much later, as in the epilogue of Nona, but it feels appropriate: "To which a voice on the opposite side of the shore was raised, exceeding wroth, and Alecto heard it shout in a very great shout: Get in line, thou big slut."

So with all the implications about Gideon not actually being in Harrow's body, and Cytherea's body rising and seeking out Harrow, I'm pretty sure harrow stuffed Gideon's soul into Cytherea's corpse somehow. If that's not the case my guess would be that her soul is in the greatsword, hence why Harrow told herself to keep it close and keep maintaining it. I'm also pretty sure the third lyctor's name is actually Gideon, and Harrow is just blanking it out by the same thing that's caused her memories of Gideon to disappear. This also explains that note with her own name which Gideon found in the first book. I originally assumed that Harrow had modified her own memories in order to get over the pain of losing Gideon, but all these flashbacks seem to specifically kill off the people who disappeared at the end of the last book, so her mind might actually have been modified by the whoever kidnapped Corona, Camilla and Judith.

My biggest disappointment so far is that I'm like halfway through and Harrow hasn't read a single of the letters since they were first introduced. You'd think that with such an intriguing setup and there being so many of them that they would be a major part of the plot's progression.

Harrow not reading the letters on page really annoyed me too. It seemed like such a fascinating mystery for her to methodically delve into much like she did at Canaan house.

I assume the alternate personality inside of "Ortus" is the soul of his cavalier. I just ended chapter 32 with Harrow going to kill the planet. The end of chapter narration implied something big was gonna happen, and the enxt chapter is longer than normal, so it seems a big twist is about to happen. I went back to read the prologue to refresh my memory of what happened in it, and there seems to have been a spell that was put on Harrow and activated upon her death. They also set up the romantic tension between harrow and Ianthe all the way back there, it seems.

Am I the only one who was half-expecting the Emperor's last name to be Egbert?

Well, after seeing the fan-art of the leads on tumblr, I am planning to dive into the audiobooks. Anything I need to know?

Like is book 4 supposed to be the last book?

Edited by BigBadShadow25 on Jan 17th 2024 at 7:17:21 AM

As far as we know, yes.

In terms of other things to know, there are a few novellas that were released between the major books. "The Mysterious Study of Doctor Sex" comes after Gideon the Ninth, and the two that come after Harrow the Ninth are meant to be included in (most?) print editions of it, but may not be in a digital copy.

Thanks.

Honestly, I can’t remember the last time I saw a book series get this level of fandom and love. It’s beautiful, really.

I hope it lasts a long time.

Edited by BigBadShadow25 on Jan 17th 2024 at 8:02:05 AM

If nothing else, there are a lot of original flavor fics out there that get the tone of the series really well. I've been chewing through oriflamme's it's about the bones series, which is mostly a Harrow Nova AU. But she still manages to make herself a lyctor despite being the cavalier. Gideon is even more mouthy.

I’m starting Gideon the Ninth. F**k Harrow.

Yes. That is what Gideon wants to do but doesn't want to admit to, even to herself.

The only time Harrow allows herself any kind of authentic emotion on the ninth is when she's hating Gideon.

Putting in a folder because I just started and don’t know spoilers next:

Source is Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/bisexualgenderclown/724084060053536768

Edited by BigBadShadow25 on Jan 24th 2024 at 1:04:55 PM

Well, that's certainly an out of context spoiler for you.

Long story short (and spoiler-free), this series is super deep about fascism and religious fundamentalism, going into Catholic symbology specifically, including unbelievably obscure references to non-canon gospels and Cretan bull cults and all sorts of shit like that.

Also, references to millenial memes that were outdated when the first book came out, boner puns, and so, so much gay thirsting.

Which is why I compared it to Shakespeare in the first post. The series is incredibly deep, showing the author's intelligence, forethought, and views on the world. It also shows off her delightfully childish sense of humor. Literally the first joke is about porn.

Edited by Discar on Jan 24th 2024 at 12:09:55 PM

As I've said before, Muir (to my knowledge) started her writing career as one of the most popular fic authors in the entire Homestuck fandom, and once you know that you can really see how her personal writing flair clicks with that.

Like I said, I’m only eight chapters into the first book.

Oh, I know. I was just adding onto what Discar mentioned.

So I assume the traitor is mercumorn, considering Augustus specifically mentioned her being involved with something. I assume she has contacts with the Blood of Eden. The narrator is presumably the soul of Gideon.

I'm nearing the end, with the explanation of Harrow's brain surgery and the dream bubble thing. I'm currently considering whether the traitor could be someone other than my main suspect Mercymorn. The most likely other suspect would probably be Cytherea. I guess lyctor Gideon's alternate personality could also be the traitor. And then I guess Ianthe could be the traitor being blackmailed over Corona, or Augustus is the traitor and Corona is the one who told him to be nice with Ianthe.

When it comes to the identity of the Sleeper the msot obvious supect is The Body/A.L., given that she best fits the description of a mental invader. It could also be Cytherea though, if we assume that Gideon seeing her move really was just in her head. Other potential suspects would be Teacher and whatever it was that possessed Colum near the end of the last book.

As for how Gideon's name ties into all of this, I guess if lyctor Gideon is the traitor, Gideon's mother could have been a Blood of Eden member, but that feels kinda forced. There probably is some plot relevance to her name though, given how much attention was brought to the mystery of the reveal, so I can't dismiss it completely.

I’m at the pool scene.

Bumping. Because I’m FINISHED WITH BOOK ONE. And the Doctor Sex short story. I START HARROW TOMORROW. Anything I need to be warned of?

Yes: Prepare for the book to gaslight you. Constantly.