Harrow the Ninth

I am...very much still processing this! The bookstore employee told me he thought I'd like it when I picked it up, and I asked what his impression was. He said, “Well, for the first half, you're just going to be like, ‘What the fuck is happening??',” and he was almost correct, except it was more like the first two-thirds. I would describe this as a punishing read! But I'm aware it's intentionally so: Harrow the Ninth is like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind crossed with Memento, crossed with A Memory Called Empire. I cannot imagine a better representation of the chaos of someone frantically running from grief. And then Gideon reappears and I have never been more relieved to reencounter a fictional character. I need a break before reading Nona the Ninth, but damn does Muir swing for the fences.