#hellie ninth house

[zarasaurus-studios]

“You killed them,” he said. “All of them. Leonard Beacon. Mitchell Betts. Helen Watson. Hellie.”

The silence stretched. But all she said was, “Not Hellie.”

[toads-treasures]

Hi hello I devoured Ninth House and Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo in approximately 72 hours and I don’t think I’ll ever stop thinking about Them.

[ramblings-of-lola]

So I'm reading Ninth House for the first time. I'm about 130 pages in and just read a part of Alex's backstory. I'm in shock. When it was hinted earlier that Alex had experiences with ghosts physically interacting with her, I didn't think it was going to be something as extreme as what the ghost did to her on the fieldtrip. That's so scary and my heart breaks for her. Having that context when, I think it was Darlington, says he wishes he had her "gift"... I can't imagine.

[safirefire]

Ninth House spoilers

“There were two Hellies in the room. There were no Hellies in the room.”

fuck

[magpiesbones]

LOOK OKAY. IF YOU VIEW ALEX AS SAD ABOUT DARLINGTON (which I’m not even saying she isn’t!) THEN YOU ALSO HAVE YO UNDERSTAND SHE IS EQUALLY AND POSSIBLY MORE SAD ABOUT HELLIE. LIKE CMON.

it’s more and more interestingly fucked up than ‘my not quite boyfriend went to hell and I’m distraught in a pining way’ it’s like. It’s not ‘I’m a curse’ but ‘I’m a very dangerous weapon with free will’ and also ‘nobody can know I am a knife’ and ALSO being not exactly chill with but willing to do murder. Sometimes there’s worse things than death!! often in fact!!

I would actually put at least two thirds of Alex’s motivation at any point down to Hellie Thoughts and that last third is equally split between getting as Much out of a free ride as she can, getting A Justice, and Immediate Self Preservation.

[thisisridiculois]

Galaxy Stern & Hellie Watson

[daughter-of-lethe]

Ninth House Friends

If you want to share your love for the books, the characters and wait for the third installment to be announced, there's a small community dedicated to this!

[eraofprocrastination]

Ninth House/Hell Bent as lyrics I enjoy

I'm combining the two books because I read them back-to-back and I don't mentally distinguish between their events so read on at your own risk (there shouldn't be any explicit spoilers)

Basically all of "Just One Yesterday" by Fall Out Boy but specifically:

Anything you say can and will be held against you So only say my name, it will be held against you

Darlington during the entire Halloween Incident:

Honey, this club here is stuck up Dinner and diatribes I knew it from the first look of The look of mischief in your eyes... I'd suffer Hell if you'd tell me What you'd do to me tonight

— "Dinner and Diatribes" by Hozier

Alex Stern in summary:

Maybe I could be a different human in a new place Oh, I just wanna feel something, tell me where to go 'Cause everybody knows something I don't wanna know... I am not a martyr, I'm a problem

— "I am not a woman, I'm a god" by Halsey

if you know, you know:

All you have is your fire And the place you need to reach Don't you ever tame your demons But always keep 'em on a leash

— "Arsonist's Lullabye" by Hozier (again the whole song works but this stanza HELLO)

Alex and Hellie because Hellie haunts the narrative so thoroughly:

The girl from California waits She has my name but not my face And I, tried to let her be someone Hoping when the morning comes She's not another hit-and-run, but everybody knows That people disappear here

— "People Disappear Here" by Halsey

Also Leigh Bardugo said that she got through these books by listening to Ludovico Einaudi so generally I would recommend the In A Time Lapse album

[ichabodcranemills]

Gideon: wants to escape the Ninth House basically from the moment she has consciousness. Is never allowed to leave the Ninth House because of how entangled she is with Harrow. Is the daughter of God, perfectly designed to kill him. Chooses to trap herself inside Harrow, essentially inside the Ninth House, out of duty for everyone else at Canaan House and out of love.

you know @helly-ena since we were talking about Gideon/Helly parallels

[wingedshadowfan]

ninth house spoilers!!

here's the quote at the very end of the chapter with the moth scene, before darlington figures out that alex killed everyone at ground zero with the help of hellie's ghost

Months later, he would remember the weight of the moths’ bodies in his palm. He would think of that moment and how foolish he had been to think he knew her at all.

it feels like a nod at what north says towards the end of the book, when he finds out daisy has been eating girls' souls to sustain herself for years

“I didn’t know she was capable of such things,” he said over the clamor of the crowd. “I never knew she had such a heart.” “You never knew her at all.”

i don't know if it was intentional but it's such a beautiful parallel between the wheelwalker/murderer/survivor girl and some ordinary guy in love with her, groveling and being unable to grasp what she is and what she can do

[selkiemaidenfae]

ninth house dream casting

alex: lindsey morgan (she's literally the perfect alex, if you've seen her as raven in the 100 you know what i mean)

darlington: thomas doherty

dawes: tazmin merchant

the bridegroom: ben schnetzer

+ bonus lindseys for your alex consideration

hellie!alex

how i imagine alex looks when talking to most ppl on campus

rare domestic moment with darlington

just…alex

[that-blue-spren]

Comments on Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo

After re-reading Ninth House in order to be ready for the next book, I can understand some points in both parts.

The reason the two students in Lethe are called Virgil and Dante like the characters in the Divine Comedy.

The reason the secret organization is called Lethe... the river with water that makes you forget your past.

Alex spent all time feeling bad because she has no remorse for her actions, but, she was sorry for Hellie and the bunny. She knew the gang were cheap people, but Hellie and her pet were out of place there. Alex recognizes that Turner, Dawes, Mercy, Tripp and Darlington are her found family and she cares about them.

Alex relationship with Darlington: she thinks he is attractive, but, she admires him because he is a knight and an intellectual. Darlington took seriously his role as Alex's mentor. When he is not there any more, she remembers all their conversations and try to act like him. “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness”.

Alex and Daniel are very different: Alex has a natural power but low self-esteem. She hasn't receive special help to deal with her problems that were confused with a mental disease. Daniel was raised with the best education, everyone respects him but he dies for touching some kind of magic.

Dawes the witch and Turnes the human lies detector.

Ninth House is more like a police novel with secret societies and macabre rites. But, Hell Bent is more like Charmed tv series.

[robo--homo]

can't stop thinking about the possible configurations of a Ninth House au for the raven chronicles. like, okay (I will try to provide descriptions for those who haven't read Ninth House)

Gansey is a shoe-in for Darlington. They are a 1 to 1 comparison: rich boys whose lives were saved by magic with (variably) neglectful families who go by their last names and are third in their line, who live on their own in shitty broken down houses (or warehouses), who are proper and perfect and would do anything to find magic again. Also, please imagine Gentleman Demon Gansey. Just. God.

My first thought was that this makes Blue into Alex. Neither one of them would feel like they fit in at Yale; their moms have similar vibes albeit from what I remember Alex's mom is entirely useless; but Alex's powers as one of the only people who can see the dead contrast so sharply with Blue having (seemingly) no powers in a family full of psychics. You'd have to give up one story to engage the other, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but will sharply decide how an AU goes.

Ronan is the only one who can match Alex for punkness, and replacing his dream powers with seeing the dead feels alright. A Ronansey AU might be interesting, but I shy away because of the reversed dynamics- Ronan worships Gansey, vs. Darlington worships Alex. Adam makes for a weird Virgil (the hierarchal position Darlington operates). Like, imagine Adam as the know-it-all teaching Ronan about magic and secret societies. Of course, Gansey could still be Virgil and have Adam occupy some other space. I've thought about Niall taking the place of Hellie, Kavinsky taking over Hellie, Kavinsky taking over Alex (listen I love my trash boy); Noah makes for a fun Bertram North insofar as giving him a role where he's a) dead and b) still a present part of the story.

Adam makes for a really fun Dante too, though (Alex's hierarchal position). Like, similarities with Alex: broken home life, class difference that makes him stick out at Yale, magical powers he's not entirely comfortable with... but more importantly, just. the compelling notion of Adam Parrish who can See Ghosts. Adam Parrish, bitter over getting into Yale despite not even getting a chance to apply, forced to take part in old-money secret society bullshit, led around by Gansey, eyes set on the only tolerable member of the societies in Ronan...

Gansey also makes a fun Dawes, tho. Like. The third hierarchal position is the grad student forever working on her PHD who just works to like do paperwork and maintain artifacts and shit if I remember correctly, and Gansey would fit in there too. Gansey fits everywhere. Ninth House is just a Gansey story /j

[theatricuddles]

[ID: A series of stills from Severance with text of American Nightmares edited over them.

The first image is a shot at a distance from some severed employees on the floor in front of a sculpture of the founder of Lumon, set in the wall. Text over it reads "Setting: a house

with an unsavory history"

The second image is Helly in her formal dress at the conference, looking at a smiling image of her outie self. Text, set over outie Helena's eyes, reads "2. with an aristocratic name"

The third image shows a computer in the process of the number-sorting performed by the characters in Severance. Text over it reads "3. disturbed by supernatural entities usually unrelated to human ghosts".

The fourth image is of Innie Mark with a concerned expression, with text over him reading "Characters: 1. a middle-class family or family surrogate, skeptical of the supernatural, who move into the house."

The fifth image is Irving and Helly stepping through a door, with text reading "2. knowledgable helpers who believe in the supernatural"

The sixth image shows Dylan sitting at his computer, with text over it reading "3. An oracular observer who warns of danger.

The seventh image is Helly in the break room, reading the text over the wall and looking exhausted. Text over the image reads "Plot: dual structure

An escalating series of events which isolates the family physically and psychologically"

The eighth image shows Mark peeking through a half-open door, Helly behind him, with text reading "2. the discovery of provenance for those events"

The ninth image shows Helly at the conference preparing to take the microphone, with text reading "Climax:

the escape of the family and the destruction of the house"

The tenth image shows the lever in the overtime procedures set to "off", with text over it reading "Or

the escape of the family and the continued existence of the house

a twist ending which establishes the recurring nature of evil."]

severance +  american nightmares: the haunted house formula in american popular fiction

[toads-treasures]

Has anyone else read Ninth House and or Hell Bent or am I supposed to lose my mind over Helly and Alex all by myself

[satoshihiwatari]

the real quesiton is. am I strong enough to do a side-by-side comparison of the Hellie scene from Ninth House and the final chapter of GtN? they are so similar but like. can I open GtN without sobbing.