This is book number 1 in the Ninth House Series series.
The perfect, shocking plunge into a brilliantly-crafted and thoroughly immersive world of demons and monsters hidden behind the inscrutable facades of the Ivy League. Twist and turns abound, and Alex Stern wrests with the forces of privilege, legacy, and the patriarchy that, while less supernatural, are just as deadly.
— Ning
“Queen Leigh’s first foray into adult fantasy is a sensational success! One of the best fantasy books I’ve read in a long while, Ninth House contains Yale secret societies, ghosts, magic, morally gray characters, and murder. Bardugo balances dual timelines with intricate precision, and the history and world-building of her fantastical New Haven is superb. I couldn’t put this book down; I had to know what was going to happen next. I savored every moment reading this novel, and I am jealous of readers who get to experience it for the first time!”
— Isabella Ogbolumani, Page 1 Books, Evanston, IL
“This stunning book in the tradition of The Secret History and The Magicians is about a girl who can see ghosts, and who gets a full scholarship to Yale in the aftermath of a horrible tragedy. Bardugo’s first adult entry has a cast of characters you won’t soon forget, and great social commentary about class. Great for fans of her other work who have aged up, or fans of gritty adult fantasy.”
— Vickie Roberts, Andover Bookstore, Andover, MA
"The best fantasy novel I’ve read in years, because it’s about real people... Impossible to put down." —Stephen King
The smash New York Times bestseller from Leigh Bardugo, a mesmerizing tale of power, privilege, and dark magic set among the Ivy League elite.
Goodreads Choice Award Winner
Locus Finalist
Galaxy “Alex” Stern is the most unlikely member of Yale’s freshman class. Raised in the Los Angeles hinterlands by a hippie mom, Alex dropped out of school early and into a world of shady drug-dealer boyfriends, dead-end jobs, and much, much worse. In fact, by age twenty, she is the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved multiple homicide. Some might say she’s thrown her life away. But at her hospital bed, Alex is offered a second chance: to attend one of the world’s most prestigious universities on a full ride. What’s the catch, and why her?
Still searching for answers, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yale’s secret societies. Their eight windowless “tombs” are the well-known haunts of the rich and powerful, from high-ranking politicos to Wall Street’s biggest players. But their occult activities are more sinister and more extraordinary than any paranoid imagination might conceive. They tamper with forbidden magic. They raise the dead. And, sometimes, they prey on the living.
Don't miss the highly-anticipated sequel, Hell Bent.