Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo
(Format used for this read: Audiobook)
Find a gateway to the underworld. Steal a soul out of hell. A simple plan, except people who make this particular journey rarely come back. But Galaxy “Alex” Stern is determined to break Darlington out of purgatory—even if it costs her a future at Lethe and at Yale.
Forbidden from attempting a rescue, Alex and Dawes can’t call on the Ninth House for help, so they assemble a team of dubious allies to save the gentleman of Lethe. Together, they will have to navigate a maze of arcane texts and bizarre artifacts to uncover the societies’ most closely guarded secrets, and break every rule doing it. But when faculty members begin to die off, Alex knows these aren’t just accidents. Something deadly is at work in New Haven, and if she is going to survive, she’ll have to reckon with the monsters of her past and a darkness built into the university’s very walls.
Thick with history and packed with Bardugo’s signature twists, Hell Bent brings to life an intricate world full of magic, violence, and all too real monsters.
This is the sequel to the Ninth House, which I read just a few weeks ago.
DEFINITELY not a stand alone book—you will be LOST AF if you try to read this without reading that book first…so do not even try.
Also…if you haven’t read that book, don’t read anymore of this review because there WILL be spoilers ahead for that one.
You’ve been warned. lol
I thoroughly enjoyed Ninth House and had my fingers crossed tight that I would love this one just as much.
And I did…
For the most part.
This is a lengthy book, so I am glad I decided to listen to it….I read the first one in print and it took me AWHILE to get thru it.
The narration was SPECTACULAR.
This book was a CRAZY good read…again there was magic, secret societies, spirits, supernatural events just like in the first one.
PLUS this one is a bit darker than the first with multiple visits to hell, demons and even vampires.
YAASSSS. Just adds to the gothic intrigue of it all.
The whole point of this book is creating a hell rescue plan to save Darlington and then actually DOING it.
LOTS of action–just like the first–but also lots of story and character development too…also like the first.
Things were a little more grotesque and a little scarier this go round (even though the first had it’s share of all that) but nothing to the point I couldn’t handle it….yall know I am a big ol’ baby when it comes to that kind of stuff.
It was *just enough* for me…and entertaining AF, yall.
My only issue with this book was the last few chapters.
I felt like it was a bit rushed and loose ends were tied up WAY too quickly…and in some ways the progression didn’t fit exactly and things weren’t thoroughly explained.
The end is a ginormous cliff hanger and felt like the whole entire story was just a set up for another book.
A little annoying to me….BUT whatever….because it WORKED.
I’m invested, I’m hard core into it all…
and I’ll DEFINITELY be reading the next one whenever it comes out!
Such a FANTASTIC story and there are SO many ways to keep it going…lots of interesting reveals and character twists …I am super duper excited to see what happens next.
The possibilities are ENDLESS.
What will Alex and her crew get into and discover next????
Now I’m over here crossing my fingers the third book comes out sooner rather than later.