Dead Beat
by Leigh Bardugo
Since Bardugo’s dark academia thriller “Ninth House” was published in 2019, Alex Stern, Daniel Arlington (a.k.a. Darlington) and the other members of Lethe — the group that monitors the occult activities of Yale University’s secret societies — have literally been to hell and back. We’ve watched them battle demons, uncover conspiracies and eat many bowls of soup.
It’s bittersweet to now come to the trilogy’s finale, DEAD BEAT (Flatiron, 479 pp., $29.99). Luckily, before we have to say goodbye, Bardugo packs in more high jinks, several mysteries, tender moments and a big boss battle for the ages.
The new book finds the crew locked in a war of attrition with Golgarot, the ruler of the underworld. While working to stop him and close the doorway to hell, they must also grapple with hard questions about the societies and Lethe’s place among them: Is it possible to fix a corrupt system from the inside? Or do you burn it all down and start over?
Bardugo’s insider knowledge of Yale (she is an alumna) and its secrets remains one of the hallmarks of the series, as does her interweaving of classical allusions and delicious snark. There is a fair amount of repetition in this book, of lore and key plot points — perhaps inevitable, given the level of detail you need to remember from the last two novels — but the characters remain so winning I forgave it. There are no damsels here: Everyone gets a hero moment. The real magic, it turns out, was the friends they made along the way.
Bodies of Magic
by Freya Marske
In BODIES OF MAGIC (Tor, 452 pp., $28.99), Marske gives campus subterfuge a medical murder mystery twist.
The Academie of the Grand Duchy of Sieuxerr is a rigorous training ground for healing mages. The novel follows five of them: Moyna, a stubborn second-generation immigrant; Estiene, a bossy nepo baby; Alys, an underestimated hottie; Clement, an introvert with a painful past; and the recklessly charming Jehan. They’ve spent years preparing for the school’s infamous five-day final exam. But when they show up, they find Ysabel, their class’s star student, dead on the exam room floor.
The authorities dismiss Ysabel’s death as a suicide, or a case of burnout (which in this world is literal, and deadly). But her peers, unconvinced, band together to find the killer before the exam ends.
Marske, a doctor in her non-writing life, brings firsthand experience to the book, which combines the drama of a procedural with a frank examination of the burdens facing frontline workers and the ways privilege warps health care. The world feels a bit underdeveloped, but the main characters, who take turns narrating, are fascinatingly complex. It’s a pity this appears to be a stand-alone novel; I would happily spend more time in their company.
The Henchperson’s Guide to Unionizing
by Marshall J. Moore
A delightfully spooky romp, THE HENCHPERSON’S GUIDE TO UNIONIZING (Bantam, 367 pp., paperback, $21) is filled with grave-robbing, magical rites and, yes, advocacy for labor protections.
Igor — the walleyed, hunchbacked, wonky-legged assistant to a Frankenstein-esque scientist — has spent most of his life on the run with his boss, an abusive megalomaniac. Then the two move into Ravenwald Manor, a crumbling estate where they must jockey for space with a witch and a vampire. There Igor meets Grim, the witch’s cat familiar, and Cornelia, the vampire’s bride, and unexpectedly discovers the joys of friendship. His fellow lackeys are also trapped in their own cycles of isolation and exploitation; together, they start to recognize that they are deserving of fairer treatment, wages and some seriously overdue P.T.O.
You can’t help rooting for this maligned trio, especially sweet Igor. Moore’s writing is propulsive and droll, and the whole thing is surprisingly cozy for a book with this much viscera — a treat for Halloween and beyond.
Mortal Things
by Marie Lu
Lu, who made the jump to adult fantasy with last year’s “Red City,” returns to young adult territory with MORTAL THINGS (Farrar, Straus & Giroux Books for Young Readers, 355 pp., $20.99). Set in a world where gods walk among us, the book follows Rose Lin Fairchild, a human agent (or Harbinger) of Raven, the god of death. It’s Rose’s job to collect the souls of the dying, a task she hates. But she and Raven made a deal: her labor in exchange for sparing her best friend’s life.
When Raven’s heir dies, Rose is chosen as the god’s new successor. To ascend, she must undergo three trials — all administered by Étienne, the obnoxiously handsome regent of the god of lies and Rose’s witty archrival.
It’s a promising premise that digs into the oldest of questions: fate versus free will. Unfortunately, it flags on execution. Everything feels a bit rushed, including Rose and Étienne’s inevitable romance. Rose has a tragic backstory and plenty of untapped power but none of the quirks or hobbies that make a character feel human. The novel sets up a war between gods to be explored in future volumes: Here’s hoping Rose gets more personality there too.
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