I thoroughly enjoyed this fast-paced first installment of The Locked Tomb trilogy, and I can't wait to read Harrow the Ninth!

Gideon has lived in the Ninth House since her mother mysteriously arrived (and died) with newborn Gideon in her arms. She’s been trying to abandon the Ninth House for a more free, exciting life, but her arch nemesis, Harrowhawk Nonagesimus, has other plans. Harrow and Gideon have been summoned to Canaan House, along with representatives from eight other Houses, in order to earn a prestigious position. Things get wild, and mystery, duels, and animated skeletons ensue.

This book is turned up all the way to 11. It's fast-paced, full of action, and the one-liners and Muir's tone are hilarious. I legitimately laughed out loud multiple times while reading. The last battle scene was 10/10 amazing. So good! I also love a good locked-room strangers-in-the-same-mysterious-house trope (Westing Game, anyone?) so once that started up, this book was a shoo-in for me. The only criticisms I have are that a) all of the characters seemed to be white and b) sometimes the action was a little *too* fast-paced for my mind. There were times, particularly at the beginning, where I was like "huh?!" and had to read a paragraph over a few times. That could be because I was also trying to get a full picture of the world in the book at the same time.