41 pages • 1 hour read
Ninth House
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Symbols & Motifs
Death, Greys, and the Veil
Alex is able to see ghosts, or Greys, unaided. Their existence raises the question of what happens in the afterlife. However, Ninth House does not provide a clear answer: After death, some people cross over to a different dimension, “beyond the Veil” (30), while others linger on as Greys. It also seems immaterial what religion people follow—anyone can become a ghost.
The “veil” is both the barrier between the two worlds—those of the living and the dead—and an “obfuscation” (18). The truth about the afterlife is hidden from the living, and pulling the veil aside is tantamount to dying: Alex must come close to drowning to gain access to the Egyptian-like afterlife.
Violence and Physical Injuries
Violence, injury, and physical trauma pervade the story. The book opens with Alex seriously injured and musing on her body’s physical damage. The Prologue compares this damage to the havoc war can wreak on land, comparing the body to a “map” or a “coastline” that can alter (3).
Violence is also a tool that can achieve results quickly. Alex is often injured, each time worse than before, as her enemies attempt to subdue her efforts to thwart them. At the same time, Alex knows how to use the threat of physical violence to make others obey her, like when she intimidates the Wolf’s Head’s president.
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By Leigh Bardugo
