The hallowed halls of Yale University hide a dark underbelly. The secret societies are more than just boys’ clubs for the rich and privileged, hosting occult practices and ancient magic that outsiders can’t fathom. So sinister are their origins that the Ninth House was created to monitor their behaviors and keep hidden bizarre and ethereal rituals. Alex Stern, a high school dropout with a full ride to the university to manage the elite members with a unique, unspeakable talent. Perhaps in over her head, Alex discovers that there’s more to these groups then hazing and parties.
The title is based on a Dolly Parton song, and the lives of the characters in Holding on to Nothing are steeped in East Tennessee bluegrass along with alcoholism and tragedy. The only way out for our heroine, Lucy Kilgore, is to leave town and try for a better life and higher education in the big town of Knoxville, Tennessee - but things get in the way of her plans. This beautiful and haunting story will stay with you for a while.
Who cares about rich people living in a crumbling castle, even if they lost most of their land and have no money, right? This might occasionally go through your head as you read Hannah Rothschild's new novel, if you can manage to take a break from reading it. Rothschild does not demand you pity the characters, as she does mock their inability to make good decisions or move on with the times (Clarissa in particular is a spectacular caricature of ossified aristocracy). But the characters are vivid and very human, making this novel way broader and more interesting than just a tale of crumbling riches. And I really just want a novel about Aunt Tuffy.
