Gideon the Ninth

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir, 448 pages

When she was an infant, orphan Gideon was grudgingly taken in by the Ninth House, where she became a playmate/indentured servant to House heir Harrowhawk, though Gideon always dreamed of escape. Her chance finally arrives after more than two decades, when the mystical and revered First House sends a summons to the Second through Eighth Houses for their best necromancer and a cavalier to come compete for a job serving the undying Emperor. Harrowhawk and Gideon answer the call on behalf of the Ninth, traveling to a world inhabited only by reanimated skeletons, searching through a possibly empty palace for keys to their potential future.

Rereading my description, it sounds like a really dark and weird story, which is definitely correct. But it doesn't fully capture the twisted humor and horrifying situations. Gideon is basically a sword-wielding foul-mouthed jerk who is forced by uber-goth Harrowhawk into pretending to be a silent creepy nun. And this possibly empty palace? Dusty and creepy as anything you've ever seen in a movie, read about in a book, or dreamed in your worst nightmare. Somehow, it combines to make a story that is funny and creepy and full of action and intrigue.