Combining necromancy, gothic horror, swordplay, and space opera, the dark science fantasy series The Locked Tomb brought an inventive blend of genre tropes to modern fiction, beginning with the debut novel Gideon the Ninth. Author Tamsyn Muir established a distinct narrative voice filled with sharp humor, complex puzzle-box structures, and intense character relationships.
Career & Background
Born on March 14, 1985, in New South Wales, Australia, Tamsyn Elizabeth Muir relocated to New Zealand as an infant and grew up in the town of Howick, outside Auckland. She spent the majority of her life in New Zealand, living in Howick, Waiuku, and central Wellington. After attending university and completing an education degree in 2010, Muir worked as a teacher of English and English as a second language. She attended the Clarion Writers Workshop in 2010, and her debut short story, "The House That Made the Sixteen Loops of Time," appeared in Fantasy Magazine in 2011. Her short fiction appeared in premier publications including Nightmare Magazine, F&SF, Fantasy Magazine, Weird Tales, and Clarkesworld, earning nominations for the Nebula Award, the Shirley Jackson Award, the World Fantasy Award, and the Eugie Foster Memorial Award.
Muir transitioned into long-form fiction with her debut novel Gideon the Ninth in September 2019, published by Tor.com. The novel won the Locus Award for Best First Novel and the Crawford Award, alongside nominations for the Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy awards. Following the success of her debut, Muir relocated to Oxford in the United Kingdom, where she continues to live and teach while expanding her fiction.
Writing Style & Themes
Muir's writing features an unconventional synthesis of high-concept science fiction and gothic fantasy, balancing reverence for classical gothic motifs with modern irreverent humor. Her narratives frequently center on bone magic, necromancy, loyalty, grief, and intricate personal relationships operating within vast interstellar empires. Through tight narrative perspectives and deceptive narrators, Muir constructs complex puzzle-box plots that challenge readers while maintaining vivid action and emotional depth.
Major Works
- Gideon the Ninth — The 2019 debut novel in The Locked Tomb series introduces Gideon Nav and the necromancer Harrowhark Nonagesimus as they travel to a mysterious facility to undergo lethal trials. The book won the Locus Award for Best First Novel and received Hugo and Nebula award nominations.
- Harrow the Ninth — The 2020 second book in the series shifts to a second-person perspective, following Harrowhark Nonagesimus as she navigates an emperor's war against cosmic threats while grappling with memory loss and delusion.
- Nona the Ninth — The 2022 third volume centers on a young woman with no memory of her origins living in a besieged city, expanding the scale and emotional range of the series.
- Alecto the Ninth — The forthcoming concluding novel of The Locked Tomb series, anticipated to resolve the central mysteries of the empire and its necromantic origins.
- The Mysterious Study of Doctor Sex — A short story set in The Locked Tomb universe focusing on the youth of Ninth House characters and expanding the lore of the series.
- As Yet Unsent — A side-story novella told through a series of intercepted intelligence reports, detailing military operations and character insights within The Locked Tomb timeline.
