Hell Bent, which was published in early 2023, is the second novel in author Leigh Bardugo's Ninth House series. It picks up after the events of the events of the previous novel, Ninth House. After her teacher, Mr. Darlington is punished and dragged into Hell, the series' protagonist, Alex Stern, becomes determined to find a way to get to Hell (hence the novel's title) and save her beloved teacher. After interacting with several secret societies at her college (Yale), Alex discovers that Darlington is in purgatory, not Hell, complicating her rescue. She enlists the help of several friends and hatches her plan. Ultimately, she succeeds in finding and saving Darlington, who she discovers is not quite the genial man she thought he was. As everyone does, Alex discovers that Darlington has secrets that prevent him from living up to the expectations many people, including Alex, had for him.
Bardugo is one of the most prolific authors working today. Despite her prodigious output, Bardugo's novels invariably receive incredibly positive reviews and quickly become New York Times bestsellers. Hell Bent spent many weeks as the #1 New York Times bestseller, reflecting its widespread popularity. In its glowing review of Bardugo's novel, The New York Times opined that "The beauty of 'Hell Bent' is that for all the bleakness, the sense of wonder somehow remains."
