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emmasnothere's review against another edition
3.0
if there’s anything niche to be desired it’s to have a malevolent spirit take up real estate inside your body and give you your daily/hourly health checkpoints.
rogerson is a wonderful fantasy author, but there’s always something missing for me to warrant giving a book an above average rating. this time i the world building felt… suffocating, larger than what is expected/needed for a less than 400 page standalone. although provided with the context that this was intended to be a series, it does, in fact, read as a first installment. forgiving that flaw, a second grievance: the prose was, as expected, atmospheric (very gothic, dreary!), yet it often strayed away from getting to the Point like where is the plot? the development of the characters? it was fluffed with descriptions and repetitive at times, so the transitions between settings and events muddled together.
points of interest: pitch… perfect for a niche audience (me) who had a special interest in joan of arc at 11 and unironically enjoys the nun films. no romance—usually prefer fantasy with a small romance element/portion. the small, but running theme in her catalog being the significance of names. liked the friendship and trust between characters, and what that entails when someone is highly regarded (i.e., vespertine)
rogerson is a wonderful fantasy author, but there’s always something missing for me to warrant giving a book an above average rating. this time i the world building felt… suffocating, larger than what is expected/needed for a less than 400 page standalone. although provided with the context that this was intended to be a series, it does, in fact, read as a first installment. forgiving that flaw, a second grievance: the prose was, as expected, atmospheric (very gothic, dreary!), yet it often strayed away from getting to the Point like where is the plot? the development of the characters? it was fluffed with descriptions and repetitive at times, so the transitions between settings and events muddled together.
points of interest: pitch… perfect for a niche audience (me) who had a special interest in joan of arc at 11 and unironically enjoys the nun films. no romance—usually prefer fantasy with a small romance element/portion. the small, but running theme in her catalog being the significance of names. liked the friendship and trust between characters, and what that entails when someone is highly regarded (i.e., vespertine)
jenhurst's review against another edition
4.0
I love Margaret rogerson’s writing. Sorcery of thrones was so good and this felt in the same vein as her other books. I loved the writing and the world building in this book. Nuns are fun to read about in books when they have magical powers. Plus standalone fantasies are always a plus. I liked the romance in the book. My issue was the ending felt a little rushed, but aside from that I really enjoyed this.
justqueue's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
4.5
aceinit's review against another edition
5.0
For whatever reason, I did not think I would enjoy this book as much as The Sorcery of Thorns, but it was an absolute delight from beginning to end, and is one of my favorite reads of the year. I hope Rogerson returns to this world. There are so many stories that could be told.
lisajen's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
laineypops1990's review against another edition
3.5
I enjoyed this story. It felt very slow at the beginning and actually took me quite a long time to get into but I enjoyed the story.
nyxesss's review against another edition
4.0
Characters 8
Writing 8
Plot 8
Entertainment 8
8★
“Whoever it is, they smell like incense, porridge, soul-numbing misery… Ah, yes. A nun.” - the revenant
"Perhaps deep down inside everyone was just a scared animal afraid of getting hurt, and that explained every confusing and mean and terrible thing we did." - Artemisia
“You had better not push it, nun. I can possess you whenever I want. I could do far worse than make you murder someone. I could make you try on hats.” - the revenant
Writing 8
Plot 8
Entertainment 8
8★
“Whoever it is, they smell like incense, porridge, soul-numbing misery… Ah, yes. A nun.” - the revenant
"Perhaps deep down inside everyone was just a scared animal afraid of getting hurt, and that explained every confusing and mean and terrible thing we did." - Artemisia
“You had better not push it, nun. I can possess you whenever I want. I could do far worse than make you murder someone. I could make you try on hats.” - the revenant
maddsmann's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.75
gabhopesreads's review against another edition
4.25
This gave me one dark window vibes & I loved it so much!! I spent my whole day reading this & it was the best thing I could've chosen to listen to. Can't wait to read more of her books!