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4.1 AVERAGE
4.1 AVERAGE
Review also posted here.
While I enjoyed Margaret Rogerson's Sorcery of Thorns, I adored Vespertine. Artemisia is a nun-in-training whose job is to purify dead bodies so they don't come back as evil spirits. But when the convent is attacked by possessed soldiers, she is forced to bind herself to a revenant spirit and use its power to defeat them. Cue further adventures and the discovery of dark magic that only a vespertine can hope to defeat.
I'm not sure if my favourite part of the story is Artemisia or the Revenant. Artemisia struggles with anxiety and doesn't know how to interact with people. She constantly feels awkward when she has to talk to others, and can I ever relate. But she's also got an iron will, and does what she needs to so she can save others. The Revenant is a feisty, sarcastic character in its own right, angry at its captivity. The two form an uneasy alliance (since they're stuck with each other, and all), and their banter is glorious.
There is no romance in this book, and I appreciated that. Not every story needs a romance. I read on social media that Artemisia is aromantic and asexual, but this wasn't obvious from the narrative. Apparently, editors cut lines that made that explicit. Since I read an advanced copy, I sincerely hope that they put those lines back in for the finished book. How often do we get an aroace main character? I love this representation and I want it to be explicit. (Apparently the other main characters aren't straight either? Also not made clear in the narrative, which I hope it adjusted in the final copy.)
Due to being possessed by a spirit as a child, Artemisia’s hands are severely scarred, and she often struggles to tie or grip things properly. She also has severe PTSD. I so appreciated the disability representation; it felt real, it wasn't forced, and—most importantly—it wasn't cured. Artemisia learns to manage her conditions, which is a much more authentic way to feature disabilities in a story.
October is a perfect time to release this dark story about ghosts, the undead, and a spine-tingling magic system. Easily one of my favourite reads from this year.
While I enjoyed Margaret Rogerson's Sorcery of Thorns, I adored Vespertine. Artemisia is a nun-in-training whose job is to purify dead bodies so they don't come back as evil spirits. But when the convent is attacked by possessed soldiers, she is forced to bind herself to a revenant spirit and use its power to defeat them. Cue further adventures and the discovery of dark magic that only a vespertine can hope to defeat.
I'm not sure if my favourite part of the story is Artemisia or the Revenant. Artemisia struggles with anxiety and doesn't know how to interact with people. She constantly feels awkward when she has to talk to others, and can I ever relate. But she's also got an iron will, and does what she needs to so she can save others. The Revenant is a feisty, sarcastic character in its own right, angry at its captivity. The two form an uneasy alliance (since they're stuck with each other, and all), and their banter is glorious.
There is no romance in this book, and I appreciated that. Not every story needs a romance. I read on social media that Artemisia is aromantic and asexual, but this wasn't obvious from the narrative. Apparently, editors cut lines that made that explicit. Since I read an advanced copy, I sincerely hope that they put those lines back in for the finished book. How often do we get an aroace main character? I love this representation and I want it to be explicit. (Apparently the other main characters aren't straight either? Also not made clear in the narrative, which I hope it adjusted in the final copy.)
Due to being possessed by a spirit as a child, Artemisia’s hands are severely scarred, and she often struggles to tie or grip things properly. She also has severe PTSD. I so appreciated the disability representation; it felt real, it wasn't forced, and—most importantly—it wasn't cured. Artemisia learns to manage her conditions, which is a much more authentic way to feature disabilities in a story.
October is a perfect time to release this dark story about ghosts, the undead, and a spine-tingling magic system. Easily one of my favourite reads from this year.
I appreciate this author's writing style, and how they introduce the reader to their worlds. There is no hand holding and yet there is no info dumping. Th pacing on this novel was just as good as the authors previous two, and the relationships, as always, are a treat to read about. With all that, the church-based nun focus of this novel is just not my jam. I went into it not being super interested in the themes or... I guess what the book was presented to be about, but wanted to give it a go anyhow as I really enjoyed the authors other books. So, just not for me. But if the synopsis of the book piques your interest, absolutely read it. I still enjoyed this story, it just wasn't my favorite.
Loved the interaction between artemisia and the revenant. The revenant was very funny and ironically artemisia was also funny but not on purpose loved her awkwardness and unable to show emotions on her face. Also I love Marguerite she was a delight. It had action it had suspense it had comedy loved everything. since I read this author's other work where there was a romance not a just a romance a good romance I was expecting here also but none the less it was so nice to read this book.
Start with A Sorcery of Thorns - I like MR and really respect anyone who can fit a compelling fantasy novel into one volume, but this premise just didn't hit the spot for me. Maybe because it was a bit dark in a string of beach reads.
DNFed at 56%. It's just so.... boring. There is one character that does nothing for most of the book. World building is absent. Even the (only) main character is so flat. Meeeeeh
This book was given to me and described as a "queer fantasy," which it is not, so I was super disappointed at first. However, I did find the plot very compelling and the characters well developed.
Ha sido un mes de bloqueo lector. Se me ha dificultado el poder concentrarme pues tengo mucho entre manos, pero aquí voy. Los audiolibros son siempre mi salvación. Vespertine es trepidante, inusual, sin romance. Solo una chica poseída y su demonio, en cuyas manos recae la salvación de un pueblo. Vale mucho la pena si querés algo diferente. Esta autora cada vez me gusta más.
It was good!! I enjoyed it. It wasn’t my favorite though. One thing I loved about the book, was that there wasn’t a love interest for the main character. It was more about friendship, then love.
It was an interesting type of world, one I’m not really familiar with. My fantasy knowledge is much more Fey, Nephilim, and Dragons based.
It was an interesting type of world, one I’m not really familiar with. My fantasy knowledge is much more Fey, Nephilim, and Dragons based.
4.5 stars
Artemisia is most comfortable with the dead. As one of the Gray Sisters, it's her job to cleanse bodies of their lingering spirits - which can wreak havoc possessing the living if not taken care of. She knows the history of the revenants who destroyed the land when the spirits came unbound and she knows to fear them. But when an army of the possessed arrive at her convent's door and a battle ensues, it's clear to Artemisia that a revenant's power must be controlled at the risk of its vessel - and that she herself has become one.
This book moved so swiftly, such intriguing world building with different levels of spirits with different powers. I liked the way that the Sighted living, the spirits themselves and their relics all interplayed in such dance of power. Artemisia is a really interesting main character - an antiheroine with an atypical way of interacting with the world and with the complex sort of childhood trauma that impacts the rest of your life. She has to make such hard decisions and so many times when she could have chosen violence and retribution, she chooses mercy and empathy while STILL being badass when it's required. Her relationship with the revenant is, for me, a highlight of the narrative - such a push and pull of control and capability. It isn't a perfect book - there is a LOT going on and tracking it all takes effort. It would have benefited with some backstory but overall, I found this a really enjoyable read.
Artemisia is most comfortable with the dead. As one of the Gray Sisters, it's her job to cleanse bodies of their lingering spirits - which can wreak havoc possessing the living if not taken care of. She knows the history of the revenants who destroyed the land when the spirits came unbound and she knows to fear them. But when an army of the possessed arrive at her convent's door and a battle ensues, it's clear to Artemisia that a revenant's power must be controlled at the risk of its vessel - and that she herself has become one.
This book moved so swiftly, such intriguing world building with different levels of spirits with different powers. I liked the way that the Sighted living, the spirits themselves and their relics all interplayed in such dance of power. Artemisia is a really interesting main character - an antiheroine with an atypical way of interacting with the world and with the complex sort of childhood trauma that impacts the rest of your life. She has to make such hard decisions and so many times when she could have chosen violence and retribution, she chooses mercy and empathy while STILL being badass when it's required. Her relationship with the revenant is, for me, a highlight of the narrative - such a push and pull of control and capability. It isn't a perfect book - there is a LOT going on and tracking it all takes effort. It would have benefited with some backstory but overall, I found this a really enjoyable read.