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4.1 AVERAGE
4.1 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Such cool world building, just a really enjoyable story.
Another delightful Rogerson read. The world was fascinating, as was learning about the classes of spirits and the system of nuns, clerics, and soldiers who defend their people from them. Artemisia is a great character who has a mysterious past. The relationship development between her and her revenant is really neat to follow. I'm hoping the rumor that this is a series is true, because I'd love more in this world!
adventurous
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This was so good! It was dark and atmospheric and I just wanted to get lost within its pages. Because somehow this book was so comforting even when it was at its darkest. And the relationship between Artemisia and the revenant was the best! Their bickering was so much fun to read. And their progression from enemies to reluctant allies to friends was just so good! I also really loved the magic system and the spirits and how religion played into every aspect of it all. There was just something about this book that hooked me right from the start and didn’t let me go until the very end. Vespertine was just so good and it’s getting five stars!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, Eating disorder
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Violence
In typical Margaret Rogerson fashion, the idea of this storyline is utterly original and the synopsis will draw you in like a moth to a flame. To say I was excited for this book (or any book from her) would be an understatement.
While I thoroughly enjoyed it overall, and often found myself longing to get back to it when I was away, it was difficult for me to want to be fully immersed in the story and I felt myself longing for more.
All the characters were quite bland and without much personality except for Rathanael and Marguerite. Rathanael was cranky and crabby in a way that (I think) the writer eventually meant to come off as endearing and lovable (think Silas from Sorcery of Thorns), but he was just cranky. Marguerite was sweet but had a quiet strength about her that I loved.
A lot of my problem, I suppose, dealt with Leander. In the beginning (and for the majority of the book), the main character is running from him because she’d rather stay at the monastery than train at Bonsaint. As a result (more or less) Leander is perceived the “bad guy”, but his “evilness” never felt that compelling to begin with.
The magic system was a little hard for me to understand; maybe I missed the explanation, but I could not remember how revanants come to exist. I understood that when people die, the type of spirit their soul manifests into depends on how they died, and that these spirits have power. But I thought revanants were also once human so I wasn’t sure how they became a revanant vs a typical spirit.
With all the types of spirits that are introduced in the beginning of the book, we rarely seen them throughout the book, which was a tad disappointing. I would have liked to see more of them.
I was a little surprised by the ending; it was lackluster and did not make me want to read book 2 ASAP, which is usually the case. I will pick it up anyway because I do love the author’s writing, but I’m not in need of it RIGHT NOW.
Note: there is absolutely no romance in this book, which made me sad, but it wasn’t a deal breaker.
Thank you so much to the publisher for sending me an ARC of this! It is my first ever ARC and I truly never thought I’d ever get the chance to read an ARC of a highly anticipated book, especially from an author I greatly admire
While I thoroughly enjoyed it overall, and often found myself longing to get back to it when I was away, it was difficult for me to want to be fully immersed in the story and I felt myself longing for more.
All the characters were quite bland and without much personality except for Rathanael and Marguerite. Rathanael was cranky and crabby in a way that (I think) the writer eventually meant to come off as endearing and lovable (think Silas from Sorcery of Thorns), but he was just cranky. Marguerite was sweet but had a quiet strength about her that I loved.
A lot of my problem, I suppose, dealt with Leander. In the beginning (and for the majority of the book), the main character is running from him because she’d rather stay at the monastery than train at Bonsaint. As a result (more or less) Leander is perceived the “bad guy”, but his “evilness” never felt that compelling to begin with.
The magic system was a little hard for me to understand; maybe I missed the explanation, but I could not remember how revanants come to exist. I understood that when people die, the type of spirit their soul manifests into depends on how they died, and that these spirits have power. But I thought revanants were also once human so I wasn’t sure how they became a revanant vs a typical spirit.
With all the types of spirits that are introduced in the beginning of the book, we rarely seen them throughout the book, which was a tad disappointing. I would have liked to see more of them.
I was a little surprised by the ending; it was lackluster and did not make me want to read book 2 ASAP, which is usually the case. I will pick it up anyway because I do love the author’s writing, but I’m not in need of it RIGHT NOW.
Note: there is absolutely no romance in this book, which made me sad, but it wasn’t a deal breaker.
Thank you so much to the publisher for sending me an ARC of this! It is my first ever ARC and I truly never thought I’d ever get the chance to read an ARC of a highly anticipated book, especially from an author I greatly admire
I’m giving this a 3 star but I think for many people it could be a 4 or 5 star read. It just wasn’t my cup of tea.
Artemisia is a nun that has been through a lot. From being possessed at a young age to being thrown in the path of becoming something she really doesn’t want to be. The world is different now after the Sorrow. Spirits can roam the Earth and they aren’t something you want to mess with. There are different levels of spirits called orders. The higher the number the more powerful. Some of these more powerful spirits have been sealed into relic and can be controlled by some of the trained Clerisy. In the story there are people with the sight and they can see spirits. Only those with the sight can study to control a relic.
Well Artemisia isn’t trained but is forced to learn to control a relic and it is one of the most powerful ones. Artemisia isn’t sure she wants to walk this path but along the way see find friends and spirits that will come together to give her the strength to do what needs to be done.
Again I think it was a good story but it just wasn’t my cup of tea.
Artemisia is a nun that has been through a lot. From being possessed at a young age to being thrown in the path of becoming something she really doesn’t want to be. The world is different now after the Sorrow. Spirits can roam the Earth and they aren’t something you want to mess with. There are different levels of spirits called orders. The higher the number the more powerful. Some of these more powerful spirits have been sealed into relic and can be controlled by some of the trained Clerisy. In the story there are people with the sight and they can see spirits. Only those with the sight can study to control a relic.
Well Artemisia isn’t trained but is forced to learn to control a relic and it is one of the most powerful ones. Artemisia isn’t sure she wants to walk this path but along the way see find friends and spirits that will come together to give her the strength to do what needs to be done.
Again I think it was a good story but it just wasn’t my cup of tea.
3.5 stars rounded up. When a novice nun takes possession of a revenant to protect her abbey from attack, she's forced to flee, to save her people, and to rethink with everything she thought she knew about relationships between the sighted and the spirits they cleanse and possess. This is in every word, and I mean every plot reveal, every character arc, supremely predictable - but in a kind of "Holy Shit! Two Cakes!" way: want some grumpy soulbonding and an outsider character carving her little niche in the world? good news, this is heaps of that, with a gloomy/spooky aesthetic for good measure.
I wish it weren't so easy. There's a scene where the protagonist is explicitly told which is indicative of the tonal issues: at least on a social level, the wish-fulfillment is so complete as to be unrelatable, almost alienating despite the obvious good intentions. But I still liked this, in no small part because I am the holy-shit-two-cakes audience: I love this trope and won't turn down another take on it.
I wish it weren't so easy. There's a scene where the protagonist is explicitly told
Spoiler
"you (a perceived saint) are not obligated to help us (save the entire city)"
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes