Verpertine is a dark story that follows a Nun and a revenant. What is a revenant? Well look at it this way, this is a story about a Nun possessed by a very powerful soul and their journey to stop evil and find a balance between them. The story starts out in a very grey fashion it is haunting and atmospheric. I was immediately drawn into the story, it is a slower pace at first but that only creates the tension that needs to be there for the reader to really become apart of this story. Soon the actin takes place and the story takes off. It doesn't let up and it is one brilliant story. I LOVED every word.

This is a dark story, very dark and visceral at times and it did have one of my triggers mentioned very often, so fair waring. That said, this story is addictive and really well written. I was shocked and gasping and all those with every twist and turn.

The action, the world building, the magic theory, the history and the characters all blend together to make this story beautiful and adventurous. I devoured every page and will be reading this again and again. I will be buying this for my favorites shelf!

I received an ARC via Netgalley, Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, and Margaret K. McElderry Books and I am leaving an honest review.

Triggers: animal death, human death, possession, violence, self harm, and ghosts.

First of all, thank you so much to Simon Teen for an ARC of Vespertine in exchange for an honest review!

Artemesia is training to become a Gray Sister when her covenant is attacked. She wakes up an ancient spirit attached to a saint's relic that also happens to be a revenant. With darkness coming, Artemesia must turn to the Revenant for guidance as she steps into the shoes of a vespertine, a priestess trained to wield a high relic.

I am a HUGE Margaret Rogerson fan. Sorcery of Thorns is by far one of my favorite YA and standalones to this day, so Vespertine was one of my most anticipated 2021 books! I will say, I struggled at first with the beginning of the book. I found it took a while to get accustomed to the world building, and even now I still don't necessarily understand it all.

I knew this might be a bit of a turn off for me, but I also struggled with so much religion. I don't know if it's based off Catholicism or aynthing specific, but it could be a lot at times. When they were battling spirits and it was more fantasy-esque, it was easier to read, but when it was more heavily religion-based, it was more difficult to enjoy.

I did enjoy Artemesia and the Revenant's relationship and their dialogue, but I do wish we got more feeling? from Artemesia. Just a bit more into that 1st person POV.

Now, I did read this following an amazing trip to Iceland, so it was a bit of a struggle getting back into reading, and this could be part of my problem. Definitely think this would make for a better audiobook!

Rogerson is a master. She takes what she could easily stretch into a two or three book series and turns it into one solid book. A brilliant story with original characters, this one is just as good as her previous books. Thanks to the publisher for the copy.

I received a digital arc from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Overall I loved this book so much. Compared to Margaret Rogerson’s other books, this one is so different in the sense that there was no romance. I was not expecting that when going in, but honestly this book didn’t need any. I wasn’t sure what exactly to expect when I first started reading it. There was enough going on that I had no idea what was happening at first, but everything is later explained and everything made sense in the end. I adored all of the characters in this book and I loved the friendships built throughout this story. The banter was everything and I loved reading the interactions between the revenant and Artemisia.
Overall I really loved this book. The plot, the characters, the ending, etc, we’re all fantastic. I loved how the author left it open for a sequel while still creating a satisfying ending to the book.

Again Margaret Rogerson wrote an amazing book. The world building, the characters, and the magic all were so unique and kept you wanting more. I loved reading the scenes between Artemisia and the reverent. I am so glad that there will be more books this time with these characters.

I've enjoyed every book from this author that I've read and this is no exception! From beginning to end, it was well written and paced. The characters really came off the page and the storyline kept me intrigued the whole time. It was hard to put it down!

I have LOVED Rogerson's other work and I've heard that there are going to be changed between the ARC and the finished version of this book-I'm curious what they'll be. As for the book I just finished-it wasn't for me. I'm not much for books with a religious leaning story-and this one was heavy on it. The world building was good. The side characters were awesome but our MC fell a little flat for me. I think I liked the spirit possessing her more than the human herself.

The plot felt a bit dragging at times and the battle scenes and actions scenes were a little convenient and fast. It's not a bad book, but it's not on par with where I feel her first two books are.

I devoured this book. I can't stop thinking about how good it is.

This is definitely my favorite book to date by Margaret Rogerson. I really loved the world building and I especially loved the revenant character. I think Margaret does such a great job writing nonhuman characters (I adored Silas from Sorcery of Thorns) - I was always looking forward to every comment the revenant made to Artemisia. It made me laugh so often.

Artemisia was also an amazing protagonist to read about. She's intelligent, resilient, powerful; but she's not without her "flaws." We only got glimpses of her trauma - through her social anxiety and through the memories she shared with the revenant - and my heart truly broke for her. I really loved watching her grow throughout the book.

5/5

I really enjoyed this book. I couldn’t put it down. It was similar to the Abhorsen books by Garth Nix but different enough to be fresh. The character was developed and I didn’t see the twist coming. I am looking forward to reading more books from Margaret Rogerson.

I really enjoyed this book! Artemisia is great character. She's not perfect, and has been through a lot but that makes her so much more real and genuine.

She was possessed as a child and because of this, she couldn’t be around her family because the spirit tried to kill them. She also didn’t have friends because she was locked in a shed where she couldn’t hurt anyone. When a nun saves her and exorcises the spirit, she begins to train with the nuns. At the convent doesn’t have friends or talk much because of the trauma she endured. When the convent is attacked, Artemisia is forced to take a relic to help save everyone with the help of a strong spirit. I was really happy to see her relationship with revenant because it seemed like she started to have a friend in a way. I really enjoyed their banter!

Whoever attacked the convent is sending evil spirits to possess people who then attack and kill innocents. Artemisia is the only one who can stop this with the help of the Revenant. There were some twists I didn’t see coming and I really enjoyed her journey!

I also likes the other characters including Marguerite, Jean and Charles! Their isn’t any romance in this book but their might be potential for the next book! The book doesn’t really end in a cliffhanger which is nice! I can’t wait to see what happens next!

This was a read-in-one-day for me; the pacing and the banter between the main character and the revenant that haunts her made it unputdownable. Artemesia is a compelling heroine who doesn't connect well with others due to childhood trauma. However, her relationship with the revenant - who she becomes accidentally bound to during an attack on the convent where she was raised - alters her personal stakes while also contributing to the external, realm-ending stakes.

Secondary characters are complex and compelling, though the narrative stays strongly focused on Artemisia's understanding of the world. A subtle commentary on how history is cultivated and shared over time permeates the entire story.

Absolutely cannot wait until the next book!

This book just throws you right into it. It took me awhile to understand what was happening and the magical system. I think that is the part of the book i enjoyed the most.
The only reason I didn't enjoy it as much was there was no romance. Unlike the other two books this author has written it is not a standalone so maybe if develops so slowly we got nothing in this one.

Thanks to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for this ARC!

This book was a solid 3.5 stars for me. I really enjoyed the magical system and the world building and how Rogerson just drops you right into it. As well as the hierarchy of the clerics and the relics. At times I found it confusing but not to the point of being able to enjoy the story. There is a guide / appendix at the end of the book with the names and ranking of clerics and relics, I just would have appreciated this more at the beginning of the book.

I absolutely loved An Enchantment of Ravens and A Sorcery of Thorns and went into Vespertine thinking it would be another standalone fantasy romance. When in fact there is absolutely no romance at all in this, which is the main reason my rating is what it is.

This was still an enjoyable read and the character growth with Artemisia was amazing! The best parts of the book were her banter with the relic and watching her grow as a person and become more comfortable around people. She went from someone who abhorred interacting and being around others to finding people who made her feel comfortable and come out of her shell. Knowing that she was very socially awkward, anxious, and uncomfortable around people, the lack of romance made sense. There does seem to be potential for some romance in the future book(s).

Though this wasn’t my favorite book of Rogerson’s, I will definitely be reading the next book in the series.

Vespertine, what a ride! This book is amazing. There is no slow build up, it starts right in the middle of the action and takes you on a wild ride. From start to finish, I was hanging onto every word (and it’s been a while since I can honestly say I’ve done that).

The best thing about this book: NO CLIFFHANGER! There was closure to the story. Even though I wanted more… much much more (and there will be a sequel) I’m satisfied with how it all came together in the end.

Trigger Warnings: self-harm, eating disorder, anxiety, ptsd from child neglect/abuse (non-sexual).

Artemisia is training to be a Gray Sister, a nun who cleanses dead bodies so their souls don't rise as spirits. Others find Artemisia strange as she isn't very good at socializing or making friends or smiling, which is probably the result of being possessed as a baby and burning her hands to protect her family. When the convent is attacked by possessed soldiers, Artemisia races for the only weapon that can possibly save them: a revenant bound to a saint's relic. The revenant threatens to possess her if she lets her guard down, but in order to defeat a greater threat Artemisia and the revenant come to an agreement. Will Artemisia be able to retain her sanity and freedom and be able to save her world?

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc.

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the idea being the different spirits, what the can do, and how they can be used. I loved Artemisia’s strength. The revenant annoyed me at times, but it makes sense that they are that way after so long. I wish there was a little more of their history. I enjoyed the friendship in the book. There was basically no romance, which was a nice change. I always look forward to what this author will come out with next.

I honestly struggled to get going with this book. Thankfully it picked up and I was hooked till the end to find out how the story finished! In particular, I really enjoyed learning about Artemisia's back story. What lead her to coming to the convent, her story of being possessed. I felt a little lost at the beginning of the book, like maybe it took too long to learn any of those details about our main character.
Overall, I enjoyed this book, just as all the other books I've read by Rogerson.

Corpses and spirits and possessions, oh my!

Great opening chapter, it pulled me in right away. I was completely immersed in the story; there were no slow parts, just living and breathing it

I loved the loner nun with her sardonic companion. The dialogue between them was my favorite part.

So many great characters and battles.

Definitely one of my favorite books this year. I am so happy to have received a copy from NetGalley!

After enjoying Margaret Rogerson's other stand alone novels, I was really excited to read her foray into more extensive world-building. Something I've loved about her other novels is the way she always manages to interweave the dark and creepy with what initially appears to be traditional fairy tale romances. And Vespertine takes that to another level! Artemisia lives in a world where the dead walk and constantly threaten to possess and destroy humanity. It is only through the constant vigilance of those with the "Sight" and their powerful relics, that the spirits of the dead can be set to rest. However, when spirits begin waking and mobilizing at a greater scale than ever before, Artemisia finds herself in possession of the only relic powerful enough to stop the spirit war and save her world.

I really liked the premise of this book. Artemisia begins the book as a bit of an anti-heroine. She does not get along with people. She's suffered massive childhood trauma that causes her to have trouble relating to those around her. All she wants is to become a Grey Nun and live out her days in solitude, purifying the dead in her remote convent. She grows through the book, though, to fill out her role as Vespertine, a wielder of the most powerful relic and a bit of a modern day saint. This growth mostly comes from the friendship she develops with the Revenant, the spirit tied to her relic. This relationship is the core of the book, which I found to be very fresh and interesting in the YA genre dominated by romance. Though, I am still a bit skeptical about how the body sharing is going to end well for the two of them in subsequent books...

My biggest problem with the book boils down to pacing. For the first three quarters of the novel, Artemisia kind of wanders around without a real plan. This makes sense because she is basically a cloistered nun suddenly being asked to fight in battles. But, it took me a long time to really understand how the world and the spirits worked and the stakes of conflict. After this slow beginning, the last quarter of the book felt really rushed. A lot of new information was thrown our way that I wished could have been seeded earlier.

I’m just not able to get into this story. Maybe I’m not in the right spot to read this and if I try again later it’ll stick. I’ve heard this is a great book. I’m just struggling to read it and it feels forced right now.