Overall it was a solid read. I loved the world-building of this book but at times I was just a bit confused about the different titles that everyone had. I also found that it was a bit hard to connect with the main character. I would have liked the author to have explored more of her personality

Thank you to Net Galley and Simon & Schuster for the digital ARC of Vespertine.

Going into this one, I was super intrigued by the synopsis and definitely hoped I would find a new YA fantasy that I loved. For me, this one just didn't line up with my thoughts going into it, and it definitely missed the mark for me.
I found myself getting pulled in only for moments at a time, and then feeling like nothing was happening for large sections. Our protagonist, Artemisia, has almost no personality, and I found it rather difficult to connect to any of the characters at all.

This book left a lot to be desired, but I'm not writing it off completely as I know it's going through further editing before it reaches publication. The likely-hood of me revisiting this one after it's been polished and published is high.

Vespertine follows Artemisia, a girl who is training to become a Gray Sister, a nun who cleanses the bodies of the dead so they can pass on freely. If not cleansed, these spirits will rise and go after living humans. Artemisia much prefers the dead to the living. She prefers the way they don’t gossip about her past, as the other girls at the convent do. Artemisia’s convent gets attacked by possessed soldiers, so she takes initiative and defends it by awakening an ancient revenant, bound to a saint’s relic. Revenants are malevolent creatures who can possess the person they are inhabiting. Artemisia knows that the only way to save the land is to become a vespertine, a priestess trained to wield these relics containing revenants. Without any sort of training, Artemisia must consult the only other being who can help her, the revenant. Artemisia bonds with the revenant as she works to save the land. But a hidden evil has surfaced, and Artemisia may have to throw caution to the wind and betray everything she has been taught about magic.

This book is deliciously dark. Artemisia is a complicated and unique heroine who you can’t help but root for. I desperately hope for a sequel!

This is my favourite Margaret Rogerson book thus far, and after I finished it, I was thrilled to learn that it would be part of a duology. It’s a self-contained story so there isn’t a cliff-hanger or anything like that, but I love that I’ll get to live in a world with Artemisia and the revenant again.

This book is everything I had hoped Sorcery of Thorns would be. Hear me out: the atmosphere is amazing, same as SoT, and I think that and great storytelling is something Rogerson excels at. The magic system is very limited and it has a clear source, same as SoT. In this case, it’s spirits bound to relics that can be wielded by those possessing the potential for magic, HOWEVER they are limited by what their human bodies can handle. I love that. So often we have heroes who can just conjure up an unlimited amount of power or who are able to accelerate their abilities as the plot requires it but that’s not the case in Vespertine.

I want to be very clear about this from the get-go: THERE IS NO ROMANCE IN THIS PLOT. Zero romance. Please don’t rate this book lower because you’re expecting romance and getting no romance. There’s a rumour going around that the main character might be Ace/Aroace, and that’s definitely the vibe I got from the way Artemesia was written, but it’s not explicitly confirmed in the text and her lack of romantic inclination could also be the result of her traumatic upbringing.

Honestly, there’s so much going on in the book and so many other great and complex relationships AND Artemesia is suffering from pretty severe PTSD from her childhood trauma so it would have been really strange for romance to factor into the plot at all. As it is, she went from being a complete loner with severe social anxiety who just wanted to be surrounded by dead bodies to having to rely on several people who insisted on being her friends, which I thought was excellent (and appropriate) character growth.

This book was long but it didn’t feel lengthy, if that makes sense. The pacing was excellent and I appreciated that although there was some travel, it wasn’t a journey book. There was also a distinct lack of truly “bad” characters, making this the most realistic fantasy YA book I think I’ve ever read.

I am absolutely obsessed with this book, I can’t wait until it comes out and everyone gets to share my excitement. Also, I can’t wait for the fanart, it’s going to be fantastic.

** Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Shuster Canada for providing me with an EArc in exchange for an honest review **

A highly anticipated release for me as I have loved both of Rogerson's other books. I am very glad that this was another great book from them!

The premise is so cool with a Nun who fights the dead! This reminds me of Venom as it has a similar set up with Artemisia fighting alongside a revenant that is residing in her body. Rogerson's writing is easily digestible and sucks you in immediately. I really enjoyed the banter between Artemisia and the revenant. The world building is very interesting and rich with different hierarchies of ghosts/spirits. The book is also pretty atmospheric, a perfect fall read as its kind of spooky with all the ghosts. Unlike other books Rogerson has written there is no romance in this book which may or may not work for others. I found that I enjoyed that there wasn't a romantic sub plot. If there had been one it would have felt out of place for our MC Artemisia.

My only main complaint is that it felt slow at some points, the pacing for me was a little off but I enjoyed it overall. This is book 1 in a duology and I have no idea where the story is going to go.

Having read and enjoyed Enchantment of Ravens and Sorcery of Thorns, I was so excited to get the chance to read this book early! I had high expectations and it completely lived up to them! I loved our main characters and all of their complexity. The revenant is definitely my favourite character overall and for some reason he was giving me major Calcifer from Howl’s Moving Castle vibes haha!

I personally love ghosts and spirits and all of that side of the para/supernatural and magic, so I thoroughly enjoyed the lore of this book and learning about the different spirits!

When I found out the book included nuns and priests, I was a bit cautious because I’m not super religious, but the religion system was really cool and the prayers and the Lady were interesting to learn more about and see play out throughout the story!

When I tell you I was on my toes the entire time… like I never had a clue what was about to happen or why or even by whom!! The mystery and the suspense was super amazing and the end made the waiting so so worth it!

Noteworthy to me was that this book has very little to no romance, which isn’t the case for Rogerson’s other books. I missed it a little in the start of the book, but by the halfway point it was completely out of my mind. The main themes instead of romance that I took away are found family, trust, and friendship and the book handled them beautifully. The value of helping and accepting help was huge and really powerful.

Overall, I LOVED the book and I highly recommend! Especially with Halloween coming around the corner because it definitely fits the spooky autumn aesthetic!

Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an early review copy of this book 🖤

TW: self harm, murder

Basic plot summary (no spoilers)

Artemisia is gifted with “the sight”, an ability few posses but which allows her to see spirits. All of those who are gifted are recruited to become either nuns or soldiers to help protect the living from the dead. When her convent is attacked, Artemisia protects her fellow nuns by allowing an ancient spirit to enter her body in order to grant her its strength, but the risk is the possibility of it possessing her. Together, they must discover who is behind the attack and stop them.

My thoughts:

I feel so bad, but I really struggled to get into this book. I think it’s the authors writing style and me that just don’t always mesh well, because I had similar issues with her book Sorcery of Thorns. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy the story, I thought the plot was really interesting if the ending was maybe a little bit lacklustre, and the lore behind the spirits was unique I felt and definitely worth exploring more in the second book. What I really didn’t like in this book was Artemisia herself. I admired the struggle she had with anti social tendencies and anxiety, but I feel the way she was written sometimes came across as flat and boring. I understand she was maybe too scared to go do something, or too anxious, but the way she acted sometimes was just… almost like she had none of her own personal thoughts. The revenant had more of a personality than her and I would honestly look forward to the moments Marguerite or anyone else would interact with her so that she would like… do something. I feel bad I just really didn’t like her.

The story though was good, and if you loved other books by Margaret Rogerson I think you’ll really enjoy this one too. There was no romance to speak of in it, which sets it apart from her other books but I felt like that really fit the character well and it never felt like you were waiting for Artemisia to fall in love or anything like that. Overall it was an okay read for me, but for fans of this author I think it would be great!

This is definitely my favourite out of all Rogerson books. 3.75 stars

I liked the premise, the plot, and the dark atmosphere a lot. I enjoyed the pacing less. Although it felt very steady, it just didn't make sense here amid a crisis that is a life or death matter.

Since it's a series, I hope we explore more some characters. Our MC is sometimes a bit... basic? I found myself rolling my eyes at some passages where she felt very troppy. I think some descriptions could have been cut down, and the frequency of dialogues (especially between MC & Revenant) could have been increased.

The revenant was my favourite part, I wish we had more insight with it in the last 1/4 of the story. I felt like its involvement/presence was lessen at the end. And the ending was quite disappointing, I thought it went by really fast and felt anti-climactic, which was frustrating since this book had taken its time to get through the plot until then.

I'm curious what the next book in this series will bring, I'm not quite sure where it is going to be honest.

I didn't know anything about this book going into it so I was pleasantly surprised! I loved the atmospheric world, the characters, and learning about the origins of different spirits and the revenants. I devoured this book in a couple of days!

The relationship between the MC and the Revenant was witty, sarcastic with underlying care. Unlike Sorcery of Thorns and Engagement of Ravens, Vespertine does not contain any romance - so for those who like romance in their fantasy, this may not be for you.
Our MC, Artemisia, seems to be neurodivergent with some disability rep (also possibly ace? this was not explicitly stated anywhere in the book). She's also a reluctant heroine which is a refreshing change for YA Fantasy.

As this is an e-arc the author has stated she is making further edits to the writing. She posted on Goodreads about the writing feeling "like a depressed AI" I personally didn't have any issue with the writing.

I believe this is the first in a duology but the book wraps up nicely and could be read as a standalone novel.

Reading this during an August heat wave is not really the right vibe for this book as this will make an excellent Fall/Spooky season read!

So I love all of Margaret Rogerson's books and Vespertine was no different. I devoured it in two days, sacrificing sleep, friends, and heck, even work.

It reminded me a bit of Katherine Arden's Winternight trilogy (a girl and a horse and things others can't see), but for a YA audience.

Unlike her previous books, there's no romance (which I didn't miss) and it's a duology (which made me so freaking happy).

I think this is the first time I've received an ARC and wished that I had waited to read the final published book. I adore Margaret Rogerson's writing, she is the queen of crafting intricate worlds and stories in a standalone setting. The first third of Vespertine immediately made me feel like this was going to be her first entry into a trilogy so I was very disappointed to find out, not quite. According to her Goodreads there will be other stories set in this world but none following the main character. I will say that this review is likely to change after the final book comes out because even Rogerson herself said her writing was off in the ARC.

Things I adored about this book:
- The way she wrote a character who isn't neurotypical.
- The Revenant (gave me major Silas vibes)
- The banter between the Revenant and Artemisia

Things I didn't care for:
- Felt like it was being set up for sequels, so 2/3rds of this book felt like world building, developing a sense of the bigger/deeper conflict.
- The last 100 pages or so felt rushed and like the "big bad" wasn't really that

IDK I can't really put my fingers on it. I enjoyed this book but it just felt off.

I received an e-arc of Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I'm DNFing this at 33%, though I might revisit when the audiobook is available and update my review. I just feel that this would not be higher than a 3 star if I continued reading right now.
I have an unpopular opinion here, but I don't think Margaret Rogerson's writing is for me. I liked Sorcery of Thorns but I also DNFed An Enchantment of Ravens.
Vespertine is kinda hard to get into, but if you're looking for a spooky read for Halloween you might like it. This is also a fantasy with no romance, and I think it has aro/ace rep.
I seen this compared to Venom, and the Venom aspect was what I did enjoy. The magic system was kinda cool too but I thought it was a tiny little bit similar to the grimoires in Sorcery of Thorns, maybe it's just me.

I was provided a arc copy of this book by netgalley. the arc is not quite finished and so I won't quote the actual boo. The author has posted on here on Goodreads re: this book and the arc. I won't be getting to fussy about the writing details in this review as she mentions in her note that she is still editing out repetition and etc. Instead I will focus on the story and characters.

this is a YA book. so keeping that in mind I'll be reviewing it on that level as well.

ok now that that is out of the way, onto the book review.

first off. there is zero romance in this book!! yay!! I love this part. I love giving my daughter books that don't feature a romance as the main plot and I am sure she will enjoy this book. The book says 14+ and I would agree 14 would be a good starting age for this book.

the world building was thought out well enough to understand the story, but there were not chapters devoted just to world building. so very much in line with YA expectations of world building and well done.

the characters were fun. the main character is a bit of a reluctant heroine... and her relationship with the revenant is snarky and fun and keeps the book entertaining and provides plot and moves the story along nicely.

I will say who the enemy turned out to be was a fun little twist and the extra background details around the revenants and how they came to be was interesting.

I really enjoyed the idea of this book. with the spirits and their different levels and how they could interact with the human world.

I wish a little more would have been explained about the ravens and the divine at the end of the book. just for my own curiosity. but overall I found the ending satisfying, not left with a cliff hanger. but would still read another if this was to be a series.

This book.... 👏👏
I had a feeling I would enjoy this book based on how much I loved enchantment of ravens. This is, however, a really different read compared to that. I loved the characters and the world, this is definitely a book fit for a spoopy October night. My main complaint was lack of romance, which did not hinder the story at all, its just me complaining because I really did want some. I also got VERY confused in moments based around the hierarchy of spirits, this being an e-arc made it difficult to revisit those pages when I needed to reference the spirit we were talking about in that particular section, I am sure the finished copy will make this much easier. Overall, very minor complaints. The chemistry between Artemesia and the revenant was fantastic, im usually a sucker for a villain playing good guy and this was no different. I'm looking forward to picking up a finished copy to see how it all comes together, and I'm very excited to see a sequel? Maybe?

Thats 4 stars from me - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

My first Margaret Rogerson book was Socery of Thorns, and at first I thought Vespertine was just so similar, but that thought changed very quickly. Her growth as an author is exemplified in every book she writes. The world building was solid, the character development was great and there were so many twists that I never saw coming.

I loved the dialogue and relationship growth between characters. Artemisia was a fun, resilient main character and her relationships with those around her just warmed my heart.

This book was an amazing break from the lone hero trope, and shows that great things can be accomplished when you allow the support of those around you.

Overall (actual, since I can't give half stars) rating: 4.5/5

I do enjoy a standalone fantasy, and while this isn't my favourite of Rogerson's, it was still an interesting take on religious magic. I really enjoyed the relationship between the main character and the revenant (or spirit) she communicated with.

4.5 stars

Artemisia is an introverted and awkward young lady, a product of her unfortunate first 10 years of life. Seeing her gain more insight and awareness of herself emotionally as well as those around her was really delightful. There are a lot of multidimensional characters here.

The magic system was very interesting. It follows the theme of some other recent popular fantasies with the saints and the relics and so forth, but it puts its own spin on things. I found the relics and revenants and all the different spirits in the hierarchy to be fascinating to read about. I'm intrigued to see what happens with them and the old magic not to mention learning about what really happened all those years ago that brought this world to its present moment and government.

I thought this was an excellent entry in a new series, and the book left me craving more. I want to know where she is now. What is she doing? Does Trouble follow (of course).

I read another review that mentions there was no romance, and there wasn't really, but there were seeds planted, at least in my romance-fertile brainmeat. Instead of romance, we get to be excited about evolving friendships and alliances. As a romance lover, I wasn't mad about it. It was enough for me. It was satisfying in a similar way. I can't see this series going from start to finish without a romance happening, but I think the author is taking her time with Artemisia, rightfully so. She has seen some shit, and she really needs to work on herself and know herself better, understand humans in general, human nature and emotions and the world better before she can embark on a romance. I think it's going to be very slow burn and ultimately very rewarding. I hope, at any rate.

Do recommend. Another stellar entry from Margaret Rogerson.

I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars /5

This book was a ride for me. I was really, really into the beginning. The first few chapters had me hooked on the setting , the world building and the main character. I was excited to see where it went and didn’t want to put it down.

Unfortunately shortly after the beginning and then continuing through the middle the story veered off in a direction that just didn’t land with me. It felt like the plot slowed to a crawl and the parts of the world and character I wanted to explore were not being featured.

Happily by the end it came together again and finished on a high note for me. This would have been a five star read for me if the middle was different but it was still good enough overall between the beginning and the end to be a four star read for me. I will continue reading this series.

I enjoyed reading this book. It is a YA fantasy set in a world filled with nuns, ghosts, revenants and spirits fighting for control, kinship and revenge with a young nun Artemisia as the protagonist. This book is a page tuner and I loved the story setting, narrative and the banter between revenant and Artemisia with subtle humor all along. I would recommend this book to all readers who enjoy YA fantasy filled with magic, spirits and super powers.

I *may* have squealed a bit when I got the email saying I was approved to read this book early! I absolutely loved A Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson and was super exited for her upcoming book, Vespertine. And let me tell you – IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT! I seriously can (and have, sorry Mitch) ramble on forever about how much I adored this book, but I hope I can keep my thoughts neat and concise here.

Vespertine follows Artemisia, a young woman living in a remote convent and training to become a Grey Nun. All of the women living at this convent have the Sight, a gift which allows them to see the spirits of those whose souls weren’t able to pass on, causing them to become hostile creatures that are a threat to the living. When her convent is attacked by soldiers posessed by spirits, Artemisia suddenly finds herself weilding a powerful reclic, filled with a powerful spitit called a Revenant. Using the Revenant’s powers, she has to investigate what caused the attack, and who is behind the revival of old magic of Loraille.

First, I need to rant about the characters of Vespertine. I have characters I really like from books, but it has been a long time since a character really truly stuck out to me that I had to declare them as my favourite character forever. To me, that character was the Revenant. 98% of quotes I wished I could highlight and save were Revenant quotes, and you know how people always type “lol” but aren’t actually laughing? The Revenant had me full on cackling at many points throughout the book. But also- and I think anyone else who has worked in customer service will agree wholeheartedly with this- almost everything the Revenant says about humanity really resonated with me after years working in retail.

I couldn’t help but love Artemisia as well. Her transformation throughout the book was gradual as she started to acknowledge and work through her trauma and I felt it was really well-written. All she wants is to live a quiet life that involves as little interactions with others as possible, all while simultaneously wanting a little company (something she gets early on in the book, though unwanted at first). Many of her interactions are awkward and hilarious, though as a socially awkward person myself, I felt seen. She really reminded me of Hana from Fruits Basket, whose actions were often misinterpreted as hostile or scary. Finally, I also wanted to comment on Artemisia’s animal naming abilities, something I and all my former pet fish named Glub Glub (RIP) wish I possessed.

I also adored the setting and world-building. The world was so beautifully described that I could easily imagine myself walking alongside Artemisia. One thing I was surprised about, but that didn’t take away from how I felt about the book, was the lack of romance. This was only a surprise as Rogerson’s two previous books had romance in it. There are hints of potential for it for some of the side characters (or at least, what I thought might be hints… I’m pretty dense in the romance department), but the main focus is more on Artemisia’s relationship with the Revenant and with herself.

This was a book that I struggled a lot with towards the end, but only because I couldn’t wait to finish it and at the same time, didn’t want it to end. I’m so happy it’s a series and seriously can’t wait to read the finished book!