This book was a great debut. The book was inventive and really kept the story flowing. I really enjoyed the cahracters and the way the story was told. I recommend this book.

A house in the woods in Vermont. A research base in Antarctica. An old estate in England. Magic, mystery, and blood bind these places together just as surely as they bind Esther, Joanna, and Nicholas. In a matter of days, the three of them must untangle decades (sometimes centuries) worth of family lies and secrets in order to find a truth that will keep them alive. Mystery, romance, magic, atmosphere, this book really has everything. I've already reread it once, and I'm know I'll reread it again. Emma Torz takes the reader on a brilliant voyage through a dark world of magic hidden in plain sight. In libraries, museums, and used bookstores the magic books are waiting to be found, to be read. And while almost anyone could read one aloud and release the magic, only some people know how to recognize them, and even less are capable of writing them. This is a story about the lengths one would go through. For family, for power, for connection, for the truth. These characters are easy to love (and hate), flaws and all. The story doesn't just take a few twists and turns, it darted down back alleys and between buildings. Highly recommend for creepy mystery vibes.

This is dark, magical, and intellectually rich fantasy with gothic flair. It follows two sisters—one raised in isolation to protect magical books, the other embedded in a secret magical society—and the slow unraveling of their family’s legacy. The worldbuilding is meticulous, and the writing is absolutely gorgeous. I especially loved the themes around memory, protection, and the costs of knowledge. It’s a little slow in places, but worth it for the layered character work and unique magic system. Fans of The Starless Sea or The Ten Thousand Doors of January will feel right at home.

Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Törzs is a captivating blend of magical realism and literary fantasy that immerses readers in a world where books are not merely read but wielded as powerful tools of magic. The story follows estranged half-sisters Joanna and Esther, who reunite after their father's mysterious death to protect their family's collection of enchanted books.
Törzs' writing is both lush and precise, creating a world that feels both familiar and otherworldly. The characters are richly developed, each with their own complexities and growth arcs. The pacing, while deliberate, allows for a deep exploration of themes such as loyalty, betrayal, and the power of storytelling. The novel's structure, shifting between different perspectives, adds layers of intrigue and depth to the narrative.​
While some readers may find the slow build-up challenging, those who appreciate intricate world-building and character-driven plots will find Ink Blood Sister Scribe to be a rewarding and thought-provoking read. It's a standout debut that promises great things from Emma Törzs in the future.

Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Torzs. Pub Date: May 30, 2023. Rating: 2 stars. Honestly, I went in with high hopes for this novel due to the interesting premise but it did not work for me. Two half sisters guarding their family's library of magical books sounded like a wild ride, but I found the writing to be very juvenile and not as engaging as I hoped it would be. The pacing is really slow and did not keep my interest. The cover is beautiful though! Thanks to #netgalley and #williammorrow for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Such a unique fantasy story. I loved the magic system, writing magic books with your blood was intriguing but also that someone else had to read the spells with their blood. It was a well fleshed out story for a stand alone and it kept me entertained. I want to know the spells in every book!
The characters were interesting and each of their storylines made me want more.

Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Törzs is such an atmospheric and magical read—it had me hooked from the start. It’s about two sisters, Joanna and Esther, who are estranged but share the responsibility of guarding a mysterious library of magical, and sometimes dangerous, books. When tragedy pulls them back together, they’re forced to unravel secrets about their family and the powerful magic tied to their legacy.

The world-building is so vivid, and I loved how the story balances dark magic with deeply emotional moments. The alternating perspectives kept the tension high, and the characters felt so real—flawed, complex, and easy to root for. It’s a story about family, loyalty, and the power of storytelling itself, all wrapped up in a suspenseful, beautifully written package.

If you’re into books with a mix of mystery, magic, and emotional depth, I’d definitely recommend this one. It’s such a unique and immersive read!

I loved this one so much more than I thought I would. The unique story drew me in and I quickly became invested in the characters' stories.

I was really looking forward to this book, but it took me forever to get through even half of it. I also tried doing it on audio and it was slow for me so unfortunately, I DNF'd. I can see why people enjoyed this book a lot, I just wasn't one of them.

✨ Review ✨ Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Törzs

Thanks to William Morror and #netgalley for the gifted advanced copy/ies of this book!

This one's been in my top backlist books to tackle this year and I'm so delighted I did. It has a slow start with a lot to mentally juggle as we jump into this world, but when it picks up steam, it really gets going!

This is a hard one to summarize without giving away info, but I loved how this featured sisters with very different relationships to magic and this whole world of magic via old books and limited uses.

I loved how all the characters came together in this book and could have kept reading for hundreds more pages as they adventured together. Absolutely adored this one!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: magic in the real world style of fantasy
Setting: London, Vermont, Antarctica
Pub Date: 2023

Read this if you like:
⭕️ family dramas + fantasy
⭕️ new magical systems
⭕️ sister bonds
⭕️ old books

If you like books, magic, family fantasy and intrigue, this is a book you pretty much have to read. The characters are easy to follow and stand out on their own, the story itself is very inventive, and I honestly did not see everything coming.

This book feels like a great blend of dark academia, fantasy, and a little bit of mystery. It also reminds me of a book I read a little while ago called The Book Eaters and I loved that one too, so it was definitely a good sign when this one reminded me of that book right away. This is the story of two sisters, Joanna and Esther, who have been separated, but share a common goal of protecting their family's magical books from those who seek to collect and use them for nefarious purposes. While Joanna lives in her family home where the library is and Esther is never in one place for a long time and is unable to return home. In addition to their POVs, the reader gets Nicholas's POV, who is another magical librarian, also trying to keep his library safe. Nicholas is the last remaining scribe who can actually write new books.

It did take me a little bit to get into the story and understand where all the characters were at the start, but once the plot got going, I was fully immersed. The writing was really well done and I really enjoyed reading this book. The way the magic of the books is incorporated into the story is fantastic and I think the lyrical writing really lends well to this type of story. The villains were also really well written and as the reader I could see how the villains manipulated the main characters and tried to obtain the magical books. Each POV also had a distinct voice and helped separate the main characters and their personalities a bit. I had a great time reading this book and I'm so glad I buddy read this with a friend!

4.5 stars!

The Kalotay family has protected a rare collection of magical books for years, with the youngest daughter Joanna having the power to feel the magic in the books and the ability to cast ward spells to hide their home. While the eldest daughter, Esther, is immune to magic and therefore a liability to her families' safety so she runs from home and must leave every place after a year or risk exposure to their secrets. However, the magic crafting father received a book that killed him and Joanna's mother left after Esther out of anger for losing her daughter. So, Joanna feels alone, while others are conspiring to find Esther and maybe for more than just her immunity to magic.

This was a very cool magic system that also deals greatly in colonial violence and theft of culture and heritage. The "Library" either buys or steals all of the magical books and has made sure only their family has a scribe in order to control all magic. Nicholas, the Scribe, is kept under lock and key at the mass estate of the Library being bled to ink books into being (magical books). He has an uncle who cares for him, a caretaker named Maram, and a bodyguard named Collins. However, things seem suspicious and you can tell that Nicholas is using too much blood without enough recovery time to regain strength. The Library is very suspicious, as all big institutions that horde knowledge should be.

Meanwhile, in Antarctica, Esther finally feels her life sort of fall into place and is hoping that what her father told her about staying on the run was false. She has met someone she thinks she could love and wants to stay. But, suspicious things begin to happen involving mirrors and she worries she put her love and trust in the wrong person.

I think that there was a lot of story building that happened in this book for a future novel. There is a cat connected to Joanna that I think is more than it appears. There are groups working outside of the Library that use magic and seem like covens. I am hopeful that this is not the only book in this world as I had a lot I was interested in learning that was unconnected to this storyline. I would like to know more about who can do what, why there are only a few scribes, why some people can read magic while others cannot. It is definitely a captivating world with characters who jump from the page and make you empathetic to their plight and to their desire to see magic wielded by more than just a few. Knowledge is power, but it is a power that should be shared with the powerless.

My favourite part of the novel is the bond between the sisters. Joanna is upset with Esther for leaving her without explanation, but Esther was doing it to protect her sister. So, when they reconnect it is both a relief for the two but also they have had years apart and all this distance created. But the novel is also about familial obligation, familial power, and parents misusing their children or withholding vital information from their children. It is that idea that you must protect your children, but at the cost of them not knowing about what is out there, what might want to hurt them, or about knowing who they really are. Family can be both soothing and painful.

My favourite relationship was between Nicholas and Collins, lord and servant. As Nicholas mistrusts everyone around him and he knows Collins is only there as a paid job. But, as Collins begins to help Nicholas out of his predicament with the Library, you realize that maybe he is truly working to help Nicholas out and not his family. They eventually have this easy bond build between them, that could be considered familial (brotherly). Both care for each other and do not want harm to come to the other. Also, Nicholas's dog loving Collins almost more than Nicholas is adorable. So, with the two sisters, these four become a found family that pushes back against what their parents and other family members have done for the sake of "knowledge," "safety," and "control."

This book was propulsive and bewitching. I loved the four main characters and genuinely feared for their well being. I did not care for the romantic plot between two of them, as I felt it added nothing to the story. However, I loved where the novel ended up and am intrigued to know more about this world and those four in particular.

OMG SO GOOD. I can’t believe I put this off so long, this is an absolutely wonderful blend of magic and family drama. It has the ineffable charm of a good page turner. I truely put this off thinking it would be more dense than it was. Still as serious as the premise and as grim as some moments are I could not put this down. Brilliant.

INK BLOOD SISTER SCRIBE by Emma Törzs had been on my shelf for over a year and I debated selling it or getting rid of it a few times and something (the book gods??) prevented me from doing so and IM SO GLAD.

This book reminded me so much of Practical Magic but make it a sweeping, harrowing adventure! It also was strikingly similar to THE BOOK OF DOORS, which I read last month.

Basically, there are three main characters and the book alternates between their perspectives. Ester was told she can never stay in one place for too long or else it puts her and her family in danger, so she’s literally in Antarctica. Her sister Joanna has the opposite job — she’s basically a shut in remaining in their childhood home protecting it and its collection of spell books.

Meanwhile on the other side of the pond, Nicholas is the last scribe alive and spends most of his day heavily protected by his bodyguard Collins and toiling over writing spell books. When his life is threatened one evening, he begins an adventure that coincides with the sisters too.

At no point in this 400+ page book was I bored!! I loved all of the characters sooooo much and was rooting each of them on! Would 10/10 devour a movie or tv show adaptation.

Seriously if this is on your shelves, start it today! It’s also probably available at your library — the audiobook (which was fab) was available immediately for me!

It took me a while to get into this book, as the beginning just didn't grab me (not sure why!). However, once I got a few chapters in, I was hooked! The characters were really well-developed and the story line was fresh (or at least fresh for me). It was more than just books and magic; it was intrigue and family and finding oneself through being vulnerable. Definitely recommend.

"Ink Blood Sister Scribe" feels fresh when compared to so many other dark academia fantasy novels. There's a lot of those out there, to be sure, but Torzs's debut is truly one of the better ones I've read. I feel like the author leaves the door cracked open for a continuation of the story -- perhaps she'll turn it into a series -- and if she does, I'm there for it. Another book with Esther, Joanna, and Nicholas in it would make me a very happy reader.


My sincerest appreciation to Emma Torzs, William Morrow, and NetGalley for the digital review copy. All thoughts and opinion included herein are my own.

I really wanted to love this one more that I did. Unfortunately it took me FOREVER to get through, I just simply could not get invested in the characters and story line. It was definitely a slow burn but didn't lead up to anything exciting or shocking, making it just not worth it. Definitely didn't get deep enough into the romantic aspect either, felt so rushed and brushed aside when it definitely could have been used to help build some connection between the characters and the reader. The ending felt like it should have been a big reveal, but by the time I got to it I just was so checked out didn't really care.

I was very eager to get my hands on a copy of Ink Blood Sister Scribe, but shortly after I got my review copy I learned that this book contains animal cruelty and death, which are my two biggest triggers. I so wish I had known beforehand, as I never would have requested this book otherwise. I respectfully encourage publishers and authors to make trigger warnings available, especially for early readers who have no safety net and can't search reviews for trigger warnings. I understand that some people see these as spoilers, but this would have been very damaging for me to have read. Even just a note to check the author's website would have sufficed, but I went looking on this author's site and found no content information. I am so grateful that I was given the opportunity to read this early, but I will unfortunately not be able to read it at all.

I absolutely loved Ink Blood Sister Scribe and feel terrible that my review is going up so late. I devoured this book in one sitting and have caught myself thinking about it several times since finishing last year. I was completely engaged with the story line, the characters and the magic. My local library is hosting a book club next month discussing this book and I can't wait to discuss it with other readers. Thank you to Netgalley and William Morrow for the digital ARC.