'Vespertine’ is the third young adult fantasy book by Margaret Rogerson, author of ‘An Enchantment of Ravens’ and ‘Sorcery of Thorns‘. Unlike her previous works, ‘Vespertine’ is the start of an intended series – although it works as a standalone, telling a complete and intriguing story. Chronicling the life of a nun who can see spirits, parts are reminiscent of stories like ‘The Raven Boys’ and ‘Ninth House‘, but overall ‘Vespertine’ is a unique and compelling tale set in a creative world with huge potential for the rest of the series.

In Loraille, the dead do not rest, rising as vengeful spirits with an insatiable hunger for the living. Those who can see spirits are bound to become nuns – cleansing the bodies of the deceased so that their spirits can pass on – or soldiers, protecting the masses from the undead threat. Artemisia is training to become a Grey Sister – but when her convent is attacked by possessed soliders, she finds herself awakening an ancient spirit to protect it. The spirit threatens to possess her the moment she drops her guard – but with an unknown threat controlling Loraille’s dead, working with the spirit and becoming a Vespertine might be her only change to save Loraille. As Artemisia travels across Loraille, she and the spirit start to reach an understanding. But the more Artemisia learns – and the closer they become – the more she’s forced to question everything she’s been taught, including whether she’s on the right side.

The worldbuilding is one of the best parts of the book. Loraille is run by a religious order worshipping the Lady and her chosen Saints – seven women who defeated the Revenants, the strongest of the undead spirits, and bound spirits to their will. The Saints are all long dead, but their power lives on in relics – objects containing a bound spirit, allowing its power to be harnessed. Rogerson avoids info-dumping, yet the story is never confusing – the worldbuilding is woven seamlessly into the narrative, with enough revealed to allow understanding yet plenty kept in the dark to maintain a sense of intrigue. Loraille feels European in inspiration, with the Clerisy sharing aspects with the Catholic Church, but there are enough differences to feel fresh. The system of dead spirits and their differing powers is also well crafted – simple in concept, thus easy to understand, but executed with impeccable atmosphere. The overall effect is a spooky book, dark in places, with a perfect combination of mystery and exposition.

Artemisia is a solid main character, but the best part about her is the contrast between her personality and that of the spirit she binds herself to. Artemisia is a survivor. Possessed by a vengeful spirit as a baby, she was rescued by the nuns – but only after her entire family died in mysterious circumstances, leaving Artemisia physically scarred and the rest of her community blaming her for their deaths. As a result, Artemisia is feared and avoided, with few friends and little knowledge of how to interact with others. She’s prickly and stubborn, with a reckless disregard for her own safety – but she’s also caring and loyal, as much as she tries to hide it. The spirit is the first companion Artemisia has ever really had – and whilst neither of them trust the other, the way their relationship grows, driven by mutual loneliness, is incredible to read. Its amazing how Artemisia’s view of herself finally starts to change as the spirit points out how differently she regards herself and others.

Unusually for a young adult fantasy, there’s no romance in this book. There are several characters who, in other books, might have developed into love interests, but Rogerson chooses to instead focus entirely on the underlying plot and Artemisia’s growth and development as an individual. Personally, I loved this – its nice seeing a story with the confidence to stand alone without relying on a romantic subplot to add interest, and it never feels necessary. If you’re not a fan of romance, this is definitely the book for you.

Rogerson has mentioned that there will be a few edits to the pose and flow in the final version that haven’t appeared in the advanced copy. As it stands, ‘Vespertine’ is an excellent read but one that doesn’t quite have the magic of ‘Sorcery of Thorns’. Its hard to pin down exactly what is missing – but its possible that with edits that magic will be captured again so I’m excited to read the final version when it publishes.

Overall, ‘Vespertine’ is an intriguing tale about ghosts, survival, and secrets set in a compelling alternative medieval Europe. Recommended for fans of creative young adult and adult fantasy, books without romance, and exceptional character growth.

Brilliant. Awesome. Loved it! I am so glad I received an ARC of this book.

It was my first time reading anything by Rogerson but I can safely say it will not be the last! Vespertine gripped me from the very beginning and had me laughing throughout. I love a certain sassy relationship and kind of wish there was more to read.

I am hoping there is a book that will return to this world, it was so good!

Vespertine is the third book by Margaret Rogerson and is the first in a duology. I loved Sorcery of Thorns and liked An Enchantment of Ravens so I had no doubt that this book would be amazing and it really was!

From the moment I met Artemisia, I fell in love with her character and her attitudes towards people. I related quite a bit to her character which made me quite happy. Now, when I met the Priest, my mind went straight to Nathaniel from Sorcery of Thorns, I instantly got the same vibes however as the story continued, those vibes disappeared which was a relief as it meant I wasn't just reading the same character with just a plot change. It was refreshing.

Plot wise, I absolutely loved it. There is no romance which is something I'm growing to love and this book does it perfectly.

The mental health rep in this book was on point. I would have been disappointed if there wasn't any mental health rep given what our main character went through in her past.

All in all this was an amazing book that may leave you in tears of anger, astonishment, amazement or may just leave you broken.

Well again this author has done it! I was hooked and held onto this story with everything I had!

Artemisa is a young grey sister and helps cleanse the dead and prepares their bodies until one day her carefully isolated world is shattered and she takes a powerful spirit, a revenant. But is captured by Leander, a Clerisy Confesser.

So now Artemisa has to escape Leander, who has taken her and isn't really the nicest of chaps!

I don't want to say much more about the plot apart from that this book had such great secondary characters Charles, Rathie, Jean, Marguerite and a lovely horse called Priestbane.

There is one character who deserves a special mention and that's the revenant. I loved him and, the same with all weird type things in books, I want one!! His dry, sarcastic sense of humour had me smiling all through this book!

'If there’s one thing I’ve learned about humans, it’s that your kind loves to gossip. Nuns are no exception, by the way. The ancient and terrible knowledge I harbor about Sister Prunelle’s bunions would make even you beg for mercy.'

The world building was just enough and I loved the hierarchy of the spirits and their Order.

The ending isn't a cliffhanger at all so I'm wondering where the next book will take us!

Review of Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson

💀No spoilers💀

Synopsis

The dead of Loraille do not rest.

Artemisia is training to be a Gray Sister, a nun who cleanses the bodies of the deceased so that their souls can pass on. She’d rather deal with the dead than the living, who point and whisper about the odd girl who was once possessed by a violent spirit.

When her convent is attacked by possessed soldiers, Artemisia fights back by awakening an ancient spirit bound to a high saint’s relic. It is a revenant, a malevolent being now whispering in her head. Wielding its extraordinary power almost consumes her in body and soul. But death has come to Loraille, and only a vespertine, a priestess trained to wield a high relic, has a chance of stopping it.

As Artemisia investigates a mystery of saints, secrets and dark magic, an ancient evil is stirring. Can an untrained girl, tormented by the burden of containing the revenant’s devouring power, have any hope of defeating it?

💀💀💀💀💀

This is the first book by Margaret Rogerson that I’ve read but I will immediately be picking up Sorcery of Thorns and An Enchantment of Ravens.

Artemisia is a great main character. Scarred by her tragic childhood, she is uniquely gifted to be able to wield the power of the Revenant that she releases, but whether or not she can trust it is another matter.

The characterisation and world building in this book are brilliant. I was immediately drawn in and I could not put it down. The story unfolds at a fast pace, with multiple twists and reveals keeping the reader guessing until the end. I loved the various relationships in this book.

I will 100%be pre-ordering the @fairyloot edition of Vespertine.

Vespertine is released on the 28th of September this year. Go pre-order it!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I received a copy of Vespertine from @netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Net Galley and Simon & Schuster and of course Margaret Rogerson for a ARC of this book in exchange for an honest Review.

This is my first Margaret Rogerson and wow did i love it !! I have had her others on my TBR for so long and not got around to then I certainly will be now !

Brilliant story and I didn't want it to end can't wait for the next book. The relationship between Artemisia and The Revenant was fantastic. I am looking forward to where their relationship will go next.

Undeniably thrilling and absolutely addictive! Vespertine has all the richly detailed and lyrical prose of Rogerson’s previous works but with a darker edge—we’re talking ravenous souls, martyred saints and ancient spirits. The Perfect read for spooky season!

“The dead of Loraille do not rest.”

Artemisia is training to be a Gray Sister, a nun who cleanses the bodies of the deceased so their souls pass on (stopping the spirits from rising with a ravenous hunger for the living.) She would rather deal with the dead who (unlike the living) don’t trade whispers about her scarred hands and troubled past.

But when her convent is attacked, Artemisia has not choice but to awaken an ancient spirit,bound to a saints relic in order to save it. For the spirit is a revenant, a malevolent being possessing great power—and controlling it almost consumes her.

But death sweeps the country and only a Vespertine, a priestess trained to wield a high relic, has any chance at stopping it. With all knowledge of Vespertines lost to time, Artemisia turns to the last remaining expert for help:the revenant.

As she unravels the sinister mystery causing the dark magic, her bond with the revenant grows. And when a hidden evil resurfaces, she discovers she just might have to betray everything she was taught to believe—if the revenant doesn’t betray her first...

Honestly I am absolutely in love with this book, words cannot do justice to how amazing I thought it was. The world building was superb,the setting was rich in detail and the descriptions both vivid and immersive!

Artemisia is a wonderfully complex protagonist that will certainly tug on your heart strings,her bond with the revenant (and their dynamics throughout the novel) were also really intriguing and undeniably entertaining. I literally cannot wait for the sequel!

Overall, this was an incredibly enjoyable story that I definitely think will appeal to fans of YA Dark Fantasy and Rogerson’s previous book Sorcery of Thorns.

Also, thanks to Simon&Schuster and NetGalley for the ARC.

I am, unfortunately, DNFing this book around the 60 page mark. Margaret Rogerson’s writing can be pretty hit or miss for me and Vespertine was sadly a miss.

By the 50 page mark, I need to feel some kind of connection to the characters, world, or magic system to push through and didn’t feel that with Vespertine. I can absolutely see where Margaret Rogerson was going with the story, but I was just struggling to get along with the writing style. This is totally subjective, personal preference, though.

I would absolutely still recommend this for anyone who loved An Enchantment of Ravens or Sorcery of Thorns or is looking for a slightly darker YA Fantasy. Since the writing was my biggest struggle here, I’ll revisit the story when the audiobook is released.

This was an enjoyable YA Fantasy and I'm glad I picked it up. It didn't grab me the same way Sorcery of Thorns did, which was a bit of a disappointment. But honestly most of the new fantasy releases I've been reading ended up as one or two star books so I'm just glad I read something that didn't infuriate me.

This book has a lot going on for it. For starter, the book features a matriarchal theocracy. I thought the idea was interesting, though I could've used more in depth exploration of religion. But in general I was glad to see something different from the same old type of government we always see in fantasy. The lore was also interesting. I liked that the author tried to expand the idea of ghosts and spirit. It remind me of Gideon the Ninth in that both books tried to be super creative with necromancy ( but I prefer Gideon's take on it a bit more )

The best thing about the book is the banter between the MC and the revenant. He's so funny and sarcastic and cute. He reminded me a bit of crawly in Supernatural so I really liked him. I also liked the MC's friendship with another girl that at first seemed like a mean girl, but soon we saw other parts of her.

There are some other things that I didn't like. For instance, I had difficulty visualising the fight scenes were the MC was using revenant's power, which is a shame because the thing I loved the most about Sorcery was that I could clearly visualise everything and I just couldn't get enough of all the descriptions. The MC has also some saint-like quality that plagues all the YA heroine. You know the type, oh I have to save everyone or die trying, oh I couldn't save everyone so it was my fault even though someone else is clearly responsible. Yeah, I don't like that type of heroine, but those parts were thankfully limited in this book.

Also there was no romance in this book. I think a lot of readers ( like me ) are just expecting an obligatory romance in every YA Fantasy. I honestly don't know what to think about it. I usually prefer romance to be there. but also if it doesn't make sense, it's better to not have it at all. In this case, I think the author wants to build a more nuanced relationship between the MC and the person I suspect is going to be the love interest in later books, so perhaps it's better that there was no hint of romance here.

Just to be clear three stars isn't a low rating for me. I'm very picky so 4 and 5 stars are the ones that are really special.
Bottom line is, I enjoyed it but it didn't blow me away. I do think it is one of the better fantasy releases of this year though. So there's that too.

3.75 stars

Vespertine is Margaret Rogerson's latest book, following the story of Artemisia, a magical nun who is able to see spirit, ghosts and the more sinster revenants. It is the responsibility of the nuns (known as Grey Sisters) to help prepare the bodies of the deceased so the spirits can pass on peacefully and not become the Dead, souls which linger and cause varing levels of mischief and destruction. When the convent is attacked by possessed soldiers, Artemisia fights back by awakening an ancient spirit bound to a high saint’s relic. It is a revenant, a malevolent being now whispering in her head whom she must learn to control. It is up to Artemesia to try and figure out what is really going on and discover her true destiny. Set in Loraille, a ficitional world which felt very reminiscent of France, the gothic vibes were excellent.

My favourite part of this book was the banter and slow burn friendship between Artemisia and the revenant that lives inside her. I feel like the book could have been called how to train your revenant (or even how to train your human lol lets be realistic about who's in charge), I loved this element of the stroy - seeing how two very different beings have to work together, I always love spirit characters and the nun having to wrangle the revenants more muderous urges were all so much fun. (Also as a massive fan of the stormlight archive it reminded me a lot of the spren/radiant dynamics which i lovvvvveee)

My main criticism of this book was that Artemisia was so bland of a protagonist lol, she literally had no personality - I think if I had liked her more this book could have easily been 5 stars becasue the atmosphere, setting and story were all impecable.

One thing I thought was really refreshing and nice to see was a YA fantasy book without any romance in it. I do love a bit of romance but I often feel in YA fantasy especially it misses the mark and is just there for the sake of it, so it was really nice to see the story standing on its own merit without needing to force in an unessecary romance. I did really like the focus on friendships, I thought it nicely highlighted some less talked about aspects of friendship and different kinds of friends we make through different situations and circumstances in life.

Margaret Rogerson's prose is always lovely, it's such a cosy comforting read whilst having some really beautiful imagery and sentenences and she really knows how to create an atmosphere. The concept of this book I loved so much - the idea of magical ghost nuns in a french style countryside, with all sorts of creepy atmosphere and ghostly shennanigans really appeals to me and I think this book would be perfect to read around october time!!

In conclusion I really enjoyed reading this, the main let down for me was the main character being an absolute wet dishtowel but the setting, writing and atmosphere made up for it so overall I had a good time reading.

This was a phenomenal read. The world building is done so brilliantly and the hierarchy of the spirits is super interesting. This book is a great dark fantasy. It was brilliantly paced and the characters were well developed. I really loved how the author handled mental illness in a fantasy setting and our MC struggles with anxiety and it's handled extremely well. I enjoyed this story and I loved that it didn't end on a cliffhanger and I felt satisfied with the ending (having said that I can't wait for the next one already and I will devour it ). This was giving me American Horror Story and Supernatural vibes. I know the author has apologized on good reads for how the tone of the book can come across and that she is working on a rewrite but I really enjoyed the book and I feel that the mental health issues our MC faces has a real sense of authenticity and I didn't mind the darkness of the story.

Firstly, I would like to give a huge thankyou to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster UK Children’s for granting my request for the eARC of Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

On hearing about a new book by Margaret Rogerson, I knew that I had to read it…I’ve never been disappointed by any of her work and she has been so honest and clear in her communication that the ARC is definitely not the final product, and apologised profusely for the prose and word repetition.

Vespertine is very much a dark and atmospheric story that focuses on and is told primarily from the PoV of the protagonist Artemisia. Artemisia is a Grey Sister (a nun) in training, who has lived in a convent since she was a child, and helps in the purification of the dead to prevent their souls from returning as evil spirits. There is a lot more to Artemisia’s back story, but spoilers…I can tell you that Artemisia is a very introverted and socially awkward character, who struggles with socially functioning behaviour and also appears to suffer from severe anxiety and confidence issues.

We meet Artemisia in her teens as she is faced with a choice to remain as she is or make a complete change in her life, but at this point her convent is attacked by evil spirits and Artemisia is left with no choice but to use a saint’s relic containing a powerful spirit (a Revenant) to protect her convent. However, by doing this Artemisia has a whole new fight on her hands, she now needs to defend herself body and soul from being possessed by the revenant!

The effects of these events and their impact on Artemisia are significant and Rogerson doesn’t hold back from examining them, particularly Artemisia’s anxiety as she becomes infamous for her defence of the convent. This was huge for me, for once the protagonist isn’t an all round full of confidence, perky and indomitably positive bundle of joy and determination!

In addition to the deftness and skill with which Rogerson illustrates Artemisia’s social and psychological character, it was refreshing to have a protagonist with a physical disability. Artemisia has significant scarring and damage to her hands that impact on her fine motor skills, which is referenced with regard to the time required to tie up her boots and that she has had to develop her own ways to make her hands work for her, including how to fight with her dagger.

This book isn’t due to be released until Autumn, but I think that this is perfect. It will be a brilliant spooky Halloween read, and I can’t wait to get my hands on the gorgeous candles and goodies that this book will definitely inspire.
If you love an atmospheric and gothic story that is beautifully told and that doesn’t flinch from the not so pretty aspects, then you definitely want to read this. If you love candles, incense and rituals, get this on your pre-order. If you love books that don’t cling to the standard rigid path and are more inclusive, then you need to read this.

Don’t expect romance, don’t expect happy ever afters, but do expect a great story, fantastic world building, architecture and infrastructure, including a hierarchy of spirits. It’s a great book with a great degree of inclusivity and definitely a book I will be reading again! And if there are to be more - I want them NOW!

Thank you to Simon and Schuster for allowing me to read this eARC of 'Vespertine' by Margaret Rogerson. In return, I am providing a review purely based on my own opinion.

I adore Margaret Rogerson. Before being blessed with this eARC, I had and still have this book preordered in hardback and will happily read this again. The book itself is of a gothic nature and I just love the way Rogerson wrote this book. It was a slow paced book but that is common with Rogerson's writing style and I feel like it just added to the gothic tropes and just made everything nicer. I really loved this read and I cant wait to read it again when my order comes.

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster UK Children’s for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Vespertine is a dark atmospheric book focusing on Artemisia. She is a Grey Sister (a nun) in training. She lives in a convent where she helps prepare the dead and purified their bodies so their souls don’t return as evil spirits. The convent is attacked by possessed soldiers and Artemisia is forced to use a saint’s relic containing a powerful spirit (a revenant). By doing this she becomes a Vespertine a priestess who wields a saints relic. This makes her a divine figure of legend. Vespertine’s haven’t been around for years. Artemisia must now fight to work with and not be possessed by the revenant while they search for and fight the dark forces plaguing Loraille.

I really enjoyed this book I know it won’t be officially released until October but it will be a perfect spooky fall read. The incense, spirits, candles, rituals and cathedrals set the tone for a perfectly dark gothic atmosphere.

I loved Artemisia’s personality. She has always felt like an outcast with her scars and introverted personality. I definitely relate to her after she is plunged into the spotlight. After being recognized as a Vespertine she struggled multiple times with large crowds and being gregarious. It was refreshing that the MC wasn’t the most popular most loved bubbly sparkly character. I also really appreciated that Margaret wrote Artemisia as a heroine with a disability. She struggled with some delicate motor skills due to her scars on her hands but she found her own ways to use her hands and was a great fighter with her dagger.

The side characters were also really well written. I absolutely loved the revenant. It had the best banter with Artemisia. It was hilarious and I loved their eventual (dare I say??) friendship. The revenant is so witty and needs its own talk show or advice column. Artemisia’s friendship with Marguerite was also great I loved seeing them create a true friendship. They bicker and have misunderstandings but like each other for their differences. Artemisia is stubborn and is used to being alone so she doesn’t welcome any type of friendship. It’s great seeing her growth with each side character and eventually learn that despite how she perceives herself, she is worthy of real friends. There is no romance in this book at all and I usually enjoy romance but with this book it really worked. I didn’t feel that it was missing anything relationship wise.

Overall I would definitely recommend this book it is so unique and unlike anything I’ve ever read but in a good way. The magic system was one of my favorite things. I loved the concept of relics and the hierarchy of spirits. I am so excited that it will be a series and I can’t wait for the next!

When it comes to emotive storytelling, layered characters and beautiful descriptions, Margaret Rogerson never fails. I was SO excited to read Vespertine after enjoying her previous books and was immediately intrigued by the premise. I love a bit of gothic atmosphere in a novel and Vespertine delivered on that part. Our MC Artemisia definitely is *going through it* in the story. After becoming a vessel to a legendary (and hilariously grumpy) revenant she sets off to unravel a plot involving spirits, corruption and dark magic. The setting is reminiscent of medieval France and isn’t lacking in gothic and magical details in both the setting and the religious iconography. My favourite part of this novel was hands down the exploration of anxiety and PTSD in Artemisia. As a young child she was possessed by a spirit and was forced to undergo untold trauma at its hands, trauma that continues to haunt her and makes her wary of other people and certain spaces. Rogerson handles that delicate topic with a gentle touch, showing a protagonist that recognises her trauma and is learning to overcome it. Her growing friendships with side characters and the revenant was beautiful to watch and left room for continued growth. The only point that might deter some readers is there is no romance in Vespertine. I thought this might be a sticking point for me as I usually need a romance plot thread to keep me interested, but didn’t find that to be a problem in this novel. I believe Artemisia’s character growth would’ve been inhibited or changed with a love interest and found the lack of one surprisingly refreshing. Overall I greatly enjoyed Vespertine and rated it 4.5/5 stars!

I am SO SO HAPPY I was approved to read and review this early. Thank you SO MUCH to Netgalley and the publisher, I cannot express how grateful I am.

I loved Margaret Rogerson’s first two books (an enchantment of ravens and sorcery of thorns) and this did not disappoint!

This is Rogerson’s first series! I cannot wait to read the following books! This is genuinely amazing I’m having trouble putting my feelings into coherent words.

Something to note: contrary to Rogerson’s previous books, Vespertine does not have any romance. However, future books may change that so don’t hold it against this initial book!

*eARC exchanged for an honest review

I honestly loved this book. The vibes, the characters, the plot. All fresh and unique to me.
Definitely my favourite Margaret Rogerson book.

Perfect for spooky season which is when it’s published too.

I love fantasy books that have a political/religious narrative - as it really allows for the world building to be spot on.

I have seen some other reviews saying they didn’t enjoy it as much as there’s no romance. I am led to believe that the main character is aroace (not specifically stated in the book however).
The ‘romance plot’ or lack thereof did NOT bother me at all because I have latched onto the revenant. I adore it/them and it’s/their humour and dry sarcasm. There was definitely a connection between artemisia and the revenant so perhaps I just honed in on that.