The Book:
Title: Vespertine
Author: Margaret Rogerson
Published October 5th 2021 by Margaret K. McElderry Books
Genre: Fantasy, YA
Pages: 400
“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; otherwise, they will rise as spirits with a ravenous hunger for the living. She would rather deal with the dead than the living, who trade whispers about her scarred hands and troubled past.
When her convent is attacked by possessed soldiers, Artemisia defends it by awakening an ancient spirit bound to a saint’s relic. It is a revenant, a malevolent being that threatens to possess her the moment she drops her guard. Wielding its extraordinary power almost consumes her—but death has come to Loraille, and only a vespertine, a priestess trained to wield a high relic, has any chance of stopping it. With all knowledge of vespertines lost to time, Artemisia turns to the last remaining expert for help: the revenant itself.
As she unravels a sinister mystery of saints, secrets, and dark magic, her bond with the revenant grows. And when a hidden evil begins to surface, she discovers that facing this enemy might require her to betray everything she has been taught to believe—if the revenant doesn’t betray her first.” -Goodreads
My Review:
Sadly, this book was not as great as Rogerson’s other books I have read. I want to say that it was my fault because I paused in between reading it for like two months. So hopefully that is all my fault.
The beginning was a little confusing. There was not enough exposition. I also think throughout the book points of the plot were not explained well enough so I was confused about the overall plot.
Ugh, I feel so bad. Rogerson is one of my favorite authors, and I hate to put her down.
I still love the book, mostly because of her, but it just was not the best.
The premise was great. I loved how unique it was, but I didn’t get half of the background. The magic/religious stuff was not explained well.
I loved the main character and the revenant that occupies her body. They are great characters. They work well together, if not a little reluctantly.
I think the side character should have been more developed and less static. I think the main character had no real growth. I also have been loving the romance in Rogerson’s books. This did not have any.
I know this review is short, but honestly, I don’t have anything to say. I don’t think it was that great. And I am so sad about that. But, I still am rating it more than I normally would, because I love the author.
As always, thanks for reading,
A Bookie
Star Rating: 3.5