Vespertine: Review

Vespertine Published by Margaret K. McElderry Books by Margaret Rogerson
Series: Vespertine #1
on October 5, 2021
Genres: Fantasy, Magic, Fiction, Paranormal, YA
Pages: 400
Source: Netgalley
Format: ARC, eBook
Find the Author: Website, Twitter, Goodreads, Instagram, Tumblr
Find the Book: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

ISBN: 153447711X
Rating:

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.

This book was an entirely unique experience from page one. I couldn’t help but be sucked into the story and unable to read anything else.

Artemesia, the main character, is a nun. Not just any nun. In this world, nuns are responsible for making sure that dead bodies brought to them, don’t come back–as evil spirits. They’re called Gray Sisters. And the spirits they encounter can be levels one, through level five.

Artemesia, from the beginning, has a noticeable talent and skill at her job. And yet she is different than the other girls. This is due to her past–being possessed as a small child. Because of this, and her ability to fight that possession, Artemesia is special.

She is tested beyond all, however, when there is an attack on the convent and she must harbor the Revenant–a stronger spirit than she’s ever encountered.

I wasn’t expecting to like the revenant. But the relationship between the revenant and Artemesia served to bring a certain amount of levity throughout a story with a pretty serious plot.

This is a little outside the box for me, as there was no romance in this story. But, that wasn’t as big of an issue as I would’ve guess because I absolutely loved the characters, setting, and plot of this story without the added romance. It was incredibly intriguing and captivating.

This was the absolute perfect story to read during the fall season. And, that it’s the first in a new series, leaves me eager for more!

 

 

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