Review: Verspertine

Ｔｉｔｌｅ： Vespertine

Ａｕｔｈｏｒ： Margaret Rogerson

Ｓｅｒｉｅｓ： Book 1

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.

“Sometimes, if you want to save other people, you need to remember to save yourself first.”

I was so excited to read another one of Margaret Rogerson’s books! Especially once I found out this one would be a series (there’s at least one more book coming out but she mentioned there could be more). Although I love her standalones I have always been praying that she would venture into the series territory. That said, this was a great start although it was a bit different from her other books.

Rogerson’s past books really put an emphasis on romance, but Verspertine takes a departure from that pattern. This wasn’t necessarily good or bad for me, just something I wanted to highlight. Instead, the story focuses more on the plot and relationship between Artemesia and a malevolent spirit as she tries to uncover the mystery behind the attack on her convent. To be honest, I really enjoyed seeing the development from enemies to tentative allies.

I was also invested in their partnership as it related to the secrets of the saints and revenants. I really wanted to know more about their history and whether it would play a bigger role.

Another great aspect of the series was the character development. We didn’t just see Artemesia grow, but the revenant did as well. I think it made the story that much more compelling to see this “malevolent” spirit getting more depth to their character. They were humanized, misunderstood, and imperfect.

Artemesia was also a fun character. She was socially awkward in an endearing way and very brave. Her strong sense of loyalty and moral compass made her a great leader (though she definitely had to learn how to step into the role). I also loved how she and the revenant helped each other deal with their own trauma.

The plot was interesting and the pace was pretty steady throughout. I felt like there was a good balance between the points of high and low tension/action. So overall, this was a solid start to the series. I’m excited to see the author exploring new things and expanding her horizons. While I do love this book, I would caution readers not to expect her usual romance-centered fantasy. Still, I hope that won’t discourage you from giving it a chance!