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A review by inkdrinkers
Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
This was everything I hoped for and more.
Elisabeth Scrivner has grown up in the halls of magical libraries. Left on the steps of one as a baby, she's grown up with the sincere desire to be like the wardens overseeing her librarian apprenticeship - stalwart, true, and with swords strapped to their sides, ready to protect the world from the magical grimoires caged in the halls of the library. She knows magic is horrifically terrible, something to be protected from, but when a grimoire is released from a library, transforming into a monster and leaving Elisabeth implicated in the crime of setting it free, she must turn to Nathaniel Thorn, a sorcerer she knows better than to trust, but the only man who can help her stop the very end of their world.
LET'S TALK ABOUT THIS BOOK. Funnily, this entire thing took me a year to read. That's unheard of for me, and I feel weird even putting that in writing because this isn't a bad book. In fact, it's so good I couldn't bear to pick it up again because I knew it would end. Is that dramatic? Maybe a little, but I found myself so completely captured by this story and the characters inside of it that I just couldn't fathom not having them after I was done. Then I got word there was a sequel coming as a novella and I rushed to pick my copy back up, realizing I could finally finish it without going, full-spiral, into a post-book slump. This is my first book by Margaret Rogerson and I think it's solidified her as a favorite. This is YA in its truest form, wonderfully adventurous, heart-wrenchingly emotional, and full of characters that you can't help but love.
I LOVED Elisabeth. My big (6'0 feet!!!!) bull-headed angry girl. She does so much in the span of these pages and grows into a beautiful character that I just want to grab her and kiss her forehead at the end. I've never read a book where I felt so feral and protective over the main character, but this one did it to me. Nathaniel is truly one of the best book boyfriends in current YA, he's grumpy and sarcastic and entirely too snappy for his own good, but he melted my heart with every twitch of a smile he had in these pages. And SILAS!! There is nothing more to say than Silas is the absolute best demon there ever was, and I would 100% ruffle his little white cat ears.
Finally, I really can't write this review without saying how quickly it brought tears to my eyes. There's something so healing about the way representation in young adult has grown from side characters to open discussion about sexuality. It's not a major plot point, there's no grand reveal or silly plot tied to it about secrets or hiding, it's just there on the page and accepted so easily. You can claw this book from my cold, dead, hands - I love it dearly, and I really, truly would recommend it to everyone.
Content warnings: forced institutionalization/confinement, violence (with swords!), body horror (light, in regards to demons), death of a parent/grief, misogyny (sprinkled throughout), panic attacks (briefly on page around 70% through), gaslighting (present throughout, done by the villain)
Elisabeth Scrivner has grown up in the halls of magical libraries. Left on the steps of one as a baby, she's grown up with the sincere desire to be like the wardens overseeing her librarian apprenticeship - stalwart, true, and with swords strapped to their sides, ready to protect the world from the magical grimoires caged in the halls of the library. She knows magic is horrifically terrible, something to be protected from, but when a grimoire is released from a library, transforming into a monster and leaving Elisabeth implicated in the crime of setting it free, she must turn to Nathaniel Thorn, a sorcerer she knows better than to trust, but the only man who can help her stop the very end of their world.
LET'S TALK ABOUT THIS BOOK. Funnily, this entire thing took me a year to read. That's unheard of for me, and I feel weird even putting that in writing because this isn't a bad book. In fact, it's so good I couldn't bear to pick it up again because I knew it would end. Is that dramatic? Maybe a little, but I found myself so completely captured by this story and the characters inside of it that I just couldn't fathom not having them after I was done. Then I got word there was a sequel coming as a novella and I rushed to pick my copy back up, realizing I could finally finish it without going, full-spiral, into a post-book slump. This is my first book by Margaret Rogerson and I think it's solidified her as a favorite. This is YA in its truest form, wonderfully adventurous, heart-wrenchingly emotional, and full of characters that you can't help but love.
I LOVED Elisabeth. My big (6'0 feet!!!!) bull-headed angry girl. She does so much in the span of these pages and grows into a beautiful character that I just want to grab her and kiss her forehead at the end. I've never read a book where I felt so feral and protective over the main character, but this one did it to me. Nathaniel is truly one of the best book boyfriends in current YA, he's grumpy and sarcastic and entirely too snappy for his own good, but he melted my heart with every twitch of a smile he had in these pages. And SILAS!! There is nothing more to say than Silas is the absolute best demon there ever was, and I would 100% ruffle his little white cat ears.
Finally, I really can't write this review without saying how quickly it brought tears to my eyes. There's something so healing about the way representation in young adult has grown from side characters to open discussion about sexuality. It's not a major plot point, there's no grand reveal or silly plot tied to it about secrets or hiding, it's just there on the page and accepted so easily. You can claw this book from my cold, dead, hands - I love it dearly, and I really, truly would recommend it to everyone.
Content warnings: forced institutionalization/confinement, violence (with swords!), body horror (light, in regards to demons), death of a parent/grief, misogyny (sprinkled throughout), panic attacks (briefly on page around 70% through), gaslighting (present throughout, done by the villain)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization and Violence
Moderate: Confinement, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Gaslighting, Death of parent, and Misogyny
Minor: Body horror