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Vespertine  By  cover art

Vespertine

By: Margaret Rogerson
Narrated by: Caitlin Davies
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Publisher's summary

An international best seller!

From the New York Times best-selling author of Sorcery of Thorns and An Enchantment of Ravens comes a thrilling, “dark coming-of-age adventure” (Culturess) about a teen girl with mythic abilities who must defend her world against restless spirits of the dead.

The spirits of the dead 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 ravenous, hungry spirits. She would rather deal with the dead than the living, who whisper 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 whose extraordinary power almost consumes her - but death has come, 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, Artemisia discovers that facing this hidden evil might require her to betray everything she believes - if the revenant doesn’t betray her first.

©2021 Margaret Rogerson. All rights reserved. (P)2021 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

Featured Article: The Best Dark Fantasy Audiobooks


If your favorite genres are fantasy and horror, and you can't get enough of terrifying scenarios with high-stakes action, then you need to explore the winding world of dark fantasy. When the mystic, magic, and incredible world-building of fantasy are combined with elements of grim horror and the supernatural, the result is something truly pause-resistant. But with such a rich variety of titles to choose from, it can be impossible to know where to begin. We've rounded up the best dark fantasy listens that explore chilling settings, morally grey characters, and twisting plots alongside dark magic.

What listeners say about Vespertine

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LOVE this book!

I was hooked from the 1st chapter. Absolutely beautiful performance and story with thrilling takes on familiar elements and wonderful characters. I dearly hope there will be a sequel. These characters deserve to continue their story.

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2 people found this helpful

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Excellent!

What a treat this book was! Excellent world building. Absolutely drama free, well grounded heroine. Plot was paced perfectly. Character growth was consistent but organic, so noticing our mc's growth from adolescent to adult happened effortlessly too. The narration was. very good, missing excellence only because of the narrators penchant for changing her voice volume overmuch when she changed characters. This excellent book is a rare event which I strongly encourage you to enjoy.

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  • Overall
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Excellent!

So creative and such a great performance by the narrator! I’m a little skeptical of fantasy YA, but this exceeded expectations in every way a book can! Def recommend :)

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1 person found this helpful

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Enjoyable

I am a huge fan of this author. All her books are wonderful. I enjoyed reading about a main character who seems to be on the spectrum. She's strong in different ways than your average leading character. Rogerson shows that even though she's the type of person society treats as less than because she's different, she, and anyone who identifies with her, has a lot to offer the world. Once prejudices and preconceived notions are let go, the person underneath shines.
The Revenant was another wonderful character, and I'm glad its part wasn't as minimal.

I enjoyed the narrator, who is very talented. However, she wasn't quite the right fit for this book or cast of characters.

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  • Overall
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Nuns of death/joan of arc/neurodiversity representation

Read it. So metal, yet so soft. You want a joan of arc novel? We got you. You want autism and anxiety representation? We got you. You want a YA without a romance in it? We got you. You want NUNS of DEATH?? We. Got. You.
Just read it.

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Lovely story , will never forget it

This book drew my attention from chapter one. I believe for me, I had bit of difficulty understanding the religious phrases or objects in story but eventually I caught on.
There was a very parallel relationship forming with her revenant . A “unlikely friendship” story is always lovely to read. I also noticed that the main character Was described to be on the Autism Spectrum, which I found really unique about her. She was very intelligent but disliked socializing, which is why I found it so pure when she formed a bond to her revenant.
She saw herself in the revenant, something that felt it couldn’t be cared for or truly loved. She was willing, despite the revenants countering, to put her own life on the line to save him. And he to her..
it was so lovely to witness however I do wish the story didn’t end right after they realized how much they could care for each other and make each other whole. It was a little saddening to see things end suddenly after a huge realization. I can’t wait to see more of their friendship tested and developed.

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4 people found this helpful

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Wonderful story, perfected by Davies!

This story was one of those books you can’t put down. The author wrote a great story, however it was the talent of Caitlin Davies that brought the story to brilliant life!

There are so many really good audio books that could have been great if read by Caitlin.

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1 person found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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I didn't know this was a ya book at first

I was pleasantly surpised. There is some dope stuff in here. Good characters. Tight

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  • Overall
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Another great adventure from Margaret Rogerson

First off I want to say I'm a big fan of Margaret Rogerson's stories. Her books are very different from each other, yet they're all beautifully written with a vivid cast of well rounded characters and a strong female protagonist. I was excited when her latest novel showed up on Audible and I've been eagerly looking forward to its release. Her first book, An Enchantment of Ravens, dealt with Faeries and their courts, her second, Sorcery of Thorns, is a Regency populated with magical beings and sentient grimoires and her third, Vespertine, is about religious orders and malevolent spirits that can manifest from the dead.

The story is fascinating from practically the first word. Set in a middle age like scenario it details a society where the church is just as much a power as the land's rulers. As it unfolded, elements reminded me of Garth Nix's Old Kingdom series. (Which made me even more psyched about the story.) But instead of lineages from the charter being the key to fighting the dead, individuals in Vespertine's world come from all walks of life.

Regardless of class or social standing, anyone manifesting abilities is indoctrinated into a religious order. People that can see, sense or communicate with spirits are segregated from the general populous. It's too dangerous for them to remain in their homes, because they might be killed by their family or neighbors due to fear and ignorance. The convent (or monastery) provides shelter, support, education and training for 'the gifted'. As they mature the church periodically tests the novitiate's to determine their strength. Rare individuals have the capacity to wield a Saint's relic. Depending on the relic's properties, they'll gain incredible abilities. To heal, to fight, etc. The rub is they can be drained to death by the relic, lose their mind or become possessed and transition into a ravening monster that consumes all life in its vicinity.

To make the story even more interesting, the main character, Artemisia, is on the spectrum. Uncomfortable around people, always at a loss to say the right thing or respond the right way with the other novitiates, she prefers working with animals and keeping company with the dead brought to the Grey Sisters convent for burial. A person's cause of death determines what malevolent entity they'll manifest as. One of the many duties the Grey Sisters perform is to purify the corpse's spirit before that can happen. Most novitiates dislike this assignment, but Artemisia prefers the silent crypt, far from the stares and gossip and shunning she endures from her peers. She wants nothing more than to stay in this quiet backwater community and take her vows to become a Grey Sister, unlike the other novitiates that can't wait to leave.

Soon after the story opens, Artemisia and her peers are to be tested. A Confessor (an unusual choice for this task) has arrived at the convent to determine if they're ready to take vows and the position they're best suited for in the church's vast network of sects and orders that's spread throughout the world. Artemisia, used to no one realizing the depth of her abilities, is distressed when he states she's coming back to the city, (in essence, the Vatican) with him to be trained to wield one of the many Saint's reliquaries stored in their vaults.

But things don't go as planned. Artemisia ends up wielding a Saint's relic with no instruction or training. The Confessor assumes she's been possessed by the strong revenant that was contained in the relic, declares her extremely dangerous and wants her imprisoned. And Artemisia, now with the relic's hostile entity in her mind, goes on the run.

The ensuing adventure of the two of them coming to terms with their co-dependent relationship, the revenant's knowledge and advice helping Artemisia to survive (with the threat it will always try to gain its freedom) as they travel to the heart of the church's power in hopes of finding a tool the revenant thinks is in their vaults to separate themselves. Their clever cat and mouse tactics avoiding the Confessor and an army of church soldiers between them and their destination, while wielding incredible power fighting malevolent spirits that have invaded the countryside and also uncovering a nefarious plot embedded in the church's hierarchy makes for avid listening.

Caitlin Davies narration is very enjoyable to listen to. She has good range and has the wide variety of characters in the story stepping off the page. I could quibble there's a male voice I didn't find believable, but the rest of her performance is strong, making it a very small blip in an otherwise great listening experience.

Well worth the credit.

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Creative and Interesting

The plot of the book definitely kept me focused on, and engaged with, the overall story. I will say, however, that I wished there had been a bit more emotional exploration shown in the main character. But, even with that said, after having read this book I'm impressed by Margaret Rogerson both as an author and as a builder of fantasy worlds.

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