This is the second book I've read for free by this author on Simonteen.com

I really like her books. Her world-building is great. She approaches fantasy tropes in new and interesting ways.

Something happened a long time ago called the Sorrows, where a man trying to cheat death when his wife died by using Old Magic, has unintended consequences. ow when people die, if they aren't properly consecrated, they come back as spirits. The spirits are sometimes harmless, but most times malevolent, killing living souls.

The spirits can be contained and frequently used in relics. The highest level of spirits are the most difficult to contain and use. But lowly novice nun is possessed by a high=level spirit who only wants to be free. Is it telling the truth or lying. It ould kill every living thing in an entire city, including the grass and bigs, if it was set free. Can they trust each other and defeat a malevolent high-order spirit? Or is Artemsia trading one dread ending for another?

The ending is complete, but there is room for sequels if the author wishes it. I'd read more set in this world. ( )

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.

Vespertine differs from the other books I've read by Ms. Rogerson. I was travelling and hiking, which means that I had to listen to the book in segments. I don't feel like I really could get into it because of the large amounts of time between listening.

Possessed by a demon, Artemisia saves herself by burning her hands to oust the demon. Her family fails to realize that she is possessed, so they keep her in a shed. A nun saves her and brings her to the nunnery--although it's not called a nunnery. Some nuns fight spirits and control spirits with relics. The relics contain the spirits, but they must be controlled or they can be possessed. People who can see the spirits have "the sight." Artemisia fails to make friends because she's a bit "different." People try to stay away from her. She's quiet, doesn't talk, and has burned hands. People find her deformity uncomfortable to be around.

Artemisia doesn't want to take the "exam" that determines your future because she wants to stay where she is. Fate determines a totally different path for her. When an attack occurs, Artemisia is sent to get the saint (nun) who can "wield" the revenant, an evil spirit contained by a relic. The saint dies passing the relic to Artemisia. Few people can wield a high relic and Artemisia has no training, so she converses with the revenant herself. This ability is unheard of, so she keeps it a secret. People stay away from her anyway because she's strange, but now she seems to talk to herself. She is now the hope to save everyone now that attacks are occurring.

I really enjoyed the book because I liked Artemisia and the revenant. The revenant has a clear personality and tries to take care of Artemisia because she doesn't know how to take care of herself. The way we judge others based on looks and fail to really help one another. We can't be isolated, but we truly need one another to fight the evils of the world. It's a different and serious book, but I really enjoyed the way it all ended up. ( )

Be Careful Nun

Margaret Rogerson builds a fascinating world of spirits and monsters in Vespertine. Artemisia has had a violent past, and just wants to live in the peace of the Gray Sister convent. Except there are unrestful spirits stirring. When possessed soldiers attack, she has no choice but to seek help from a revenant of unspeakable power, one with a voice of its own. Together with new friends, they must uncover a deadly plot that threatens everyone.

Margaret Rogerson builds her world quickly, setting up the lore of expelling and capturing spirits. It is these powerful captured spirits called revenants that help dispel dangerous uncontrolled spirits. The action picks up quickly as Artemisia is taken away from safety, where she must make a choice to stay passive or to fight. Which is an incredible challenge for her to overcome. As she must face her own character, and past trauma, in order to find the strength to face an overwhelming evil.

Artemisia is a quiet character who still feels the effects of the trauma of her past. Which makes her seem a bit frightening with her scarred hands, standoffish nature, and weak social skills. She feels like an outcast and becoming the legendary Vespertine, the protector, is a challenge she is not prepared for. Artemisia’s strengths lie in her empathy with others. She readily understands the value of revenants as beings even when her previous notions are challenged. Despite her social difficulties, the physical cost, and past trauma she is willing to fight for the wellbeing of others. She finds loyal friends in people she would not otherwise have met.

Artemisia’s willingness to fight for those who frighten, and do not understand her is what makes this book impressive. Even through her personal struggles she finds that others still value her as a friend, as she learns to value them. With an added bonus of a mystery villain, and exciting conclusion. ( )

Rogerson brings her talent at creating near-reality fantasy worlds to bear once again with her latest, Vespertine, which follows a young girl who has the ability to see the spirits of the dead. Artemisia’s world is full of dead spirits (most malevolent) after a magical ritual gone wrong centuries ago altered the boundaries between life and death, but even though the ruling religious group (the Clerisy) have things generally in order all is not quite what it seems. When Artemisia’s nunnery is attacked by spirits shortly after the trial that will decide if she is meant for a higher purpose in the bureaucracy of the Clerisy, she must form an unexpected alliance with a level five spirit (one of the legendary Seven Revenants) to save herself and the nuns who have formed her community before embarking on a quest that will change her ideas of friendship, power structures, and herself. Rogerson’s story is a typical coming of age narrative and relies on many familiar tropes, but what kept me interested (aside from her typically well-wrought magic structures) was the French spiritualism that twisted throughout the tale. Between the obviously French-inspired characters and place-names, the French-Catholic modelled religious structures, and Artemisia’s role as the young female saviour the whole novel gives me major Jean D’Arc vibes! I’m sure the tale could have easily been set elsewhere in the historical world with similar success, but I think Rogerson hit the undertones just right with this novel to pique my dual interest in historical female (inspired) characters and fantasy! ( )