Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson

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Sorcery of Thorns is about a girl named Elisabeth, who is an apprentice librarian. Except she isn’t training to be an ordinary librarian; she’s training to be a librarian for dangerous and magical grimoires created by sorcerers Elisabeth has long been told are evil. At the start of the novel, the great library where Elisabeth works is sabotaged, and she is accused of being the saboteur. In the capital, Elisabeth finds an ally in Nathaniel, a famous sorcerer, and his demonic companion, Silas. Together, the three of them become intertwined in a centuries-old conspiracy that may result in not only the destruction of all the great libraries, but the entire world of Austermeer.

Sorcery of Thorns is Margaret Rogerson’s sophomore novel; her first was a slimmer fantasy book called An Enchantment of Ravens. An Enchantment of Ravens received mixed reviews from the YA community; there were those that loved it and those that were disappointed by it. The main critiques of that book are that the story was underwhelming, there was a ridiculous case of “insta love,” and the book as a whole- the characters, the world, the plot- was underdeveloped, and part of this was attributed to the novel’s short length. Now, I was one of the readers who really liked An Enchantment of Ravens, although I didn’t enjoy it as much as I thought I was going to, and I did ultimately feel underwhelmed by it.

In Sorcery of Thorns, which is 450+ pages, a lot of the issues present in An Enchantment of Ravens are non-existent. The world is equal parts intricately developed and fascinating; it takes place during the 1800s, albeit in a fictional world held together by libraries. The magic system is well thought out, well explained, and unlike anything I have seen before.

The world-building is one of the novel’s biggest strengths, but so too are the characters. Elisabeth is such an amazing protagonist! Her genuine love for books shines across the pages, and it is so lovely to read. Elisabeth is also a character who, when she knows the right thing to do, will do it no matter how risky it may be. While the sorcerer Nathanial is an interesting character, I found him to be outshined by his demonic companion, Silas. Silas is a high-born demon from a place called the Otherworld, and he has served Nathaniel’s bloodline for hundreds of years. He’s a very morally grey character; by nature, he is a demon, and in the eyes of the book, he is therefore evil. However, he shows a genuine affection for both Nathaniel and Elisabeth, and Elisabeth in particular is determined not only to see the good in him, but to make him see the good in himself. Silas is a fascinating character, and I find that a book becomes stronger when the author makes you love his/her side characters just as much as the main character. I also appreciated the romance in this book, which is very much a slow-burn. The romantic element of the book was very much on the sideline, and I found the development of the relationship in Sorcery of Thorns to be a vast improvement from that of An Enchantment of Ravens.

Sorcery of Thorns is essentially a fantasy novel about books, and it’s hard for me to see booklovers and fantasy-lovers alike not enjoying this one! I absolutely loved this book, it will definitely be on my list of favorite books of 2019, and I will read anything Margaret Rogerson writes!

Rating: 5/5 Stars

XOXO,

Isabella

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