A New York Times bestseller! “A bewitching gem…I absolutely loved every moment of this story.” —Stephanie Garber, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Caraval series “If you loved the Hogwarts Library…you’ll be right at home at Summershall.” —Katherine Arden, New York Times bestselling author of The Bear and the Nightingale From the New York Times bestselling author of An Enchantment of … Nightingale
From the New York Times bestselling author of An Enchantment of Ravens comes an “enthralling adventure” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) about an apprentice at a magical library who must battle a powerful sorcerer to save her kingdom.
All sorcerers are evil. Elisabeth has known that as long as she has known anything. Raised as a foundling in one of Austermeer’s Great Libraries, Elisabeth has grown up among the tools of sorcery—magical grimoires that whisper on shelves and rattle beneath iron chains. If provoked, they transform into grotesque monsters of ink and leather.
Then an act of sabotage releases the library’s most dangerous grimoire, and Elisabeth is implicated in the crime. With no one to turn to but her sworn enemy, the sorcerer Nathaniel Thorn, and his mysterious demonic servant, she finds herself entangled in a centuries-old conspiracy. Not only could the Great Libraries go up in flames, but the world along with them.
As her alliance with Nathaniel grows stronger, Elisabeth starts to question everything she’s been taught—about sorcerers, about the libraries she loves, even about herself. For Elisabeth has a power she has never guessed, and a future she could never have imagined.
more
If you are looking for magic you will find it inside this book. Sorcery of Thorns is a bewitching gem, full of slow burning romance, loyal friendships, and extraordinary world building. I absolutely loved every moment of this story.
I could not love this book more. Excellent world-building around these Great Libraries and grimoires that have personalities and a heroine who is naive but strong and learns the way of the world super quickly. Hero is witty and tormented and made me LOL a bunch. One of the most satisfying endings I’ve read this year.
If you loved the Hogwarts Library, or the Great Library of the Clayr, you’ll be right at home at Summershall. Tightly paced, hugely atmospheric, with a touch of wry humor, this book had me from its Gothic beginning right to the perfect end.
Sarcastic sorcerers, sentient libraries, and a world where demons and grimoires have hearts – what more could you possibly ask for? This book was an absolute delight of a fantasy novel, totally different than Rogerson’s first book but in such a wonderful way. It was funny and sexy and bursting with charisma and heart, and I couldn’t put it down. Highly recommend if you love books and magic as much as I do!
Brimming with twisty enchantment, Sorcery of Thorns is Margaret Rogerson at her most playfully addictive. The heir apparent to Diana Wynne Jones, no one can match her dark whimsy or joyous magic. This book is sheer delight
A fantastic magical read that I did not want to finish. From the characters to the world, to the magic. It was all a well-written fantastic read. I just wish there was a sequel.
It doesn’t often happen when I give an audiobook a five star rating. I don’t even think it has happened since I listened to the audiobook of Artemis Fowl so with saying this I think most of you realize how big of a deal this is for me. I’ve already listened to quite a few amazing audiobooks this year but Scorcery of Thorns definitely took the cake. It was undeniably the best audiobook I’ve read this year so far.
Elisabeth was one incredible main character and heroine. I loved her so so so much! I would love to read more about her but sadly enough this book is a standalone. But even so I don’t think her character will beat others anytime soon. Nathaniel was also a character that I couldn’t get enough from. He was very charmismatic and his relationship with Elisabeth, though it was slow building, will forever be one of my favorites. I shipped the hell out of them right from the start. Even though I really loved those two characters, I just adored Silas. Not to be dramatic or anything, but he was everything to me in this book. Such a mysterious and sometimes even scary character and yet he stole my heart pretty much.
The author also created a world in this book that was simply put one of the best worlds I’ve ever read about. I loved everything about it. The libraries, the sorcerers, the way it was historical but also interlaced with fantasy and of course the books. I’m trying not to spoil the story but the books were sort of alive with actual personalities and souls. It was just wow! I think every book nerd would love a fantasy world like this one. I also gotta say that something I hadn’t seem coming was how funny this book was. The humor definitely caught me off guard but it was so great and I laughed out loud more times than I could count.
And of course I can’t review an audiobook without talking about the narrator as well. The narrator was Emily Ellet and although this is the first book I’ve listened to with her as narrator I’m definitely a fan. Her voices were incredible and basically I didn’t want to stop listening to her. She was so good!
Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson was in one word: spellbinding. The magic, the action, the romance, the humor and writing absolutely made this one of the best books I’ve ever read.
“When terrible things have happened to you, sometimes the promise of something good can be just as frightening.”
I could crawl inside this book and live there. Loved, loved, loved it!
Like the grimoires that fill its pages, Sorcery of Thorns lives, breathes, and beckons you closer with each enchanting word. This is classic fantasy at its very best
5 for sure!!!
OMG I so loved this story!! I’m not one to summarize, sorry it’s already available on GR, it seems repetitive to me….
Elizabeth, Nathaniel & Silas are a trio I could read more & more about!! I LOVED their BANTER SO SO MUCH!! Elizabeth is so naive and her growth and coming of age is beautiful, as is her relationship with Nathaniel!
Nathaniel has so much to deal with and tries so hard to not let that touch Elizabeth, it’s beautiful to watch his growth.
Silas, oh MY SILAS!!! I NEVER dreamed I’d love a demon…LOL but man did I!
They were on a quest to proof that Elizabeth didn’t commit a crime she was accused of and the escapades, trails, battles were wild! But the best of all was the final battle, it made the whole story worth it!!
If you like fantasy, demons, fights and a little romance this story is for you! And it’s a standalone fantasy…
It was one of the best books I’ve read. I will certainly look to see what other books this author has written. I got so tense a few times from the action that I had to put it down for a little while to calm down. Although magic isn’t a part of reality, this world was believable. The heroine was brave, but like many people, she was carried along by circumstances, and because of her character, she had no option to be brave (and then she broke down afterwards.) I very highly recommend this book!
I enjoyed the read and the story was interesting, I can’t quite put my finger on what was missing for me to give it 5 stars.
I really loved the grimoires having their own souls and such…relly interesting world building!
When I first heard of this book with libraries and magic, I knew I had to get a hold of it. I was quickly captivated with the magical world buidling and mystery of what is happening. Elisabeth, Nathaniel and Silas are intriguing characters in their own rights and moved the story along even more for me. They are unlikely companions but are they the only trustworthy ones?
For a full review please visit https://bit.ly/3w2iLq0.
I immediately fell in love with the characters. It has the witty heroine, a sarcastic sorcerer, and the most wholesome demon you will ever have the pleasure of meeting. The slow burning love between Nathaniel and Elisabeth was my hook and the detail of their scenes together were phenomenal. I would recommend to any one that loves fantasy and romance books as much as I do.
I gave this book four stars!
This was my first time reading a book by this author, and I’m glad I gave it a chance!
This book follows Elisabeth, a young woman who dreams of being a warden. An orphan, she’s lived her entire life convinced that sorcerers are evil and of the importance of keeping watch over the grimoires they create that can house immense power. One night, her world is turned upside down when a powerful grimoire turns into a Malefict and she is implicated in its release. Can Elisabeth clear her name, or is there more to this disaster than meets the eye?
This book had a lot of great elements, and I’m definitely going to keep my eye out for other works of theirs.
The characters are the biggest pro for me. They really made the story intriguing, and I cared what happened to them. Elisabeth may be young, but she’s daring and bold in times of crisis. I loved how scrappy she was, and that when the time was right, she would speak up for herself when she knew something was afoot. Her heart is in the right place, and that made it easy to root for her.
Nathaniel is a sorcerer intertwined in Elisabeth’s struggle. While he appears standoffish at first, there’s a lot more depth to him than meets the eye. I also loved his powers!
But I think the real gem of this story is Silas. If the author wrote an entire book about Silas, I would read it! Silas is Nathaniel’s demon, and I just love how he was portrayed. Emotionally unavailable yet supportive demon who will serve you tea one minute and decimate hordes of your enemies the next? Sign me up! Oh, how I wish I had an awesome demon like him!
The plot drew me in immediately and kept me entertained. Elisabeth’s journey starts off simple, but there’s so much more to what happened, and I loved unraveling the mystery one step at a time. There’s also an element of horror present in this novel that I really enjoyed. I wasn’t expecting it since this is a fantasy book, but I was pleasantly surprised. I loved the concept of the great libraries, the system of magic, and especially the grimoires. Man, did each grimoire have character! I loved Elisabeth’s interactions with them and honestly could’ve read an entire book about her strolling down the halls talking to them.
This book wasn’t perfect, so I’ll point out a couple things. I did feel that here and there the pace slowed a bit much for my taste, and that sometimes Elisabeth would get too much inside her own head, though it didn’t happen frequently. I also felt the action scenes could’ve been pulled off just a smidgen better. Sometimes they felt a little clunky or I got a bit lost in all the details being thrown at me.
All this being said, this is definitely a book worth reading. If you like magic, adventure, and a sprinkling of horror, this book is for you!
I have a weakness for strong, tall, and female protagonists. Also, there the books were sentient and had a tendency to bit fingers. Four stars.
Lately, I’ve been really, really into the classics. Like, a LOT. And although I adore those timeless books, my poor brain needed a break. So I picked up Sorcery of Thorns. It’s been a book I had meant to read months ago but had completely forgotten about. So I thought now was a great time to try it out. Let me tell you, this was one of the best books I’ve ever read. Now, it is a bit of a faster read, but it’s one that you can easily read slower if you’d like. Everything about it I enjoyed, and honestly the only criticism I can give the book is I wish it was longer. So if you’re a sucker for any and all things with magical libraries you should definitely try this one out.
Elisabeth, an orphan that was raised in the library as an apprentice and then to be a ward, a protector of books. Awoken suddenly, while the others are in an enchanted sleep, she encounters a Malefict (a grimoire monster) and kills it. Now question arise that she was a co-conspirator on the attack since being the only one awake. Now she is under watch by the sorcerer, Nathaniel Thorn. Soon they both are attack and events start to unravel of a larger scheme, a scheme that can ruin the world as they know it. This is the first book I’ve read of Margaret Rogerson and enjoyed the character development and the slow burn romance!