June BOTM - Sorcery of Thorns (Margaret Rogerson)

[♦♣ queen of faerie ♠♥, High Lady]

This discussion starts on June 1st, make sure to grab the book before then if you want to participate and start reading and discussing on June 1st!! x

[May]

This is a good book! I read it last month and really enjoyed it. Happy reading :)

[Karro]

Oooh now I immediately must borrow it from the library! I had planned to read this one later on, but I just love discussions so plan's changed haha

[Teodora]

Happy reading guys!
It's been such a good book, I loved it!

[♦♣ queen of faerie ♠♥, High Lady]

To those that have read it - you all can still take part in the discussion! Love everyone to be involved if they want :)

[♦♣ queen of faerie ♠♥, High Lady]

It's June 1st, everyone! Start reading Sorcery of Thorns if you've already got a copy!

What page is everyone on? What are everyone's initial thoughts.

P.S. - Plenty of time until July, feel free to join in whenever you can.
P.P.S - To those that have already read it, you can also discuss! (Just don't spoil anything :))

Happy Reading! XX

[Lucy Tonks, Shadowhunter]

i'll probably start it by the end of this week or next week :) i found the ebook online and i'm really excited!

[venus!]

Tbh I was disappointed by the book :/ Everything felt so predictable to me but I really hope I enjoy An Enchantment of Ravens more!

[☀︎El In Oz☀︎]

This was my second favourite book of 2019... it’s just so good!! I may re read it this month :)

[Key]

Starting it today! Hoping for good things *fingers crossed*

[Persephone6]

Adela wrote: "I've been wanting to read this for a while, so I looked on Overdrive and it's available thankfully. So excited to read this with y'all!"

Also just got this on Overdrive so I'll be starting it today... :) Excited to see how I like it; hopefully, it lives up to the hype!

[Persephone6]

So just read the first chapter; it definitely has some common and familiar fantasy elements, but I still thought it was really good... A lot of mystery and some foreshadowing there and what I can only call a seriously intriguing background on librarians and their books :) ... I really want to see where this goes...

[Teodora]

This book gave me Harry Potter-ish vibes somehow. The atmosphere is so good!

[Persephone6]

Teodora wrote: "This book gave me Harry Potter-ish vibes somehow. The atmosphere is so good!"

Me, too! (view spoiler)[Particularly with the living tomes, wizardy robes, and old-fashioned school vibe :) However, it seems to have more of an edge than Harry Potter had at the start and felt more like Supernatural or maybe later parts of Harry Potter - anyone else feel that way or have any other comparisons? - as it jumped right in with the demonic repellents of iron and salt and the unsavory aspects of sorcerers and magic... Ahm like books have way too many human eyes for comfort :o (hide spoiler)]

[Teodora]

True! (view spoiler)[I think it is better that the author jumper directly into action, like so close to the beginning, because this way the reader is hooked and just wants to know more and more and the way the repellent technique are explained to be working is really good too! (hide spoiler)]

[Persephone6]

Teodora wrote: "True! [spoilers removed]"

It was indeed really good at hooking me from the start :) (view spoiler)[ Especially when the books started screaming.. (hide spoiler)]

[♦♣ queen of faerie ♠♥, High Lady]

This really gave me Harry Potter vibes too. It feels like the forbidden section in the library from Hogwarts.

[Teodora]

Yes! Exactly! Maybe that is in part why I loved it so much, but honestly the characters are simply the best in this book!

[Persephone6]

I absolutely agree with you both!! Also, the humor is awesome in a slightly dark but in a funny way :) Chapter 10: (view spoiler)[ So says the demon: "Some demons enjoy the sound of mortals shrieking and pleading for their lives, but I have never possessed a taste for melodrama unless it is safely confined to the opera." And we have ourselves a demonic opera fan? :o (hide spoiler)]

[Teodora]

Ah the humour is indeed subtle but really good!
(view spoiler)[Silas is absolutely amazing!! I would die for him! He is a total melodrama queen, I am telling you (hide spoiler)]

[♦♣ queen of faerie ♠♥, High Lady]

Lol I'm still quite early on in the book. But here's a quote I loved:

(view spoiler)[ “But I only turn girls into salamanders on Tuesdays. Luckily for you, it’s a Wednesday, which is the day I drink a goblet of orphan’s blood for supper.” (hide spoiler)]

Gosh they're so funny

[Teodora]

That cracked me up! 😂 Nathaniel is just the best

[♦♣ queen of faerie ♠♥, High Lady]

Btw just to ask is this a standalone or is it going to be part of a series?

[Teodora]

It is a standalone, unfortunately :(
I am still bitter about that

[Persephone6]

Teodora wrote: "It is a standalone, unfortunately :(
I am still bitter about that"

This makes me sad now; it's so good, I was sure it was a series!

[Persephone6]

♦♣ queenoffaerie ♠♥ wrote: "Lol I'm still quite early on in the book. But here's a quote I loved:



“But I only turn girls into salamanders on Tuesdays. Luckily for you, it’s a Wednesday, which is the day I drink a gob..."

Love this quote, too! :D

[Persephone6]

Where is everyone else at btw?

[May]

I loved the humor in this book!! Nathaniel and Silas are really great characters :D

[azure｡*☾]

Maya wrote: "I loved the humor in this book!! Nathaniel and Silas are really great characters :D" definitely! I adored this book, and the characters

[Key]

How far along is everyone on this one? I’m about halfway through and I’m having a blast! It’s so fast-paced and I love the characters. ♥️

[Persephone6]

Key wrote: "How far along is everyone on this one? I’m about halfway through and I’m having a blast! It’s so fast-paced and I love the characters. ♥️"

So I'm on chapter 25 right now; it's really good and compulsively easy to read! :) It is, however, very reminiscent of Harry Potter and the like and the romance is cliche, but the world of grimoires and sorcerers is amazing as well as the humor and characters.

[♦♣ queen of faerie ♠♥, High Lady]

From where I am currently, Nathaniel hasn't really opened up to Elizabeth yet, but his humour is already AMAZING, and honestly it's clearly hilarious to him how terrified Elizabeth is.

Also, Finch is UGHGHHGHGHGH

[Persephone6]

♦♣ queenoffaerie ♠♥ wrote: "From where I am currently, Nathaniel hasn't really opened up to Elizabeth yet, but his humour is already AMAZING, and honestly it's clearly hilarious to him how terrified Elizabeth is.

Also, Finch..."

Lol, very true :) What chapter are you at?

[Persephone6]

This quote:

(view spoiler)[ A Straightforward Elizabeth:
"I am not fantasizing about your love life."

A Baffled Nathanial:
"Strange. This is unfamiliar territory. Young women are usually more than happy to devote a sizable portion of their brains to the task of contemplating my splendor." (hide spoiler)]

Book Disclaimer: High chances of enjoying yourself way too much <3

[Persephone6]

So I just noticed that in Harry Potter magic individualism is only shown in the ever-different Patronus, but I'm pretty sure in Sorcery of Thorns the actual shade of one's magic varies by the sorcerer, right?

[Key]

Yes, I think so. Nathaniel’s magic was said to have emerald sparks while Ashcroft’s was described to be gold sparks. 😊

[♦♣ queen of faerie ♠♥, High Lady]

Okay, I read so much last night and am sort of near the end.

Thoughts:
→ Nathaniel and Elisabeth! Cutest couple EVER! Their romance is full of wit, humour, and SO MUCH chemistry.
→ Ashcroft needs to die, preferably as soon as possible.
→ Silas is THE BEST! So much humour coming from demon.
→ This book is soooo unique!!

[Nikita]

I'll be reading this book after I get done with One True King by Soman Chainani

[May]

Key wrote: "Yes, I think so. Nathaniel’s magic was said to have emerald sparks while Ashcroft’s was described to be gold sparks. 😊"

I never noticed that! It's cool how they're magic is unique

[May]

♦♣ queenoffaerie ♠♥ wrote: "Okay, I read so much last night and am sort of near the end.

Thoughts:
→ Nathaniel and Elisabeth! Cutest couple EVER! Their romance is full of wit, humour, and SO MUCH chemistry.
→ Ashcroft needs..."

Silas is my favourite character! :D

[Persephone6]

Maya wrote: "♦♣ queenoffaerie ♠♥ wrote: "Okay, I read so much last night and am sort of near the end.

Thoughts:
→ Nathaniel and Elisabeth! Cutest couple EVER! Their romance is full of wit, humour, and SO MUCH..."

Mine as well! He's so compelling and there's so much left unexplained about him...

[azure｡*☾]

♦♣ queenoffaerie ♠♥ wrote: "Okay, I read so much last night and am sort of near the end.

Thoughts:
→ Nathaniel and Elisabeth! Cutest couple EVER! Their romance is full of wit, humour, and SO MUCH chemistry.
→ Ashcroft needs..." definitely agree with that!!

[♦♣ queen of faerie ♠♥, High Lady]

Damn they got tricked by Ashcroft twice? Elisabeth should have just whipped out the demonslayer and stabbed him, would have been less messy XD.

[Persephone6]

So..I'm done and now in a state of semi-after-book-shock :o It was so amazing; lovely book! :) Endlessly sad there is no sequel to devour to answer all the questions I have, though... Even so, this was only published in 2019 so it's possible that if it causes enough interest, it will warrant more books...

I mean Silas is a little demonic enigma wrapped in an Otherworld sorcery puzzle; I wish I could find out more. Plus everything else! Also, you know, though Silas was almost only a secondary character, I feel like much of the story revolved around him and not Elisabeth who was only my second favorite after him... And the way it ends was so suspenseful and fulfiling and hopeful!!

There is one thing I am quite unsure about...(view spoiler)[ So Elisabeth seems to think that there was a reason behind Silas taking twenty years of Nathaniel's life - besides the natural motives of a hungry demon - and know what it is. Does anyone know what this passage from the end of chapter twenty-eight is about?

"Elisabeth's chest squeezed. She pictured the two different Silases: the one in the pentagram, eyes dark and empty with hunger, and the other in the pavilion's moonlight, a sword through his chest, his features etched with relief. She said, "'You love him.'" Silas turned away. He set the pot's lid back in place. '"I didn't understand before,'" she went on quietly. Beneath the table, the napkin twisted in her hands. '"Truthfully, I hadn't thought it possible. It wasn't until today when I finally say why...'" Why you had taken twenty years of Nathanial's life. She didn't finish.
(hide spoiler)]

[Persephone6]

Here is my spoiler-free review and rating :)

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[♦♣ queen of faerie ♠♥, High Lady]

Persephone6 wrote: "So..I'm done and now in a state of semi-after-book-shock :o It was so amazing; lovely book! :) Endlessly sad there is no sequel to devour to answer all the questions I have, though... Even so, this..."

I'm not sure, I hope that if Rogerson ever returns to the world, maybe if she'll explain it better.

I've always thought that Silas regretted taking 20 years of Nathaniel's life. I've always got the feeling that he accepts who he is and how he must live, but he isn't too happy about it.

Silas has always loved Nathaniel, maybe he viewed that if he was bound to Nathaniel, even if he takes 20 years, he can still be there to protect Nathaniel (as we saw).

[♦♣ queen of faerie ♠♥, High Lady]

Silas is a complicated character, on the one hand, he's a demon like all the others, they have to drain life. On the other hand, even when he is a demon, he still feels for Nathaniel and Elisabeth.

(view spoiler)[ The ending though! Does that mean Elisabeth summoned him back? (hide spoiler)]

[May]

♦♣ Queen of Faerie ♠♥ wrote: "Silas is a complicated character, on the one hand, he's a demon like all the others, they have to drain life. On the other hand, even when he is a demon, he still feels for Nathaniel and Elisabeth...."

(view spoiler)[I'm not sure, that ending confused me. I want to say that yes, he was summoned again. (hide spoiler)]

[♦♣ queen of faerie ♠♥, High Lady]

Maya wrote: "♦♣ Queen of Faerie ♠♥ wrote: "Silas is a complicated character, on the one hand, he's a demon like all the others, they have to drain life. On the other hand, even when he is a demon, he still feel..."

It was a cliffhanger, for sure, but not a 'when's the next book?' cliffhanger, more like closure, ending excitingly.

[Persephone6]

♦♣ Queen of Faerie ♠♥ wrote: "Silas is a complicated character, on the one hand, he's a demon like all the others, they have to drain life. On the other hand, even when he is a demon, he still feels for Nathaniel and Elisabeth...."

I'm fairly sure that was Rogerson's implicit meaning at the end so that makes me happy :)