Author: Margaret Rogerson
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Released: June 4th, 2019
Received: Own

Will there come a day when I don’t read (and immediately fall in love with) a book about magical libraries and books? Maybe. But today is not that day! Sorcery of Thorns, by Margaret Rogerson, is a fantastic magical journey, one that I wish lasted longer.

As an infant, Elisabeth was left on the front steps of one of Austermeer’s Great Libraries. The Director chose to let her stay, and thus she grew up knowing the wonder – and dangers – of books. Elisabeth understands their uses and knows full well how dangerous they can be when provoked, or worse, damaged.

An act of sabotage cost her library the loss of their Director and put Elisabeth in a lethal situation. Somehow, despite doing her best to save the day, she’s the one looking guilty. Still, to protect the rest of the libraries, she must learn how to stand up once again and fight.

“It was always wise to be polite to books, whether or not they could hear you.”

Why didn’t I read Sorcery of Thorns sooner?! I honestly think that novels surrounding magical books are my weakness – I will love every single one I read. So I don’t know why it took me so long to read this, but I know that I immensely enjoyed it.

Austermeer’s Great Libraries were immediately a point of fascination for me, naturally. I loved Elisabeth’s perspective on them, as being the only person to grow up in them, she sees them quite a bit differently than most. I’m not ashamed to admit that a small part of me is jealous of her experiences in that department.

The stakes are high, and the magical elements made the tale all the more interesting, as did the potential love interest, Nathaniel Thorn. He managed to add tension, humor, and even more threat to the table.

“Knowledge always has the potential to be dangerous. It is a more powerful weapon than any sword or spell.”

I know and understand that this is a standalone novel – but I would honestly love to see more of the world (and libraries) developed throughout Sorcery of Thorns. I feel like there’s so much more that Margaret Rogerson could do here. That being said, I’m probably just going to happily read whatever she writes next, regardless of what world it is set in.