An Enchantment of Ravens

Isobel is one of the most sought after portrait artists in Whimsy, a city between the human and fae lands. She lives there with her aunt Emma and her sister March and May, twin girls who used to be goats before the fair folk changed their lives. Isobel supports her family with her Craft and is paid in enchantments. Her patron Gadfly, a delightful and frivolous fae, warns her of the arrival of Rook, the prince of the Autumn Court. She becomes infatuated with him during the course of painting his infuriating portrait that always has something off around the eyes. Finally figuring out the detail, she sends along the painting only to find later that she depicted a deep, human sorrow in his eyes. He abducts her from her house and plans to show more take her to his realm to stand trial for the transgression, only to be taken way off course by fairy beasts, creeping rot, the Wild Hunt, and other assorted chaos. Will Isobel ever make it back home to her family? Will Rook ever gain back his people's respect?

An Enchantment of Ravens is my favorite read of this year. The writing is poetic, the worldbuilding dazzles, plus the characters and romance are well developed. Right from the beginning of the novel. I was sucked into the story right from the beginning because of Margaret Rogerson's unique world. Her take on the fair folk and the rules of her world are like nothing I've ever seen. Humans create Crafts like cooking, art, and music that the fair folk covet above all things. Fairies will die if they attempt to create anything of the sort, but surround themselves with these things anyway. The age of the Craft doesn't matter as fairies can glamour it to look as it did when it was new. The fae pay humans in enchantments that need to be carefully worded or they could ruin lives with their trickster ways. On the other hand, enchantments can provide food, protection, and other necessities for human life. Humans need to be cautious living in Whimsy because of fairy whims and all carry iron somewhere on them for protection.

The fair folk live for centuries and have no concept of time, but feel very little emotion. Human emotion is frowned upon and seen as weakness, opening up opportunites for other fae to take what they have. Despite this, the veneer of manners and composure are paramount to their kind. They have to respond to niceties like bowing, responding in kind to thank yous, and so on. The fair folk are beautiful, but alien, selfish, and cruel underneath their glamour. Each fae has one flaw in their glamour that sets them apart from humans whether it's fingers that are too long, emaciation, or height. The Spring Court is the only fairy court we see and it seems beautiful and fantastic at first until the horrific, cruel elements are revealed over time. The power of true names works both ways in this world where knowing it gives the person absolute power over another no matter if they are human or fey. Rogerson takes well known rules of fairies, gives them a twist, and adds her own unique ones to create a singular, detailed fantastical world.

The characters and their relationships are incredibly well drawn. Isobel is a practical, serious person forced to grow up early in life. She has been making portraits for the fair folk most of her life, so she has a healthy caution about them. Every time one comes in for a portrait, she's careful to be polite and as inoffensive as possible. The enchantments she earns are carefully worded because she knows their mischief could be disastrous to her and her family. Although her sisters are magicked goats, she loves them all the same and cares for them unconditionally. Over the course of the story, she demonstrates cleverness, ingenuity, and compassion. I love a heroine with a strong will, realistic familial connections, and good sense. All of her decisions are not always the best, but she has a good head on her shoulders that serves her well throughout the novel.

Her romance with Rook starts as a sudden infatuation based on his carefully crafted facade. When he shows who he truly is, Isobel understandably hates him because he's petty, vain, and inhuman. Over the course of their journey, they both reveal what's under their respective protective shells while fighting to protect each other and navigating fae lands infected with rot, fae society, and numerous enemies. Love kind of sneaks up on them when they weren't looking. Their declarations aren't poetic or idealistic and they disagree and see things they don't like in each other, but they grow to love by getting to know each other. I haven't read such a good romance in a while. The Good Law condemns fae and human lovers to death and one solution to this problem is the Green Well, which has the power to turn a human into a fairy. Isobel soundly rejects this because of all she would lose, namely her art. It's not just a interesting detail to flesh her out or be forgotten; it's an intrinsic part of her character that she isn't willing to compromise on, even in the face of the death. Her art is also used

I could write so much more about An Enchantment of Ravens because I loved every bit of it. I wanted to read it super fast to see what happened, but also wanted to savor the world slowly. I've been reading a lot lately and this one amazed me. I had to be left alone to read the last 100 pages so I could find out what happened with tears streaming down my face. I'm disappointed to see it's a stand alone novel, but I hope other stories will take place in that world. Margaret Rogerson has made me a lifelong fan with this one book and I can't recommend it highly enough. show less

Isobel lives on the edge of Faerie, and the Fae crave the portraits she can paint of them. She bargains carefully for enchantments that will protect and provide for her family, carefully worded to avoid ill effects. When Rook, the Autumn Prince, arrives for a portrait session, things are somehow different. There's something about his eyes -- sorrow, she finally realizes, an emotion that the Fae aren't supposed to be able to feel. Isobel is drawn to the faerie prince, but she knows that they cannot break the Good Law, which forbids faerie/human relationships. When the portrait, with its telling revelation of Rook's sorrow is unveiled before the court, a furious Rook returns, dragging Isobel to his court to stand trial. Surrounded by the show more Fae court, who can Isobel trust?

I enjoyed this story, though it has some flaws. I liked the setting and descriptions, and the conceit that the Fae can't make art (Craft, as the book calls it, which can include things like Isobel's paintings, but also food, clothing, furniture, etc.) and therefore bargain with their human neighbors to obtain it. I thought there were some pacing issues, and I wasn't entirely convinced at the insta-love that characterizes the romantic plot. I listened to the audiobook, and I always enjoy Julia Whelan's narration, which may be part of the reason the book's shortcomings didn't bother me until after I finished listening. All in all, if you enjoy stories of humans in the faerie court, you might like this one, if the things I mentioned aren't deal-breakers for you. show less

Okay, new rule - I am no longer allowed to read young adult fantasy novels written in first-person POV. It never works out for me.

Except, damn, Seraphina was written in first-person and I really liked it. I suppose I shall have to invent a complicated flowchart with questions like "is the love interest an otherworldly creature who can't be trusted" and "is the cover too pretty for its own good."

(To the author's credit, the writing is quite good; it just happens to feature the sort of trope-y YA romance to which I am regrettably allergic.)

ETA: I may give her next book a try, it's about a magical library foundling and folks seem to like it. My tastes are nothing if not predictable.

*lies down*

Superb writing. PERFECTLY EXECUTED ROMANCE. Good work addressing power dynamics because fae/faerie/fair folk are pretty alien and f***ed up and not into personal space. Also so funny. Surprisingly so. And not forced at all. ALSO creepy as hell. The cover screams "SJM FANS WILL WET THEMSELVES OVER THIS" but the story is very "WITCHER 3 LEVEL MOIST FORESTY SCARES AND A CINNAMON ROLL FAE PRINCE". And to top it off I reallllllllyyyyyy loved Isobel.

Anyways, definitely my surprise for 2017 so far. I was expecting to read it and like it but not expecting to drag out reading it for 5 days because I didn't want to leave it.

More professional review later but literally *book jazz hands*

****Less screamy review: An absolutely perfect show more debut fantasy adventure that manages to present the YA ~fae romance narrative~ in a relatively fresh way. Rogerson also avoids the abusive relationship vibe that a lot of human-fae romances have and I really loved the shifting power dynamics at play between Isobel and Rook. Have no fear, Isobel can /actually/ take care of herself. Romance, humor (laugh-out-loud at points), and some real chills. Amazing. Great for fans of Maas and Kagawa, but better. Hand it to lovers of Holly Black. show less

《four stars》

⭒˚.⋆ ❝ The wild wind swept our voices all the way to the forest, where crickets sang a new song to the crescent moon.❞ ⋆.˚⭒

An Enchantment of Ravens is, in most respects, the type of book that I am almost sure to love. The writing style pulls all the magic and whimsicality of a fairytale into words, mingling it with the warm, yet cooling feel of late summer fading into autumn. It did an excellent job of letting me lose myself in the world of the book. The overall plot, too, is something I found myself enjoying, and I liked most of the characters well enough. But, unfortunately, between the small sprinkling of foul language and a few romantic scenes that, while not explicit, went a little too far for my show more personal comfort, there were just enough nitpicks that I felt the need to detract a few points from what otherwise could've very well been a five-star read. show less

I loved this and I normally don't love fantasy. Its a lot different from the fairy world of ACOTAR and that may be why I liked it, because I didn't care very much for ACOTAR. It has a very whimsical, enchanting, spellbinding vibe to it but is also a little dark at times (but not too much). They very much seem more like your Disney Tinkerbell fairies instead of the usual weird YA fae trope that is so popular. I really like the heroine, which I can rarely say with YA fantasy because the heroine is usually narcissistic and unbearable, but this one is strong and level-headed. She doesn't lash out at everyone just to make things more difficult on herself and she doesn't fall at the hero's feet as soon as she meets him. She crushes on him, show more yeah, but she keeps her head on straight. I like the hero too. He's a bit of a brat, but that's more of a cultural difference as you will see than it is a personality flaw. He's super cute when she corrects his behavior. I loved the story overall and thought the writing was beautiful. My only wish was that I feel like we needed more between Isobel and Rook. I feel like it definitely needs a sequel so we can expand on their relationship because this book was mostly about world-building and overcoming obstacles. Now that they are together, we need to be able to see how their relationship progresses and works out. I'm curious how a relationship between a mortal and a fairy would work. show less

It's been a while since I've read a book set in the faerie realm and all my love of this folklore returned. Rogerson's faeries are unsettling, eerie, and disturbing with plenty of laws and tricks--just as I like. In this story the fair folk are unchanging and are thus unable to create change in anything, and they are enamored with human "craft." Isobel is a portrait artist and is patronized by the fair folk who crave her art. This premise was interesting and played out in great ways. I was not a fan of the romance, but the last portion of the book is an intense quest to try and out-wit the fae and I couldn't stop listening to the audiobook. I will say that I had questions that were not answered by the ending, but I honestly don't care. show more I'm okay with it being a little fuzzy. My rating is 3.5 rounded up to 4 stars. show less