Imagine a world in which books could be a source of magic. World in which some humans could sense that magic and some maybe even create it. Welcome to the magical world of Emma Torzs's debut Ink Blood Sister Scribe. I happily lost myself in the world of this book and reluctantly left it after the last page. Adventure, mystery, secrets, family drama - this story had it all. And I won't be the least bit surprised if I start seeing this book everywhere this summer. It's a kind of story that holds a wide appeal to different types of readers.

The story revolves around two half-sisters, Joanna and Esther, separated by time, space and circumstances surrounding their family's secret library of magical books. One of them is bound to their home and the said library while the other one is currently at a work station in Antarctica, constantly on the move for mysterious reasons.

The first third of the book is dedicated solely to character and world building and I was there for it. This world and its magic came alive for me. The images were so clear and vivid, it was almost like watching a mental movie. There were enough twists and action in the later part of the book that the entertainment factor was there in the best way possible. If you appreciate the true art of storytelling and love magic, you will not want to miss this one!

A huge thank yo

My college library has purchased a copy of this book based on my recommendation for lending to college students.

Ink Blood Sister Scribe, by Emma Torzs, is a staggeringly powerful debut novel, encompassing dark magic, family drama and an action-filled plot.
Esther and Joanna are sisters driven apart by the dangerous forces that are trying to control their family’s books of magic spells. While Esther is in Antarctica, fleeing the dark powers, Joanna, at home in Vermont, must set the wards—protective spells—each night to protect the books stored in her basement. After a slow, foundational, start, the plot takes off with much intrigue and time-related tension, as the sisters fight for their inheritance and their lives!
The characters are richly drawn and unique, feeling both realistic and somewhat diaphanous at times. The storyline is pleasingly complex, and without spoilers, comes full circle on the meaningful four nouns of the title—Ink, Blood, Sister, Scribe. All is revealed in a stunning finale!
I found the language and writing lyrical and beautifully descriptive.
This compelling, mesmerizing novel is a superb debut for a promising new writer. I look forward to more works by Emma Torzs.

Thank you to HarperCollins Publishers and NetGalley for the ARC. This is my honest review.

This is the story of two sisters, the last of their line with a legacy of protecting and preserving magic books.

Joanna, who has inherited the gift of “hearing” the books lives alone since her fathers death. Her sole purpose is tending to and protecting the books. Esther, is currently in Antarctica. She moves once a year to protect herself from attack from the mysterious figures who killed her mother. She has not inherited the gift of hearing the books, and has totally removed herself from that world. That is until, she finds evidence that someone at the base has a book and is practicing mirror magic. Possibly as a way to get to her sister and the books through her.

I loved the ideas in this book! Magic, books, please sign me up 😍. However, I found it had to stay engaged as the first half of the book really dragged. For that reason, I give this book 3.5/5.

Thank you to William Morrow and Netgalley for providing me with this eARC to read and review.

Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Törsz

I had high hopes for this book but unfortunately I just didn’t love this one. All the makings of an excellent fantasy story including: spell books written in the blood of a scribe, ancient libraries, mysteries and lonely characters. This book never found it’s stride though.

Too many characters and storylines and a really slow pace made me uninterested in where it was headed. I did stick with it and while the second half was a lot better than the first it still didn’t end up wowing me. @staceylovesastory described it as clunky and that’s exactly how I felt. This one is out on May 30th, thanks to @harpercollinsca for my copy! I’m so curious to see other’s thoughts on it!

On to the next! Reading Cassandra in Reverse which I’m hoping is more engaging and fun!

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DNFd at 30%. My policy as a reader and to juggle my busy schedule is to give 30% of a book before deciding what to do. 30% into this one and literally nothing significant has happened. The pacing is painfully slow and boring. I am all for vivid descriptions but I couldn't stand the fact that out of 8 pages of a chapter, 6 were narrative that just kept dragging on and on explaining the character's experiences or thoughts. It just felt like I was being told so many things without being told anything of importance or something to make me be remotely interested in these characters. I heard great reviews about this book and the premise was so interesting. But it failed to deliver for me.

This is a book the defies categorization - there is some magical elements, some thriller, some mystery, some literary fiction, some horror (depending on how you feel about human leather books). But one thing I can save for sure is that it is impactful and stayed with me long after I closed this book.

This book was in no way what I was expecting, but in the best ways. There are multiple POVs that take a while to overlap so you need to hold multiple plots while reading (and speculating if you're like me). All of the characters are flawed fully realized people and while I guessed some of the plot points it felt beside the point as I was reading this beautifully written book.

I feel like it left room for this to become a series, or at least have other books in this series and I wait with bated breath to return to this world.

Ink Blood Sister Scribe is a debut novel that will seem normal on the outside, only to find that it is something remarkable within. Imagine hearing the hum of magic as you read the pages of a book. This novel sounded like an interesting read, but I hadn't expected it to draw me in to its world like it did.

Magic centers on books written in blood. For Joanna, taking care of a centuries-old library hidden in her basement, it must be hidden at all costs. Her sister Esther has cut ties with the magical world, though she still fears that it will follow her. Across the ocean, Nicholas chafes in his role as the only living person who can write new magical books. For all of them, magic is ancestral and stifling, until it becomes dangerously, personally real. The system of magic is easy to understand but also deep.

If this novel isn't magic, it’s close. It’s rare to find such rich characters who struggle with themselves, a riveting plot, adventure and action and twists, basically everything you could ask for in a novel. If you’re at all a fan of books, I see no reason why you wouldn’t like this one.
Thank you to William Morrow & NetGalley for allowing me to review this book

Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Torz was a bit of a chore to read. There were important things to know and it took half the book to get the reader up to speed. It was a slog, and boring. But about half way through we got to the actual story and things looked up. Now, I am not a fan of magic and I am not sure how I ended up requesting this book. It was very complicated, maybe more so than it needed to be. The main characters were Nicholas, Esther, and Joanna, with Collins and Cecily coming in a close second for the good guys, and Richard and Maram, for the bad guys. The brunt of the story was a library that housed all magical books known to the librarian based in London, and a small collection of books housed in Vermont. The librarian offered a special service writing new spells, in the form of books. The catch is that they must be written in blood by a Scribe. There is only on Scribe available: Richard’s nephew Nicholas, whom he slowly killing by using too much of this blood without enough recovery time. The relationships were complicated and revealed only in snatches.

The book could have used some editing. Even considering my prejudice against magic, it was a decent book, but too wordy. Stephen King says to use the least amount of words possible. Torz did not follow that dictum. The characters were decently written and interesting, once we got the ball rolling. The plot, simply put, was interesting, but too complicated: too many obscure details. The pacing of the first half was abysmal. It had huge potential but in my opinion, missed the mark.

I was invited to read a free e-ARC of Ink Blood Sister Scribe by William Morrow, through Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #Netgalley #WilliamMorrow #EmmaTorz #InkBloodSisterScribe

May is apparently the month for books about books and I am fully in support of this burgeoning trend. This time around we have a story of a Library full of spell books written at the cost of human blood and the guy in charge is using it for profit, which is rather the opposite of The Book that Wouldn't Burn. Ink Blood Sister Scribe is also set in our modern world, so if you'd like a book with a more familiar setting, then do check this out!
Esther Kalotay left home at 18 and has been moving each year on November 2 in order to keep herself and her family safe. This year she's in Antarctica and instead of packing up and hopping on a plane, she's decided to stay with her lover Pearl. What's the worst that could happen? Well, she's certainly going to find out. Many thousands of miles away, Joanna Kalotay is going about her usual business of maintaining the books in her private collection and keeping up the wards surrounding her home. Joanna is young, but she puts her responsibilities above all else, including her own happiness even after her and Esther's father Abe passed two years ago after bleeding on a particularly vicious spellbook. Across the pond in England we meet Nicholas, heir to the Library that threatens the Kalotay sisters and all those others who might possess certain books or certain gifts. Joanna has always been able to sense the magical books, hearing a buzzing hum like a hive of bees when in the presence of a spellbook. Esther, on the other hand, has always been unaffected by the books and their spells even to the point that she cannot read one aloud to use the spells herself.
As we follow these three characters it quickly becomes apparent that somehow they are tied together, though exactly how remains unclear for quite awhile. I always enjoy a convergence, especially if it's one I've been anticipating and this one was satisfying if a bit calmer than I'm used to in a book!
Overall, I really enjoyed this book though it didn't quite have the reeling emotional impact that would make this a 5 star read. The writing and dialog was on point, as was the whole concept of magical spell books written in blood. This is also a standalone, so the story was succinctly wrapped up with no loose plot threads AND it gave a thorough, hopeful epilogue that lasted for more than a single brief chapter. I'd highly recommend this for fellow nerds who can't get enough of books about books!

3.0
I will read anything that involves magical libraries. That being said, it took me a bit to get into this one but once I did I enjoyed it and found the ending satisfying. I'm not the biggest fan of contemporary settings and because I mostly read via audiobook the many shifts in POV and time jumps were confusing, so this was partly a me thing. But I don't think it was just a me thing because the writing was all over the place—lyrical at times but in others overwritten or downright confusing. (Just have to bring attention to the line: "This book throbbed like unspent thunder..." what?? Thunder doesn't throb and why is it so sexual when that's clearly not the goal of this simile.) And as far as the multiple POVs go, it was very satisfying when they all came together, I just don't think audiobook (though Saskia Maarleveld does a great job with all the voices) is the best way to read this if you are easily confused like me.

But what is this book about? Esther and Joanna are estranged sisters, Esther having fled to Antartica to escape her late mother's fate, where she has unexpectedly found love, and Joanna being the one who stayed at home in Vermont. However, they are thrown together again when Esther is forced to flee and Joanna seeks to unravel the mystery behind the book that killed their father. Nicholas is a scribe with magic in his blood who also becomes embroiled in this dangerous game. Full of secret societies, spell books bound from human parts, blood magic, murder and intrigue, this is a thrilling book once the pace gets going!

One of the best books I've ever read. It's one of those books that you want everyone to read so you can talk about it with them. A brilliant debut by a very gifted author.

What worked: the magic was so cool to read about, the characters were vivid and their dialog was realistic, the mystery kept me on my toes.

What didn't: the first half was SO SLOW. I found it hard to remain engaged when it all was set up for what was to come. Because of this, the last quarter felt so fast that there was no time to breath or to understand what the characters were feeling. The romance felt random and a lil forced. The sister's relationship which was such a let down and I was really looking forward to that part.

I reallyyyy wanted to love this. I will continue to try Törzs' future works since there was so much promise and I enjoyed her characters and world building.

I am one of many readers who enjoy books about books, and I requested Ink Blood Sister Scribe on something of a whim due to that. I was expecting it to be a fun read but probably not an especially memorable one; nothing about the blurb suggested it was going to be a really special book. I figured there was a 50/50 chance that it would end up on my DNF pile.

It did not. Because Ink Blood Sister Scribe is every bit as magical as the spellbooks within its pages.

What struck me immediately was how easy Ink Blood Sister Scribe was to read; the elusive quality of airport thrillers and escapist beach reads, but wrapped around a surprisingly rich centre – a bonbon of a book, ridiculously delicious. Pages turned without effort, drawing me deeper and deeper, anticipation looped around my throat and fear for the characters leaden in my stomach. I was desperately anxious that all these entirely fictional people be okay and get their happy ending; Törzs wastes no time in establishing emotional connections between reader and read, making me far more deeply invested, and much faster, than I’m used to!

One of the ways she does this is by giving every character small quirks of personality that make them seem instantly and deeply human. I don’t think characters need to be likeable, and sometimes they don’t even need to be very interesting, so long as you give them something they’re passionate about, something small enough for the reader to understand, and maybe empathise with. Esther is slowly translating a (non-magical) book in order to connect to the lost side of her heritage; Joanna is trying to make friends with a feral cat and convince him to come inside and live with her. Small things, human things, that mean such a lot on an individual level that we can’t help being drawn in to the characters’ passion for them.

Story-wise, the blurb is a bit misleading; the death of Esther and Joanna’s father isn’t really a catalyst, so much as the removable of an obstacle that allows Esther and Joanna to finally discover things he chose to keep from them. The actual catalyst is Esther; at 18, she was told by her father that she had to run, and keep running. Magic doesn’t work on Esther, for some inexplicable reason, which means the wards that kept her family safe didn’t function while she was within them. So she had to leave to keep her family safe. But there’s a rule: she can only spend a year in any one place. Come November 2nd, 11pm Eastern Standard Time, Esther must run again; spend 24 hours moving, before settling in a new place.

Why? Because if she doesn’t, the people who murdered her mother will find her. So Esther’s followed the rule faithfully – until the start of Ink Blood Sister Scribe, when her relationship with the (extremely awesome) Pearl is judged too precious to abandon.

So she doesn’t run.

That’s what kicks the story off.

I flew through this book, and massively resented anything that took me away from it. Törzs’ prose is light, almost breezy at times, but without sacrificing thematic meatiness or some seriously complex character dynamics. Despite dealing with some majorly dark themes, this is a book that made me laugh over and over, both when the characters themselves were being funny and with the marvellous turns of phrase Törzs whips out that just nail some deep and ridiculous aspect of the human condition;

the closet of her sexual subconscious was full of petticoats.

He’d never felt so passionately all-caps about another person

I mean, you know exactly what she means with these two lines! They’re funny and more than a little ridiculous and you get it instantly, because yes, that is exactly the right way to describe The Thing. These lines are two of my favourite examples, but there are plenty more; I had to take many brief pauses to read certain passages aloud to my husband, else he’d have no idea why I was cackling my head off.

“He’s British,” Lisa said to Collins. It sounded accusatory.

“So was Bowie.”

Lisa put a hand to her heart. “Touché.”

The story itself is…wonderful. I don’t want to say much about it – and I strongly suggest you try to avoid any other reviews that go into detail about it – because the twists and reveals strike like lightning, and that is something you should definitely experience for yourself. I was able to see precisely one (1) twist coming, and it was a fairly minor and obvious one; all the rest left me gaping. If I have one critique, it’s that the Big Explanation near the end was one that I don’t think any reader could have put together; there weren’t enough clues, we had to be told because the pieces we needed weren’t given to us. But that’s an extremely minor quibble, because by that point, the Big Explanation isn’t really all that big – important to the characters, yes, but it doesn’t really affect the plot and doesn’t matter so much to the reader. The clues to the bits that matter are all there, although I defy you to figure out what’s coming before it hits – this is a case of, it’s so clear in hindsight!!! but so very un-obvious as it’s playing out. The theory I spent the last two thirds of the book building was utterly wrong – and that delights me. YAY FOR BOOKS NOT BEING PREDICTABLE AND ALSO TRICKING ME LIKE THE FOOL I AM!

Despite how dark some aspects of this are, this was my comfort book, oddly cosy even when the characters were on the run or fighting for their lives. I’ve said this already, but it was easy to read, a blessed relief when the brain-fog attacked – but it’s not insultingly or annoyingly simple. It’s twisty and emotional and I wanted to flail my arms around frantically a great deal more than once. And the magic system! I am in awe of how simple and brilliant is the magic system Törzs has come up with, a clever, so-unique twist on the idea of magic books! It all fits together so well; it’s easy to grasp but still wondrous, still enough to give you goosebumps or make you shiver or have you laughing with awe-wonder-joy. It almost seemed to marry the best parts of hard magic systems with the best parts of soft ones, and I’m so excited to see what my favourite readers think of it when this book is released next week.

Ink Blood Sister Scribe is a fascinating bundle of contradictions that cohere into a real delight of a book – every bit as magical as the spell books featured in its story. It’s light, but rich and complex; it’s dark, but bewilderingly cosy. It’s easy to read without ever feeling dumbed-down; deliciously more-ish without being rushed. It’s about magic and sisterhood, and yet another 1%-er greedily hoarding resources and happy to murder to acquire more. It’s about making friends with a cat, and ruinous obsessions. It’s about wonder, and terrible parenting, and a Pomeranian named Sir Kiwi.

And a lot of magic books.

A boy grows up in a house with library and many secrets. A young woman runs to the corners of the earth to escape from the same secrets. When they meet, they discover the magic each is privy to and how they can begin to control the damage it has done.

This weekend I read Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Törzs. This incredibly lush story of family secrets, magic, and a group of misfit heroes has surpassed all other reads so far this year for me! Do yourselves a favor and check it out when it releases next week on May 30!


What I liked about the book:

1. Let’s first discuss the writing, which was perfect! Not only was the world building of the magic system super freaking interesting (which we’ll get to in a bit), but the grammar, spelling, and overall flow of this book was unequivocally flawless. This is not something that I mark an author down for unless it is excessive and leads to a large flow problem for the story, but this is DEFINITELY something I give points for when done well!

This story was written in third person POV, for three main characters: Joanna, Esther, and Nicholas. While I am not usually a fan of third person POV as I feel it is not as personal and intimate as stories told in first person, Emma convinced me that it can be done right with this book! I had no feelings of missing a character’s feelings or wanting to know more of what they were thinking, because Emma was able to expertly weave a third person POV story that felt like first person POV. Maybe I don’t hate third person POV after all!

The flow of the story was fantastic. Information was provided and clarified at the right pace to be mysterious but not daunting. I’m still not able to figure out how Emma did it, but essentially, I knew I was missing details while reading, but I also didn’t obsess over it because I had a bone-deep trust that Emma would get us there. Where and how this trust was developed I do not know, but somewhere within this story it happened and Emma did not disappoint.

2. Getting back to the system of magic, I was completely in awe of the idea and really dug it. I loved that there was definitely a yin-yang concept to it in that the people who wrote spells couldn’t wield them and the people who could practice magic couldn’t write spells; you had to have both for the whole system to work or it would cease to exist.

The methodology behind it all was wildly fascinating to me. The way that spells were written was unique and creative, but I was especially charmed with a book only having so many uses before it faded. This just made so much sense given how the books were written! I can’t say more about that, but trust me, it’s fantastic!

Finally, the background written around scribes and magic as well as all the artefacts found in the library totally fed into my lust for history! I loved the more immediate history we got detailing the FMC’s families before they were born, but also the history we got from generations before that. It made me think, “Did this type of thing actually exist?!?!” This was just like when I watched Jurassic Park for the first time and thought “THIS COULD TOTALLY HAPPEN!”.

3. I liked all three main characters and felt they definitely had their own voices as I read. They were all underdogs in their own ways and I love that! Usually we get one, but we got three here!

Joanna (little sister and magic wielder) was the quintessential goodie good who did everything she was told to without many questions, stayed dutiful and loyal to her family, and ultimately was a prisoner in her own life of solitude. I loved watching her step out of her comfort zone, forge relationships with new people, and ultimately learn to do something she thought she never could.

Esther (big sister and non-magic wielder) was the dictionary definition of the wild child, runaway. Never staying in the same place for too long and never establishing roots until one day everything changed, forcing her to go back to basics, find her way home, and simultaneously find her place in the magical world.

Nicholas (the lone, living scribe) was the sheltered but well-off “chosen one”. Left as the only scribe in the world, Nicholas was treated as no more than a machine for his…abilities, but otherwise was given anything and everything he could possibly want, including one super cute sidekick Pomeranian! Watching him develop relationships with several people and overcome his personal hurdles like a BOSS was so satisfying.

And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Collins, Nicholas’s hilarious bodyguard, who was really like the fourth MC. Collins’s love for the female Pomeranian, Sir Kiwi(!), his hilarious bickering back-and-forth with Nicholas, and his intelligence despite being sidelined as the brawn in their equation, made him easily my favorite character in the entire story.

4. Finally, this book did a great job tying everything together. From small things in the beginning of the book that later became significant, to the tattooed quote that followed Esther throughout the entire story, there were so many “AHA!” moments in this one that I loved.


What could have been better:

1. I wish we had gotten a bit more romance! I’m a romance junkie, and the description saying “this is a suspenseful and richly atmospheric novel that draws readers into a vast world filled with mystery and magic, romance, and intrigue” tells me there is going to be some grand romance. However, I felt the book was missing this piece with both FMCs. Don’t get me wrong, there was romance for sure, both of which I was all for, but there just wasn’t enough there for me.


Final Thoughts: Such a beautifully written story with a unique take on magic, sisterhood, and unlikely heroes.


Final Rating: 4.5 eye-opening stars!


Thank you to NetGalley, William Morrow, and Emma Törzs for the advanced copy of this book. The review expressed above is honest and my own.

Moody, melancholic, and lovely. A bittersweet tale about sisters and families and secrets-- Törzs constructs a world and a magic system that feels lyrical and lived in, and expressive of the characters' inner landscapes. I would spend a lot more time in this world-- the book is self-contained and satisfying on its own but points to a lots of future storytelling possibilities.

Ink Blood Sister Scribe is so many things at once: an adventure, a puzzle, a twisty thriller, and a tender romance. It's a magical book about the magic of books; I really enjoyed it! 3.5 out of 5 ⭐️

Oh hi magic books, I love you - especially in a grim fantasy with secret societies! This read similarly to Book of Night by Holly Black, another urban fantasy that I loved. In a world where anyone can use magic if they have the right book, I can only imagine how much fun I could have with that. The magic system itself seems intuitive, though some are blessed with abilities like hearing magic or being completely immune to it. I also really enjoyed having a queer romance front and center amidst all of this fantastical chaos. This could potentially become a series, but I did enjoy that this book was entirely self-contained. Also Sir Kiwi deserves so many treats for making it through this book.

*Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review*

Oh my God. This was amazing. Read this immediately!!

Following two half sisters, Esther and Joanna, Esther is a traveler, moving yearly and Joanna stays at home caring for the vast library of magical books left under her care by their deceased father, Ink Blood Sister Scribe takes the readers on a journey of magic, loss, betrayal and family and it was so very good.
Esther, sent away to protect her sister due to her lack of magical abilities, must relocate yearly in order to keep from being found (and to keep her sister safe)- though by who she isn't quite. Joanna remains home, nightly setting the wards to protect the magical books her father spent his life collecting.
And across the ocean, Nicholas, protected by the Library has all the answers to the questions the two sisters need. Or does he? What secrets have been kept from him during his sheltered, cosseted life?

This novel was so well written, the characters coming to life wonderfully, the nagic and the world unraveling before the reader (or listener if you are able to listen to the exceeding well read audiobook) that is was a joy from start to finish.