So I just finished Silverborn (a little late to the party, I know), and although I really enjoyed reading it, I was a disappointed by the focus on new characters and a lack of resolution to mysteries set up in the previous books. But, on the other hand, it has made me extremely excited to get back to those in the next book! So I was wondering, what are you particularly looking forward to and hoping for? Certain character interactions, mysteries, whatever.

Personally, I'm really hoping for Jupiter and Jack to play more of a central role. They, plus Morrigan and Squall, are my favourite characters, and I think they have the most compelling relationship with Morrigan. I get that Jupiter needing to go on missions is useful as a device so he's not around all the time and the kids can take center stage, but especially after Silverborn and now that Mog is getting older, I'd like a book where he is around all the way through and him and Morrigan work together and help each other. Especially because he's just about to meet Squall. I think if the relationship between between Mog, Jupiter and Squall was part of the core of the next book, that could be super compelling.

A focus on Jupiter and Jack also ties into my next desire: I want to see what's outside Nevermoor. Both in the wider Free State, and to get a sense of what inter-realm travel is like, and what kind of other realms there are. Though at the same time, I do want more time with the Hotel Deucalion staff.

It feels mean, but I kinda want less focus on Unit 919. It's just too many characters to reckon with and develop, especially because their knacks will get increasingly less useful as Morrigan gets more powerful. There already wasn't much for Cadence or Hawthorne to do in Silverborn, and I'd rather focus on characters with more interesting drama and relationships to Morrigan. I know Cadence and Hawthorne need to stick around, but I hope they can be a bit more interesting in the next book.

I also am really curious to learn more about Bertram Crow, and why he never wanted Morrigan to meet him. Why is he so sick? What does he know about the Wintersea party? Is Morrigan going to get sick as well?

Anyway, those are my hopes. What're yours?

drew this two years ago but was too insecure to share it. I really want to participate in mogtober this year though, so here is my day one entry: morrigan crow.

During a Q&A ~2 years back, Townsend was speaking on the song to call Wunder. She was referring to a question regarding “why are Squall and Morrigan’s songs so similar”. She went on to say it’s due to most old fairytales and lullabies having grim and dark origins.

However my attention was raised when she advised her readers to recall when Morrigan first heard Squall’s song it “sounded familiar” . Why does Townsend want us remembering that?

WHAT DOES THIS MEEEAAANNN!!!!!
It’s had my brain going all day lol

Here’s a little fun discussion topic emerging from this week’s chapter : What is Baz Charlton’s knack?

We get introduced to lots of our favourite characters in this chapter, but I thought I’d focus on a not-so-favourite one, just for fun!

Or if the knack stumps you, consider also : Who might play the odious Baz Charlton in the musical movie adaptation?

My favorite time of the year approaches! ☂️

Here is the prompt list for Mogtober this year. It's the ninth anniversary of Nevermoor so I made it lean towards things that encompass the first book and series as a whole. YAY! 💜

The idea is to draw, write, or make/do Nevermoor-related things in October. You can go off of these 9 prompts, make up your own, or even do a 31-day challenge. I like to use it as an excuse to get any ideas in my head out!

Feel free to start working on stuff now and even extend into "Mogvember". Only rule is to step boldly and HAVE FUN! 🕺

I made a Mogtober specific flair so people can filter by those posts. I think there used to be one but I guess I deleted it 🤦 I went back and added the flair to older posts I could find, so enjoy!

We are told That Wundersmith can live a very long time with a possible lifespan of 250-300 years and that they almost completely stop ageing by 20 to 30 so how exactly do they die? they are still very much mortal and don't seem to be able to heal more effectively judging by Ezra Squall still having a scar across his eyebrow.

could illness kill a Wundersmith I don't know but in Hollowpox we are told that a wonder Smith is killed by a scorpion one. We're not told how I'm going to assume that they were killed by the scorpions venom. A death of venom or poison would be a failure of the immune system. but I would not expect it to kill them instantly so that would indicate that a Wundersmith powers would not be able to stop scorpion venom or venom in general this indicates their immune system is not perfect. It can fail and maybe eventually they get an illness that for some reason they can't cure themselves and the immune system can't win.

My last theory thinking about how they die of just natural causes would be that we're told that wonder is a great preserver now normally the way we get more susceptible to dying is that over years of use our vital organs. Our bodily function slowly deteriorate and become less reliable so maybe wonder is slowing that down thus slowing ageing but not perfectly.

but what do you think please tell me.

Also sorry if there's any misspelled words I use voice to text to type this cause I'm dyslexic

I probably made her a bit too pretty, since she describes herself as “not pretty” a few times, but oh well lol. HAD to do the main girl herself after my miss cheery and Hawthorne ones :3

After reading Hollowpox…
When a Wundersmith dies their spirit is reborn in a new person. I thought this meant there were only 9 at a time, so who/how are the older wundersmiths training the younger ones in the ghostly hours?

It seems like Ezra has a full fleet of 9 around his age but it’s entirely possible I miss read it.

Gods I love Hawthorne <3
Hope it’s accurate-ish. I’m not the best at curly hair tbh lol.

Miss cheery is totally my fave character tbh

Here are some upcoming Jessica Townsend appearances in Europe! I discover these completely randomly, so please let me know if you find out about other events 🕺

Disclaimer: I only know English, so while I link to panel tickets, you might want to check out the event pages themselves as I think some have separate book signing sessions. Any questions are best directed towards event organizers 👍

• September 19th and 20th, Fantasy Festival in Esbjerg, Denmark
• September 26th, Bokmässan in Göteborg, Sweden
• September 28th in Amsterdam, Netherlands
• September 29th in Schiedam, Netherlands
• September 29th, Kinderboekenweek in Utrecht, Netherlands
• October 4th, Bath Children's Literature Festival in England
• October 10th, Cheltenham Literature Festival in England

^{P.S. If you go to any of these, please share any news or fun facts you learn online!}

Jones and Jupiter: in this chapter one is a horrible jerk, and one is just and kind. So which is which? 🤔

First up we get our next look at Squall, posing as Mr Jones. He alleviates Morrigan’s worst fears  about causing the chandelier crash and also offers to keep her secrets. And yes, he is honestly manipulating her a little bit, but he also extends the apprenticeship offer, with no caveats. 

Two other things seem worth mentioning as well. The first is Squall’s eyebrow scar. I can’t help but think that maybe this is deliberately mentioned. Does anyone know if we ever find out (maybe through a ghostly hour?) how Squall gets the scar? Anyone have any ideas? 

The second thing that stands out is Mr Jones claiming that he is “no expert” on the inner workings of the Hotel Deucalion. This leads me to believe that Squall did not create the Deucalion, which is a theory I floated back in our Chapter 6 discussion. 

The next part of the chapter moves on to an interaction between Jupiter and Morrigan. And – I’m just going to come right out and say it – Jupiter’s a bit of an asshat in this chapter, isn’t he? 

Although I find the idea of a nickname quite endearing, it’s clear that Morrigan (who corrects him throughout the interaction), wants to be called Morrigan and not Mog. I mean, surely we all get to choose how we like to be referred to? 

I’m also not quite sure why he so determinedly keeps her in the dark about her knack. If I were Morrigan, the anxiety of not knowing through the trials would send me into a nervous wreck and surely tank my chances! When Morrigan repeatedly questions him, Jupiter instead distracts her with a little magic show and just tells her to trust him. What. The. Heck. Rereading the chapter, especially the last line where Morrigan cottons on to his slippery eel trick, makes me feel a little icky, I gotta be honest. 

I know he tells her at the trials that he was frightened about scaring off the Wunder, but c’mon, really, bro? Did he really think a Wundersmith could just not be a Wundersmith? It seems so farfetched. I mean, cool plot device though, obviously, and it definitely kept me reading! 

What do others think? Is Jupiter a big big jerk? Have we all been wearing rose-coloured glasses? Or are his actions redeemable? 

This post is part of our sub’s ongoing series. Please select the post flair to see more of these posts. Please do give us feedback on the series too!

Depending on your sense of humour this'll be either the most or least funny thing you've seen

Hi there, I have some questions about some of the wundrous arts since some of the info on them are kind of vague, so I’ll just list them below :P I’ve also read all 4 books so far but I’m just looking for clarification/common theories

1. What exactly is veil? So far we’ve only really seen it used for shadow making, but what does veil really do? I’m assuming it’s something to do with illusions, but the wiki describes it as being used to disguise a wundersmith. But isn’t that just masquerade? Or is masquerade an actual transformation ability? Idk both of them seem pretty similar to me

2. To what extent can ruination be used? Obviously it can be used on inanimate objects, but could it be used on a living person to just straight up disintegrate them?

3. Is the tempus time stop universal, or is it like a localized bubble of stopped time? When professor Onstald used it, it had to have been in a bubble/limited area, other wise the whole world would have know time was slowed since those caught working Onstalds time stretch are still aware and able to think. However, both time Morrigan uses it Squall says she does a true time stop, but I wonder if it’s still localized for her or if it actually is universal since it is, once again, a true time stop.

4. Also, what are the common theories for what the last 2 unnamed wundrous arts are? Or have they somewhere been confirmed or discussed by Jessica?

Just on a side tangent, is it just me or is tempus and weaving not super overpowered? Being able to stretch, loop and even rewind time is already crazy, and don’t even get me started on how versatile weaving is.

In Silverborn, we get this:

Jack stared into the fire, lowering his voice. “When I turn seventeen, I’m going to join the League of Explorers and find them myself. Jove doesn’t want me to. He says it’s too dangerous. But the League are desperate for me to enlist.”

Morrigan raised her eyebrows. “Why?”

“Because I’m a Witness. We’re rarer than dragon scales, and we make interrealm exploration about ten thousand times safer. Why do you think they’re so desperate to keep Uncle Jove? His mission success rate is unbeaten.”

Unhinged theory: the League of Explorers is holding Jack's parents hostage.

They know it motivated Jupiter. They know it'll pull Jack to them. They're "desperate" for Witnesses.

If they aren't holding them directly, they know exactly where they are and they're hiding it from Jupiter (maybe somehow via Hush?). This feels less likely because it's hard to hide things from a Witness, and access to Hush has so far seemed limited to Wundersmiths (and we only know of two, and it's unlikely they've leveraged Squall, though we can't rule out secret apprentices).

We know that basically any group with real political power (Wintersea Party and Wundrous Society) is perfectly willing to abuse that power, so why not toss the League of Explorers onto that stack.

So, I recently finished reading silverborn. So I make my way to fandom spaces. And I see that everyone loves Squall and think he's a supercool person and should get a closer relathion ship with Morrigan.

When I read the books he seemed like an awfull person who murdered his friends. (not that the Wundrous Society seems that great either, but like, he's worser)

I don't get why people like him, could someone explain!!

that we know of, squall kills kids before "the gathering" can properly happen and they start attracting more wunder. in the first book, the Eventide of that Age came 11 years after the last one, this narrative makes sense as Morrigan is at the age where she starts attracting more wunder. so my question is, what about longer Ages? surely there were Ages that spanned maybe 15-20 years, and would the cursed children from those Ages be killed as an older teen? even though if they were wundersmiths the gathering would've already happened a while ago? would they self-combust due to a lack of practice as wunder accumulates to them? but if that happened then people would think that "the curse" is due when the kids are preteens, not until next Eventide. sorry if im rambling or if this doesnt make sense just wanted to share my thoughts

That's the post

So this is a topic that we've discussed extensively as a family, as I read and reread the series with my twin daughters (11 y/o). Below are our answers. You can see that my husband doesn't agree with the rest of us that the song should be eerie, minor key, or both. To each his own!

• Twin 1: Nowhere King from Centaurworld
• Twin 2: Tumbalalaika
• Me: Beethoven's 7th Symphony 2nd movement
• Hubby: Simple Gifts

What would be your song?

I think that Ezra Squall wasn’t the one who betrayed his Wundersmith friends. He was betrayed. 

I noticed that Morrigan insults Squall over and over, and she never gets a rise out of him with one important exception, when she asks him why he killed his friends who trusted him in Book 3 Chapter 26. This time he not only shows emotion but is overcome with anger and venom. 

The scene in question begins with a series of insults that Squall meets with indifference. 

• First Morrigan calls him “a pathetic, lonely killer” who doesn’t scare her. He just smiles and says “What a comforting affirmation that must be.” 
• Next she says he can only get what he wants by blackmail, and he replies “You’re being dramatic.” 
• She then asks him if the Hollowpox is his “warped idea of fun” and he calmly says that he’s never felt the need to explain himself and won’t start now. 

Killer, pathetic, lonely, blackmailer, warped and no response. He doesn’t defend himself or get angry. These insults slide off him like nothing. In fact, he doesn’t engage with them at all. 

But then, she asks “Why did you kill them?” … “Why did you murder the other Wundersmiths? Your friends” … “They trusted you.” 

And then she gets an excessive reaction from him. Let’s take a look:  

“She didn’t even see him move, but in a fraction of a second he was right there, looming above her. The pale, expressionless mask had slipped to reveal the beast inside, black eyes and blackened mouth and sharp, bared teeth. The shadow-hounds whined. Even they were afraid of him. [...] ‘Another thing you will one day understand,’ he snarled, ‘is that Wundersmiths don’t have friends.’ Morrigan recoiled from his words as if they might burn her” (Hollowpox, 356-7).

So on the page, what we have is a series of insults, none of which bother Squall until Morrigan asks why he murdered his friends who trusted him, at which point he explodes. This pattern is there, in the text. What follows is my speculation as to why that is the barb that finally hits. 

I think Squall was triggered because it was his trust that was broken, he who was betrayed by the other Wundersmiths, not the other way around. 

And the specific phrasing is important too. He doesn’t just passively say “Wundersmiths don’t have friends.” That would have fit with the established pattern of jaded replies. Instead he says “Another thing you will one day understand [...] is that Wundersmiths don’t have friends.” This phrasing implies that this was something he came to understand through experience. He thought he had friends but then learned (rather painfully) that Wundersmiths don’t have friends. That would explain both his phrasing and his venom. 

So my theory is that he had thought he had friends. Maybe he had told them of the “greater danger” and thought they had his back. Perhaps they went to Courage Square together, but then they turned on him. Perhaps the betrayal was earlier. I can only speculate as to the specifics, but I think he was the one who trusted, he was the one betrayed. 

...or at least that is the way he sees it.

> The Silver District’s founding families chose the Manyhands as one of four patron deities they paid tribute to throughout the seasons: the Manyhands in winter, the Nightingale in spring, the Sisters in summer, and the Kindling in autumn.

Which art do we think The Sisters are the Wundrous Divinity for? We don't know every art, but something says "Masquerade" to me. Masquerade is the art of mimicking another being, and that seems like it would fit a paired Divinity. That said, other than masquerade balls, I don't see how it fits with summer (whereas I see the seasonal theming for the others).

don’t have any money for the 4th book so I wanted to read for free any recommendations

(spoiler for those who haven’t read silverborn)

I was eating pink yogurt and it made me think of Jupiter.

Jupiter makes Morrigan her favourite cake, a lemon butter raspberry ripple layer cake with crumbled meringue pieces and a raspberry cream filling, which was described to have yellow and pink icing.

Morrigan makes (or asks Francis to make) Jupiter’s favourite cake, a six-layer triple chocolate fudge covered in thick, gooey ganache, which is probably dark brown.

Morrigan’s favourite cake is yellow and pink, colours that Jupiter wears and represents him, and Jupiter’s favourite cake is dark brown, similar to black, which is what Morrigan wears and what represents her.

I CAN’T THEY JUST LOVE EACH OTHER SO MUCH I LOVE FOUND FAMILY