Nevermoor

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.

Congratulations! You have been selected by one of our members as a candidate for entry to the Wunderous Society.

Please be advised that your entry is not assured. Membership in the Society is extremely limited, and each year hundreds of hopeful candidates compete for a place among our scholars.
—Front cover, Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow

Nevermoor is a series of Urban Fantasy books by Australian author Jessica Townsend initially published in 2017 by Little, Brown and Company. All books are available as an ebook and audiobook. Townsend has planned for nine books in the series, and a musical film adaption of the first book has been announced.

The series follows the journey of supposedly cursed eleven year old Morrigan Odelle Crow, and her journey into the world of the Free State. Morrigan is labelled as a cursed child, destined to die at her twelve birthday, and blamed for all the misfortunes occurring around her. The local church set on fire? Blame Morrigan. A bridge collapsed? Blame Morrigan. Your sandwich has too much meat? Blame Morrigan. She is spirited away (the series refers to it as "whisked away", but "spirited away" sounds cooler) to the titular city of Nevermoor -- a place where both humans and talking animals (referred to as Wunimals) coexist -- by the adventurous and outgoing Jupiter North.

Of course, any self respecting story has a conflict, and Nevermoor is no exception. The series as a whole deals with Morrigan slowly losing the habits and stigmas she formed living as a cursed child, and finding acceptance and friends in her new city. She does this by trying for a position in the Wunderous Society -- a prestigious organization for talented individuals with powerful magic abilities -- and interacting with other members of her unit. The overarching conflict in the series revolves around Big Bad Ezra Squall, a Walking Spoiler and powerful person who is destined to make Morrigan his apprentice.

Also, be warned. This series has a lot of sarcasm to the point where sarcasm poisoning is possible. Expect plenty of Deadpan Snarkers. The protagonist is a Little Miss Snarker. When you've had enough Deadpan Snarkers, prepare for cats. After you think you've witnessed all possible forms of sarcasm, a Silent Snarker will show up.

The series consists of the following works:

The Wiki Rule dictates that there is a Nevermoor wiki.

The following tropes are common to many or all entries in the Nevermoor franchise.
For tropes specific to individual installments, visit their respective work pages.
  • Affectionate Nickname: Mog, given to Morrigan by Jupiter, used throughout the entire series. Jupiter states that he likes giving people nicknames and tries hard to find one for Morrigan.

Jupiter North: Oh, just thinking about what we can do with Morrigan. You know, for a nickname. Morrie ... Moro ... No. Moz. Mozza. Mozzie?

  • Alternative Calendar: In the series, time is divided into Ages. Each Age starts with Morningtide and Eventide, and usually lasts for twelve years. The first book is kickstarted when Eventide comes a year early, and Morrigan, being a cursed child, is destined to die on the year, setting the events for Jupiter North to come and spirit her away to the Free States and Nevermooor.
  • The Apprentice: Ezra Squall wishes to make Morrigan his apprentice. Unfortunately, being perceived as the world's most evil man mildly hampers your ability to get apprentices. He finally succeeds in the end of Hollowpox: The Hunt for Morrigan Crow, where Morrigan signs a contract to learn more about her abilities and the contract will only end once she has mastered all nine Wretched Arts.
  • Arc Number: The number nine:
    • Morrigan joins Unit 919 at the Wunderous Society.
    • There are nine new recruits each year.
    • Wunsoc has nine floors, the ninth used to train Wundersmiths.
    • Nine books are planned in the series.
    • There are nine Wretched Arts for Wundersmiths to master.
  • Ascended Extra: Cadence, who has a minor role in the first book (aside from pulling off a Deus Ex Machina), becomes one of Morrigan's closest friends in Hollowpox: The Hunt for Morrigan Crow, and plays a much bigger role in the story.
    • Almost the entirety of Unit 919, who gradually warm up to Morrigan and thus get more screen time.
  • Aura Vision: The power granted to Jupiter North and his nephew Jack. Jupiter, through practice, is able to control this ability, and turn it off as well as share it with others. Jack, on the other hand, is not so lucky, and wears an eyepatch to turn it off, initially leading Morrigan to believe that he is actually blind in that eye.
  • Bazaar of the Bizarre: The Nevermoor Bazaar, which operates on Friday nights every summer. The Saturday following, many people share the stories of the bargains they have struck or of the exotic and rare items they've brought. Morrigan never gets a chance to visit the place in the first book. She constantly begs Jupiter to take her, but Jupiter is always busy, so the trips are always cancelled at the last minute in the first book. She gets a chance in the second book, though, along with Hawthorne's family. However, they quickly run into the darker part of the Bazaar, the Ghastly Market, after taking a small shortcut and going through a Tricksy Lane.
  • Birthday Hater: Morrigan, justified in universe by the fact that she will die on her twelfth birthday. While she didn't die as Jupiter took her to Nevermoor, her superstition of birthdays still remain.
  • Blessed With Suck: Being one of the only two living Wundersmiths, the other being the feared Ezra Squall, Morrigan is feared and rejected by her own unit, who are bound together via an oath. During the second book, her unit is reclusive towards her, her only friends being Cadence and Hawthorne. In the third book, when Wunsoc reveals to the public that she is a Wundersmith, the Hotel Deucalion's doors are flooded with reporters trying to catch a glimpse of her abilities, made worse by the bounty placed on a demonstration of her performance caught on camera.
  • Big Bad: Ezra Squall, responsible for almost all the bag things happening in Morrigan's life. He repeatedly tries to make her his apprentice, influencing the events around her to do so, kickstarting the events for Jupiter to take her away.
  • Boring but Practical: Downplayed in the case of the School of Mundane Arts, which teaches medicine, sports, engineering, politics, and any other subjects which is required for the Wunderous Society to continue operation. While these talents cannot be classified as boring, the name mundane arts, as well as their contrast with the School of Arcane Arts, leaves quite a bit to be desired. The book itself even acknowledges the "practical" part, with the school's motto being Just Try Getting On Without Us.
  • Born Unlucky: Sure, you might be cursed with bad luck, or be destined to never accomplish anything because you're the eldest of three, but at least you won't die on your twelfth birthday. Morrigan, on the other hand, not so lucky.
  • Cats Are Snarkers: The Magnificat Fenestra inserts some sort of sarcastic phrase or remark into every other sentence.
  • Character Title: Morrigan Crow herself appears in the title of all the books in the series.
  • Child Prodigy: Every candidate who wishes to join the Wunderous society, possessing a knack which makes them exceptionally talented in a specific field. Every child who has made it through the trials, thus, is even more special because they have to get a patron to notice them, and pass through all four trials.
  • Coming of Age: A literal coming of age at the start of the book on Morrigan's eleventh birthday, then she gets "whisked away" to Nevermoor. The series deals strongly with her psyche, and her maturing and learning to control her powers as a Wundersmith while growing up and making friends.
  • Compelling Voice: This is Cadence Blackburn's ability, referred to in universe as being a mesmerist. She can steal, then make the policeman that comes handcuff themselves. This does lead to a Blessed With Suck situation, where no one remembers her except Morrigan and the rest of Unit 919 once they receive the proper training, so she struggles to make friends. In addition, this ability makes her mistrusted among her peers.
  • Constructed World: The story's world, at first glance, appears to be our own, with familiar elements like elections and cats. However, as the story progresses you realise that it takes place in a constructed world, with elements like Wunder replacing electricity, and a bidding system replacing job seeking. The city of Nevermoor drills home the concept of a constructed world, as elements such as knacks and gigantic cats are established.
  • Cover Drop: All books in the series so far uses Scene Covers, depicting events that seem cryptic when one glances at the cover, but actually takes place within the context of the story.
    • The cover of the first book shows people jumping down the Hotel Deucalion with umbrellas for their Eventide celebration, saying "step boldly".
    • The second book depicts Morrigan surrounded by a bunch of magical orbs. It turns out that these orbs are actually memories, and that the cover takes place in the Museum of Stolen Memories.
    • The third book's cover depicts the climax of the novel, where Morrigan works with Fenestra to eradicate the Hollowpox from all the infected Wunimals.
  • Deconstruction: Morrigan's status of being a Wundersmith can be linked to the idea of being a chosen one, as they are both blessed with powerful abilities and expected to accomplish great feats. It discusses the stigma which is associated with chosen ones, as all it takes is one person like Ezra Squall to go rogue and their reputation will be forever tarnished. They then have to face judgement and controversy the moment they bring up their abilities. It also covers the stress of being such an individual, at the center of negative attention.
    • The Free States' isolation is also explored. While it keeps out Ezra Squall and the Hunt of Smoke and Shadow, it also means that genuine, useful trade between it and the Wintersea Republic cannot happen. In Hollowpox: The Hunt for Morrigan Crow, Nevermoor could really use the cure for Hollowpox developed by the Wintersea Republic, but the closed borders as well as reluctance to outsiders, combined with Squall's warning about the president of the Wintersea Republic, meant that the trade did not go through.
  • Dragon Rider: Hawthorne Swift's knack is this.
  • Early Teen Hero: Morrigan Crow initially starts out at eleven, but as the series progresses she ages into the trope's range.
  • Enemy Mine: At the end of Hollowpox, Ezra Squall reveals that President Wintersea must not get inside the Free States, never saying why, only hinting at how bad things will happen. They also have to band together to eradicate the Hollowpox that is plaguing Nevermoor's Wunimals. This is one of the reasons behind Morrigan reluctantly agreeing to be apprenticed to the person viewed as the world's most evil man.
  • Exclusively Evil: Subverted. Wundersmiths are viewed as this by most people. They once has a great reputation, and are seen as forces of good, using their powers to help their community. However, they are now seen as this due to the actions of Ezra Squall. The phrase Wundersmith itself is feared throughout the city, and Unit 919 is reclusive and silent towards Morrigan because she is a Wundersmith. Subverted because Morrigan should be a ruthless dictator based on societal expectations, but she is just a Deadpan Snarker. Morrigan starts doubting herself despite Jupiter's constant You Are Better Than You Think You Are speeches.
  • Fire-Forged Friends: Unit 919 initially starts out disliking Morrigan, but warms up to her later on. Dislike because as a Wundersmith, she is associated with Ezra Squall, viewed to be the most evil man in existance. Warms to her as she proves that she is genuinely a great person to be around. The loyalty trial used by Wunsoc forces them to make friends, as the entire unit gets kicked out if they betray each other.
  • Friendless Background: Morrigan, not because of her personality, but because of her being perceived as a cursed child. Fortunately, this changed when she enters Nevermoor and meets Hawthorne.
    • Implied with the mesmerist Cadence Blackburn. You can't make friends if everyone you meet forgets you.
  • Functional Magic: Wunder. It serves as the in universe equivalent of electricity, but can be manipulated to create public spectacles or buildings. Wundersmiths gain the ability to shape it to their will, and to use their abilities to help out the people around them. Others can dedicate their life to learning a Wretched Art, and use it to create spectacles.
  • The Gift: Everyone in Unit 919 has this, and their prestigious gifts grants them admission into the unit. Cadence is a mesmerist, Farncis is a gastronomist, Mahir is a linguist, Anah a healer, Thaddea a fighter, Hawthorne a Dragon Rider, Lambeth a short-range oracle, and Archan a pickpocket. In fact, a Gift is required to even attempt the trials to get into the Wunderous Society. The more elusive gift of being a Wundersmith is granted to Morrigan.
  • Hero with Bad Publicity: Wundersmiths are viewed as this. They were once seen as great and powerful people who uses their abilities for good and to make the community they live in better. That all changed when Ezra Squall started using his abilities for evil, killed off his fellow Wundersmiths, and was barred from entering Nevermoor forever. Then Morrigan is revealed to be a Wundersmith.
  • The Hero's Birthday: Used in a much darker way. The first novel of the series establishes that Morrigan will die on her birthday as a result of being a cursed child. Thus, the trope is Inverted and the birthday is nothing heroic.
    • Played straight in the second book, which opens with a celebration of Morrigan's twelfth birthday, a glamorous party, and "MORRIGAN IS TWELVE" sign.
    • Averted in the third book, where Morrigan spends her birthday in a hospital. There is nothing heroic about it, but nothing downright harmful.
  • Hidden Elf Village: An entire country, in this case. The Free States, where Nevermoor is located, has decided to cut themselves off from the Wintersea Republic, to the point where few people in the republic have actually heard of the city. Despite being neighbouring countries, the two engage in almost no diplomatic relationships. Strict border controls are present in the entire country to the point where a major plot revolves around the potential for Morrigan to get deported.
  • The Jinx: Everyone in Jackalfax believes Morrigan to be this, being born as a cursed child. She is blamed for all the misfortunes happening within the town, and is frequently forced to write apology letters. She has to get private tutoring, and some of her tutors stand outside of her door because they don't want to get jinxed. It turns out that the Jinx was all fabricated and that Morrigan wasn't cursed at all.
  • Kid Hero: Morrigan is eleven at the start of the series, twelve when she solves the mystery of the disappearing animals in Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow, and thirteen when she eradicates the Hollowpox in Hollowpox: The Hunt for Morrigan Crow.
    • Other characters are young as well, with the other members in Unit 919 being around the same age as Morrigan, and Jupiter's teenage nephew Jack being slightly older.
  • Laser-Guided Amnesia: Cadence Blackburn posses this ability, even if it's involuntary. Being a mesmerist, she is forgotten by the people who she meets.
  • Mad Lib Fantasy Title: All books in the series use at least one magic buzzword in their title, such as trials, calling, and mystery. The constructed words, such as Hollowpox and Wundersmith all draws attention, leaving enough information for audiences to have a vague idea of what the concept represents, but never giving away too much information -- the perfect way to create viewer intrigue.
  • Magic Music: How Wundersmiths work. They call Wunder by singing, then call out and shape it to do their bidding. Each Wundersmith needs their own song to do this. Some Wundersmiths are better at singing than others, and the worst ones sound like they are being murdered while summoning Wunder, although their ability to sing does not affect their ability or skill levels.
  • Magic by Any Other Name: Wunder is reflective of magic and electricity in the real world. It powers homes in the Wintersea Republic. It can only be manipulated and harvested by Wundersmiths — only two of them exists at the current time period in the novel — who use it to achieve glamorous effects such as construction and spectacle, or negative effects such as war.
  • Masquerade: This is the one of the roles of the Wunderous Society. They refer to it as C&D, or containment and distraction. There are many supernatural monsters which inhibit Nevermoor, and the 'containment ' aspect means that these threats should be controlled so they do not get out of hand. The 'distraction' part is where the masquerade comes in, as the society puts up spectacles such as fireworks or a parade so people won't find out more about these threats while the society is undergoing the containment aspect. A unit can only know about C&D once they pass the loyalty trial. Unit 919 does so by the end of the second book, and is told about C&D in the third.
  • Mega Neko: The Magnificats, described as being the size of an elephant, and as the largest cat that Morrigan has seen. One Magnificat, Fenestra, works at the Hotel Deucalion, and her growl can make people faint. Before the events of the plot, she is a cage fighter, and became the champion for three years in a row. She even agrees to be Morrigan's steed for the chase trial, and is considerably faster than the other mounts.
  • Never Accepted in His Hometown: Morrigan, because she is viewed as a cursed child. This also extends to her new town in Nevermoor, initially due to her illegal immigration, but then due to her reveal as a Wundersmith. The trope is ultimately played straight because, through hard work, Morrigan becomes accepted by the people around her.
  • The Nicknamer: Jupiter North, who gives a nickname to Morrigan.
  • No Hugging, No Kissing: Books one to three never discuss any kind of romance or relationships, despite having many characters that are the opposite gender. Romance is never the focus of any story arcs. This applies to characters of different ages: the pre-teen (and teenage) Morrigan, the teenage Jack, and the adult Jupiter.
  • Opposite Gender Protagonists: Morrigan and her best friend Hawthorne. In the first book, Hawthorne is notable for being the first person her age to become her friend. Back in her home town of Jackalfax, she is perceived as being a cursed child and blamed for all the misfortunes occurring around her. She and Hawthorne trial together for a position in the Wunderous Society, and in the second book plays a huge role in shutting down the Ghastly Market As the series progresses, the trope is used less as the rest of Unit 919 opens up to her and play a bigger role in the story, meaning there is no character clearly identifiable as a sidekick.
  • The Order: The prestigious Wunderous Society. It only accepts the most advanced and talented of people in Nevermoor, recruiting only nine new members a year, who has to pass rigorous trials. Their original goal is to train Wundersmiths, and to cater to their abilities. After Ezra Squall's masscare, they reestablished their public image as being firmly against Wundersmiths, closing down the ninth floor. Their members are expected to help around the community, and, in return, they are treated with dignity and respect. Joining this order, however, can prove stressful, due to the added responsibilities.
  • Overly Long Name: The tournament names of dragons in dragon-riding competitions. Every dragon must have a unique name that cannot resemble the names of any other dragon entered into it, so over time, the competitors and names got creative. This leads to names like On a Glorious Flight to Valour and Victory and Look How Big His Talons Are?
  • Parental Substitute: Jupiter North acts as this to Morrigan, whose parents and family never interacted much with her due to her status of being cursed. Jupiter coming and taking her away, thus, serves as a much needed refresher to her, leaving behind her old family.
  • Pensieve Flashback: The Ghostly Hours work like this. They are recorded moments of the past, stuck in a time loop, and pops up on a regular basies. They are recorded in a book, which Morrigan uses to find the next lesson to take to further her abilities. Once inside, individuals can move and walk around, as well as talk, which allows them to follow along with recorded lessons.
  • Persona Non Grata: Ezra Squall is barred from entering the Free States where Nevermoor is situated. Justified as he is considered the world's most evil man in the series, having killed many before finally being banished. He still manages to occasionally sneak an embodiment of him in using the Gossamer line, leaving his physical body behind but enabling him to talk to people within the city.
  • Phantasy Spelling: Wunder, the in universe version of magic, as well as the correspondingly named Wunderous Society and Wundersmith.
  • Platonic Life Partners: Hawthorne and Morrigan has been best friends since book one, and, despite being opposite genders, the potential of them entering a romantic relationship is never discussed or acknowledged. Justified, in that they are too young to think about romance.
  • Plucky Girl: Morrigan Crow. Let's see, she survived nearly dying, nearly getting deported, the trials to get into Wunsoc, dealing with the social stigma of being a Wundersmith inside her unit, having a Superpower Meltdown, and dealing with the social stigma of being a Wundersmith outside of her unit. She's still as snarky as ever.
  • Portmanteau: The Wunderous Society is shortened to Wunsoc.
    • Magnificent + Cat = Magnificat
    • Wunderous + animal = Wunimal, the term for animals which possess human intelligence and language.
  • Red Oni, Blue Oni: Hawthorne is much more energetic and outgoing than his best friend Morrigan.
  • Secret Art: The nine Wretched Arts that Wundersmiths have to learn. They can be learned by non-Wundersmiths, however it takes a lifetime to master just one. Because there can only be nine Wundersmiths alive at a time, and most of them were killed by Ezra Squall, they are mostly lost. Ezra Squall is the only person who has mastered all of the arts, although there are some select people, like the Yule Queen and Professor Onstald, who has learnt Weaving and Tempus, respectively. There are no living tutors which can help Morrigan further her abilities, so she has to rely on Pensieve Flashbacks. The named arts are:
    • Nocturne, the act of calling Wunder by Magic Music
    • Weaving, the act of changing reality with one's mind.
    • Ruination, the act or delibrate destruction and breaking something apart from the inside.
    • Masquerade, the act of replicating others' actions and voice.
    • Veil, the manipulation of shadows to hide its user and others.
    • Tempus, the act of manipulating time, like slowing down time. Its user can choose people to exempt fromthe effect.
    • Inferno, the act of using fire. It allows Wundersmiths to breath fire from their mouth. The Inferno seal is the only one that Morrigan has obtained at the end of book three, signifying that she has mastered this art.
  • Short Title: Long Elaborate Subtitle: All of the books in the series are named like this, with a single word followed by The (verb) of Morrigan Crow.
  • Significant Birth Date: Morrigan's birthday is stated to be on Morningtide, the beginning of a new age, causing her to be cursed.
  • Spider Sense: Lambeth's knack. She is a short-sight oracle and is able to warn other members of Unit 919 when something harmful is about to happen in the immediate future. The ability is rather limited, though, and can only be used to see a few seconds into the future. She is mostly unable to control when she has sees these illusions.
  • Superpower Lottery: Some people in Nevermoor are born with knacks, which can either make them be able to accomplish supernatural feats, or them incredibly skilled at an everyday task. Some of these knacks, like dragon riding and the ability to manipulate time, are more useful than others, like being agile and painting. This can lead to some Blessed With Suck moments as some knacks, like being a mesmerist, are downright harmful and makes their possessor feared and rejected. Because of this, the usage of the trope overlaps with Superpower Russian Roulette.
  • Try to Fit That on A Business Card: If you use a size three font, and carefully budget your space, you might just be able to fit the Great and Honourable Captain Sir Jupiter Amantius North, Esquire on a business card without it being the only thing on there. This is even lampshaded:

Morrigan Crow: "The Great and Honourable Captain Sir Thingy" takes about a year to say.

  • Walking Spoiler: The central conflict of the entire series revolves around a set of spoilers. It's hard to discuss it in any depth without mentioning the fact that both Morrigan and Big Bad Ezra Squall are Wundersmiths.
    • It's even harder without mentioning the fact that Morrigan herself is a Wundersmith, and how she learns to master her abilities while being subtly manipulated by Squall.
    • Lambeth, and how she belongs in the house of Ra in the Wintersea Republic, and, just like Morrigan, is in the Free States illegally. The stakes are even higher in this case, as her family will be executed if their act of treason is revealed to the public.
  • Wizarding School: The Wunderous Society, or Wunsoc for short. It only accepts nine new students each year out of around 300 candidates, who has to pass rigorous trials. The school is divided into two fields of study, each occupying a different set of floors. A third class, designed to train Wundersmiths, occupies the ninth floor.
  • World of Snark: Where do we even begin?
    • Your job is to find a chapter containing Fenestra in which the Magnificat does not snark at something.

Dear Jackalfax Jam Society,
Sorry but don't you think there are worse things in life than bad marmalade?

[Jupiter North:] "And Miss Crow is a resident of Barclaytown in the Seventh pickpocket"
Miss Crow has never heard of Barclaytown in the Seventh Pocket, thought Morrigan.

  • You Are Better Than You Think You Are: Being a cursed child, Morrigan keeps thinking that she is a burden to everyone around her. Jupiter repeatedly assures her that she is, in fact, not a burden, and that she has genuinely redeeming qualities. This continues even after Morrigan discovers that she is a Wundersmith, and Jupiter tries hard to find evidence that all Wundersmiths are not evil, unlike what the general populace of Nevermoor believes.

Jupiter North: You asked me if your talent is being cursed? If you have a knack for ruining things? Hear me when I tell you this: You are not a curse on anyone, Morrigan Crow. You never have been.

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