The Trials of Morrigan Crow

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2017

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Prologue-Chapter 4

Chapters 5-10

Chapters 11-16

Chapters 17-21

Chapters 22-26

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

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Discussion Questions

Themes

The Comfort of Belonging

More than anything, the unlucky Morrigan Crow wants to belong somewhere. While she lives at Crow Manor, she doesn’t belong because “she knew her father’s major challenge in life was trying to maintain his grip on the affections of Great Wolfacre’s voting public while his only child brought about their every misfortune” (21). Corvus Crow and Morrigan’s stepmother prove emotionally abusive and neglectful, dehumanizing the girl because of her supposed curse. Until Jupiter sweeps her away, she believes she must accept being an outsider in her family until she dies on her 12th birthday. Morrigan changes and grows in Nevermoor because she acquires three things that her family denied her: belonging, trust, and self-worth. The comfort of belonging is crucial to her character because it drives her to participate in the Wundrous Trials willingly.

The Council of Elders speak at the Wundrous Welcome about the benefits of joining the Wundrous Society: “But to the nine of you who join us at the end of the year, I promise this: a place to belong. A family. And friendships to last a lifetime” (164). Morrigan’s response to the speech is to self-reflect: “Were Elder Quinn and Jupiter reading from the same brochure? Or had they peered into her heart and read a wish list she’d never known was there” (164). She never allowed herself to hope for belonging because her hometown and its citizens never made her feel worthy of good things. This mistreatment makes her especially vulnerable to others’ influence, but even then, she accepts Jupiter North’s offer of sponsorship over Ezra Squall’s—the latter of whom embodies evil (selfish) intent.

After Morrigan confronts Squall on the Gossamer Line, she “felt a strange, yearning homesickness blossom inside her. But it wasn’t for this place. It wasn’t for these people” (449). Despite being spiritually close to Crow Manor, she fully recognizes her birth parents’ neglect. Her chosen family—Jupiter, Fenestra (or Fen), Hawthorne Swift, and the employees of Hotel Deucalion—give her the comfort and belonging she long desired. Jupiter’s gift of a brolly umbrella symbolizes Morrigan’s connection to her chosen family—the people who ground her, who uplift her. By using the umbrella—by accepting her place in her chosen family—she returns to Nevermoor from the Gossamer Line. Though she will always be connected to her birth family by blood, Jessica Townsend shows the power of chosen families who accept people for who they are rather than who they want them to be.

The Power of Friendship and Trust

Though Morrigan only makes one true friend during the four Wundrous Trials, Townsend explores different types of friendship through this friend, Hawthorne, and antagonistic ally Cadence Blackburn. Hawthorne serves as Morrigan’s traditional friend and sidekick, helping her through the trials and personal challenges. On the other hand, Cadence helps Morrigan because Morrigan saved her during the Chase Trial and remembers her—despite her knack as a Mesmerist. This remembrance earns her Cadence’s trust if not true friendship.

Hawthorne demonstrates the unconditional nature of friendship throughout Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow. When Morrigan reveals she lacks a knack, he stands by her even when he could have made other alliances: “Hawthorne was giving his friendship as if it meant nothing. He couldn’t know it meant everything” (186). Until now, she has never known kindness from other people. Her family and hometown actively avoid her because of her “curse,” and fellow Wundrous Society candidates believe she is beneath them. Being easygoing and playful, Hawthorne is the first person Morrigan’s age who actively chooses to befriend her. His loyalty continues well into the Show Trial, where he “tried to go with her, but the ever-present clipboard-toting Wundrous Society officials shooed him back to his seat” when Jupiter runs late (403). Through him, Townsend creates a character who represents traditional, unconditional friendship—but also leads his own life outside of the protagonist.

On the other hand, Cadence is a non-traditional friend, a Mesmerist who commands others but comes to treat Morrigan as an equal because Morrigan remembers her. Likely accustomed to controlling all aspects of her life, she is shocked by Morrigan’s remembrance during the Fright Trial: “‘You—’ The girl’s sour expression faltered, and surprise flickered briefly across her face. ‘You remember me?’” (302). Where she could complete the trials without sparing the other a second glance, she instead chooses to help when Morrigan is threatened by Inspector Flintlock. Because Morrigan remembers, Cadence chooses trust, to exercise control on another’s behalf (i.e., convincing Inspector Flintlock that a random flier is Morrigan’s passport). Because Cadence chooses to trust Morrigan, Morrigan gets to stay in Nevermoor and gain admittance to the Wundrous Society. Though friendship is a common theme in middle grade and young adult novels, Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow expands on friendship and trust by featuring characters of varying personalities and motives—who nevertheless aid the protagonist.

The Nature of Talent and Worth

Having been emotionally abused and neglected by her family and hometown, Morrigan values herself based on her impact on the world. She has low self-esteem while living at Crow Manor because her “curse” harms those around her. The opening lines of Chapter 1 introduce readers to her and her self-worth: “The kitchen cat was dead, and Morrigan was to blame. She didn’t know how it happened, or when” (1). Though Morrigan knows not all unfortunate events are her fault, she accepts accountability because this is all she knows how to do. This blame follows her to Nevermoor, where she expects misfortune to happen. When Hotel Deucalion’s chandelier crashes, nobody accuses her except herself: “The curse had followed her. She’s survived it, lived through it…then somehow brought it all the way to Nevermoor anyhow, smuggled it through the border control, and given it a nice cozy home at the Hotel Deucalion” (124). Rather than accept the unexplainable, Morrigan succumbs to dark thoughts.

Morrigan’s journey involves reassuring herself that misfortune is not her fault. After the chandelier incident, “She’d examine the damage for herself. She’d see it wasn’t her fault. She’d go back to sleep and live happily ever after. The End” (126). She needs to see the evidence to prove no one can blame her for similar incidents. However, the longer Morrigan believes she lacks a knack, the worse she feels about herself and potential influence on others. Townsend uses Morrigan to illustrate deteriorating self-worth, the result of internalized abuse and secrets that do not reinforce her worth outside of what she can do. Thus, the fallen chandelier’s light represents innate worth, traits such as kindness.

Townsend completes the theme in Chapter 26, when Morrigan and Jupiter talk about his many secrets. Jupiter claims “if you are not honest, and determined, and brave, then it doesn’t matter how talented you are” (454). He explains he entered Morrigan in the Wundrous Trials “because I needed the Elders to know what sort of person you are, in the hope [...] they’ll continue to see you as a person first, and a Wundersmith second” (454). Though Wundrous Society candidates receive rankings based on talent, the Wundrous Society values other traits as well—as embodied by the Book Trial, which tests for honesty and adaptability. The Nature of Talent and Worth serves as a narrative device to allow Morrigan to grow and recognize herself as worth more than her knack.