The Priory of the Orange Tree

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Overall a really good book !
The beginning (1/3 of the book) was for me a little too long, too slow, too descriptive... The building of the word and setting in the characters could and should be shorter in my opinion. But the 2/3 after that really did it for me ! I'm surprised I liked it that much in the end. The end lift for me a lot of questions. Maybe a second book in the series ?

It took me a really long time to finish this book. Maybe if I read it faster my opinion would be better or worse. Either way I'm really happy with how it turned out to be.

Highly recommend if you like heavy plot and well build world and characters ! A wonderful adult fantasy !

I'm now wondering if the other book in the series is worth reading since it comes before that and not after ?
Let me know what you think.

I really wanted to love this book. I heard some people say it's a 5/5, and others say it's a 0/5. Unfortunately, it landed smack dab in the middle for me. 

Ultimately this was a mediocre book that was hindered further by an atrocious narrator. I only pushed past like 15% because I was reading it with 2 friends.

At 225k words, this book was the same length as Best Served Cold, and had roughly the same number of POV characters, so I feel like I can compare them a little here:

There is no comparison. 

I didn't care about any of the characters, story elements were dropped, the plot was generic and stretched out to fill pages, and while the narrator's “narrating” voice was actually quite pleasant, her voices for the male characters, dragons, and even one female character were just horrific.

She even managed to mess up a line in the last 10% that COMPLETELY changed the meaning of the sentence, and after a double take, I pulled up the ebook to check who messed up.

All that said, I did manage to enjoy the middle 50-60% somehow, the world was cool I guess? But ultimately I'm probably going to forget all about this one, except for the Emperor who was apparently from Texas.

The final battle felt a bit anti-climactic. All that building up for a few pages of not very convincing battle. Kind of spoiled the book for me.
Yes, it's epic and captivating, but doesn't hold up when I think about the characters. Didn't see much change in them. Didn't understand why Roos out of the blue went from hating Sabran and going to kill Ead to helping the and giving a crucial piece of information.

4.5☆
Absolutely loved this book.
Niclays made me cry everytime he had a chapter.

Only reason I did not give this 5☆ is because it could've definitely been a duology

The start was too slow, but once things finally got moving I thoroughly enjoyed it. Kinda wish it had kept up that pace from the beginning. Really interested in the world now. Good thing we've got the prequel to consume!

most anticlimactic final fight ive ever read. i did enjoy it though even if the pacing REALLY starts to suffer towards the end. i feel like it would have been better to split this into a trilogy or something. also people are NOT lying about the first 100 or so pages being a slog... once you get past that it's a lot more enjoyable to read in my opinion.

favourite character/POV was ead & her POV was definitely the author's favourite too LOL. the other narrators don't get as much attention as they should have, especially tané. can't help but feel that niclays was unneeded. loth is fine.

worldbuilding is cool, but the east feels a little caricature-y at times. for the west, i like the whole ‘religion founded upon a questionable myth' thing. the concept of the priory is really cool too.

overall it's a pretty good book even though i have my gripes with it. may or may not read the prequel

RAHHH it's so good I love the characters the world building and the writing are sublime! 10/10 would read again, favorite fantasy novel now (ps sabran and ead's relationship is so cute! love them)

If this doesn't get a blockbuster budget miniseries adaptation in the next 10 years I'm gonna riot. 

Edit: Upon further thinking, this is my favorite book I've ever read. It's so good. Can't wait to go back and reread. Hopefully we get the next installment sooner rather than later. 

“The Priory of the Orange Tree” is a standout fantasy novel that expertly weaves together a complex world where the East and West coexist under a fragile truce. Dragons, revered as divine beings in the East and feared as demonic entities in the West, become the focal point of this cultural divide. With the re-emergence of an ancient draconic enemy, these disparate societies must set aside centuries-old mistrust for a unified stand.

While the novel spans an impressive length, it is testament to the author's skill that it doesn't feel drawn out or slow-paced. Instead, readers are gifted with a richly detailed world and an engrossing narrative that holds you captive from the first page to the last.

One of the book's defining characteristics is its captivating portrayal of characters. Each individual, irrespective of their role, is finely etched, bringing a unique flavor to the overall narrative and contributing significantly to the reader's immersion.

Although the story reaches a conclusive end, it leaves one with an undeniable urge to delve deeper into this intricately designed universe. This book is a must-read for any fans of compelling storytelling and intricate world-building. Its allure lies in its unique ability to be both expansive in scope yet intimate in its exploration of characters and cultures.

So good!

Hoo boy. Priory of the Orange Tree was a book that had a lot to live up to. This book has one of the most evangelical fanbases that I've ever experienced, so in my mind that meant there had to be something to it, that it was going to be this phenomenal book that would never leave me when I finished it. Then, in the buildup to the release of it's prequel, dissenting opinions began to arise, decrying the pacing, complaining about the YA nature of it, saying Shannon's prose was weak. And I'll admit, I put the book off because of those opinions. I really shouldn't have. Priory of the Orange Tree slaps, despite it's issues (some of which I've already mentioned), and I wish that I'd read it much sooner than I did.

I adore the world of the book, and how Shannon has managed to weave a thoroughly convincing history into the world, even down to how that history has been rewritten. The magic system, the unique cultures, both the systems of faith, and the methods in which they're governed all feel well developed and thought out, which is no mean feat for how short a time she has relative to other contemporaries. In just 800 pages, she manages to flesh out 3 different cultures, and touch on 2 others, all the while pushing the story forward with every single page. I've seen other authors struggle to do less in longer series, so I was pleasantly surprised by how she nailed the cultures in this book, as I didn't expect them to be this well developed when I started reading it.

I particularly enjoyed how the Inysh culture developed throughout the book, as they have a really unique religion, where they're ruled by a line of Queens who's bloodline keeps an ancient evil at bay as long as it goes on. Seeing the culture be challenged by the events of the book was an absolute treat, and left Inysh the most developed of all the cultures by the end, both in part due to the amount of time spent in that culture, and it's importance upon world politics within the story.

The characters are second to none, having no characters that I thought were bad. There were characters who I hated fairly distinctly, but for the most part, those were characters you were meant to hate. The way Shannon writes character arts is one that I really appreciate when I see it, since it feels much more real, and I'm glad that it's so common in modern fantasy. Characters don't let their guard down around people they don't know, so it takes time for you to see their true character, which gives you a huge amount of insight to the kind of person that they are.
Of particular note is Sabran, who at the beginning of the book, was my most hated character. I couldn't stand how rude and arrogant she was to Ead, the PoV character who's chapters Sabran appeared in. But by the end of the book, Sabran was one of, if not my favourite, characters in the book. Seeing her worldview and values be challenged and warped by the events of the book was stellar, every event slowly cracking the façade that she'd put around herself. It was masterfully done, and her ending felt so earned. I'll gladly admit to crying at the last chapter she was in.

Most of the PoVs are fantastic, with one particular exception. Ead, Loth and Niclays are all excellent, though Niclays is a bastard and I hate him. Tané however, was at best, mildly interesting, and at her worst, a total slog to read. She is probably the worst character in the book, having a neutered amalgamation of multiple other character's arcs, with very little to set her apart, and the personality of a wet rag. It took nearly the entire book for her to get moderately enjoyable, and she never rose higher than that. The only saving grace of her chapters was getting to see the Eastern culture be developed upon, as she was the only PoV who was born and raised in it, so she was realistically our only glimpse into the inner workings of the culture. I genuinely believe that Tané is the single reason that people drop this book in the early stages, as she's so dry to read, which is doubly impressive, considering her culture is based heavily around water.

The romance in the book is phenomenal. I haven't been this invested in a romance in a fantasy story in years. As a matter of fact, I can't recall what the last romance I was invested in was. It's a sapphic slow burn romance, and I ate that shit up. It could have ended up feeling very forced, but Shannon does a phenomenal job of selling the reader on it, making it feel extremely authentic.

I only have one more gripe with the book, though it's a massive spoiler, so read on at your own risk. If you do decide to not read on, I recommend the book, it's really good. Anyway, onto the spoiler.

The final battle of the book, that it spends 700+ pages building up to, amounted to a grand total of 40 something pages. This on it's own wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing, and I'm not looking for a Wheel of Time length final battle, but it just felt rushed. There were much more minor parts of the book that had more page time, which sucks. But on top of this, it was just kind of mediocre. The character moments were pretty decent, but there was so few epic moments in the battle itself, that it didn't lend itself to the buildup it had received in the slightest.

I'm actually surprised that I don't hear more about this, as I personally felt extremely let down when I reached this, so it shocks me that nobody else has seemingly shared this opinion. I really do think it could have benefitted from about 20-30 pages more, since the books already really long, so what would the harm have been in ensuring that the battle was the best part of the book. It's ultimately not so much of an issue that I dislike the book, but I was definitely disappointed by that aspect of the book.

Overall, as I said before, you should get this book, it's fantastic. It's part of a series now, but you can read it as a standalone, and it will 100% work well as one. 4.5/5 Stars

ead, you have my heart

I would recommend this to somebody who wanted to dip their toes into fantasy. It has all hallmarks, but takes much less effort to get into. Also nicely self-contained in just the one book. A bit heavy handed at times, though.

comments I have recieved whilst reading this:
“that book is bigger than the bible” - my friend
“wooaahh” - fellow violist
“I could finish that in a week, easy” - book club member
silently hands me the Brothers Karamazov - my dad
“shiny, I love it” - classmate

3.5

 I got a lot of mixed feelings about Priory.
I love how much lore and history I got out of this book. I really want more out of this world and hopefully a sequel one day. I enjoyed a lot of the side characters in this to the point of wishing they had more important roles haha. (Specifically, the pirates!)

I'm putting this in the middle cause its part good, part bad: I think the magic in this universe is super interesting, but I felt like it was a letdown a lot of the time when it was used.


The multiple POVs worked for the most part but at times it felt like I spent too much time away from specific characters that could've used more development time. While it did have its hype the ending felt very rushed which was odd in a book that seemed to take its time with everything else. A side effect of maybe the changing POVs and the depth of this book is that I didn't really get attached to many characters on an emotional level, so it made some things fall flat for me.

All-in-all, I liked The Priory of the Orange Tree and I'm looking forward to reading more from Samantha Shannon. 

I absolutely loved and adored this book. I will admit, I was intimidated by the size of it, but I don't think there's a single part of this book that should be removed, if anything - I want more.

The world building was fantastic. I was enamored by the size of the world and details in this book.

This book has everything I could ask for! •Fantastic characters that you will love, hate, root, cry and mourn for.
•Representation through LGBTQ+ relationships that are supported.
•Feminism through Queendoms and Women-lead organizations.
•Pirates, Dragons, and Magic.

The way that the author wrote this is beautiful. The imagery she creates from the smallest details to the largest was probably my favorite thing about this book. The entire thing played like a movie in my head with smooth transitions from one set of characters to the other.

All in all, I loved this book. My only negative would be that the ending was wrapped up very quickly. However, I honestly cant think of a way to make it any better either.

Read this book, it's intimidating as is the world building but persevere, because it's so worth it and an absolute treat.

I listened to this on audiobook and honestly thought it would be a 5 star read for the first half of the book. For me I think the book just dragged on too long and the central romance just felt boring and a little forced. Pros of the book were great world building and no flat one note characters.

absolute banger of a book. very slow however in the first part (250 pages so its quite a lot to get thru) but once u get thru it ooooo it getS CRISPY
music i listened to while reading: Majoras Mask - Oath to Order
how long to read: 8 hours give or take 

Rating: 4.25 leaves out of 5Characters: 4/5 Cover: 4/5Story: 4/5Writing: 5/5Genre: Fantasy(High)/LGBT/RomanceType: EbookWorth?: Yes!Hated Disliked Liked Loved FavoritedI think this was my first high fantasy novel. It was pretty intense and I took so many notes on everything. Lol. Samantha played a lot with emotions, for me at least. She made amazing characters and showed their growth pretty well. The dragons were gorgeous though the big bad one could have been written better. The big fight scene was short and I think that is a bit disappointing since it was this huge build up. It was still good, but could have been better.There were also some things that just didn't make sense or it was just so... out of place. Either way I loved it. It was a nice little journey for me.

Copy/paste from BLC: Ahhhhhh!! I finished the brick!! 5 stars from me.

Although the intimidating choker size, confusing beginning with repeated rereads (lol), endless names and information, I'm happy to say I've read it and thoroughly enjoyed it! I loved the world-building around it, dragon lovers vs slayers, the characters, and the way that it was written. I remember seeing a comment from others, and I would agree–the descriptions are not crazy, disruptive, and give enough to consume and visualize. I'm happy there wasn't terrible heartbreaks at the end, I'm not sure what I would do with myself if there were lol, though, the moments of Truyde still lingers with me. At a young age, her aggressive and head-on spirit to ally with the opposing side would end up being true. I'm sure Jannart would have been proud to have a granddaughter so willing to learn. I might have constant dreams of what it would have been like with Niclays, Jannart, and Truyde. TT__TT I did think Niclays was going to be a cool uncle at the beginning, but boy was I wrong lol I wished the book was also a little longer to finally see Meg and Lintley's marriage, and Loth and Donmata's relationship.

4.5 stars!

4.5 stars!

I liked this book, especially the main characters (Ead, Loth, Tanè) and the romance between Ead and Sabran. The world that Samantha Shannon built up was incredible, and the slow burn story of the first 2/3's of the book was excellent.

That being said, the last 200 pages or so ended up feeling a bit rushed (especially with characters zipping back and forth across the map, and the rather short final confrontation), and this book probably would've been better off as a duology. Certain plot points also relied too much on characters happening to be in the right place at the right time.

Despite these two issues, I still really enjoyed the Priory of the Orange Tree, and I would recommend it to any fan of epic fantasy. It's not perfect, but it's definitely a good read.

My first DNF.

What an utter disappointment this book's been. I cannot for the love of me understand how could anyone compare this to Lord of the Rings. The Priory of the Orange Tree just vomits names and characters and POVs at the you and expects you to remember everything. There is no main character, there are dozen and a half plot-lines without any distinction as what is important and what's secondary.

Labeling chapters as a cardinal direction was the stupidest choice I've ever seen. The approach of “Chapter 1” or named chapters is fine. A Song of Ice and Fire's approach of naming chapters after the POV character would be fantastic here as the sheer amount of characters you go through is staggering at times.

I've had easier time reading DUNE, the Silmarillion, or any literary classic. Joyce's Ulysses would probably keep me entertained better than this. Not that I hate it but it's presented terribly. The writing is weird, the characters are not memorable what so ever besides a few of them but by virtue of the multiple scattered POVs it's impossible to root for any of them (Except Sulyard who is killed "off-screen" WHAT THE HELL?

I've gone through some 400 pages of this and I can't stomach another 400. Nope! I'm sorry but not only this is nowhere near Lord of the Rings, this is plain sub-par run of the mill fantasy.