Reviews - The Priory of the Orange Tree

35.8k reviews for:

The Priory of the Orange Tree

Samantha Shannon

4.26 AVERAGE

jesslivo_'s review against another edition

5.0

adventurous tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

docofthedarkarts's review against another edition

4.25

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

4.25/5 Stars
Format: Trade Paperback
Spoilers: No

The Priory of the Orange Tree is a really impressive epic fantasy that is part of the Roots of Chaos series. It is the first published, however of the three books currently published in the series, is the latest in chronological order (chronological reading order being A Day of Fallen Night, Among the Burning Flowers, and lastly Priory). Each novel is designed to be connected to the world, but also able to be read as a standalone.

I really enjoyed this book. The world building is impressive, especially given the constraints of a standalone style novel. The world Samantha Shannon paints is broad and we travel all across it. The story is told from four main characters' points of view, with each chapter focusing on characters in a particular region of the world. The characters are well fleshed out, and the plot is just as broad as the world, weaving together over the course of the 804 pages in this edition. The book explores interesting themes including feminism, autonomy, the nature of a monarchy, and the impact of religion on worlds and societies. We also see a great diversity of characters. The romance between Dad and Sabran is wonderfully written, and is a slow build/slow burn that kept its tension throughout.

If you are coming from a romantasy/light fantasy/cozy fantasy background, then this book will feel very big and possibly overwhelming at first (I have seen this in a number of other reviews). If that is the case, Samantha Shannon recommends starting with Among the Burning Flowers to introduce you to the characters and the world. If you are an epic/high fantasy person, then it should be easy to jump in.

As someone who is very into epic fantasy, I could see this being two longer books with expansion of some of the travel time and backstory. I would have also liked to see the climax expanded a bit. However, overall this book does a wonderful job of world building, character development, and building the tension and excitement to a satisfying climax and resolution all packed into a standalone story. I am looking forward to reading more in this world, and jumping into Shannon's other works as well. I would recommend his to any epic/high fantasy fan, and encourage readers not to be intimidated by the size. It reads fast, and is well worth the investment.