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4.43 AVERAGE
4.43 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
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:
Yes
Dragons, lgbtq+, matriarchal religions. The ideal epic fantasy
3.75 stars
500 years before the events of The Priory of the Orange Tree, the era called the Grief of Ages occurred. Spanning several countries and continents, we follow four different characters: in the West, Glorian, the teenage Berethenet Queen, struggles under the shadow of her mother and the lack of autonomy she has. In the South, Tunuva, a dedicated member of the Priory of the Orange Tree, is torn between her loyalties to the people she loves and saving the world. In the East, Dumai, raised as a priestess to the dragon gods on a remote mountain, discovers her royal heritage and her role as a voice for the dragons. In the North, Wulf, a foundling as a child, finds conflict among his fellow guardians as he appears to have too much luck among terrible tragedies, adding to questions about his origin.
I loved Priory, so reading this was a no-brainer for me; I just had to find a time I could fit it in. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy this one as much as the first one. By itself, it would have been good, but wouldn't have garnered the success of Priory. In comparison to Priory, I don't think it holds up as well.
What did I like? Firstly, the writing and prose of this book was its strongest suit. So many fantastic sentences. I also was absolutely sucked into the prologue (it honestly might have been my favorite part of the book). As with the first book, I liked the dragons, the magic system, the questioning of religious/historical beliefs, and the wide-spanning political aspects of the world. I liked a lot of the conversations that happened around sexuality (there's ace, sapphic, and achillean rep) as well as one's duty vs. the fight for autonomy. I thought that each section in here had its ups and downs. Some sections I liked those characters best but the plot didn't feel as strong (Glorian), versus some had a stronger plot but characters I found harder to get attached to (Dumai). Regardless, I wasn't as invested in any of the characters as I was with those in Priory. Some scenes felt redundant, and the pacing in the middle struggled for me. I did think that the action/wyrm stuff was better spaced throughout the book than Priory (which had like a singular chapter as its battle). This was similar enough to the first book that I was wondering what the function of this was meant to be. I had a good time though.
Overall, not a lot stood out to me in comparison to the original book. I think it was still good, but didn't match my love of Priory.
500 years before the events of The Priory of the Orange Tree, the era called the Grief of Ages occurred. Spanning several countries and continents, we follow four different characters: in the West, Glorian, the teenage Berethenet Queen, struggles under the shadow of her mother and the lack of autonomy she has. In the South, Tunuva, a dedicated member of the Priory of the Orange Tree, is torn between her loyalties to the people she loves and saving the world. In the East, Dumai, raised as a priestess to the dragon gods on a remote mountain, discovers her royal heritage and her role as a voice for the dragons. In the North, Wulf, a foundling as a child, finds conflict among his fellow guardians as he appears to have too much luck among terrible tragedies, adding to questions about his origin.
I loved Priory, so reading this was a no-brainer for me; I just had to find a time I could fit it in. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy this one as much as the first one. By itself, it would have been good, but wouldn't have garnered the success of Priory. In comparison to Priory, I don't think it holds up as well.
What did I like? Firstly, the writing and prose of this book was its strongest suit. So many fantastic sentences. I also was absolutely sucked into the prologue (it honestly might have been my favorite part of the book). As with the first book, I liked the dragons, the magic system, the questioning of religious/historical beliefs, and the wide-spanning political aspects of the world. I liked a lot of the conversations that happened around sexuality (there's ace, sapphic, and achillean rep) as well as one's duty vs. the fight for autonomy. I thought that each section in here had its ups and downs. Some sections I liked those characters best but the plot didn't feel as strong (Glorian), versus some had a stronger plot but characters I found harder to get attached to (Dumai). Regardless, I wasn't as invested in any of the characters as I was with those in Priory. Some scenes felt redundant, and the pacing in the middle struggled for me. I did think that the action/wyrm stuff was better spaced throughout the book than Priory (which had like a singular chapter as its battle). This was similar enough to the first book that I was wondering what the function of this was meant to be. I had a good time though.
Overall, not a lot stood out to me in comparison to the original book. I think it was still good, but didn't match my love of Priory.
adventurous
emotional
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:
No
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
OH MY FUCK I HAVENT FELT A HIGH LIKE THIS SINCE ROXXXY ANDREWS’S WHIP MY HAIR WIG REVEAL!!!
Do you love gay people of all different races/ages/cultures being gay, but also there’s dragons?? READ THIS BOOK.
It’s 850 pages of the craziest world-building I’ve ever read in my lifeeee and the author thankfully took all my qualms from the first book and stepped her pussy up to make this incredible prequal!!
But this book also gets fucking deeep mama like she explores generational trauma, and bodily autonomy, and duty vs individuality, and nature’s cycles of destruction… and also ALL THE CHARACTERS ARE HOT AND GAY!!!
And lastly, as someone who normally HATES romance, this book had multiple gay/lesbian love stories that almost made me cry which is a big deal cuz I never cry cuz I’m too hot and skinny to cry!!!
HAPPY LAST DAY OF PRIDE GO BE GAY AND READ THIS BOOK!!!
Do you love gay people of all different races/ages/cultures being gay, but also there’s dragons?? READ THIS BOOK.
It’s 850 pages of the craziest world-building I’ve ever read in my lifeeee and the author thankfully took all my qualms from the first book and stepped her pussy up to make this incredible prequal!!
But this book also gets fucking deeep mama like she explores generational trauma, and bodily autonomy, and duty vs individuality, and nature’s cycles of destruction… and also ALL THE CHARACTERS ARE HOT AND GAY!!!
And lastly, as someone who normally HATES romance, this book had multiple gay/lesbian love stories that almost made me cry which is a big deal cuz I never cry cuz I’m too hot and skinny to cry!!!
HAPPY LAST DAY OF PRIDE GO BE GAY AND READ THIS BOOK!!!
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Better pacing than TPOTOT, but aside from that
adventurous
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
" ‘He could be good. I remember.’
‘Believe he was born rotten, or that something rotted him. Either way, he was a churl – but it might help if the world was different. We could start by not scorning one another for our beliefs, or lack of them,’ Thrit said, with a bitter flinch of his mouth, ‘but perhaps it’s too soon for that. Perhaps it will take the end of the world.’ "
"I always felt when I was a teenager that there was going to be this switch that came on at some point that told me that I was going to suddenly want to be in a relationship and get married and have children, and there's a moment in Glorian's narrative where she says something like, 'she wished she were like a swan or a wolf, possessed of an instinct to partner for life,' and she talks about how it would be so much easier if she could want as others did ..." [from the author's interview]
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This book had been sitting on my shelf for more than a year before I finally gathered the courage to start reading it - she is girthy..
I loved the Priory of the Orange Tree, and I honestly didn’t expect to like this book anywhere near as much. While the story started of rather slow, it really snuck up on me. Samantha managed to tell this story in a way that builds a love for it and it’s main characters quietly and slowly, but also fiercely and all at once.
I ended up loving it as much as, if not more than, TPOTOT. I can confidently say, that it has become one of my favourite books, and I will definitely be rereading it more than once in the future.
I loved the Priory of the Orange Tree, and I honestly didn’t expect to like this book anywhere near as much. While the story started of rather slow, it really snuck up on me. Samantha managed to tell this story in a way that builds a love for it and it’s main characters quietly and slowly, but also fiercely and all at once.
I ended up loving it as much as, if not more than, TPOTOT. I can confidently say, that it has become one of my favourite books, and I will definitely be rereading it more than once in the future.