A review by emmacb
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

adventurous challenging 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

4.5

This book needed to be 2 books.
The build up was slow, and I loved it, but because of that I kind of felt like the ending was a little rushed. It built to such a crescendo that was then over so quickly!
I loved the characters, I felt like there were so many who were given so much depth, so I really came to care for them. With that though, there were some slightly disappointing fakeouts/red herrings which, while I appreciate the echoing of expectations not always bring met in real life, are less fun in a book where you have to read quite so many pages! 

For a book that doesn't currently claim to be planning a sequel, I would also say there are plenty of loose ends to wrap! 

Overall though, a great read. I ploughed through it alarmingly quickly while COVID quarantining, and will definitely be getting my hands on the prequel at some point :)