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A review by emtees
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
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
4.5
The Priory of the Orange Tree is a unicorn - a big, fat fantasy book that is also a standalone.
The story takes place in a world with clear references to our own, but also a lot of creativity in the development of different cultures and religions. It is a planet-spanning epic that focuses on a huge cast of characters, including Tane, a young dragon rider who takes a dangerous risk to see her ambitions fulfilled; Niclays, an alchemist in exile determined to cross whatever lines he has to to get home; Loth, a nobleman sent against his will on a dangerous mission into dragon-controlled lands; and Ead, a mage and member of the secretive Priory of the Orange Tree, living undercover at the court of Queen Sabran of Inys, the last living descendent of the hero who claimed to have banished the monstrous Nameless One and whose bloodline is responsible for preventing him from returning. At a basic level, the story is about a threat to this world, the attempts of the various heroes to address it, and the complications caused by their different and sometimes violently opposed religions and cultures. On a deeper level, it is about a society coming to terms with the way the stories it tells itself are not always true. On a much less deep level, it is, for large stretches of the page count, a transparent MacGuffin hunt.
Oh, and it is labeled as “feminist fantasy” which is… true, I guess, but not in the way a lot of readers might expect. The Priory of the Orange Tree takes place in a world that strongly resembles the 16th/17th centuries of our own world, but without a lot of the sexist b.s. our world had, and it does sometimes touch on feminist themes, such as the misogyny inherent in a political system based on legitimate bloodlines and the ways that the roles of women in history and myth are twisted to fit a sexist narrative. (This didn’t always work for me; it’s a little difficult to pull off discussing themes of sexism in a world where, for the most part, that sexism is very muted.). But mostly it is a feminist book in the sense that all of the most active and accomplished characters are women, without a big deal being made of that fact. If you’re looking for feminist fantasy, you would probably enjoy this, but if you aren’t, it isn’t going to particularly stand out for that reason.
What this book does do well is just be a really interesting fantasy adventure. It’s not the ways in which it is groundbreaking but the ways in which it is basic where it excels. Despite a pretty slow pace, the plot keeps moving along by jumping back and forth between different characters, all of whom are doing exciting things while the reader tries to figure out how they fit together. There are some great fantasy locations (I loved the volcanic city of Carscaro especially), interesting magic systems, a lot of mysteries that unspool slowly over the course of the story, and both good and evil dragons to satisfy the needs of fans of both. The characters are diverse, complex and flawed, with all the main characters having major mistakes and prejudices to overcome, and the relationships between them are wonderful. I was especially pleased with the emphasis on friendships in this book; while there are some great romances (including a sapphic one which I didn’t seem coming and enjoyed even more for that reason; it’s so rare to get queer romances that feel like they developed organically), there are also a lot of epic friendships, and they are given just as much weight in the story. The pacing is a little rough towards the end, but up until then, I was very satisfied by how the long page count really lets the reader settle into this world and these stories.
The end of the book is satisfying without wrapping up every thread (in fact, unless I misinterpreted something, there was a huge issue left unresolved that could easily lead to another novel if the author was ever inclined to return to this world.). I know there is a prequel in this universe that I will be picking up soon.
The story takes place in a world with clear references to our own, but also a lot of creativity in the development of different cultures and religions. It is a planet-spanning epic that focuses on a huge cast of characters, including Tane, a young dragon rider who takes a dangerous risk to see her ambitions fulfilled; Niclays, an alchemist in exile determined to cross whatever lines he has to to get home; Loth, a nobleman sent against his will on a dangerous mission into dragon-controlled lands; and Ead, a mage and member of the secretive Priory of the Orange Tree, living undercover at the court of Queen Sabran of Inys, the last living descendent of the hero who claimed to have banished the monstrous Nameless One and whose bloodline is responsible for preventing him from returning. At a basic level, the story is about a threat to this world, the attempts of the various heroes to address it, and the complications caused by their different and sometimes violently opposed religions and cultures. On a deeper level, it is about a society coming to terms with the way the stories it tells itself are not always true. On a much less deep level, it is, for large stretches of the page count, a transparent MacGuffin hunt.
Oh, and it is labeled as “feminist fantasy” which is… true, I guess, but not in the way a lot of readers might expect. The Priory of the Orange Tree takes place in a world that strongly resembles the 16th/17th centuries of our own world, but without a lot of the sexist b.s. our world had, and it does sometimes touch on feminist themes, such as the misogyny inherent in a political system based on legitimate bloodlines and the ways that the roles of women in history and myth are twisted to fit a sexist narrative. (This didn’t always work for me; it’s a little difficult to pull off discussing themes of sexism in a world where, for the most part, that sexism is very muted.). But mostly it is a feminist book in the sense that all of the most active and accomplished characters are women, without a big deal being made of that fact. If you’re looking for feminist fantasy, you would probably enjoy this, but if you aren’t, it isn’t going to particularly stand out for that reason.
What this book does do well is just be a really interesting fantasy adventure. It’s not the ways in which it is groundbreaking but the ways in which it is basic where it excels. Despite a pretty slow pace, the plot keeps moving along by jumping back and forth between different characters, all of whom are doing exciting things while the reader tries to figure out how they fit together. There are some great fantasy locations (I loved the volcanic city of Carscaro especially), interesting magic systems, a lot of mysteries that unspool slowly over the course of the story, and both good and evil dragons to satisfy the needs of fans of both. The characters are diverse, complex and flawed, with all the main characters having major mistakes and prejudices to overcome, and the relationships between them are wonderful. I was especially pleased with the emphasis on friendships in this book; while there are some great romances (including a sapphic one which I didn’t seem coming and enjoyed even more for that reason; it’s so rare to get queer romances that feel like they developed organically), there are also a lot of epic friendships, and they are given just as much weight in the story. The pacing is a little rough towards the end, but up until then, I was very satisfied by how the long page count really lets the reader settle into this world and these stories.
The end of the book is satisfying without wrapping up every thread (in fact, unless I misinterpreted something, there was a huge issue left unresolved that could easily lead to another novel if the author was ever inclined to return to this world.). I know there is a prequel in this universe that I will be picking up soon.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Miscarriage and Pregnancy
Minor: Sexism and Injury/Injury detail
A main character loses a pregnancy. There is some minor sexism at times, and a lot of battle scenes with related injuries.