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A review by emoverhere
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
5.0
I genuinely don’t know where to start this review.
I suppose that the fact that is my first experience with high fantasy is a good place. When I first heard about the Priory of the Orange Tree, I was intrigued by the story and its protagonist, the fact that it was sapphic made it extremely appealing too, but for a while, I chose to admire it from afar, fearing that both my inexperience with the genre and the size of the book itself would prove too overwhelming for my fragile hold on getting back into reading.
But I’m awfully curios, and the things I had heard about the women in this book were way too good to pass up on, so I eventually caved, and bought this absolute masterpiece.
Best decision of my entire life.
The Priory of The Orange Tree is an incredibly rich book, its characters are written so masterfully that I deeply cared about every story line, the world was so rich and alive that I found joy in darting between its corners with each chapter I read (though I must admit, I will always have a soft spot for the city of Ascalon). It was difficult to grasp at first, there were so many names and legends and places to take in that it could’ve been overwhelming had it not been this well-written. Samantha Shannon is a genius at her craft.
I specifically loved Eadaz uq-Nāra and Sabran Berethnet with my entire heart and soul, the number of times I had to put this book down solely because they made me feel too many emotions all at once were frankly embarrassing, and i loved every minute of it. I loved the original frigidness of Sabran, I loved the way Ead never catered to everyone’s tendency to lie to the queen just to please her, I loved how Ead took care of Sabran in little discreet ways, her rose among the pillows.
I adored, ADORED, the way their relationship developed, as a major angst goblin I both loved the period of forced separation and longed for it to be over with every fiber of my being. Also, Arteloth and Meg, best siblings in the entirety of Virtudom, no arguments will be accepted.
Also, allow me to express my pure adoration for Tane and Nyimathun, what an awesome duo. I genuinely loved the relationship between so much, I loved the dragon’s infinite wisdom and compassion for this one human woman, how she approached her mistakes with understanding and compassion when Tane herself only ever approached them with shame and guilt, and I was incredibly happy to see that Nyimathun survived the last battle. Like, fist bumping the air type of happiness there.
So yeah. I really, truly loved the Priory of the Orange Tree, it is genuinely one of the three best reading experiences I’ve ever had, and I wouldn’t be lying if I said that it sits comfortably at the very top spot. I cannot wait to dive back into the meticulously crafted world Samantha Shannon built in A Day of Fallen Night next year. But until then, I will spend probably everyday thinking about this book, and nothing else.
I suppose that the fact that is my first experience with high fantasy is a good place. When I first heard about the Priory of the Orange Tree, I was intrigued by the story and its protagonist, the fact that it was sapphic made it extremely appealing too, but for a while, I chose to admire it from afar, fearing that both my inexperience with the genre and the size of the book itself would prove too overwhelming for my fragile hold on getting back into reading.
But I’m awfully curios, and the things I had heard about the women in this book were way too good to pass up on, so I eventually caved, and bought this absolute masterpiece.
Best decision of my entire life.
The Priory of The Orange Tree is an incredibly rich book, its characters are written so masterfully that I deeply cared about every story line, the world was so rich and alive that I found joy in darting between its corners with each chapter I read (though I must admit, I will always have a soft spot for the city of Ascalon). It was difficult to grasp at first, there were so many names and legends and places to take in that it could’ve been overwhelming had it not been this well-written. Samantha Shannon is a genius at her craft.
I specifically loved Eadaz uq-Nāra and Sabran Berethnet with my entire heart and soul, the number of times I had to put this book down solely because they made me feel too many emotions all at once were frankly embarrassing, and i loved every minute of it. I loved the original frigidness of Sabran, I loved the way Ead never catered to everyone’s tendency to lie to the queen just to please her, I loved how Ead took care of Sabran in little discreet ways, her rose among the pillows.
I adored, ADORED, the way their relationship developed, as a major angst goblin I both loved the period of forced separation and longed for it to be over with every fiber of my being. Also, Arteloth and Meg, best siblings in the entirety of Virtudom, no arguments will be accepted.
Also, allow me to express my pure adoration for Tane and Nyimathun, what an awesome duo. I genuinely loved the relationship between so much, I loved the dragon’s infinite wisdom and compassion for this one human woman, how she approached her mistakes with understanding and compassion when Tane herself only ever approached them with shame and guilt, and I was incredibly happy to see that Nyimathun survived the last battle. Like, fist bumping the air type of happiness there.
So yeah. I really, truly loved the Priory of the Orange Tree, it is genuinely one of the three best reading experiences I’ve ever had, and I wouldn’t be lying if I said that it sits comfortably at the very top spot. I cannot wait to dive back into the meticulously crafted world Samantha Shannon built in A Day of Fallen Night next year. But until then, I will spend probably everyday thinking about this book, and nothing else.