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A review by vsamarda
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
3.0
The priory of the orange tree is what can only be described as a disappointment.
The plot points it offers are interesting at the start, but the more they develop the less engaging they become, until they conclude in the most boring way possible. This is true for everything in the book.
The villains insist on doing a monologue once they are exposed, telling every detail of their evil plan, even when staying quiet would be better for them in every possible way.
Fantastical beings and entities are present, and then they get very annoying motivations that only serve to bring down their mystique (see ||kalyba||).
I also don't understand the decision to make exposition work in the way it does in this book. Characters will be talking, and then someone will ask if they've ever heard the tale of x, and proceed to explain it in detail. It would be fine if this was how it was done once or twice, but most of the exposition is done in this manner.
The multiple povs are interesting, however at a certain point one specific character starts becoming the main character and it remains that way until the end of the book.
Also, even tho the book is 800+ pages long, nothing feels explored in a way that would make me care about these characters, or the religion, or anything in this world. Most characters end up getting, at most, 2 scenes together (mostly due to the pov character problem), and when something inevitably happens I just do not care.
The book is also marketed as an "exploration of religion", which is laughable, because it ends up falling into the trap of one religion being the true religion, while all others get critiqued in some way. I find it somewhat weak how the only flaw that the priory had was a bad apple situation while all other religions get broken down over and over again
The villains insist on doing a monologue once they are exposed, telling every detail of their evil plan, even when staying quiet would be better for them in every possible way.
Fantastical beings and entities are present, and then they get very annoying motivations that only serve to bring down their mystique (see ||kalyba||).
I also don't understand the decision to make exposition work in the way it does in this book. Characters will be talking, and then someone will ask if they've ever heard the tale of x, and proceed to explain it in detail. It would be fine if this was how it was done once or twice, but most of the exposition is done in this manner.
The multiple povs are interesting, however at a certain point one specific character starts becoming the main character and it remains that way until the end of the book.
Also, even tho the book is 800+ pages long, nothing feels explored in a way that would make me care about these characters, or the religion, or anything in this world. Most characters end up getting, at most, 2 scenes together (mostly due to the pov character problem), and when something inevitably happens I just do not care.
The book is also marketed as an "exploration of religion", which is laughable, because it ends up falling into the trap of one religion being the true religion, while all others get critiqued in some way. I find it somewhat weak how the only flaw that the priory had was a bad apple situation while all other religions get broken down over and over again
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest