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A review by heartbrekker
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
5.0
♔
To start off this review I just want to say Samantha Shannon really put her all into this series. I’ve always been impressed by her writing and characters, but this world truly obliterated me in the best way possible.
Second thing. The amount of diversity in this story- sexuality, race, age- is ASTOUNDING. It is beautiful, and I was squawking the entire time with joy. There’s nothing as perfect as a diverse fantasy book, and Samantha brought it ALL.
Third aspect. The world building. AGAIN, WOW. I will recommend you take notes for the first 100ish pages because it can feel overwhelming, but once that 100 page marker hits, everything and everyone makes sense. It’s incredible! The world is one of the most detailed and lush ones I’ve ever read in my life. I’m not exaggerating AT ALL. To me her level of precision and depth really shows her passion for the world/ story and that realization for me made it even better.
Now the characters were phenomenal . Ead was by far my favorite. Her storyline just had me sitting on the edge of my seat either pacing or screaming. I felt ALL the emotions, and to me she felt like a really unique character we don’t see often. She follows her morals/ beliefs very closely, and she’s so confidant in them. Specific scenes especially made me so proud of her. Then of course she’s a perfect morally grey character, which is MY FAVORITE.
Tané is the other POV the synopsis on the back mentions, and she took me more time to warm up to. Once the middle hit, I really did cherish her like treasure. She’s such a strong willed character, and her passion/ drive is amazing. All I wanted to do was tell her that she is enough. What’s great about Tané is that you watch her fall and scream and fight and build and that is how you really fall in love with her character. I need to applaud Samantha for the incredible character development.
They’re two other point of views, but personally, I’d like y’all to go in not knowing about them just like I did. There’s a certain sassy individual who really added SOMETHING to the story haha.
You learn a lot of real life realities in this story. So many events lead to different perspectives and thoughts characters would’ve never come to. That’s just another reason this book is so enchanting and amazing. It’s powerful and sends a message.
BATTLE SCENES. Samantha Shannon is a perfect writer when it comes to battles and fights. It’s as if you’re watching a movie! It was also a sweet detail to see the different fighting styles between characters that were from different regions/ backgrounds.
Slight warning: A lot of characters die in The Priory of the Orange Tree, so be prepared to have your heart RIPPED out A LOT! But in the best way possible because it feels realistic and not overdone in the slightest. No one was safe!
Now there’s a million other aspects I could talk about, but the fantasy/ magic system was incredibly interesting. The folklore and myths especially took all my attention. I’m not really going to say their names or anything because that would be a spoiler I feel haha.
I recommend this book to all of you, and do not let the size intimidate you. I took my slowwww time with this story because I didn’t want it to end. It took me 22 days to read, but I read the last 4/5th’s in about four to five days. It’s the biggest novel I have ever read, and one of my top favorites- not just in terms of this year but of all my read books. I love Samantha’s writing!
To start off this review I just want to say Samantha Shannon really put her all into this series. I’ve always been impressed by her writing and characters, but this world truly obliterated me in the best way possible.
Second thing. The amount of diversity in this story- sexuality, race, age- is ASTOUNDING. It is beautiful, and I was squawking the entire time with joy. There’s nothing as perfect as a diverse fantasy book, and Samantha brought it ALL.
Third aspect. The world building. AGAIN, WOW. I will recommend you take notes for the first 100ish pages because it can feel overwhelming, but once that 100 page marker hits, everything and everyone makes sense. It’s incredible! The world is one of the most detailed and lush ones I’ve ever read in my life. I’m not exaggerating AT ALL. To me her level of precision and depth really shows her passion for the world/ story and that realization for me made it even better.
Now the characters were phenomenal . Ead was by far my favorite. Her storyline just had me sitting on the edge of my seat either pacing or screaming. I felt ALL the emotions, and to me she felt like a really unique character we don’t see often. She follows her morals/ beliefs very closely, and she’s so confidant in them. Specific scenes especially made me so proud of her. Then of course she’s a perfect morally grey character, which is MY FAVORITE.
Tané is the other POV the synopsis on the back mentions, and she took me more time to warm up to. Once the middle hit, I really did cherish her like treasure. She’s such a strong willed character, and her passion/ drive is amazing. All I wanted to do was tell her that she is enough. What’s great about Tané is that you watch her fall and scream and fight and build and that is how you really fall in love with her character. I need to applaud Samantha for the incredible character development.
They’re two other point of views, but personally, I’d like y’all to go in not knowing about them just like I did. There’s a certain sassy individual who really added SOMETHING to the story haha.
You learn a lot of real life realities in this story. So many events lead to different perspectives and thoughts characters would’ve never come to. That’s just another reason this book is so enchanting and amazing. It’s powerful and sends a message.
BATTLE SCENES. Samantha Shannon is a perfect writer when it comes to battles and fights. It’s as if you’re watching a movie! It was also a sweet detail to see the different fighting styles between characters that were from different regions/ backgrounds.
Slight warning: A lot of characters die in The Priory of the Orange Tree, so be prepared to have your heart RIPPED out A LOT! But in the best way possible because it feels realistic and not overdone in the slightest. No one was safe!
Now there’s a million other aspects I could talk about, but the fantasy/ magic system was incredibly interesting. The folklore and myths especially took all my attention. I’m not really going to say their names or anything because that would be a spoiler I feel haha.
I recommend this book to all of you, and do not let the size intimidate you. I took my slowwww time with this story because I didn’t want it to end. It took me 22 days to read, but I read the last 4/5th’s in about four to five days. It’s the biggest novel I have ever read, and one of my top favorites- not just in terms of this year but of all my read books. I love Samantha’s writing!