#Loth and Tané are my favorites so far

[feralplantwife]

I've been reading The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon. I'm not the fastest reader so expect my takes in... A while lol.

But it is. SO. REFRESHING. To read a high fantasy novel in which many of the characters are grown ass adults with grown ass adult problems. I can't imagine reading a book of this length and complexity if all of the characters were in their late teens and early twenties.

Ead is 26. Sabran is 28. Loth is probably in his fifties and Roos seems to be in his 50s or even 60s. Kit is probably of similar age. But you also have Sulyard who's 18. Tané is also pretty young (about 20?).

It's NICE. It's great. The diversity of cultural inspiration, of theme, of character's age and maturity, of skin tone. Everyone is going on their various adventures and it's done so well.

I'm engaged with all of them and their experiences. I can appreciate Sulyard 's idealism, Ead and Sabran still growing but also being grown. Loth and Kit and Roos being too damn old for this shit but still getting caught up in things and still gaining new life experiences in their middle(?) age. Tané coming of age.

I want to spend time with all of these people, not just as an escapist, but also just as a reader experiencing a novel and that's A Big Deal for me.

[mistwraiths]

4 stars

At first, the title of this book didn't really appeal to me and I wasn't very curious about it. However, someone said it was an adult fantasy with dragons, a secret society of women mages, and its Sapphic, and I immediately was in. The Nameless One is starting to wake and the world must come together and also figure out how to end him. Classic good vs evil story.

Priory is a very long book, about 805 pages with the text covering most of the page. I love a good long book and I've definitely read longer, but I think this book deserved to be split up. There is so much happening in this book, there's so many countries and people and their religions. I think it suffers a little from that because I would have loved to spend more time with certain characters during big moments. Huge plot moments and pivotal scenes are often over very quickly because everything needs to move along and connect. I think if this book was split into two or even three books with more character depth and not so much everything, it would have been a solid 5 stars.

I absolutely LOVED Priory, don't get me wrong. The pace is fast and the writing is an easy flow that is perfect. Just the right amount without making the slow moments feel like a slog or even the book to feel way too long. I really liked seeing strong women warriors, leaders, mages, dragon riders, etc. It's a fascinating world and I enjoyed mostly all the characters and plots, and I liked how things came together fairly nicely.

The book follows four main characters but the most important two are Ead and Tané. The other two are Niclays and Loth.

Ead was a really great character because she was smart and capable, and I really like how sure she was of her capabilities. I actually thought there would be more lesbians in the book, but there wasn't. I really enjoyed her relationship with Sabran, however it felt like it went physical and deep extremely fast. I knew Ead was feeling things but Sabran extremely recently lost her husband and her baby (and the ability to have children) like in a small amount of time and suddenly they are having sex?? It just felt extremely sudden especially on Sabran's part where she is supposedly quite devout and you know, the religion doesn't allow same sex relations. We don't see into Sabran's head which is shame. I still enjoyed their relationship though and Ead's story.

Tané was probably my favorite of the four. Orphan girl becomes a dragon rider, that's right up my alley! Tané goes through quite a lot throughout the book, dealing with insecurities, unworthiness, shame for the lies and also consequences of her past actions, and more. She gains a desired top position, her dream, to losing it and falling very far. I did wish more for Tané when it came to the end fight. Tané's ending was the most confusing part of the story. You read it and you're just like WHAT???? I think I have an idea but to have most of everything be fairly clear cut in this story, and then just write something that doesn't get answered considering this is a standalone, is rude.

Niclays was probably my second favorite of the four narrators. He's an old, gay, grumpy old man. A lot of good and bad things have happened in his life. I really enjoyed his grief and anger, and his resilience even though he likely wouldn't agree he has that. He's a bit of a coward too. Although he served a purpose, it did feel like it took too long in the book to get there.

Loth, the last narrator, was my least favorite of the bunch. I appreciated that Loth could be friends with women and it wasn't a he was secretly in love with them or sexual in any way. He just genuinely loved them as people and like they were his sisters. I found Loth to really just be the most passive character in the series, more letting things happen to him and going along with it. He mainly just brought things to people and had a negotiation scene that just fell extremely flat. He hardly had much of a personality either.

There is in general so much going on. Did I really have to have explained that an ancient witch fell in love with the man she raised as a baby, bewitched and glamored him so he'd think she was someone else, and marry and have a baby with him??? Why??? I understand you want to flesh out the world and make her even more monstrous and powerful, etc. But there is just more important things to focus on but yet you skip training Tané with magic or Ead with the jewels? Magic is explained to an extent but I don't quite understand Ead's kind of magic. It's fire but she's capable of doing things other than fire??

Because the book has so much happening and moving quickly, things tend to work out really quickly and/or easily. I am absolutely more of a stickler to realism. Things don't work out perfectly. People fail. I like seeing that and I think that's why I liked Tané and Niclays more.

I know it feels like I'm bitching and being pedantic, but I ultimately really enjoyed the book! I liked that there were dragons of water instead of fire. It was altogether enjoyable and I'd definitely recommend it highly to fans of adult fantasy! And this actually makes me want to read her other books.

[terramythos]

TerraMythos 2021 Reading Challenge - Book 9 of 26

Title: The Priory of the Orange Tree (2019) 

Author: Samantha Shannon

Genre/Tags: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Third-Person, Female Protagonists, LGBT Protagonists

Rating: 10/10

Date Began: 3/12/2021

Date Finished: 4/12/2021

1000 years ago, the world burned. Draconic creatures terrorized the land, led by a horrific evil known as the Nameless One. But then something happened that sent the monsters into a seemingly endless sleep, and the world has rebuilt in the centuries since.

But the Draconic evil begins to stir in its slumber, and the divided nations of the world have little chance to stop it. Eadaz is a mage from the Priory of the Orange Tree, sent to spy on the northern queendom of Inys. Legend has it that as long as the royal line continues, the world will be free from the Nameless One. While it's a long shot, Ead guards the young Queen Sabran closely to preserve the peace. However, as she and the queen grow closer to each other, Ead has to decide where her loyalties lie. Meanwhile, her close friend Loth is secretly sent into exile by the royal spymaster due to his controversial friendship with the queen. Supposedly sent as an ambassador to the newly Draconic kingdom of Yscalin, he soon finds himself out of his depth, entrusted with a deadly secret.

In the isolationist Eastern country of Seiiki, Tané wants nothing more than to become a dragon rider. The dragons of the East are old, wise, and revered as gods-- eternally opposed to the Draconic legions of the West. However, the night before the choosing ceremony that will decide her fate, she breaks isolation and discovers a young man from the West on the shore. Rather than report him to the authorities, she and her friend smuggle him to the island of Orisima, the only place Westerners are permitted. Niclays Roos, an old man exiled to Orisima by Queen Sabran, soon finds himself caught in the conflict. He believes if he finds an elixir for eternal life, he will finally be able to return home. When he's forced to shelter the forbidden Westerner, Niclays' entire way of life is upended-- but he is soon granted the opportunity to escape his exile.  

'My grandmother once said that when a wolf comes to the village, a shepherd looks first to her own flock. The wolf bloods his teeth on other sheep, and the shepherd knows it will one day come for hers, but she clings to the hope that she might be able to keep him out. Until the wolf is at her door.’

Full review, minor spoilers, and content warnings under the cut.

Content warnings for the book:  Some sexual content. Blood, gore, violence, traumatic injury, suicide, and death. Torture and execution. Miscarriage. Body horror (kinda). Drug use.

Clocking in at just over 800 pages, The Priory of the Orange Tree is a long, detailed story. I tend to label things Epic Fantasy when they have world-changing stakes. While Priory certainly fits that criteria, it's the first fantasy book I've read in a while that really does feel like an epic. It stars a huge cast of interesting characters from many walks of life, all of whom find themselves caught up in a world-spanning conflict. It captures the sense of a standalone, grand adventure that shorter fantasy novels of today don't typically reach.

With a book this long, it would be easy to ramble on forever about everything I liked. However, I'm going to try to keep it short and simple.

One of my favorite things about this story was the sheer depth of the world. Lots of people compare this to The Lord of the Rings not for its tropes, but the attention to detail regarding the countries, politics, history, religion, and so on. I'm inclined to agree with this assessment. The world felt alive and multi-dimensional. I could pinpoint many parallels to our own mythologies and histories-- particularly drawn from Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. There's also a clear love of language in the story via its beautiful prose. I like to think I know English pretty well, but this book taught me quite a few new words! Might fuck around and call sunsets "rutilant" from now on.

I thought all four leads were interesting. Ead is kinda the "main" lead of the novel, although Tané overtakes her in the latter half. Everyone had different personalities and backstories, and I genuinely enjoyed all of their arcs. Niclays in particular would be an easy character to hate; of the four, he's the most selfish and does some real questionable shit. At the same time, it's hard not to sympathize with him. He's a sad, unjustly exiled elder who's lost the one man he cared about, and finds himself in a desperate situation. These types of characters are interesting to me; a glimpse of what anyone can become given the wrong circumstances and cruel treatment.

With stories like this, one of the most satisfying payoffs is how the different characters and stories come together. It was interesting to see how their paths converged and diverged over time, and ultimately how everything tied together in the end. I also appreciated the character relationships. I liked that Loth's close friendships with both Sabran and Ead were intimate yet platonic without some awkward love triangle.

From some story specifics... I'm a sucker for the bodyguard romance trope, and seeing it done with women in a mainstream novel gave me life. I thought the romance between Ead and Sabran was really sweet; I didn't see how it would work early on since Sabran was a little insufferable, but she had hidden depths (oh god, another weakness of mine). I also really liked the idea of traditional European and Asian dragons being diametrically opposed, and that being a core theme of the story. Intelligent and/or talking animals are another thing I adore in spec fic, so I dug characters like Aralaq. Kalyba's ongoing relevance and gradual exposition was also neat; I love minor world details that turn out super relevant later.

Also, the entire final battle/ending sequence was SO good. Really creative and action packed. Action scenes often blend together for me (and can be logistical nightmares) but Priory's climactic ending was just awesome. I don't want to spoil specifics, but it reminded me of many beloved epic battles in modern fantasy. Avatar the Last Airbender, How To Train Your Dragon, and Pirates of the Caribbean all came to mind. 

My main criticism with Priory is that often, the plot relied on convenient coincidence to get the characters out of a jam or otherwise advance the story. I can excuse a minor contrivance or two for the sake of a smooth story, and the scope of this book is big enough that it'd be hard to avoid. But some are nuts. For example, Loth gets rescued from certain death by a giant ichneumon while traveling through the mountains. We later learn the ichneumon is Aralaq, a friend of Ead's, and he just happened to be in the middle of nowhere, far from his home, and stumbled upon Loth. Loth, who ALSO happens to be Ead's best friend... which Aralaq presumably doesn't know?

Another is the MAJOR SPOILER regarding the rising jewel's location. I didn't hate the twist itself, but there was so little build up to it. I wish there were more early hints to justify it, because with setup it would be a pretty cool development. These things didn't ruin my enjoyment of the story, but the borderline deus ex machina (machinae? machinas?) did take me out of it a bit. It’s possible I missed stuff so I’ll give some benefit of the doubt. 

Overall, though, The Priory of the Orange Tree is a fun, world-spanning adventure. Like any long book, it's an investment to get into. However, if you're looking for a standalone, feminist fantasy epic, this is certainly a good place to start.  

[wayfarerreads]

Priory of the Orange Tree Character Opinions So Far (Spoilers below the cut):

-Niclays Roos: I don’t like him so far :/  He’s interesting & I’m really curious to see where his story is going, but I do not want him to get his hands on a dragon!

-Ead: I really like her & want to learn more about her

Loth & Kit:  Interesting characters.  I feel really bad for the two of them, though especially Loth, for being essentially kidnapped by the Spymaster.  I am really excited to see what Yscalin is like though...

Tané: She & Ead are tied for my favorite character so far.  I can’t wait for her to be matched with a dragon!  + she & Susa are my OTP :D

I'm 90 pages in now & Ead and Tané are definitely my favorites!

Sabran:  Don’t really like her yet.  I’m not sure what to make of her.  She’s definitely interesting, in a very Elizabeth I kind of way.  Her connection with Roos was surprising, though it makes a lot of sense.  I’m really curious to find out where her desire for immortality will take the story. <- I'm about 40 pages farther now & I cannot stand Sabran! She’s intelligent, but she's also selfish, a bit cruel, & a religious zealot. I can't understand why she was considered worthy of Ead's protection & loyalty 🤨

Triam Sulyard:  Honestly he seems kind of dumb, but sweet.  A knight straight out of a Chivalric romance; his devotion to Truyde is very sweet.  So far seems like goodest boi lol

[biblionation]

Book Review: The Priory of the Orange Tree

Synopsis:

The House of Berethnet has ruled Inys for a thousand years. Still unwed, Queen Sabran the Ninth must conceive a daughter to protect her realm from destruction—but assassins are getting closer to her door. Ead Duryan is an outsider at court. Though she has risen to the position of lady-in-waiting, she is loyal to a hidden society of mages. Ead keeps a watchful eye on Sabran, secretly protecting her with forbidden magic. Across the dark sea, Tané has trained all her life to be a dragonrider, but is forced to make a choice that could see her life unravel. Meanwhile, the divided East and West refuse to parley, and forces of chaos are rising from their sleep.

My thoughts:

Aside from Game of Throne, I've never read epic fantasy before and just the sheer size of this book intimidated me. Honestly, it's been years since I read something this big, I had come to think I couldn't read big books (despite reading 800-1000 pages books without a problem once a upon a time). So I was very intimidated to start this.

But my favorite booktuber, Sam from Thoughts on Tomes, announced Tome Topple, which is a readathon to read big books (of more than 500 pages), and I've always wanted to participate. So I challenged myself to read this in 9 days, and guess what? I did! I completed my first big book in a week and I proved to myself that I CAN read big books, I CAN read epic fantasy. I think my fear of big books is slightly related to the need to complete the stupid Goodreads reading challenge, and to my notion that I, not only have to complete that challenge, but read 100 books for it.

So, getting into the book, I really enjoyed this story! It was VERY complex, with so many characters and POVs that, at first didn't seem connected, but little by little, their paths started to converge into this epic quest to stop the Nameless One. My favorite characters were Loth and Tané, so those were my favorite chapters, Tané for obvious reasons (DRAGONS!), and Loth because he's such a pure cinnamon roll who must be protected at all cost.

But, I did like Ead's chapters, she's obviously the protagonist so the most interesting plotlines revolved around her. I wish there were more dragons, the book focused a lot on the political aspect and the quests to defeat the Nameless One, and it didn't delve deeper in the dragon side of the story, obviously they're explained and mentioned a lot, but, come on! I wanted epic dragon rides and battles, and I feel like we didn't get enough of those.

The world-building was crazy sometimes, there were so many places, characters, history and legends, it was hard to keep up, but eventually, I started making sense of the gigantic puzzle Samantha Shannon had built. Hats off to the author, because this is massive and I can only imagine what it meant to research, create, and write this incredible world and epic story.

This book is astounding in its diversity and feminism, I've heard older epic fantasy is not very inclusive. But this book truly has it all in terms of representation: there are so many people of color in this story, so much LGTBQA representation, and the amount of female power is HUGE.

This book is 100% focused on the women, their struggles, their power, their strength, their vulnerability, the friendship, loyalty and love between them. I loved how it's completely unquestioned to see all these women in positions of power: Sabran as a queen, the incredible warriors of the Priory, Tané as a dragonrider, even the antagonists, Kalyba and the Golden Empress, are far more powerful than the Nameless One and far more developed. Even Loth is often saying he wished his sister Meg had been the heir, because she's far more capable than he is. (But I still adore Loth and Chassar, they're not threatened by the strength of the women around them, they're respectful and devoted to them and I LOVE IT!).

Overall, I'm very happy to have read this, not only for the amazing story, but because now I want to read ALL the fantasy (something I haven't felt in quite a long time), and because now I see that this stupid Goodreads challenge doesn't actually mean anything and I don't HAVE to read 100 books a year.

Rating: 4.5 stars