Dragons. Magic. Queens, rulers and rival lands. Murder. Disguise. Intrigue… and that’s just in the first few pages of Samantha Shannon’s The Priory of the Orange Tree. If you’re looking for some incredibly epic escapism during isolation, this is your perfect read.
The plot hinges on the threat of The Nameless One returning to destroy humankind after 1,000 years of imprisonment. Hugely opposing forces must put aside their differences in political and religious beliefs and come together to defeat him, or they risk losing everything. Of course, there’s SO much more to say about the plot, but you’re just going to have to read it to find out…
This book follows in the footsteps of great epic fantasy journey stories like LOTR, The Hobbit and A Song of Ice and Fire series. But The Priory cleaves its own path through the fantasy adventure genre and can absolutely stand proudly among those that have come before.
The tale is told by four distinct storytellers. We see and experience Shannon’s intricately and painstakingly designed world through their eyes. As soon as you’ve met Tané, Niclays, Ead and Loth you’ll be eager to find out who they are and how their stories intertwine – because you can bet anything they’re going to come together in a magnificent climactic showdown! But not before they’ve been on difficult journeys, learned some lessons, experienced pain, loss, love, betrayal, magic, mystery and everything in between.
The Priory of the Orange Tree is perfect for those who adore big-scale fantasy adventure novels but are daunted by a series with 5+ books. It’s a standalone novel (although Shannon has said she’d love to return to this world at some point…) and it works perfectly.
Shannon has employed fairly traditional ideas of good vs bad, light vs dark etc. but that’s where the ties to tradition stop. What’s so interesting and enjoyable about this book is the very obvious feminist angle. Women hold a lot of the roles of power in this world, from a line of Queens who continue to birth only daughters, to the Golden Empress, the most feared and formidable pirate on the seas. There are no tropes of gender roles where women are confined to kitchens and bedchambers as we so often see in worlds constructed like this.
And not only is it feminist – it’s queer. It celebrates and, more accurately, normalises homosexuality by creating a world where people take “companions” whom they love, no matter their gender. And at least two of our main characters are queer, and seeing them in a world like this where they are just normal is so refreshing – and indeed something to celebrate.
Shannon’s worldbuilding and characters are a triumph. She’s given her characters so much depth and humanity that even after 800 pages I wanted more.
The Priory of the Orange Tree ticks every box for lovers of this genre – an incredibly detailed and thought-out world with a rich history steeped in legend, real and flawed characters that experience pain, love, loss and so much more, subtle and new ways of incorporating magic and sorcery, a refreshing take on the trope of dragons, and edge-of-your-seat adventure. It’s heart wrenching and exhilarating, shocking without being overly violent or gory, and beautifully descriptive. You won’t be able to put it down.
Alana Kaye – On The Page
