changedbybooks's review against another edition
5.0
I was super intimidated by this book and I’m so glad I finally read it because I absolutely loved it!
mandygollaher's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I decided to start 2022 off with a bang and tackle the great behemoth of my fantasy shelves: ye olde Priory of the Orange Tree: a book I've had ever since it came out in paperback and which I am still shocked and ashamed that it took me like 5 years to actually read. This book is right up my ally–it's got dragons, political shenanigans, women with swords and was one of the first big fantasy releases to feature a sapphic main couple–so you can see why it's weird I never got around to reading it. I blame this entirely on whatever publisher decided to pick a pretty big font and pretty wide margins and super thick paper and make this book (WHICH IS SHORTER THAN MOST SJM BOOKS) look absolutely massive and intimidating.
Even though this book is pretty big, the pacing of the story is great and the extended page count really helps us as readers get to know and feel invested in the plots of several different characters operating on several different continents with several different belief systems without anything ever feeling too confusing or convoluted. That being said, this is not an easy fantasy book to chew your way through. There are a lot of political plots to unravel, the romance is on the slow-burn side, and there are so many names and places that it does take a fair bit of brain power to read. I think that the characters all showed a lot of development and I really did care for all of the major players at the end (except for one who has a tragic backstory and yeah, that sucks for you man, I'm really sorry but, like, I swear his character is based off John Murphy from The 100 cause WHERE ARE YOUR ALLIANCES DUDE AND HOW ARE YOU NOT DEAD YET?)
Speaking of deaths, I applaud Samantha Shannon for doing a fair bit of character-murder early on in her books because I truly believed that she would take out one of the main characters at their most happy and hopeful and that's rare for most authors (and yes, I'm looking at you SJM... I DARE you to kill someone with a love interest in your next book). One of the main things that will pull me out of a story is when it feels like there are no real stakes for a character going into battle or going on a quest. I want to be on the edge of my seat when I'm in the finale of a fantasy especially when the book is 800 pages long and Samantha Shannon delivered.
Overall the thing that keeps this from a 4.5 or a 5 star for me is silly but it's just the lack of a certain ~je ne sais quoi~ that holds an unfair amount of fantasy books back from those higher ratings. I don't know if I just haven't seen enough fan art or if the characters were too smart and reasonable to make the decisions that have me slamming books up against walls and feeling violently emotionally invested, but this was very much a "I enjoyed it and would recommend it" kind of read but not quite a "scream it from the rooftops" one. In other words, I'll probably pick up the prequel when it comes out in paperback but I won't be pre-ordering the hardcover.
Even though this book is pretty big, the pacing of the story is great and the extended page count really helps us as readers get to know and feel invested in the plots of several different characters operating on several different continents with several different belief systems without anything ever feeling too confusing or convoluted. That being said, this is not an easy fantasy book to chew your way through. There are a lot of political plots to unravel, the romance is on the slow-burn side, and there are so many names and places that it does take a fair bit of brain power to read. I think that the characters all showed a lot of development and I really did care for all of the major players at the end (except for one who has a tragic backstory and yeah, that sucks for you man, I'm really sorry but, like, I swear his character is based off John Murphy from The 100 cause WHERE ARE YOUR ALLIANCES DUDE AND HOW ARE YOU NOT DEAD YET?)
Speaking of deaths, I applaud Samantha Shannon for doing a fair bit of character-murder early on in her books because I truly believed that she would take out one of the main characters at their most happy and hopeful and that's rare for most authors (and yes, I'm looking at you SJM... I DARE you to kill someone with a love interest in your next book). One of the main things that will pull me out of a story is when it feels like there are no real stakes for a character going into battle or going on a quest. I want to be on the edge of my seat when I'm in the finale of a fantasy especially when the book is 800 pages long and Samantha Shannon delivered.
Overall the thing that keeps this from a 4.5 or a 5 star for me is silly but it's just the lack of a certain ~je ne sais quoi~ that holds an unfair amount of fantasy books back from those higher ratings. I don't know if I just haven't seen enough fan art or if the characters were too smart and reasonable to make the decisions that have me slamming books up against walls and feeling violently emotionally invested, but this was very much a "I enjoyed it and would recommend it" kind of read but not quite a "scream it from the rooftops" one. In other words, I'll probably pick up the prequel when it comes out in paperback but I won't be pre-ordering the hardcover.
msnew's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Very slow until about 3/4 of the way in. Then it all comes together quickly. Pacing could have been better and given readers more time ro reflect on the big twists.
ashsbookadv's review against another edition
3.0
As a fan of Samantha Shannons bone season series I was very excited to read a book outside of the bone season world.
This book did not draw me in a much as I had expected it too, which was a shame as I absolutely love Samantha Shannon as an author.
What I liked about the book:
-Slow burn romance
-LGBTQ+ Rep
-Writing style
What I didn't like about this book:
1. The plot felt unnecessarily long for the amount of pages this book was. I felt that the story could have been trimmed down a lot more and made the story feel more focused and exciting.
2. The story had more dialogue than action and I wanted there to be more action scenes to balance these two elements out
3.There were certain characters in this book that didn't really feel necessary to the main plot and that they could have been left out of the story.
4. I wanted more from Sabran's point of view as she is one of the main characters in this book and I felt that we saw more from the other two main points of view more than hers. I would have like to see parts of the story from her point of view rather than what we see of her from Ead's perspective
Overall this book kept me entertained enough but not enough to make me want to pick it up again.
This book did not draw me in a much as I had expected it too, which was a shame as I absolutely love Samantha Shannon as an author.
What I liked about the book:
-Slow burn romance
-LGBTQ+ Rep
-Writing style
What I didn't like about this book:
1. The plot felt unnecessarily long for the amount of pages this book was. I felt that the story could have been trimmed down a lot more and made the story feel more focused and exciting.
2. The story had more dialogue than action and I wanted there to be more action scenes to balance these two elements out
3.There were certain characters in this book that didn't really feel necessary to the main plot and that they could have been left out of the story.
4. I wanted more from Sabran's point of view as she is one of the main characters in this book and I felt that we saw more from the other two main points of view more than hers. I would have like to see parts of the story from her point of view rather than what we see of her from Ead's perspective
Overall this book kept me entertained enough but not enough to make me want to pick it up again.
hattie20's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
3.0
likethebeer's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
heavy on the world building in the first half but the payoff is very worth it!
Spoiler
hated Roos and his entire character, loved the dragons (all of em idc if they’re good or bad)Spoiler
indeeperchapters's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
caitlin1599's review against another edition
4.0
Overall I loved priory. The world was mesmerising and I’d love to return to it in the future. HOWEVER there were a few things that I just didn’t love and prevent me from giving it a 5/5.
Firstly, I know it’s a plot device but coincidences are not my fave and I found it just got a bit annoying towards the end.
Secondly, although I loved that there were 4 distinct POVs, I felt like I didn’t know the characters that well so then when things were happening I just didn’t care all that much?
Finally, for 700 pages of build up the end kind of just...happened? Idk. I would have loved for it to have been a bit more fleshed out.
Firstly, I know it’s a plot device but coincidences are not my fave and I found it just got a bit annoying towards the end.
Secondly, although I loved that there were 4 distinct POVs, I felt like I didn’t know the characters that well so then when things were happening I just didn’t care all that much?
Finally, for 700 pages of build up the end kind of just...happened? Idk. I would have loved for it to have been a bit more fleshed out.