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A review by charliebriggs96
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
adventurous
dark
inspiring
mysterious
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
Ok, this book I spectacular and a fantastic read with what seems like to me (I am not POC, so please correct me if I am wrong) great diversity. Of course, it’s a beefy book, but that didn’t overwhelm me once I started reading it. I just took my time and got on with it. However, sometimes the pacing did seem off, only because sometimes time passed without it being mentioned, and it is noted like 100 pages later.
Let’s talk about magic: I usually find magic systems either over-complex or utterly lazy. This, however, has a great magic system that makes complete sense. It almost gave me full metal alchemist vibes with the whole idea that your power is limited to how much you received to gave. I liked that also it heavily implied the yin and yang of energy. You cannot have one without the other. I enjoyed that.
Let’s talk religion: it’s a big part of this book, so it has to be mentioned because I think you can take this book and look at the world and see the similarities between the two. We as humans are prone to jumping the gun when it comes to faith, what is heresy and what is not and so on. Someone else’s religion, if not shared with your own is terrible, and evil, or at the very least a bad omen of sorts. Which is what this book shows, is utter bullsh*t. Every religion has the same underlined meaning and teachings, which can be said for the beliefs and faiths within this book. And I think Shannon did a great job at exploring that.
Let’s talk about the characters: Shannon did an excellent job at making an array of characters that you desperately love, come to love and then hate or despise right off of the bat. I have never in my life hoped for someone’s death more than I did with Niclays. As soon as he did what he did (when you read, you’ll know what I mean
Let’s talk about magic: I usually find magic systems either over-complex or utterly lazy. This, however, has a great magic system that makes complete sense. It almost gave me full metal alchemist vibes with the whole idea that your power is limited to how much you received to gave. I liked that also it heavily implied the yin and yang of energy. You cannot have one without the other. I enjoyed that.
Let’s talk religion: it’s a big part of this book, so it has to be mentioned because I think you can take this book and look at the world and see the similarities between the two. We as humans are prone to jumping the gun when it comes to faith, what is heresy and what is not and so on. Someone else’s religion, if not shared with your own is terrible, and evil, or at the very least a bad omen of sorts. Which is what this book shows, is utter bullsh*t. Every religion has the same underlined meaning and teachings, which can be said for the beliefs and faiths within this book. And I think Shannon did a great job at exploring that.
Let’s talk about the characters: Shannon did an excellent job at making an array of characters that you desperately love, come to love and then hate or despise right off of the bat. I have never in my life hoped for someone’s death more than I did with Niclays. As soon as he did what he did (when you read, you’ll know what I mean
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Sexism, Torture, Dementia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, and Gaslighting