Book Review
Title: The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
Genre: Fantasy, LGBT
Rating: 3.75 Stars
Realistically speaking The Priory of the Orange Tree shouldn’t scare me as much as it does because I have read bigger books like The Way of Kings which is 1000+ pages long. That being said the opening couple of chapters of Priory were very dense as we are introduced to a lot of people, places and events happening all at once. We are first introduced to Tane in a place called Seiiki preparing for her Choosing Day, although I don’t know what this means yet but it has something to do with the deities they worship when she spots a stranger coming out of the sea who wants to speak with the Warlord. Tane knows that if the man is presented to the Warlord of Seiiki, Pitosu Nadama he will be executed so through a friend she smuggles him into the home of Doctor Niclays Roos. The man turns out to be the Scribe to the Queen of the House of Berethnet, Sabran the Ninth and he seems to be there for a reason but Niclays doesn’t allow him to say what he is there for. We then switch to The House of Berethnet, where we are introduced to Ead Duryan, who seems to be an assassin protecting the Queen from other assassination attempts. Ead also has a role within the Court and makes it her mission to know everything that is happening around the Queen in order to protect her especially since they believe that the previous Queen was murdered by the Yscals from the Draconic Isles, the rival kingdom to Inys.
There is a lot of political intrigue from the very beginning as we learn many people want to marry Queen Sabran but she has always turned them down despite being heirless and nearly 30. However, she has received a proposal from Prince Aubrecht, the High Prince of the Free State of Mentendon and she is considering it even though many believe she will turn him down. We are also introduced to Loth and Kit who have been sent to Yscalin as ambassadors to remove Loth from the Queen’s side. Many believe that Loth and Sabran have a romantic relationship despite Loth saying numerous times they don’t which doesn’t look good for political alliances and they now have to survive in enemy territory. I was definitely right about this book being dense as I am over 100 pages in and while we have been introduced to the world, its politics, the alliances and rivalries between kingdoms as well as a vague introduction into its history and magical system not a lot has really happened beside that other than Niclays being taken prisoner after he is discovered harbouring an outsider which could possibly mean his death and it seems likely that both the scribe along with Kit and Loth might also be in danger in Yscalin. However, I did find it really interesting that we learn from Ead that the history of the Queendom is different where she is from and that the First Queen is seen as a warrior there not a damsel in distress. Ead also knows of the orange tree and the Priory built around it which gives Ead access to magic called siden which she uses to protect Sabran but the longer she is away from home the weaker her magic is becoming.
We soon learn that Fyredel, one of the High Western dragons and the right hand of the Nameless One, who seems to be the main antagonist has awoken from his 1000 year slumber and the others are waking too, meaning the Queendom is in serious danger. Ead has learnt that Truyde and Sulyard’s plan was to make an alliance with the eastern dragons as they are nothing like the westerns to help protect the Queendom when the time comes but they aren’t politically minded and don’t see that Yscalin gets nothing out of helping especially since they have been estranged from the Queendom for a very long time. When Fyredel threatens Sabran and even attempts to kill her, Ead has no choice but to use her magic to protect the Queen but Truyde witnesses this and tries to blackmail Ead but it isn’t going to work since she has no proof as most will believe that the Saint protect Sabran as a descendant rather than believing that Ead is a sorceress. We also bounce between Kit and Loth arrives in Yscalin where they are planning a dangerous game as they have to face the draconic plague as well as the ruthless court that may just kill them outright as well as Tane who has begun her training in earnest to become a dragon rider and I think Tane’s parts so far are my favourite but I am struggling with how dense the novel is, I have been reading for 3-4 hours now I am only around 150 pages in because there is so much to take in.
After the dragon leaves, Sabran announces her betrothal to the Red Prince and Ead is beginning to suspect more and more that someone close to the Queen is behind the assassination attempts and she believes it is Combe, The Night Hawke in charge of the Queen’s security. At the engagement party Ead is able to meet with the person she sees as her father, Chassar for the first time in eight years and he relays to her that her sister in all but blood Jondu was sent on a mission to find the sword used by Cleolind and has gone missing but they are looking for her. He also relays the news that the old Prioress is dead and new one has been appointed. However, the new Prioress is more sceptical about the House of Berethnet being the sole reason behind the Nameless One being kept away and has asked Chassar to recall Ead so he has brought another sister to replace her in the Queen’s court. Ead doesn’t like this as she is finally gaining the Queen’s trust and asks Chassar to see if the new Prioress will let her stay at the court at least until Sabran bears a daughter. Meanwhile in Yscalin, Niclays has managed to escape torture but he unknowingly has sentence Tane’s friend to that fate and he encourages Sulyard to turn in the other girl who is Tane in order to save himself as Niclays might not be able to convince the Warlord of Sulyard’s plan but he is going to try. Things are getting interesting as Kit and Loth meet the Donmata Marosa and learn from her that Sabran’s father is dead and has been for a while since Fyredel is essentially running the country and she wants to help Sabran but they must all be careful as the dragons have spies everywhere. Back with Sabran and Ead, they are preparing for the royal wedding and move to Briar House where Ead knows it will be easier for her to keep an eye on Sabran but she is getting closer to the Queen. Ead learns that Sabran is filled with worries and doubts and tries her best to relieve them especially when Sabran doesn’t have a choice with the marriage and childbearing as it needs to be done for the Queendom.
We are now over a quarter of the way through Priory as I believe the main cast is complete with Ead, Sabran, Tane, Niclays and Loth spread out over the entire world and following different paths which I believe might converge at some point. Things really start picking up when Loth learns that the Donmata’s father killed the previous Queen, Sabran’s mother because she wouldn’t marry him and that her father is also dead and has been for a while. This is because two years before Fyredel awoke and took over the Yscalin King meaning the dragon runs the country and the Donmata is trapped within her own kingdom and when her father dies she knows Fyredel will be coming for her. She also tells Loth that a prisoner by the name of Jondu brought a mysterious item in a box which can’t be opened and she asked Sabran’s father to return it to the Priory before heading home but he abandoned this task which lead to his death and she asks Loth to complete the task. However, in order to leave they have to infect themselves with the plague because that is the only way the hybrid creatures will leave them alone and they agree. After Kit and Loth infect themselves they are entrusted with Jondu’s package and shown a secret passage out of the Palace and told to take it to Chassar as he will know what to do with it. However, before they can even get out of the passage an earthquake rocks the tunnel they are in causing a collapse that kills Kit breaking Loth’s heart as he begged his friend to stay behind. Loth now has to continue the journey alone as he knows he can’t get word to Sabran and I can’t wait to see how he gets on. Meanwhile, Tane has passed the Water Trials and has become a god chosen dragon rider and watching her dragon choose her was fascinating and heart warming but I am still concerned over what could happen is Sulyard turns her in. Back with Sabran, she is getting married to Red Prince and Ead notices that Combe seems a little too happy about it but the wedding night goes smoothly and Sabran is pleased. We can clearly see the bond between Sabran and Ead deepening and this is proven when Sabran promotes Ead to the rank of Lady of the Bedchamber which is one of the positions closest to the Queen.
Loth is struggling to reach his destination as he has to combat the element, the sickness in him and the wild creatures but one comes to his aid and carries him to the edge of the desert meaning he is one step closer to delivering Jondu’s parcel to Chassar. Meanwhile, Sabran is finally with child but Ead is torn over her own budding feelings for the Queen which she is stubbornly ignoring right now but she knows she can only stay until the child is born and then she has to return to the Priory. However, the Red Prince wants Sabran to walk among her people to reignite their love for her but Ead knows this can only end in blood as they are many within the Queendom that side with Yscalin and would see the Queen dead. Tane and Niclays’ stories are also overlapping as he finally learns who Tane is and realises he might be able to free Sulyard if he turns the girl in but she know revered by the people as a dragon rider so he would need concrete proof before doing so. Things get really crazy during the meeting of the people as someone created a riot to hide another assassination attempt. Ead protects the Queen but soldiers and ladies are falling left and right. Even when the Queen is removed to relative safety the assassins use mimicry to get the door open but Ead protects Sabran, however, the Red Prince is shot and may die and that is when it is revealed that Truyde is behind this in order to make the Queen listen to her but may have just killed the father of her unborn child and Sabran will show her no mercy. In the aftermath, the Prince dies leaving Sabran a widow and pregnant with a child who could potentially become an orphan if Sabran doesn’t survive the birth. Sabran gets closer to Ead during this time telling her the fears she has and Ead does her best to comfort the grieving Queen. Meanwhile both Sulyard and Susa are executed and Tane is too late to save them despite Niclays attempts to blackmail her for the blood of her dragon. She is going to be sent to Feather Island and stripped of her titles but before that she learns that her dragon has been taken possibly to be butchered for illegal trade and Niclays is also missing. The most interesting part is when Loth ends in Rauca and sends a secret message home letting people know he is still alive but he is secretly taken to the Priory where he is informed that the House of Berethnet are liars and that the religion he follows is false which angers Loth. This is made worse when Chassar tells him he can never leave the Priory as he is an outsider and might tell people about it he also tells him that Ead isn’t who he thinks she is and that she will be returning the Priory when Sabran gives birth.
With most of the original characters we were following dead, imprisoned or out of action we are now hyper-focusing on Ead, Sabran and Niclays. Niclays is currently aboard a pirate ship after trading his life for service as a surgeon while wyverns and a High Western attack Sabran’s Palace. They try to remove the pregnant Queen to safety but the dragon has them pinned in the courtyard and while Ead is able to shoot the dragon and bring it down it crashes into the courtyard. By the time she reaches Sabran she is bleeding presumably miscarrying the child she was carrying meaning the Queendom is in more danger than ever as it is rumoured that the Queens can only conceive once meaning there will be no more, Sabran will be the last Queen from the House of Berethnet. Things really hit the fan after Sabran miscarries because she was also struck by one of the dragon’s barb which left her fighting for her life. Even though Sabran does survive she can never have children meaning the House of Berethnet is going to die with her. Ead stays with Sabran through her grief and depression and finally admits her feelings for the Queen leading them spending the night together. Ead has also decided she isn’t going to return to the Priory to remain by Sabran’s side but Combe knows they spent the night together and wants to get rid of Ead the same way he did to Loth. However, unlike Loth, Ead isn’t as trusting and knows what Combe is planning to do, she tries to get to Sabran to inform her of Combe’s plan but she is being hunted. It is only with the help of her friends like Meg that she manages to escape the Palace and head back to the Priory but she pleads with Meg to stay close to Sabran until she can return and so she leaves without speaking to Sabran. Other characters like Niclays have also notices the rise in dragon awakenings meaning that the Nameless One’s return is close at hand now and with the House of Berethnet weakened and in danger of falling completely, I believe at some point the Priory will reveal itself and put the rightful leader in charge of the country to face the dragons but I am not sure where the book is going to go now and we are only halfway through.
After fleeing from Sabran’s Palace, Ead return to the Priory where she learns that the Prioress isn’t going to send anyone to replace her as she knows that with the fall of the House of Berethnet, the rest of the world is going to dissolve into chaos and they must be ready to weather the storm that is coming. It is here that Ead learns of Jondu’s death and is more than a little broken by it but more than anything she misses Sabran and longs to return to her but the first thing she does is eat from the orange tree to revive her powers as she doesn’t know that Loth is being held there yet. Back with Niclays and the pirates, he learns that the Lor dof Pirates who is also their Captain is also obsessed with the quest for eternal life and the fragment of text left to him by Jannart is the missing piece of the puzzle which he is finally able to solve. They uncover instructions to the tree of eternal life which is called a mulberry tree but I have a feeling this might be the same tree that the Priory protect. The instructions also mention rising or celestial jewels which they have no clue about but when Niclays speaks to the dragon it pleads with him to not let the jewels fall into the hands of those that would use it for destruction like the pirates. Meanwhile, at the Priory Ead is able to discover the secrets of Jondu’s box opening it with her blood, the blood of a mage and inside she finds a key that unlocks Cleolind’s tomb. Within the tomb she finds a jewel and a note, the note claims that the Nameless One was bound with both jewels for 1000 years but that is coming to an end. The note states that both jewels and the mythical sword which hasn’t been found yet need to be used to defeat the Nameless One once and for all. However, the jewel from the tomb is now bound to Ead and Chassar makes the point that the witch, The Lady of the Bower might know more about them and Ead offers to go south to speak with her. However, the Prioress won’t let her take the jewel in case it falls into the witch’s hands as she has been separated from the orange tree for a long time but she doesn’t feel right leaving it behind but has no choice. Ead’s main goal in going is to figure out whether the witch actually sent Sabran warnings in the form of her dreams but for now the story seems to moving more slowly that ever as we are constantly bouncing around the world keeping track of all the characters.
Ead is sent to speak with the witch, Kalyba but she has her own agenda in going there as well. She tells Kalyba that she is there to learn about magic and in return for a kiss Kalyba tells her of the two jewels and their powers. She also mentions the three tree, orange, hawthorn and mulberry whose fruits granted different powers. Upon returning she realises that she holds one of the mythical jewels but she needs to find the second and the sacred sword Ascalon if they are going to defeat the Nameless One who was created by an imbalance in the two types of magic. She wants to return to the south but the Prioress is sending her away on another mission that might last years and would take her in the opposite direction and she realises that the Prioress is only looking out for herself and no one else. She decides to leave the Priory with Loth and return to Sabran to defeat the Nameless One and the usperer Crest hopefully before it is too late. Before this she has to confront the Prioress in order to get the jewel back and they end up fighting for it where she learns that the Prioress murdered her mother, the previous Prioress because like Ead she wanted the Priory to help others. Ead is injured in the battle but they make their way towards Yscalin but the Red Damsels are hunting them down, by chance a wyverling happens to spot them and grabs the chance to attack allowing Loth and Ead to make it to relative safety but I have no idea what Ead’s plan is. Meanwhile we learn that Tane actually has the second jewel and it has been hidden inside her body for almost all of her life and with it she realises she has access to power that might be able to return her dragon to her and restore the honour she lost. I have a feeling that Sabran, Ead and Tane’s storyline are all going to collide very soon especially when the Nameless One actually awakens.
Ead and Loth manages to make it back to the Palace to find that Crest has indeed taken over everything, she has dismissed, imprisoned or killed anyone that stood against her and is currently holding Sabran hostage so that she might take the throne because Sabran can’t produce an heir. With her power restored, Loth, Meg and the loyal Knights at her side, Ead goes after her Queen and successfully manages to make it back to Sabran and convince her that she isn’t a dream but I have a feeling that this is only the beginning as we know from Tane that things are changing rapidly within the world meaning that the Nameless One is going to appear soon although I am hoping Kalyba makes another appearance because she was interesting. Together secrets are brought to light but the group of Meg, Sabran, Loth and Ead manage to dispel any civil war within the Queen’s court before rumours could spread among the people. Ead and Loth are immediately put to work as Loth is sent to interrogate not only Crest but Combe and the others to ensure their loyalty or guilt before judgement is passed on them. While Ead is going to travel to Loth’s home where they believe the sacred sword might be hidden as the jewel Ead carries calls to the sword and she can feel that it exists somewhere and I have a feeling she might be able to draw Tane to her if she gets her dragon back in time. I really liked how the relationship between Sabran and Ead developed especially in this part of the novel where they are truly seeing each other for the first time and still want each other. They have also realised that many within the court don’t care what Sabran does in her private time but I was a little disappointed that Loth hasn’t got a love interest at all yet considering that LGBT relationship are very common in this world, Sabran and Ead but also Jannart and Niclays are just some example featured within the novel but there is still time as we are still over 200 pages away from the conclusion of the novel.
Ead and Meg travel to her home and quickly learn that they were right and that her father does know the location of the Sacred Sword, Ascalon. However, Meg’s father has a form of dementia and they don’t get more than a riddle out of him before her mother comes to administer his medicine but it is a very promising start to the search. Upon writing down the riddle, Meg realises she knows exactly where the sword is and takes Ead there. Together they find it and realises that the Beck family have been keeping the sword hidden for centuries from Kalyba but when the leave the hiding spot they realise that Kalyba has followed Ead all the way from the Priory in the hopes that she would lead her to the sword which she has. Kalyba reveals herself to be not only the First Queen but also the White Wyrm and she is in league with the Nameless One for the sake of throne but in her dragon form she manages to take the sword from Ead. When they return to the Palace they relay this information to Sabran and they realise their only hope now is banding together with other nations while others search for the second stone which we know Tane has. Sabran agrees to make offer an alliance to the east in the hopes the dragon might aid them against the Nameless One but she refuses for the alliance to be a marriage as she doesn’t want to be with anyone except Ead. Everything seems to be going well and plans are being made when a Red Damsel strikes Ead down with poison, while she doesn’t die she does fall into a deep sleep that no one can wakes her from as they aren’t familiar with the poison used so it falls to Loth to travel to the East and make the alliance for the sake of not only his Queendom but the rest of world. It is more crucial now that Tane and her stone are united with the one in Ead’s possession as that is the only chance they have of binding the Nameless One for another 1000 years without Ascalon to destroy it but I can’t wait to see what is going to happen in the final two parts.
Things start happening really quickly as Loth is trying to get to the see the Lord of the Twelve Lakes for get an alliance but their ship ends up docking at Feather Island during a storm when Tane plans to steal the ship to go after The Golden Empress who took her dragon. Tane succeeds in this but not before Loth gets aboard the ship and he very quickly finds himself helping Tane retrieve her dragon because she has the second jewel and understands what needs to be done to bind the Nameless One but she won’t do it without her dragon. They manage to sneak aboard the ship but the dragon can’t break free of her chains without the key that the Golden Empress has and they go to get it. Meanwhile on the island, Niclays discovers the hawthorn tree is dead but a message was left behind telling the story of it which reveals on the first eater of its fruit gaining immortality and it holds no power now and that is when Tane arrives. Tane retrieves the key but doesn’t kill the Empress which leaves her free to kill Niclays as they lay the blame on him for hawthorn tree being dead despite all he could offer them but in death he will be reunited with Jannart. With her dragon now free Tane, Loth and Thim are heading the meet the Lord of the Twelve Lakes but the High Westerns are upon them and here Loth gets to witness the power of the Eastern dragons for the first time. With Tane and Loth together now they will be able to bring the two jewels together in order to bind the Nameless One again but what I want to happen is for someone to retrieve Ascalon and end the Nameless One once and for all.
The trio get to speak to the Emperor of the Twelve Lakes and surprisingly quickly he agrees to the alliance. However, he does state it is only to deal with the Nameless One and other negotiations can wait to see if they are all still alive after that. He also agrees to try and help Tane regain her position as a dragon rider because of the courage and determination she showed in retrieving her dragon at the risk to her own life. Loth and Thim give Tane the mission of retrieving the orange fruit for Ead as her dragon is the quickest way to get to Priory and Loth’s face is known there. Tane will also be heading to Sabran with messages after she retrieve the only hope of reviving Ead for her deep sleep. Together Tane and Ead will be able to bind the Nameless One and Tane sets off under the cover of darkness to prevent others from learning about her destination. Tane and her dragon are able to find the Priory but they are attacked in the process, the dragon is injured and cannot fly meaning that Tane must go on alone with the promise her dragon will return to her when she has healed. Tane followed the Red Damsels towards the Priory but is captured in the process and when she awakes her jewel has been taken from her. Tane requests to speak to Chassar and informs him of the situation but he does ultimately decided to help her, freeing her from her prison and telling her how to get to the tree as only it can decide whether or not it will give her the fruit she needs. Tane kneels before the tree and it does give her the fruit but at that very moment the Prioress and Kalyba face off and it ends with the Prioress dead. However, Tane is able to recover her jewel from the Prioress’ body and manages to escape Kalyba thanks to one of the Damsels with both the jewel and fruit. Tane somehow manages to make her way to the Queendom with everything she needs without her dragon and asks to be taken Sabran as she presents the ring Loth gave to her. We are now entering the final part of the novel and I am looking forward to the face off between the united armies and the Nameless One. I am hoping that Ascalon makes another appearance but I am not holding out hope on that front as well have less than 100 pages left and I am anxious to see how Shannon ties everything up.
As the final battle draws near, Tane and Ead have been practising using their jewels together ready for the battle with the Nameless One especially since Tane has also consumed the fruit of the orange tree now giving her siden like Ead. However, Tane is concerned her dragon hasn’t arrived yet but that can wait as the other leaders side with Sabran and prepare once more for war. However, we learn the Niclays is still alive and Kalyba wants to use him in order to kill Ead and while he does go to the Palace he refuses to carry out the task because he has realised chasing immortality and the offer to resurrect his dead lover from Kalyba are false hopes and they would dishonour Jannart’s memory and he wants to be a better man for Truyde and so it falls to Sabran to tell him of Truyde demise and death. Despite this Niclays does give them so vital knowledge in the fact that the Nameless One has a weakness, when Cleolind fought the Nameless One she weaken one of the scales in his armour meaning that a killing blow might be dealt to him and both Tane and Ead have agreed if an opportunity presents itself for one of them to claim Ascalon then they must do it. On the eve of the battle Ead and Sabran realise that they both have duties to fulfil even after the Nameless One is bound or destroyed, Sabran to her Queendom and Ead to the Priory so they can’t sneak away together but they are going to find a way to make their relationship work no matter how hard it is.
The final battle and the aftermath were well written but the ending left me feeling really underwhelmed for several reasons. The first is that no one died even in this huge battle with an ancient evil all of the protagonist escaped virtually unharmed even Sabran who was in the middle of the battle with little combat experience which was completely unrealistic as I was expecting at least one of them to die even Niclays whose death is hinted at several times has a happy ending. The second is that everything seemed a little too easy and convenient in the final battle, Kalyba who apart from the Nameless One and the High Westerns is the most powerful enemy is ended with very little fanfare. The final reason was the book was so dense and so long, I am normally a fast reader I can comfortably read 600-700 words per minute and it took me two whole days of dedicated reading the push through Priory for what felt like very little payoff. In terms of writing and worldbuilding it was amazing for a stand alone high fantasy novel but there are so many series or books I have read that do what Shannon did 100x better so it only gets a 3.75 from me. It is still worth the read but overall it just wasn’t really for me.
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