An extract that did exactly what it was meant to do: leave me desperate to find out more about this world. Seems to be a great start to a fantastic story.

Um. Okay. I need more. This extract has me HYPED. I was pleasantly surprised at the length of the extract and am grateful to the publishers for the opportunity to read it. Can't wait to check it out in full on release.

I need this book NOW. The writing is perfection and the characters already seem alive and fully fleshed out. I just know, after reading Bone Season, that Samantha Shannon is going to take us on a HELL of a ride.

An absolutely stunning world building. I will be looking forward to Tane's character. The story has been described as high fantasy with feminism as a core theme and the excerpt gives us a glimpse of strong feminine characters. Can't wait for all of it to come together.

Oh gosh, this was amazing. I need the full books ASAP -- how can I wait til Feb?

This extract gives us a very small look into a book that I have no doubt will be amazing.

First, let's look at that stunning book cover! The colours, the dragon?? So beautiful, good job to that very talented book cover designer.

Second, this excerpt was so much fun. We get a glimpse into the beginning of the book and already I am in love with Ead and Tane. Ead is a magic-user who is secretly protecting Queen Sabran with magic as assassins are getting closer and closer to her.

Samantha Shannon's writing is phenomenal I was drawn deep into this fascinating world, especially at the first mention of a dragon. I can't wait until I have the book in my hands to learn more about this world.

This was great and I cannot wait to finish the story. It took a little bit to get into the book, but I was captivated by the end of the except. I will say there are a lot of characters and trying to keep track of everyone's allegiance took effort.

I am very interested in the full text of this book. The extract was enough to keep me wondering, but not enough to make me go out and NEED to finish the book immediately. I will definitely be picking this book up at some point but it might be a library or used copy down the road.

This extract was a wild ride and I loved it. There is so much world-building, so many hints about what's to come, I just want to have the book in my hands.

If you love strong women and dragons (sentient dragons, no less), you'll love this. The jacket summary makes the plot sound easy to understand, but it is very complex.
Here's a quick breakdown. There are two main characters: Tane and Ead, but the story is told from many points of view. This world is divided into the East, where Tane lives, and the West, also known as Virtuedom, where Ead lives. The East has dragon riders and the West believes dragons are evil. Tane is hoping to become a dragonrider and Ead is a handmaiden to the Queen of Virtuedom, but Ead is an outsider with a SECRET.

The extracts jumps into the middle of the story (or so it seems) and there's so much information to take in, that it took me a while to fully grasp everything (one, where) that I was reading. I still don't fully understand (because it was only an extract), but there were a few instances of explaining in the novel, so I am confident that the entire book will have information secreted away in it like bits of candy. Better yet, the book is massive, so we can be assured of a wonderful, wild ride of a story with powerful women in an intricate world (aka the best thing ever).
And yes, the title has meaning! What meaning, I can't exactly say, but there were some mentions of a Priory and an orange tree!

I hope the finished copy comes with a map, because I need one to keep track of every place.

My only complaint is that I heard there would be LGBT romance (and the description makes it sound so), but I haven't seen any in this extract. More to come, hopefully!

After reading this early extract, I am so hyped for this book! I'm interested how the story continues! Let's hope I can find a copy in Belgium soon when it comes out!

Can february come sooner?

I've been seeing this book around for months now, authors getting ARCS and commenting, and it really got me curious, I mean Jay Kristoff? Our lovely droog writer of Nevernight and Illuminae and LifeL1k3 mentioning a book? It's got to call your attention.

So already, my expectations where up high, but now after the extract?! I got to have the finished product on my hands and on my bookshelves!

Samantha Shannon's writing? Marvelous!
The plot? From what we can read in this extracts. Beautiful!
My heart? Stolen.

I cannot wait for 26 feb to get myself this amazing book!

This excerpt was exactly the right amount of pages to make me groan in disappointment when I got to the end. I can't wait to read the whole thing!

This books is so full of amazing female MC's I can't begin to gush enough. Tane and Ead and Sabran are all so different but all so equally interesting. They're not all 100% loveable and flawless, but they all have a story to tell and I want to hear it in the worst way.

The world building in just this fist 100 pages was so intense. There's A LOT of information to take in about the different cultures and everyone's history. I imagine it'll be made easier when there's an actual map in front of you. Shannon manages to weave together a picture of political discourse and turmoil in a completely new world that definitely has me on edge for the full book.

I know everyone has been talking about the dragons but you guys...DRAGONS. Truly an epic fantasy. Can't wait for the full book!

Simply wonderful. Have pre-ordered the book based on the strength of this excerpt. Well written, fascinating characters, a vivid and exciting world and dragons. DRAGONS.

D-R-A-G-O-N-S

I really feel like this book will become a classic.

Now this is how you do fantasy! Shannon has masterfully crafted a fantasy landscape that is both easy to understand yet wonderfully intriguing.

Please note, this review is from the exclusive extract not the full book.
Two strong and powerful female characters, Ead and Tane, lead the way in this divided tale of dragons and magical history. Ead and Tane are the main two characters but it is truly great to see a whole host of other female characters being utilised and showing the true breadth of female characterisation that is not as commonly seen in fantasy.

It has to be said, Shannon knows how to world build. From the very first few pages you are drawn in to the East / West divisions and the vastly different environments they encompass. This only builds further as the book goes on an you learn more about additional locations and histories – I would bet that it continues throughout the rest of the book also.

5/5 – cannot wait to get my hands on the final version of this and see what happens next!

As always, many thanks to Netgalley and Bloomsbury for the early extract.

I have only read the extract, but WOW!!! Fans of Brandon Sanderson, this is for you! This is going to be one of those books where the lore, and world building seeps into your very bones. I am very excited to read the entire book!! Thank you for the opportunity Netgalley/Publisher!

Amazing. Amazing. Amazing. I cannot wait for the whole book to be released and have my hands on it.
So far the book is really interesting and is building up a very promising storyline, I cannot wait to read more of.

I absolutely loved this extract and cannot wait until I have the book in my hands!!! The writing is absolutely magical, and anything with dragons is a massive bonus!

Absolutely brilliant excerpt. I won't go into details since this is only a few chapters, but Samantha Shannon's prose, worldbuilding is spectacular. She has such a firm grip on her characters. This is one you're going to want to curl up with and enjoy.

Now as this is only a preview of the book, it's not going to be a proper review. Which is why I am only giving it a four stars, which is based on the pages I have read so far.

Granted this was a big excerpt but remember the book is 800+ pages long. From what I have read. This is definitely going to be an epic fantasy novel. As does start out slow and I find with these kind of beginnings you need time to set up the world you are trying to build. With that being said it's not slow as in boring I had to set it down. It's slow as there is a lot going on. It's the kind of beginnings you know that its going to be good book.(hopefully).


Overall this looks like a promising epic fantasy. Cannot wait to get a full page copy.

Fantastic high fantasy, with a rich, complex world and compelling characters. I love the hierarchical intricacies of the court, the promise of the water trials to become a dragon rider, and the intrigue and diplomacy between the Queendom of Knight worshippers and the islands of dragon worshippers.

Wow this was such a ride!

If you’re at all involved it the bookish community, you will most probably have heard of The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon, coming out February 2019. Therefore, I was so excited to read an early excerpt, which in turn got me so thrilled to read the entire book when it comes out! I hadn’t even read any of Samantha Shannon’s other books pertaining to The Bone Season, but I think I might just have to change that after reading this!

So let’s see what The Priory of the Orange Tree is about:
“A world Divided.
A Queendom without an heir.
An ancient enemy awakens.”

I mean is that blurb not enough to get you excited? I personally prefer knowing as little as possible before diving into a book, as I think it can maximize the enjoyment and elevate the reading experience. If the promise of dragons, fierce and formidable women, LGBT+ representation and the stunning cover appeal to you, you should definitely read this book!

For anyone who wants to know a bit more before picking up a book, this is from the publisher:
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 to be a dragonrider since she was a child, 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.

This is a high fantasy standalone novel that does not play around. The world building is immense and never-ending, but it managed to grab my attention and keep me immersed in this world. I believe the finished version will come with a map and a glossary, which will definitely enhance the understanding of Shannon’s fantasy world. It is written in third person and has multiple points of view, but it was relatively easy to follow. In the beginning of some chapters I was not sure whose perspective I was reading from, but this ended up in building the suspense, as it became clearer soon enough. I was very impressed with the balance between dialogue and inner monologues or descriptions, which resulted in me flying through the pages and in all honesty, a book of this magnitude (800 pages or so) has to weave all those elements together for it to be approachable as far as I’m concerned. I’m still not sure how, but in those first 100 pages I met quite a large cast of characters that I came to care about.

I just don’t have the words to express how much I want to read the entire novel. Please do yourselves a favour and go pre-order this beauty! For fans of Six of Crows, Game of Thrones, The Hobbit, The Last Namsara, How To Train Your Dragon.

*A huge thank you to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for an early excerpt in exchange for an honest review!