Review

A magnificent, sweeping epic. Shannon has created a world rich in intricate mythology, beautifully realised and complex, and placed at its heart bold and vivid characters. Their journeys sweep the reader along, compelled by a thrilling plot of peril and warfare, but utterly captivated by the heartfelt relationships, the simmering romances, the betrayals, the loss and the love. Highly recommended for hiding away from the real world and losing yourself in this one instead -- Jennifer Saint, author of the Sunday Times-bestselling Ariadne

Like all the greats, Samantha Shannon has built a world . Miraculously pacy, given its thumping scale, this is another gorgeous, glittering epic ― DAILY MAIL

This magnificent Sapphic fantasy novel is going to sweep you off your feet

― Glamour

The engrossing new story promises to deliver more character-driven, emotionally complex adventure and intrigue

― Cosmopolitan

Samantha Shannon once again wows us as we dive back into her complex and beautiful world. This is one for the fantasy lovers and it won't disappoint ― Metro, Seven books to read in 2023

When I heard that Samantha Shannon's The Priory of the Orange Tree was getting a brand new prequel, I immediately bumped it higher up on my TBR list ― Cosmopolitan, Best Books of 2023

In this stunning epic fantasy, lush with detail and nuance, Shannon weaves a tale of three powerful women that intersect in the most thrilling ways.Huge in scope, rich with emotion, and gorgeously queer, A Day of Fallen Night is the Roots of Chaos book fans have been waiting for. Shannon is simply a master of the genre -- C. S. Pacat, New York Times-bestselling author of Dark Rise

Intricate and epic ― Nerd Daily, The Most Anticipated 2023 Book Releases

An intricate epic, a lavishly glittering fantasy tapestry vividly depicting generations of compelling relationships and characters that feel legendary and human. A Day of Fallen Night both stands along and magnificent, and is a worthy successor -- SARAH REES BRENNAN, New York Times-bestselling author of The Demon's Lexicon trilogy

Like a dragon in flight, Samantha Shannon takes you soaring through a tale full of fire and spirit. It is in that freefall that I fell utterly in love with these new characters. The novel draws strength from the power of a woman's choice, giving the characters a depth of fortitude that is masterful in its craft and execution. Shannon lays bare the intricacies of the world she's created with sublime skill, enrapturing the reader with political intrigue and momentous action, cleaved through with heart and passion. Simply put, Samantha Shannon hasn't just done it again, she's surpassed all that has come before and cemented herself as a legend of the genre -- Saara El-Arifi, Sunday Times-bestselling author of The Final Strife

A Day of Fallen Night is a mythic and timeless meditation on grief, faith and the bonds of love and fealty that define us. An exquisite epic fantasy -- Tasha Suri, World Fantasy Award-winning author of The Jasmine Throne

The engrossing prequel to the bestselling The Priory of the Orange Tree delivers more character-driven, emotionally complex adventure and intrigue as the eruption of the Dreadmount brings three formidable women to the fore ― Waterstones, The fiction you need to read in 2023

Aching in its intimacy and undaunted in its chaos, never before has such terror presented itself so tenderly. A tremendous triumph. The Roots of Chaos series firmly plants Shannon as a master of the genre

-- London Shah, award-winning author of the Light the Abyss series

Epic in scope, yet careful and tender in its depiction of personal grief, A Day of Fallen Night shows the heights of courage and depths of hope that people can find during terrifying, destructive chaos. A triumph of a book -- Helen Corcoran, author of Queen of Coin and Whispers

Praise for The Priory of the Orange Tree: A tour de force, and my new absolute favourite epic fantasy

-- Laini Taylor, author of Strange the Dreamer

Sensual . Majestic . Blending politics with high adventure and the epic with the intimate, the narrative builds like a tidal wave before sweeping towards an awesome, climactic finale

― Daily Mail

I have been waiting my whole life for this fantasy. It's the kind of book you never want to end. Utterly unique, wild, and rich. Sheer perfection

-- Lisa Lueddecke, author of A Storm of Ice and Stars

Allow me to introduce your newest fantasy obsession . Remarkably fresh and frankly fearless . Works so well as an intricately realised and feminist fantasy that one might even be tempted to dub Samantha Shannon 'The female George R.R. Martin' . As with the best of fantasy, The Priory of the Orange Tree feels less like a book than it does an experience, a true sojourn into a rich and terrible new world

― Hypable

The new Game of Thrones. Escapism at its finest - Shannon, we salute you

― Stylist.co.uk

A magnificent epic . Crammed with subversion and feminism, and written with tough, poetic assurance

― Metro

The Priory of the Orange Tree is a brilliant, daring, and devastating jewel. Samantha Shannon has crafted an incredible world full of depth and danger, with characters I would follow to the ends of the earth. It was a privilege to read, and I'm in awe of her talent. I can't wait for the rest of the world to experience this book

-- Victoria Aveyard, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Red Queen series

A masterpiece of intricate world-building with the depth, complexity, heart and soul of a timelessly relevant classic. Brilliant, diverse, feminist, subversive, thought-provoking and masterfully told, The Priory of the Orange Tree is epic fantasy at its finest. The scope of the book is staggering, as is Shannon's deft command of language ... An absolute must-read

-- Karen Marie Moning, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Highlander and Fever series

Nothing short of extraordinary. An audacious, ambitious, sprawling epic, set across a world like no other, The Priory of the Orange Tree takes everything you think you know about high fantasy, rips it apart and remakes it ... Nothing short of game-changing ... An absolute masterclass in story telling, from one of the most exciting and innovative fantasy writers alive today. With it, Samantha Shannon has set the bar stratospherically high. This is the book of 2019 -- Melinda Salisbury, author of The Sin-Eater’s Daughter

An epic fantasy destined to be a classic. A world crafted with such intricacy and detail, I had to remind myself it was not a real place. The Priory of the Orange Tree is one of those rare novels that captures your imagination so completely you will read it over and over, until the cover cracks and the spine breaks

-- Kami Garcia, #1 New York Times bestselling co-author of Beautiful Creatures and author of Unbreakable