The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

A cast of interesting and well-imagined characters stumble through poorly-written plot twists on their way to saving the world from “The Nameless One”.

“The House of Berethnet may protect us from the Nameless One, or it may not. There is no proof either way. … That is the problem with stories, child. The truth in them cannot be weighed.” pg 109

I started out enjoying The Priory of the Orange Tree. The way the story builds is engaging and moves along at a fast clip.

My main quibble with this fantasy book is Samantha Shannon takes more than 800 pages to create her world with its countries, religions, magic systems, but then resolved major plot points in two to three sentences or less in some cases.

We learn about items that have been missing for a millennia and I thought, oh this is going to be interesting to figure out. But then, two pages later, through a series of ludicrous coincidences, two of the main characters have one of the items in their hands.

In one of the major confrontations of the book, Shannon doesn’t even write dialogue and played it out through the eyes of a character who had no idea what was going on. I wouldn’t have been so put off by it if she hadn’t spent literally hundreds of pages getting us to that point. That particular villain may not have been the focus of the tale, but I think she at least deserved a final monologue.

When traveling from place to place, there aren’t tantalizing descriptions of the trip. Basically, the character gets in the conveyance and, boom, they’re at the destination. Shannon used more descriptive words when she talked about the food characters were eating than she did when her characters were moving from here-to-there.

The exception to this rule were her descriptions of “the Abyss”. The way she depicted the stars shining down from above and out of the depths was beautiful.

Complaints aside, there were plenty of things I liked about the book. I enjoyed the way Shannon took real life alchemical principles and wove them into something otherworldly for her story.

“What is below must be balanced by what is above, and in this is the precision of the universe. Fire ascends from the earth, light descends from the sky. Too much of one doth inflame the other, and in this is the extinction of the universe.” pg 150

I also liked the secret order whose name graces the front cover of the book. The different cultures Shannon created were a treat a learn about. I thought her characters were, for the most part, quite relatable.

“So you see, Ead,” the queen said, “I do not sleep because I’m not only afraid of the monsters at my door, but also of the monsters my own mind can conjure. The ones that live within.” pg 203

The characters were diverse and, as I mentioned, well-written. A couple times in the story, particularly in the portions about the Abyss, I felt Shannon’s writing was elevated to something like prose.

“Love and fear do strange things to our souls. The dreams they bring, those dreams that leave us drenched in salt water and grasping for breath as if we might die – those, we call unquiet dreams. And only the scent of a rose can avert them.” pg 416

I think this story could have been extraordinary if Shannon hadn’t been trying to fit so much into one volume. A trilogy with lingering descriptions of landscapes and nail-biting conclusions to the various story arcs would have been much more enjoyable.

Thanks for reading!

Cairo by G. Willow Wilson

Cairo is an urban fantasy graphic novel set against the backdrop of the desert city of the same name. It has magical creatures, confused young men, drug dealers, magicians, Israeli soldiers and more.

Everyone in this story is looking for something. If it’s not a magical hookah, it is a search for love, truth, their higher self or more power. I suppose the entire story could be used as a reminder that “wherever you go, there you are”.

“I wanted to do something. Get away from self-obsessed first world crap. I felt like the monoculture was suffocating me. I didn’t want to get stuck where I was. You know that feeling?” “I know it. But I do not think you’ll find what you are looking for in Cairo.” “Why’s that?” “Because a lot of us are stuck here.”

I was drawn to this graphic novel because of the teasers that promised mythology mixed with fantasy. It does contain that, but everything felt so rushed. Readers didn’t get the context of any of it. We’re just thrust into a world that doesn’t make much sense and spend much of the story grasping at straws of understanding.

In a way, it is much like real life. However, I prefer my graphic novels to be more of an exercise in escapism than a mirror for real life.

Give me layered worlds, complex story lines, nuanced characters and deep-seated meaning. I felt Cairo reaching for those things, but not quite getting there.

We do have quite a number of main characters, which, by its nature, makes the story more complex. But, in this case, I felt that more was not better because all of the characters felt so one-note.

The exception to this classification was Shams, the jinn. We get glimpses into his millennias-long life, relationships to other storied characters, guardianship of a sacred object and spiritual leanings. Even then, I wanted more.

“Welcome to your new home, oh jinn. We’ll talk again when you are more reasonable. Take all the time you need.”

The illustrations are done in black and white, and feel rather gritty. I imagine the whole thing could have taken on a completely different character with a couple good punches of color.

My favorite part was when one of the main characters reaches for a hero’s sword in a test of faith. G. Willow Wilson, the author, uses a poem by Hafiz to put words in the hero’s mouth as he strives to touch another reality and lay claim to the magical blade.

“The place where I am right now… was circled on a map for me.”

Though the translation Wilson used varies from the version I am familiar with, which reads: “This place where you are now, God circled on a map for you.”

Still, it is a beautiful sentiment. Rather like the intention, if not execution, of this graphic novel.

Thanks for reading.

Estranged (Estranged, #1) by Ethan M. Aldridge

A cute graphic novel for middle graders that features a changeling, his human counterpart, their human sister and a golem made out of wax.

“There hasn’t been a human in High Court in a century. That makes you special, doesn’t it?” “Oh, they never let me forget that. It’s always ‘the human childe’.”

But trouble brews when a disgruntled elf turns the king and queen of the High Court into rodents. Then, she goes after the “Childe”. In response, he seeks out his changeling twin in the world above or the real world. And that is where our adventure begins.

“The only home I’ve ever had has been taken! This was meant to be my home, my life, and it was taken before I was old enough to remember it!” “I’ve got nothing, nowhere to go! I have as much right to be here as you!”

Along the way, they have to face goblins, magic statues, a witch and a treasure-hungry dragon. The plot is a bit simplistic but it is perfect for children who like fantasy and urban fantasy.

In fact, I picked this book up at the local game shop for my daughter and she read it in one sitting, which is a miracle because she’s a reluctant reader. I’m always looking for stories or formats that appeal to someone who enjoys video games more than books.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com

She absolutely loved it and said I HAD to read it. I asked why and she said, “Because it’s just awesome.” She loved the magic and world Ethan Aldridge has created. She also loved the artwork. Her favorite character, and mine, was Whick, the brave wax golem who accompanies the Human Childe from the court below to the world above and back.

The story also touches on the sometimes difficult relationship between a brother and sister. There’s a good message about taking care of your family that I resonated with.

In conclusion, I loved that my Human Childe loved it. Highly recommended.

Thanks for reading!

The Wrenchies by Farel Dalrymple

A gorgeously-drawn graphic novel that suffers from a bonkers plot and scrambled timeline.

I’ll try to give a brief summary here, but understand that this is gleaned from every part of the book — beginning, middle, end. Farel Dalrymple doesn’t present the story in a linear fashion, which is incredibly frustrating.

A boy and his brother enter a cave and are attacked by a demon-like creature called a shadowman. During the course of the attack, the demon messes with the first boy’s eyes and something radically shifts in his brain/destiny. After his brother saves him, the boy’s eyes are drawn to a medallion in the demon’s cave through which he sees/astral travels into a different dimension where he can view aspects of the future.

This future is an apocalyptic world filled with these shadowmen and children who fight against them. All grownups in the world have become shadowmen. When a child reaches a certain age, they are “harvested” by the demons and become part of the problem. Something powerful and magical is fueling these shadowmen, but discovering and disabling that artifact is the large story arc so I won’t spoil it for you here.

Meanwhile, the boy-with-the-demon-altered-eyes is (I kid you not) kidnapped by aliens while his brother goes on to fight the shadowmen in the real world. Then there’s some character development about the children/warriors in the apocalyptic world, the involvement of a child from our time, a blind child who uses technology in a way that borders on magic, another child who actually uses magic… And, at one point, I think the author tries to add the difficulty he had writing the comic into the comic itself.

I think that’s enough of a summary. Don’t you?

This isn’t a fairy tale story for teens though it seems to reach for a coming-of-age feel. The children use drugs to protect themselves from the mind-altering powers of the shadowmen and are constantly fighting bugs that pop out of the shadowmens’ heads after they kill them. It is a paranoid schizophrenic’s nightmare.

The Wrenches is violent and disturbing, rather like Peter Pan on acid with demons instead of pirates. And not in a good way.

I suppose if you just looked at the artwork and didn’t read it, you might enjoy this graphic novel. Honestly, the panels are stunning. Shame about the story tho.

Thanks for reading!

High Magick: A Guide to the Spiritual Practices That Saved My Life on Death Row by Damien Echols

“Magick was out there in the world, and I could learn and practice it! That realization was like a bomb going off inside me. From that moment on, I pursued magick as if my life depended on it (and, in fact, later it did).” pg 11, ebook.

Damien Echols has penned a part-memoir/part-magic primer and, I believe, established himself as a new major voice in the Western Golden Dawn tradition. Many are familiar with Echols’ life. He was sentenced to die for a crime he didn’t commit. In High Magick, Echols shares the meditations and practices he used to keep his sanity and advance his spiritual development while behind bars.

Photo by RODNAE Productions on Pexels.com

It is a powerful book, not just because it is written in simple language and easy to understand, but because Echols is living proof that these techniques worked for him.

“Magick was the only thing in prison that gave my life purpose and kept me sane. Magick was the only thing I had to protect myself with. And that’s what this book is about — the practices that kept me alive for nearly two decades on death row.” pg 12

He shares some of the most basic practices like the Middle Pillar and Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram and, beyond the simple instructions of it, he gives the theory behind them. That’s helpful. Most of these kinds of books I’ve read don’t bother to go into the why’s. They’re too obsessed with the “how”.

“Every person on this earth is born with an entire universe of potential in them. Most people never cultivate the seeds of that potential, so the seeds go to waste and the people go through life wondering what went wrong, or blaming the world for everything that did go wrong. Magick waters those seeds to make that potential stir, grow, and flower.” pg 16, ebook.

Echols avoids most “loaded” terms with an eye on appealing to every manner of reader. For example, he uses the term “energy” to describe the force behind the rituals he’s describing. I’ve heard it called many things and that particular word is a good one, I think.

He makes no unfounded promises. He simply offers a way to experience something that worked for him.

“Magick is both an art and a science. Some techniques are known for providing specific effects, but results vary, as they say.” pg 21, ebook.

An interesting side story: One of the librarians at my local library said “these types of books” (spiritual, nature-based, or “magic”) have been in high demand lately. She said there’s something of a renaissance going on in those who come to the library. They’re looking for something. It’s unique to each person, but she said libraries are purchasing more and more of this type of book in an effort to fill that need.

“My grandfather used to say, “There’s more than one way to skin a cat.” I think most of you are familiar with the phrase, or at least an axiom with a similar message. It’s a curious way to remind ourselves that there’s more than one path to a particular destination…” pg 112, ebook

If you’re a reader looking for “this type of book”, I hope you find the right fit for you. Echols’ book should appeal to those looking for an introduction to the western occult tradition or simply the curious.

Thanks for reading!

Daughters of the Storm (Blood and Gold, #1) by Kim Wilkins

Something is wrong with the king. His five daughters rush home from various parts of the world to try to figure out what is going on. No one likes a power vacuum.

Meanwhile, there’s problems in the marriage of one of the sisters, whose alliance with the kingdom next door helps keep war to a minimum. Also, there’s raiders who have a mysterious crow-shaped tattoo accosting people on the roads. So, there’s a lot going on.

And that doesn’t even take into account everything that is happening to the twins, the sister whose magic is awakening and the eldest, who stands to inherit the throne if her father dies.

“Bluebell wasn’t a child. She knew one day her father would die and she would take his place. She had prepared her whole life for the moment, but it had always been abstract, like a story.” pgs 17-18 ebook

The number of characters in this book may seem daunting at first, but Kim Wilkins introduces them slowly. It makes it easy to keep track of who is who.

“Her father was dying — and her father was the king of Almissia, the largest and most powerful kingdom in Thyrsland. And when he was dead… Well, what would they say? They could not caution her if she was grieving. A counselor’s first law was that compassion comes before all else.” pg 34, ebook.

That being said, the characters are rather flat. As for the sisters, we have the violent one, amorous one, magical one, religious one and promiscuous one. The “bad guys” feel rather the same too — fixated on achieving their goals at any cost, killing indiscriminately. There is very little gray area or layered meaning in this tale. (With one notable exception, but no spoilers!)

Photo by Dan Galvani Sommavilla on Pexels.com

“Now everything had been twisted out of shape, the threads of his destiny balled in a hopeless knot. It would be a measure of the kind of man he was if he could smooth things out, take charge of his future, shape the world to his will.” pg 191

Despite the simplistic characters, I would not classify this read as young adult. There’s some violent and sexual situations that younger readers may find confusing. Also, one of the characters, when she can’t think of anything else to say, just uses the f-word, which was disappointing. There are so many different ways to express frustration…

Honestly, I wanted more action in this story and better dialogue. I wanted more magic and less brooding angst. I wanted the sisters to band together and rage across the land like avenging Valkyries. I guess we don’t always get what we want.

“Rose was silent, sulking. Bluebell responded by pretending she didn’t notice. Ash lost herself in thoughts about her power, her Becoming, and how she was to try to make a future for herself.” pg 203

The description of Daughters of the Storm says this book is “Norse-like” but I felt like it was more generic fantasy. I think the author was leaning towards a tale of warriors and gods, but we never quite got there. It was more of a promise unfulfilled.

For what it is though, it is engaging. Readers who like fantasy, large casts of characters and broad story lines may enjoy this book. As an added bonus, the second entry in the series, Sisters of the Fire came out this month, so you don’t have to wait to read what happens next.

Thanks for reading!

Small Favor (The Dresden Files, #10) by Jim Butcher

When Mab, the Winter Queen, comes to cash in on one of the favors Harry owes her, things go from bad to worse. And snow won’t stop falling on Chicago. Could the two possibly be related?

Instinct told me that reason had disappointed me more than once, and that it wasn’t thinking in the long term anyway. Over the years, my instincts and I have gotten cozy. pg 57, ebook.

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Memorable characters from the previous entries in The Dresden Files make a reappearance in this, the tenth book in the series. We get to enjoy the company of Toot-Toot (the pizza-loving pixie), “gentleman” Johnny Marcone and Mab, among others.

Our instincts were a long time in the making, though, and the threats that can come after us now have outpaced them. You can’t outrun a bullet, and you don’t go hand-to-hand with a gunman unless you’re certain you are about to die anyway. pg 79, ebook.

There’s also a major villain from Harry’s past, but I won’t go into details and spoil it for you.

At one time in my life, a shapeshifted, demonically possessed maniac crashing through a window and trying to rip my face off would have come as an enormous and nasty surprise. But that time was pretty much in the past. pg 143, ebook.

I have read a few reviews in which some readers believe The Dresden Files is ridiculous because Jim Butcher puts Harry into situations that he couldn’t possibly survive. But I beg to differ. As the stakes and bad guys increase, so do Harry’s friends and allies. Yes, perhaps the wizard from book one would have been crushed by the baddie in book ten, but they’re both at different places now.

Dare I say it… Harry has “learned” things? Through his nearly constant trials and tribulations, he’s become a stronger magic user, more adept and emphatic? But no, that may be going a bit too far.

The prime rule of combat wizardry is simple too: Be prepared. pg 143, ebook.

At least he’s nailed down his wardrobe game…

Going forth to do battle with the forces of darkness is one thing. Doing it in a pair of borrowed sweatpants and an ill-fitting T-shirt is something else entirely. pg 427, ebook.

One final thought, in the other books in this series, I felt like things were getting worse and worse for our intrepid hero. But, as readers discover in this entry, there may be a silver lining on all those clouds after all.

And all I have to say about that is: it’s about time!

I’ve been adding reviews as I’ve worked my way through this series. You can view the others here:

Storm Front (The Dresden Files, #1) by Jim Butcher

Fool Moon (The Dresden Files #2) by Jim Butcher

Grave Peril (The Dresden Files, #3) by Jim Butcher

Summer Knight (The Dresden Files #4) by Jim Butcher

Death Masks (The Dresden Files, #5) by Jim Butcher

Blood Rites (The Dresden Files, #6) by Jim Butcher

Dead Beat (The Dresden Files #7) by Jim Butcher

Proven Guilty (The Dresden Files, #8) by Jim Butcher

White Night (The Dresden Files, #9) by Jim Butcher

And thanks for reading!

White Night (The Dresden Files, #9) by Jim Butcher

Someone is killing people in Chicago and leaving clues that only a person with magical ability, like a wizard named Harry Dresden, could see. Why would they do that?

Meanwhile, most everything else in Harry’s life is going spectacularly wrong. He has an unruly apprentice who had an unfortunate brush with dark magic awhile back. The White Council is still at war with the Red Vampire Court which was Harry’s fault to begin with, but we don’t need to go into all that.

He’s still got a fallen angel’s shadow in his head, trying to convince him to wield a coin that will give Harry unimaginable power but also consume his soul. Thomas, the vampire, has been acting really weird and he’s probably eating people again which, vampires do, but it’s kind of a problem because Harry is supposed to be protecting people.

And now this, a serial killer. Perfect.

The Dresden Files, as a series, is really starting to come together. I like how Jim Butcher starts to layer the books on top of each other, each plot line leading to more complications and depth.

Normally, Wardens existed to police wizards, to make sure that they didn’t use their power against the rest of humanity in violation of the Laws of Magic. Things weren’t normal.” pg 59, ebook.

Harry has to juggle the politics between the wizards, the vampires, humanity, the faeries… and also keep his sanity when someone from his past shows up and he has to rehash some old wounds.

Real fright isn’t like the movies. Real fear is an ugly, quiet, relentless thing. It’s a kind of pain, and I hated seeing it…” pg 129, ebook

And we can’t forget Bob the Skull, one of my favorite characters. He seems to always get a few good lines in, no matter how busy the plot is.

“What’s up, boss?” “Evil’s afoot.” “Well, sure,” Bob said, “because it refuses to learn the metric system. Otherwise it’d be up to a meter by now.” pg 154, ebook.

Though I had some difficulties with the way Harry behaved in the latter part of the last book, I feel like he’s more of the flawed character I’ve come to know in this entry. Yes, he still makes mistakes sometimes and can be an idiot, but it makes more sense. There are circumstances beyond his control that are acting on his mind in ways he may not be aware of yet. But he’s learning about that, and his friends won’t let him get too out of hand.

Or, at least, they’ll all go down together… probably spectacularly and in flames. Highly recommended for urban fantasy readers.

Here are more reviews I’ve written for this series:

Storm Front (The Dresden Files, #1) by Jim Butcher

Fool Moon (The Dresden Files #2) by Jim Butcher

Grave Peril (The Dresden Files, #3) by Jim Butcher

Summer Knight (The Dresden Files #4) by Jim Butcher

Death Masks (The Dresden Files, #5) by Jim Butcher

Blood Rites (The Dresden Files, #6) by Jim Butcher

Dead Beat (The Dresden Files #7) by Jim Butcher

Proven Guilty (The Dresden Files, #8) by Jim Butcher

And thanks for reading!

A Conjuring of Light (Shades of Magic #3) by V.E. Schwab

V.E. Schwab concludes her multi-world, dimension-traveling fantasy trilogy in A Conjuring of Light. And you know what, I liked it the best of the three.

He’d stood, half dead, before the onyx throne, and spoken to the king carved in stone, and traded freedom for a chance to save his London, to see it bloom again.” pg 10, ebook.

I thought this plot flowed more smoothly, without the detours to introduce readers to new characters. We understood the magic, the dangers, the relationships between everyone. This was Schwab’s chance to just write a good story. I feel that she succeeded.

“Lila thought it would be easy or, at least, simple. Something you either survived, or did not. She was wrong.” pg 9, ebook.

He may not be everybody’s choice, but Holland was my favorite character in these books. Talk about born under an unlucky star… his world is dying, most of his life he spends under the compulsion of the Danes, and yet, he hasn’t been driven completely insane by the unfairness of all of it. And, unlike some characters I can mention (cough, Lila), he doesn’t kill without a reason.

I could not believe how many times Lila murdered people. And she was supposed to be one of the “good” characters. More like a loose canon. I never liked her much. Consider this Lila soliloquy:

“Because the shadows can’t touch me, and the fallen won’t. Because I’m good with magic, and better with a blade, and I’ve got more power in my blood than you’ve got in this whole damned palace. Because I’ve no qualms about killing, and on top of it all, I’ve got a knack for keeping your sons — both of them — alive.” pg 175

“No qualms about killing” isn’t a positive attribute in my book.

Kell still comes off as a bit one dimensional because of his god-like magical powers. But his motivations made more sense to me in this book than in previous ones.

“The flame hovered in the air between Kell’s hands, brilliant and white. He made it look so easy, and Rhy felt a flash of anger toward his brother, hot as a spark — but just as brief. It wasn’t Kell’s fault Rhy couldn’t do magic.” pg 21, ebook.

Rhy, on the other hand, makes a few decisions I couldn’t wrap my head around. I suppose you could put it down to rampaging emotions, but, in a crisis, he rarely seems to choose the right path.

Everything in Kell tightened at that. “I was out there trying to protect your people.” “And for every one you shielded, a dozen more were taken by the dark.” pg 82

Recommended for young adults. You may be able to read this book and understand it without slogging through the other two, but I think you’ll get more enjoyment out of it by taking the entire journey with the characters.

Here are my reviews of the other books in the series:

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

A Gathering of Shadows (Shades of Magic, #2) by V.E. Schwab

And thanks for reading!

The Help Desk Book Blog

Sharing reviews and deep thoughts about life.

Tag: magic

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

Cairo by G. Willow Wilson

Estranged (Estranged, #1) by Ethan M. Aldridge

The Wrenchies by Farel Dalrymple

High Magick: A Guide to the Spiritual Practices That Saved My Life on Death Row by Damien Echols

Daughters of the Storm (Blood and Gold, #1) by Kim Wilkins

Small Favor (The Dresden Files, #10) by Jim Butcher

White Night (The Dresden Files, #9) by Jim Butcher

A Conjuring of Light (Shades of Magic #3) by V.E. Schwab

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