Tunuva Melim is a sister of the Priory. For fifty years, she has trained to slay wyrms – but none have appeared since the Nameless One, and the younger generation is starting to question the Priory's purpose. To the north, in the Queendom of Inys, Sabran the Ambitious has married the new King of Hróth, narrowly saving both realms from ruin. Their daughter, Glorian, trails in their shadow – exactly where she wants to be. The dragons of the East have slept for centuries. Dumai has spent her life in a Seiikinese mountain temple, trying to wake the gods from their long slumber. Now someone from her mother's past is coming to upend her fate.
When the Dreadmount erupts, bringing with it an age of terror and violence, these women must find the strength to protect humankind from a devastating threat.
"A queen should learn the ways of watching". Samantha Shannon's A Day of Fallen Night is the long-awaited new book in the Roots of Chaos series, set roughly 500 years before The Priory of the Orange Tree. It's a sweeping epic, larger in scope than its predecessor, much more compelling and richer; but it wouldn't have been so without the first one to pave the way, to set the stage. To an extent we already know the world, and thus Shannon wastes no time introducing us to it, merely painting with deft strokes this older iteration of what we already know, and giving us enough to get our bearings.
It's a prequel, then, but not quite; the story is contained, giving us a sense of the endless cycles that balance the world. We learn a bit more of the mechanisms in place, while following along with the stories of new, intriguing characters. The four protagonists have each of them compelling stories that slowly come together, revealing new depths and interesting connections. The Priory gets explored more, the monarchy of Inys gets explored more - and its terrible price thoroughly explored! - the East is better developed than in the first novel, and we learn more about the northern region. Slowly, Shannon is widening the scope of the world, enriching it. A perfect touch is the changes in spelling from what we already know, showing that language changes over time.
The crown jewel of this novel are the relationships between the characters: filial, maternal, platonic or romantic; friendships that overcome everything. There's betrayal, and grief, but also triumph and joy in the face of adversity. There's a beautiful, sweet wlw romance between older characters that is a balm for the soul, and another with younger characters that develops slowly, naturally. There are raw moments of unrequited love that tear at one's heart, and there's even a sweet brief inkling of a mlm romance. Every character has their role to play, be they small or big. Every moment has importance, even those quiet moments of grief.
The only downside is that, this being a prequel, we know or suspect how many subplots might resolve. But Shannon plays with that expectation, constructing a novel that works even despite that small downside. There's also a part, towards the final quarter, that felt a bit rushed to me; but despite that, it's still a solid fantasy novel, an incredible epic with many things to say about motherhood and love and religion, and the choices we make.
A Day of Fallen Night is even better than the first book.
✨ 4.5 stars
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