*I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks for the free book*

I really loved getting back into the Priory of the Orange Tree universe. Quite the compelling sequel which only suffers from a rushed ending which makes things feel unresolved. Yes, I know it's a sequel but some more closure before a huge jump to the next book would have been nice. Dragons, yay!

Full disclosure - it's been so long since I read Priory that I forgot pretty much all of the plot, so I definitely had no chance of remembering what happened to any of characters in this prequel whose names I vaguely recalled from mentions in Priory of the Orange Tree.

That said, I kind of think that was all to the good! Not knowing the fate of the characters gave me some suspense and a sense of high stakes that may have been missing otherwise. So for that reason, I think it would be a great starting off point for the Roots of Chaos series - especially for people who have an interest in starting but aren't fully committed to reading an 850 page book first! This one is a much more portable ~300 pages, and opens on the Kingdom of Yscalin two years before the start of Priory of the Orange Tree. At about the halfway point, the timeline of AtBF begins to overlap with the start of PotOT, but from a different perspective that remained a mystery in the latter novel.

The focus here is much smaller in scale, with a smaller cast of characters and based mostly in Yscalin. There are three POV characters: Marosa Vetalda, whose POV threads through the whole story, Estina Melaugo in the first half, and Aubrecht in the second half.

I did find the drop-off of Melaugo's POV to be a bit sudden, but after refreshing my memory of Priory, I realised that it was left at a point of overlap between the two books. I did also feel that Melaugo's whole POV could have been cut out without actually impacting the overall plot - but I'm glad it wasn't cut because I love the character!

I really loved getting an insight into the Kingdom of Yscalin, and the build-up to the events which began the Priory of the Orange Tree. Among the Burning Flowers also has some of the best Dragon scenes of the series IMO! Alas, no mention of the trees, or siden & sterren, but we can't have it all! The ending leads perfectly onto Priory, and has made me want to re-read it!

This novella was the perfect prequel to Priory. It sets the scene perfectly and really leaves you wanting to read (or re-read) the next one asap. As expected, the worldbuilding was beautiful and the characters were realistic and likeable, their development and their relationships throughout the novella were a joy to read about.

I loved reading Among the Burning Flowers, thank you to NetGalley for sending me an ARC.

This is probably the perfect start to the Roots of Chaos series if you are intimidated by the length of the first two books, or just want to have a little bit more background on the characters before diving into The Priory Of The Orange Tree.

The way this connects to Priory is so well done, because to start it feels completely separate and as its own narrative, but as well got further through the story I began to see the threads that connected it. There were characters mentioned in this that got a lot more attention, as well as characters in this that only got a mention in Priory.

I will say that I think this didn’t quite hit the same and the other two books in this series, and I think it’s because it’s so much shorter. We only have 3 perspectives in this compared to the many more in the others, which gives a much more focused view, especially with two of the POVs being very close in proximity. I think this limits the scale of this story, and also means we heard a lot of names without any reference to what they meant if you hadn’t already read from this series.

I think if you haven’t started the series this is a very nice introduction to the world, and if you have already read the rest of The Roots Of Chaos, this is a great way to get more insight into the world.

Thank you NetGalley & Bloomsbury for the ARC. 4.5⭐ rounded up.

Samantha Shannon continues to remind me why I will read any fantasy she puts out. If you've always wanted to check out Priory of the Orange Tree but felt intimidated by the chonker that it is, AtBF in my opinion is an excellent jumping in point to this universe. You do NOT need to have read Priory to enjoy AtBF; I'd just recommend any reader adjust your mindset / expectations that this is a 3-POV prequel novella with timeskips at some parts. It doesn't read like a standalone novel and more like a prologue that leads into Priory.

Dare say I even feel that reading AtBF BEFORE Priory will make the latter a more enjoyable reading experience, because Shannon is truly wicked to make me fall in love with a character in AtBF despite me knowing how their story plays out in Priory.

Set 2-3 years before Priory, Shannon gives you a brief rundown on the overarching religious politics and the history of the Big Bad plaguing this universe. Because it's been so long since I've read Priory and don't wholly remember the in-universe info, I do think it was sufficiently accessible and catches me up to speed. Also, my e-ARC doesn't include them in full, but it's stated that the standard glossary of characters and universe timelines that's often accompanying her Roots of Chaos books are planned to be in the final copies, so those are always going to be helpful.

For the story itself, Shannon was able to make three side characters who didn't get as much development in Priory really shine here, in just a span of under 300 pages. I grew invested in all of them, being introduced to their goals, their fears, and their struggle to make what they feel is the Right Decision for the time. And of course it wouldn't be a Roots of Chaos novel without sapphism being lovingly represented here. The writing is emotional & heartfelt, given that it's a lead up to the dark and tragic years ahead of the evil dragons awakening to wreak havoc and devastation. The strength of AtBF definitely lies in the relationships that the main POV characters hold. When the world as you know it is coming to an end all around you, it is your loved ones that give you the strength to look up and fight back. I almost wished this was longer!

3.75 - I tore through this and found it really engaging, especially the first half. Things became a bit more disappointing in the second half because we don’t hear from Estina Melaugo once she gets on the ship. I would have loved to see her story weave into Marosa’s.
The writing was beautiful as always with Samantha Shannon.
This definitely does the job of giving you a taster of the Roots of Chaos series and I am definitely going to have to do a re-read of Priory to get more of a fix!

I loved Priory of the Orange Tree when I read it back in 2018/19 however, I found this really hard to get into and I had to restart it twice only to get a couple of percent in. It's a soft DNF for me for now but I will probably give it another go later in the year as I don't think this is a reflection of the book as I find it hard to believe I wouldn't like it considering Priory is one of my all-time favourite books.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

I've wanted to read The Priory of the Orange Tree since it released but I was intimidated by its size, but this book was so awesome I can't wait to dive into the rest of the series. I'd say this is a great entry point for anyone interested in the series.

The first half of this book was perfect. I especially loved the third chapter (Melaugo's first chapter). It's a technically flawless chapter.

Side note: this series has the best cover art of all time. Truly breathtaking.

Thank you NetGalley and Bloomsbury for the early review copy.

Bookreview: Among the Burning Flowers by Samantha Shannon⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This might be one of my all time favorite fantasy worlds. And if you havent read anything in the Roots of Chaos feel free to try with this smaller entry. Burning Flowers takes place 2 years before the orinigal standalone The Priory of the Orange Tree. We follow different perspectives from different parts of the world while we wait for the dragons to rise and reign terror. By far Marosa's story is the best of all 3 as her part of the world is where darknesa lurks and awakens first. We also see a familiar pirate and prince from Priory. I dont want to tell you more as it is a small book but if you are familar with Samantha's world you will also love this one! It makes me want to reread the other installments again and also for some reason GOT.😅 Let there be dragons!!🔥🔥🔥

This is another prequel to priory but since it’s way shorter I think it’s a great way to get into the world without having to read a 600+ pages book in case you’re pushing it off for the size of the previous books.
In this story we follow Marosa a princess who’s a prisioner in her own castle and she’s supposed to be betrothed to Aubretch. However due to the rise of the draconic army their fates might not be with each other. On the other hand we also get to know Estina whose job is to hunt draconic beasts, however once the rise happens she might not have a place to be.
I really enjoyed the characters, especially Estina (which I wished we had more backstory for) and the history behind priory, however due to the length the ending felt very abrupt. So if you want to start here know that you will not get an ending not even an open one. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an e-arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

This prequel to The Priory of the Orange Tree follows Donmate Marosa and gives a deeper look at her early life, the isolation she faced, and the friendships that shaped her. It shows the first days of the eruption that changed everything, then shifts to the aftermath and how she became the person we later meet in Priory.

The story reminded me how much I loved Priory and even made me want to reread it, as it adds new insights into characters and events. The writing is intricate and best enjoyed in long, uninterrupted sittings. While it can be read on its own, fans of Priory will appreciate the added depth. It has a Game of Thrones meets George and the Dragon feel, though personally I would have loved even more dragons.

Everything that Shannon writes in the Roots of Chaos universe I find fascinating. This time it is a shorter story focused on the Donmata Marosa, a character I didn’t remember much from the Priory (which I read 5 years ago) but I’m fully invested in now.
Once more this is a book full of amazing prose, wonderfully human characters and emotions. I can’t wait to read whatever else Shannon publishes in this series.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an e-ARC.

Deliciously dreadful, rich with Shannon's worldbuilding whiz, and a finer examination of the events just before the sunrise of TPOTOT. Knowing what went down in TPOTOT made the reading experience bittersweet and tragic. A lovely (shorter!) instalment for TROC.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bloomsbury for providing me with the e-ARC/DRC in exchange for an honest review.

Samantha Shannon is such a rewardingly talented author that I would buy and read anything she has written without reading the blurb, I'm certain that she could make a train timetable exciting and interesting. This shorter book is just stunning.

After reading a day of fallen night I was excited to be back in this world and even more excited when I realised this wasn't nearly as long as a day of fallen night. While I absolutely loved the world and characters of a day of fallen night, the problem for me with that book was the pacing, for 800 pages nearly nothing happened. So for this book, around 300 hundred paged made this perfect! Even though the plot was really minimal, I didn't mind as much, ad it wasn't stretched on for forever.

I have yet to read the priory, but as I will start it next, I feel like this book will be a perfect foundation for it! It has been many hundreds of years since the events of a day of fallen night and this was the perfect book to read that kind of told us what has now happened in those years, and where we start with priory.

If you have read either or both of the other books in this series, I feel like you will enjoy this one a lot! It has very complex characters, high stakes plot, everything you need in a prelude kind of book. However, I would not start the series with this book, and either read priory or a day of fallen night first, since I believe that the world of the roots of chaos world is opened and showed better on those books. (can't really say for the priory but I think it is true). this book is more like straight to point kind of book, and you will definitely enjoy it more if you read it later on!

4,5 stars. I enjoyed this one a lot and I cannot wait to read the priory next!!

It wasn't an easy story to get into. It felt like a book you would enjoy if you had already read Priory. But once I started getting a hang of what was going on, I LOVED the story. There were many new names, new places, and new ideas in the first few pages. But I will not lie — referring to the wiki and taking notes while reading was the most fun I've had in MONTHS! (reading-wise)

The worldbuilding oh my god!!! I feel like I've already talked a lot about it before, but I must put it in the review too: it is ✨EXCELLENT✨ Everybody take notes. THIS is how you do it. It is never assumed you know everything, but you aren't fed every single detail. The worldbuilding is rich but never feels overwhelming. I think I have found my new favorite series, and I have read only one book!

If you are like me, and have been intimidated by the size of the books in this series, I 100% recommend starting with this, going on to read the other books and then maybe come back to fully appreciate what went on!! The ending overlaps with the beginning of Priory, so you can go with the ~flow~ and read the other books too, which is what I'm doing rn. ekkk I'm so excited, pretty sure Roots of Chaos is going to end up as one of my favorite series 🐉💖

Samantha Shannon is just an absolutely genius writer.

This prequel is very short for a Samantha Shannon novel, so we have just a few points of view to follow. Each one is emotional and engaging. Some of the scenes in this book are absolutely horrific and honestly quite devastating. My heart is sore.

But it is wonderful and like other reviews say the book doesnt come to a neat end at all, but actually, I LOVE this about it. I am a fan of Priory and A Day of Fallen Night, so maybe that helps to transport me to this world quickly, but the author does the work for you. I feel trampled on, but exactly what I love about a book like this.

Now I want to re-read the other two. A five star series, with more to come. What an absolute gift.

Do you know how weird it is to read a Roots of Chaos book in less than a day?
Among the Burning Flowers is a novel length prologue to Priory beginning roughly 3 years before the start of Priory we are introduced to the Donmata Marosa Taumargam Vetalda. Kept locked inside the palace by her father King Sigoso. She is betrothed to the Mentish heir Aubrecht (last seen failing to produce an heir with Sabran XI) but Sigoso is dragging his feet about setting a firm date for the wedding.

A wedding doomed never to take place as the earthquakes that afflict the Yscalin captital finally come to a head in a huge quake that pulls apart most of Mount Fruma freeing the wyverns and the high western Fyredel who infects King Sigoso with a slow burning draconic plague enslaving him as eyes and ears amongst the humans.

If you’ve read priory you know how things end for Yscalin however it is fascinating to watch Marosa strive and rebel against such a mighty force that somehow knows everything that happens. Or Aubrecht desperate to save his friend from the Draconic kingdom before realising he cannot get Marosa out.

There is a smaller POV belonging to Estina Melaugo, a Yscalin orphan who has been reduced to killing draconic creatures in exchange for food after a series of disasters, she’s a great change of pace from the highborn POVs with the weight of the world on their shoulders, Melaugo is simply concerned with survival and love.

Among the Burning Flowers is a tantalising taste of the wider Roots of Chaos world and whatever Shannon writes next in this world I will devour with delight.

A massive thanks to Bloomsbury for the ARC

If there's a world I will never get tired of, it's this one.

This was a great prequel ( if you can call it that) to the events that happened in Priory of the Orange Tree. At first, I was scared that I wouldn't like this but turns out, I would eat up anything and everything that Samantha writes about this world because I just love it so much. I loved getting to read familiar names in this and getting to know Marosa as well. This novella, to me, doesn't really offer a resolved ending, but makes sense knowing what comes next after that.

Now debating whether or not I should just abandon my TBR for this month and reread The Priory....

4.75/5
I'm not at all surprised that I absolutely loved this ARC.
Once again, the characters and world-building had me in a vice grip. Samantha Shannon proves yet again that I will devour anything set in the world of Priory. My only complaint? I've been completely spoiled by the epic length of her previous novels, and this one felt far too short. I just wanted more!
Huge thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for the ARC!