Thank you to Bloomsbury for approving me for an ARC of this book!

A Day of Fallen Night is the prequel to the much-adored Priory of the Orange Tree, so naturally, I was HYPED for this! Alas, much like Priory, it's also a behemoth of a book, so gathering the bravery to tackle this and then actually reading it feels like almost as much of an adventure as the protagonists go through here.

The good news first: The worldbuilding is rather easy to grasp if you've already read Priory, so a big chunk of the mental work is already out of the way. It beautifully expands on the history we get crumbs of in Priory, and adds some much-appreciated context.
Also, it's deliciously queer. If Priory feels fruity to you, this is fruity^2. And I am SO here for it.
I think the way the cast is introduced in the beginning is so brilliant and gripping, I was instantly hooked and honestly, never stopped being deeply engaged with them.
I feel like it's not even worth mentioning at this point, but obviously, the writing and plotting is amazing. The multiple POVs once again serve tremendously well in establishing a feeling of vastness within the world of the book, and it's always a treat when they interconnect.

The bad news: While the plot and the writing is stunning, it somehow felt a little anticlimactic in comparison to its companion novel. That's not to say that I didn't immensely enjoy reading this and was on the edge of my seat for most of it, but I was kind of always waiting for the other shoe to drop, and it just.. didn't? This, to be fair, is probably owed to the source material. If you're telling the tale of an event that has passed, there's not much to do in terms of raising the stakes of the events themselves. Sure, we can get there through personal connection to the cast (and oh boy, was I connected!), but all of the fights ultimately left me wanting for something more.

Still, this is another amazing work by Shannon, and I cannot wait for more entries into the Roots of Chaos.

Another truly excellent epic fantasy story from Samantha Shannon!

There are a lot of characters in this epic tale however Shannon has woven their stories together into a beautiful tapestry that completely absorbs the reader into the world and they feel so connected to each and every one, wishing for their happiness even has a very real threat hangs over the narrative.

I had a really great experience reading this book, luxuriating in the world and was very sad when the story drew to a close as it felt as though I was saying goodbye to family as some characters I had been following for their whole life.

This book takes place some years before The Priory of the Orange Tree and the gap between the two means that both books are set in the same world but very much function as standalones. I think some readers might appreciate reading the two back to back as they would be able to recognise common elements or see the introduction of something in ADOFN and how in evolves into what it is in TPOTOT. I went into this book having read Priory however it was over a year ago so much of the detail had left my brain so it was as if I was going in with a clean slate so much so that I would say that it was as if I was reading ADOFN without any knowledge of the world and it definitely did not reduce my enjoyment at all.

It has taken me a while to get around to reading A Day of Fallen Night with its sheer size being quite daunting.

The story is told from multiple points of view and builds a World vast with dragons, wyverns, beasts, magic, fire, light, faith, LGBTQ+ characters. With the eruption of the Dreadmount war begins. All four characters are really interesting with excellent character development. I really liked that a pregnancy did not hinder a woman, which I feel is often prevalent in fantasy books where a strong character becomes pregnant and is suddenly incapable. In A Day of Fallen Night that is not the case and I think it explored the strength of woman and the impact pregnancy, birth can have on mental health.

I was stressed, I cried and I was so happy with the characters story line endings. Despite its size I didn’t feel at any point that the story was dragging or felt too long.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read this arc.

Thank you to Bloomsbury books and Netgalley for this advance copy (and sorry for the late review!).

Samantha Shannon does it again. This is a stunning sequel / prequel to Priory of the Orange Tree. I love love loveddd it.

An astounding rich and spellbinding prequel that somehow manages to add an even greater layer of history to the amazing world created within The Priory. So great

Another great book by Samantha Shannon. I was caught up in this book, but it did take weeks to read!! It took me a little while to reinsert my mind back into this universe. The multiple storylines that end up intertwined together is magic and so artfully done that by the author - amazing. Looking forward to the next one

Absolutely incredible. Just amazing. I'm struggling to find the right words to say, about just how much I adored this book. Fantasy at its finest.

The sequel to the fantasy book of the year!!! Not as good as the first but I loved it.

Thank you SO MUCH for this ARC :)

LOVED LOVED LOVED THIS ONE!!!
I thought I liked priory of the orange tree but this one was great, I think the page length can intimidate some but (like priory) it was well worth it!

Utterly, beautifully phenomenal. Shannon poured her heart and soul into this, and it shows. It is masterfully crafted with a unique, almost lyrical cadence to the entire novel. The world is richly detailed, the characters full and fleshed out, and the writing is sublime. I enjoyed this even more than Priory, and I have loved seeing Shannon develop her craft even more, topping what I previously thought couldn't be topped. Bravo x

I absolutely loved this book! For me this was definitely as good as Priory of the Orange Tree.
This book is a prequel but can be read either before of after Priory of the Orange Tree. I don't feel I would have necessarily benefitted from reading this first.

We follow several different characters and I really liked seeing how some of them meet each other later on or are linked. Very fast paced, action-packed. Loved it! Would definitely recommend.

We join a sister of the Priory, the Queen of Inys, Dumai who lives on a mountain but then the wyrms come and chaos reigns.

I absolutely loved this. I am a long time fan of Samantha Shannon and I will automatically read whatever she writes. The size of this book may put people off but please don't let it deter you. The writing is fantastic, with intricate world building and each character has great depth. It's a must for any fantasy lover.

Absolutely loved this, possibly more than Priory?? I loved being back in the world Shannon has so clearly meticulously created and each perspective was just so excellently done I couldn't put the book down. I didn't favour any one character's POV which is highly unusual for multi-narration and I felt such a broad range of emotions throughout the entire novel. It whisked me away to another world for a time and I didn't want to come back.

Fantastic book that delves into the world of POTOT. The characters were well written and the world and magic is outstanding. This is a must read for anyone who loved Priory as it really enriched the story and world.

I feel like I've been waiting centuries for this sequel, so was very nervous to start reading it. However, it didn't disappoint. Samantha's literary genius shines through again with this beautiful story. Would definitely recommend!

I tried so hard to like this one. I really, really did. But it's dense and heavy and detailed and it's quite hard to get into from the very beginning. This isn't a reflection on Samantha Shannon - she's great at what she does! It's more a reflection on me, because I wasn't able to give this book the attention it deserves. I will definitely come back to this when I'm in the mood for something thoughtful and packed with lore, but for me, right now, this is too heavy and too much. It's a serious chonkster, coming in at almost 900 pages, so reading it is an undertaking that has to be done with love, and appreciation, and I don't have the headspace for that right now. But the little I did manage of this before DNF-ing was lovely! Returning to the world of The Priory of the Orange Tree is very exciting, and to go back to before, as this is a prequel, is a delight. Despite being a prequel, this is a standalone story, so it can be enjoyed independent of the Priory, but it's definitely filled with the same depth and richness of lore. I will come back to this, and I know I will really enjoy it!

If you have read SS work before, grab this now, it doesn't disappoint. If you haven't, what are you waiting for! ADOFN is such a good addition to Shannon's existing works, my favourite will forever be The Bone Season (SO SO Good) but ADOFN did rival it for a second there!

Regardless of if you have read Shannon's work before or never have picked something up from her now. Be warned though, if you start with ADOFN or Priory, get yourself a REALLY big cup of tea, it is a long one!!

I loved this book so much the world building was absolutely fantastic and I felt really connected with to the characters, Samantha Shannon has done it again.

While I enjoyed this book. Probably more than Priory of the Orange Tree. I also found to have the same issue. This was too long. I found myself bored for the last 200 or so pages. Which meant for me the suspense of the build just wasn't there. It felt anticlimactic.

I just realized I never got to review this book.
This is the prequel I never knew I wanted, but now that I have it in my hands and I've read it I cannot believe I could've lived without it.

Samantha Shannon did an outstanding job with this book, it's complex but never boring, truly entertaining. Her writing style is captivating and to die for.

The cast of characters is vast, to say the least, but they all feel important and well-described.