Editorial Content for Among the Burning Flowers

In a recent interview on her press junket, bestselling wunderkind Samantha Shannon was asked to explain her new novel, AMONG THE BURNING FLOWERS, in five words. She called it “[h]eartbreaking, intense, sapphic, romantic and sinister. This is definitely one of my darker books.” It is also her most elegantly written work. Her books are easy reads because her language flows so beautifully. If you’re looking for a good fantasy during this spooky time of year, this would be an A+ choice.

Shannon’s epic fantasy world is a place where two kinds of magic rage against each other --- the earthly magic of fire (siden) and the celestial magic of starlight (sterren). If they could be balanced within that world, peace would reign. But this is a dark, dramatic book, so that does not come to pass swiftly. In each of Shannon’s novels, the main cast of characters -- the storytellers --- go in search of their own balance within the larger world dishevelment. That way, readers can enter the Roots of Chaos series through any one of the books and find a new and enthralling journey into the larger philosophical battles of her fantasy world.

"I’m a part-time fantasy enthusiast, and I have to say that AMONG THE BURNING FLOWERS is one of the most focused reading experiences I’ve had this year. It entranced me in the same way that the Brontës or Mary Shelley have in the past."

AMONG THE BURNING FLOWERS focuses on an event that is mentioned in THE PRIORY OF THE ORANGE TREE: the Fall of Yscalin, a kingdom that has strangely returned to worshipping an ancient enemy called the Nameless One. This is clearly a means of surviving an occupation by a cunning and vengeful wrym (a nasty creature that haunts this sphere) named Fýredel and the tragic consequences of the kingdom’s spokesperson (for the book), Marosa Vetalda, the heir to Yscalin. Her goal is to transform her world into something much more attuned to the needs of the kingdom’s people, working alongside her betrothed, Aubrecht Lievelyn of Mentendon, a sapphic romance that has its share of ups and downs as the story progresses.

Marosa is a prisoner in her own home and suffers under the eye of her widowed father. She tries to stay out of his way and make herself seem nonthreatening, but instead he sees her as a disposable game piece. A quaking mountain, a Draconic army that comes out to police what was until then a balanced world, and the Flesh King of Yscalin all come together to bring danger and great unrest to the kingdom. How will Marosa do her bidding in such a frightening and oppressive atmosphere? Therein lies the rub --- and the whole premise of the book.

Shannon began churning out this series (and a whole other one called The Bone Season) at the age of 19. Her books are a marvelous mix of good vs. evil, the strength and danger of living and loving authentically, and the ravages of a power-mad, male-dominated space (the clash between estrogen- and testosterone-heavy characters feels very new age, and I’m here for it!). Despite the strange lyrical Welsh-type names of people and places, and the deep historical environment she must put them in, Shannon writes in a most disarming and lilting tone that belies her 21st-century success.

These books feel very Tolkien-esque as the characters cross paths and pollinate relationships that are equally life-enhancing and provocatively destructive. It is rare to find fantasy series these days with the sharpened intent of something like The Roots of Chaos. Although you can easily separate the books from each other, this prequel will help newcomers enter a planetary whirl unlike any other.

I’m a part-time fantasy enthusiast, and I have to say that AMONG THE BURNING FLOWERS is one of the most focused reading experiences I’ve had this year. It entranced me in the same way that the Brontës or Mary Shelley have in the past. Samantha Shannon is a gifted and delightfully creative storyteller who deserves all the success she’s had, which is sure to continue with the release of this new and engaging volume.