- Beer: Hanelei Island IPA
- Brewery: Kona Brewing Co.
- Style: IPA
- Strength: 4.5%
I was really looking forward to this one from the moment I opened my Beerwulf box back in April. I didn’t want to waste the moment which is why it’s taken until June the finally crack it open, & boy was it worth the wait.
The smell in the glass was beautiful. Guava assaults your nostrils and I was transported mentally to the tropics. A sunny beach somewhere.
On first taste I was slightly worried it was going to be too sour. The sourness stopped though at the perfect level. Multiple citrus flavours mixed into one of the best summer beers I’ve ever tried.
- Book: The Priory of the Orange Tree
- Author: Samantha Shannon
- Published: 2019
- Publisher: Bloomsbury
This has to be one of the prettiest covers of any book I own. When I first saw it revealed it blew me away. Had to throw that out there first. The book itself is also very good. I was captivated the whole way through. No mean feat given its length.
We are plunged into a world experiencing events seemingly pointing to the return of the Nameless One, an evil dragon exiled from the world a thousand years prior. There is of course a lot of denial at first. Much of what is known about the Nameless one has become legend so many in the present don’t believe it is possible for him to return. There are those who know the truth, however.
A key part of the world-building is the nearly non-existent relationship between the West and East. There are two almost separate narratives running throughout the book told through 2 (iirc) main POVs and a few sub-povs.
In the West we follow Ead, a member of the eponymous Priory, who is tasked with guarding the Queen of Inys. This is complicated by her growing feelings towards the queen & the fact she is a magic-user in a realm where magic is outlawed.
In the East we follow Tane, a prospective dragon rider, and her journey to restore her reputation after events conspire to leave her in a precarious position.
As I said, I like this book but I do have one tiny gripe. I felt as though it would have been relatively easy to split it into two or three smaller books that would have made it easier to digest
Burch's Books and Beers 