For twenty-four years peace has reigned within the Empire of Orrun. But per the laws of the empire this peace will be tested in a brutal competition to determine its next ruler. Neema Kraa is a Raven Scholar and eight years prior —at the emperor’s behest—she carved the exile edict that would seal the fate of an innocent young woman and propel Neema to High Scholar. An event that would echo in the fates of more than just the solitary Raven Scholar. Thousands of people now flock to the Imperial Island, the epicenter of the empire’s power where its fate will soon be determined in the Festival of the Eight. On the night before the festival commences, Gaida Rack, the Raven contender, is found murdered in her apartment. As Gaida’s least favorite scholar, Neema is one who would stand to gain from her death, and thus, in the emperor’s eyes, the perfect candidate to solve her murder. Not only is Neema tasked with uncovering this crime but she is now the Raven contender in the fight for the throne. Dodging fights and avoiding losing to the dangerous trials, Neema soon becomes embroiled in a devious plot decades in the making, one that like the trials themselves, can have only one victor.
With The Raven Scholar, Antonia Hodgson pens the first in an audacious high fantasy trilogy. Epic in scale, bold, and extraordinarily detailed, this book burrowed its way into my heart where it is more than content to remain. As sentient ravens bear witness to events and murder abounds, The Raven Scholar expertly integrates a murder mystery within an immersive fantasy setting as a devious plot comes to fruition within the fraught empire of Orrun. When I set out to read this seven hundred page tome, I had no idea I would venture into one of the most cleverly wrought fantasy debuts I have read in many years. Hodgson hits all the marks for an epic fantasy novel with characters that bite (pun very much intended), and ones that lean into their morally grey natures. The plot takes the lead in this series debut, but it is only elevated through a detailed world history and extended mythos. Truly the pillars of this story are in the details and Hodgson is intentional in their placement as she builds to her grand reveal. The footnotes and folktales scattered across the narrative, the pesky ravens, all of it serves to build up an integral foundation for this new series. The Raven Scholar is everything high fantasy should be and I loved every single page of this intricately layered, clever novel.
Turning inward on the Imperial Island, Hodgson calls witness to the exile of Yana Valit, a decision that led to her brother becoming the Tiger contender and our protagonist Neema Kraa her position as High Scholar. Not quite a prologue, this look into the past soon transitions into Neema’s point of view, our window for the rest of the novel —a jarring shift made all the more so in the eight year jump to the present. The Raven Scholar has a claustrophobic aura, as thousands crowd the Imperial Island for a scheduled transfer in power, soon finding themselves caught up in more than a game. It all feels very locked-room, except the room is an entire island and everyone on it a suspect. Hodgson’s narrative is ever shifting, flitting back to new perspectives and integrating folktales from Orrun’s history. There is so much to sift and parse over here and no part of this story feels out of place, nor the narrative bogged down at any moment. Every single part of The Raven Scholar’s seven hundred pages is perfectly paced and expertly plotted. Through the ravens, the footnotes, and the folktales, what emerges is a vivid fantasy world with characters that leap off the page.
I would place The Raven Scholar in the category of: what if there was an animal who was just following you around all the time (but the burrowing inside your chest cavity and offering unsolicited opinions-variety). The Raven Scholar dances around perspective and flashes between the implied author and narrator across the narrative. The implied author being the raven guardians circling the island providing their commentary was a fresh way to hone in on key events. I’m very much here for the flock of Raven Guardians having an omnipresence as Hodgson shifts between perspectives to orient her story. Hodgson layers in these perspectives to better serve the story and build to a smashing final act. Where the raven companion comes into the story is another strong suit. The “Solitary Raven” who was banished from the flock pushes forward through ink, page, and cover to become a fragment within Neema’s mind, acting as a guide in the fight for the throne. Sol is that nettlesome presence needed to further the story and its humor. I found the body horror aspect of this extremely hilarious. The imagery of Sol just chilling in Neema’s ribcage ready to burst forth in viscera whenever he needs to come to her aid or remove himself from a situation could only ever be viewed as relatable and painfully funny.
One thing I appreciate about this novel is its heavily detailed character work. For most of the book we are in Neema’s perspective and her views cloud our opinions of the past and future of Orrun. Neema is the solitary Raven Scholar, brought up from her station as a commoner to take up space within the Emperor’s court. With such a rise comes many enemies and a perspective that reflects inward more often than not. Antonia Hodgson is comfortable exposing the flaws of this character and the blind spots that place Neema in danger as the plot progresses. I love ambitious women but just as much I love that Neema’s ambitions come at a price. The huge reveal at the end would not have come about without the manipulation of several key figures, one of which was the High Scholar herself. Characters grappling with their morality and the justification of past decisions is a central part of this novel. Neema, Cain, and Ruko are three characters who really stood prominently within this —figures who will undoubtedly continue to shape the progression of this series and its core themes.
The Raven Scholar is a true fantasy gem, sharp, gleaming, and rare in its splendour. As prophecies are fulfilled and the Festival of the Eight draws to a close, the Eternal Path series finds a strong footing in an unstable final act that I was in no way prepared to venture into. And wow oh wow what a conclusion. I don’t think I breathed for the entire last third of this book. It was that intense. Antonia Hodgson pulls the rug out in every sense, making you feel like the dominant players are aiming for one thing when in reality it is something else entirely. Integrating unique points of view —the animal guardians staking their claim on the narrative and the future of an empire and a daring scholar courting danger to solve a murder, among others —this is an artfully designed fantasy novel with a host of characters to enjoy. I cannot emphasize enough how this fed my cravings for epic fantasy to the extreme. Much like our Solitary Raven, I want to live inside this book and I’d feel comfortable burrowing into its pages to wait out the eventual sequel.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this arc to review.
Trigger warnings: death, abuse, murder, blood, violence, imprisonment, drug use, execution
Literaryrobin 