Scan barcode
A review by izzalice
The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
5.0
A huge thank you to Hodder Books for the advanced readers copy.
It only took me finishing the first chapter of The Raven Scholar to say "yep, this is the good stuff" and wow how right I was.
From the beginning Hodgson expertly establishes the world, the high stakes and character motives with a heart-pounding first chapter that set the tone for the rest of the novel. To be able to create such a brilliant balance of character dynamics, world history, and political intrigue while also keeping up with a captivating and twisty competition/murder mystery plot is SO impressive.
The engaging, weaving narrative style makes the book so addictive and the footnotes throughout added both humour and extra information about the world and the characters. There is always something going on and tense scenes where you least expect them.
Neema Kraa is such a great protagonist and every single character- whether I loved or hated them, whether I was rooting for them or not- were all so well developed and interesting to read about. Benna gets an honorable mention here because I adored her character. I really enjoyed the non-human characters too and how they take part in the story.
All of the twists in the tale were well thought-out and really added even more to such a high quality epic. I turned the last page and had to stare at the ceiling for a while to process the-in Sol the raven's words- "Magnificent" story I had just finished.
This is one of the best fantasy books that I've read in a long time and I cannot recommend it highly enough. Absolutely phenomenal.
It only took me finishing the first chapter of The Raven Scholar to say "yep, this is the good stuff" and wow how right I was.
From the beginning Hodgson expertly establishes the world, the high stakes and character motives with a heart-pounding first chapter that set the tone for the rest of the novel. To be able to create such a brilliant balance of character dynamics, world history, and political intrigue while also keeping up with a captivating and twisty competition/murder mystery plot is SO impressive.
The engaging, weaving narrative style makes the book so addictive and the footnotes throughout added both humour and extra information about the world and the characters. There is always something going on and tense scenes where you least expect them.
Neema Kraa is such a great protagonist and every single character- whether I loved or hated them, whether I was rooting for them or not- were all so well developed and interesting to read about. Benna gets an honorable mention here because I adored her character. I really enjoyed the non-human characters too and how they take part in the story.
All of the twists in the tale were well thought-out and really added even more to such a high quality epic. I turned the last page and had to stare at the ceiling for a while to process the-in Sol the raven's words- "Magnificent" story I had just finished.
This is one of the best fantasy books that I've read in a long time and I cannot recommend it highly enough. Absolutely phenomenal.