In the scorching empire of Orrun, seven elite contenders vie for the throne as Emperor Bersun's reign ends—until one is murdered. Tasked with uncovering the killer, High Scholar Neema Kraa must navigate a deadly game of secrets, ambition, and betrayal. With danger closing in, she’s not as alone as she thinks. The Raven is watching—and ready to help.

As with many debut fantasy novels, The Raven Scholar dives headfirst into dense worldbuilding. To its credit, the concept of eight mythical animal spirit factions was both intriguing and reminiscent of the Chinese Zodiac.

That said, the story quickly becomes overwhelming due to the sheer volume of elements packed in and a storytelling approach that’s tough to follow. My biggest struggle? The narration. It’s written in third person, but the point of view shifts constantly—and not in a seamless or intentional way.

The first 50 pages follow one character, only to suddenly jump to the female main character’s POV without any real transition. These abrupt shifts gave me serious whiplash and left me confused more often than not. And with the book coming in at over 600 pages, that confusion started to feel like a long-term commitment.

Ultimately, The Raven Scholar just wasn’t the book for me—but I know others will love it. If you enjoy complex worldbuilding, mysterious political intrigue, and don’t mind a bit of narrative chaos, this one might still be worth exploring. Don’t let my confusion stop you from stepping into the world of Orrun.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette ANZ for providing me this ARC to review.

Read if: you want to read a super addictive murder mystery fantasy adventure or you loved the Trickster’s Choice duology as a kid and Nawat was your favourite character

I had no idea what this book would be going into it and I loved it from the very first page. In an approximately 600 page book there was no moment where I was bored or disengaged. This book grabbed me from page 1 and hasn’t let me go since. I am so happy I got to read this early but also very sad because now I have to wait even longer for the sequel.

I loved Neema as the main character - she’s flawed, she’s having a bad day, she mostly would like to be left alone, and unfortunately things just keep happening to her. Her journey through this book was so fun to read about. Her relationship with Cain was a highlight of this book for me - he’s such a breath of fresh air in the fantasy book romance space. He had me laughing multiple times through this book, he genuinely cares about Neema, and their relationship is one built on friendship and respect. Also the idea of having the worst day of Neema’s life happening in front of her ex who potentially might be the next ruler of her country is very funny.

The characters in this book are all smart, which is exactly what I want from a book involving a murder mystery/political machinations. All of their motivations made sense and the pay off to the mystery was so good.

The writing in this book, and the switching of the narrative style between third and second person kept me so engaged. The brief chapters where we got to follow other character’s added so much to the story. I genuinely don’t even know what to expect from a sequel because there are so many excellent story lines we could follow. This book was ambitious but I believe it pulled off exactly what it was trying to achieve. This might be one of my favourite books of 2025 so far.

If you are looking for your next fantasy obsession you should pick up this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Hachette Australia & New Zealand/Hodderscape for the ARC. Review posted on Goodreads and Twitter. Rating posted on Storygraph

'The Raven Scholar' is the excellently developed beginning to a new epic fantasy trilogy, that you absolutely should check out later this month. It's full of interesting world building, political intrigue, and well crafted grand reveals.

Thank you to Hachette Australia & New Zealand and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.

'The Raven Scholar' opens with several chapters covering events that happened in the past, building intrigue and introducing the reader to some of our key players. One of these characters is Neema, a scholar under the Raven - one of the Eight, the animal gods that look over this world. The story opens with Neema serving as High Scholar to the current emperor. Every 24 years a new emperor or empress is chosen not by blood, but by a series of fights and trials administered by the monasteries devoted to each of the Eight. Neema, happy to keep to herself and her studies, finds herself thrust into the spotlight after she discovers a crime has occurred the night before the current competition for the throne is about to begin.

This was not a book that immediately felt like a five star read to me. In the beginning I was actually a little hesitant, as the opening chapters relied heavily on footnotes (something I'm personally not a big fan of in fiction), and there were so many plot lines and characters introduced early on that I worried that the book wouldn't be able to cover them all well. I was wrong though - this book did leave itself open for the inevitable sequel (it's been announced that this will be a trilogy), but neatly managed to wrap-up several self-contained plotlines and character arcs. My favourite character was easily Sol with his self deprecating personality, but I was surprised by how much I came to care for many of the characters.

As a small note for those who prefer romance within their fantasy books, there is a side plotline regarding a romantic relationship in this book but it is not a focus and this is not a romantasy story.

If you love trials and factions in stories as much as I do, I definitely recommend picking this one up. For those in the US/UK/Canada, this book is launching mid-April, while those in Australia & New Zealand can find this one at the end of the month.

Review - The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson

The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson (Eternal Path trilogy #1)

What a pleasant surprise this was book was! This is definitely a front-runner for best fantasy book of 2025 for me: it's a 700+ epic full of intrigue, well-defined characters, mystery and solid world-building.

In an empire with a long history, a Festival of succession is being held on an isolated island to decide who will be the next ruler. Among the contenders for the throne is Neema, an introverted scholar; Cain, an unpredictable joker and spy, and possible assassin; and Ruko, an single-minded and ambitious warrior. Each of these is a follower of one of the Eight, powerful spirits / gods in the form of beasts. Society is also divided into factions of those who follow each of the divine beasts, and each of these groups also have their own defined-culture, temples and hierarchy.

The empire has a history of being dominated by aristocratic families ('venerants') and the associated elitism, nepotism and corruption that goes with it. Not long before the start of the story, there had been an attempted coup by Andren Valit. His is a character that is central to later events, and his ruthless, self-centred and arrogant attempt to overthrow the Emperor, Bersun, has had far-reaching effects. Then later, Andren's son, Ruko, makes an apalling choice to fatally exile his own sister in order to further his own desire to pursue the throne.

We follow Neema, the 'Raven scholar' of the title, from her poor origins and struggles to accomplish herself, to eventual success. She has been promoted because of her abilities to a position at the court, but is unpopular, looked down upon, envied, and often merely just used for her talents and taken for granted. She has been in and out of an unconventional and volatile relationship with Cain for a long time: Cain's service to the Fox sect has meant Neema has found his nature hard to learn and understand. Meanwhile, Ruko has long suppressed most of his emotions and guilt over his sister's death, in a determined effort with the Tiger faction to take the throne.

Early in the book there is a murder mystery that must be solved, which will keep most readers guessing. And the animal companions we meet, especially the ravens, are endearing and often comical. These creatures, like the chameleon, sometimes seem curious despite seeming like mere pets...especially when it's discovered some of them can possess people...

What I loved most about this were the unexpected touches in the story. There are surprising plot happenings, small hints that characters may not be as they appear, revelations, and most of the all, wonderful touches of humour. Even when we hear through Neema's melancholy, wry memories of her sad, pitiable upbringing in the Raven temple, there are often amusing lines that lift up the storytelling. This is despite the casual cruelty and indifference she faces from the privileged others in her life. And in the succession Festival, we gradually find out the Trials may be rigged, the contests even pre-decided, and behind the scenes one gets the impression there are manipulations going on by people with hidden agendas.

The narration itself often contains quotations from imaginary manuscripts, footnotes and flashbacks to moments from the past. There is a deceptively complex structure to this novel, but I never found it confusing or inaccessible. Even when the ravens themselves take over the telling of the story!

Thanks to Netgalley and Hachette for an ARC of this book.



Rating: 5 stars (out of 5)

Well wasn’t this a unique book!

I jumped in quickly and really enjoyed the beginning but was thrown when the story jumped so dramatically to a new plot path and a new main character. The lack of immediate connection between the two parts made it difficult to get into from that point. I had to push myself to keep going and it did take away the initial sense of enjoyment I was feeling.

The eight mystic animals whom the people pledge their allegiance to were intriguing, although I’m not sure I fully connected with this aspect of the world.

I do love a good competition for the throne which captured my attention the most!

Unfortunately I didn’t love the main character which is important to me as a reader, and probably kept me from truly appreciating this book as much as I could have.

I just want to kick things off by saying a big thank you for giving me the chance to read and review this book!

Wow, this book really delivered for me. It’s a fantastic high fantasy adventure, with a delightful touch of romance on the side. I have to admit, the beginning felt a bit slow and left me a little confused for about the first 20%. But as I kept reading, everything started to come together beautifully. One of my favorite parts was getting to know Neema, the young Raven scholar who has such a passion for facts and some really charming quirks. She finds herself mixed up in a gripping murder mystery, and before she knows it, she's pulled into a battle for the crown and on the hunt for the killer.
The plot is incredibly well-crafted, and the way we get to see things from multiple character perspectives is just great! There were plenty of surprises along the way, and I could never guess where the story would go next.
I’m excited to see what happens in the next book!

if i could give this book 7 stars i would. 10 stars even! very much could be a book of the year for me. i was absolutely blown away by this book. i cannot wait for the second!!

will be hard to describe & review the book without spoilers but i shall try:
- the narration of the book was insanely good. there was constant swapping between voice & writing styles, which should not have worked the way it did, but antonia pulled it off so so well

- the quality of her writing also shines through with the multiple different threads & storylines interwoven with each other, but nothing felt confusing and she tied everything together with plot twists & reveals that had me on the edge of my seat. i did NOT see them coming!

- the depth of ALL the characters was fantastic. nobody was flat, or two dimensional, they all felt fleshed out and had their own motives to their actions which we were all guessing at.

- the combination of the murder mystery & trials/games was seamlessly woven together imo, as well as setting up character ARCs etc for the next book

this was everything i didn’t know i needed & wanted in a fantasy book

What a book! While the world building may seem intimidating to many non-fantasy readers, the moment you hit 5-10% is the moment you become hooked. Then, what I found to be the main crux of the story was really only the beginning - one of the best ways I've seen it done so far! In the Summary above, you meet Nemma - a Raven contingent High Scholar in their eighth year of serving Bersun the Brusque. She is stern and sharp and far more hardened by the world and the people in it than fair. Of course, that means no one likes her either. Naturally, suspicions come from that. Especially when someone is murdered (and even her own memories of that night come back foggy). So begins her task: find the murderer - and clear her own mind while she's at it.

From this, a LOT happens. Accusations are thrown, people are interviewed and, most of all, Cain arrives. By adding him and others, everything is thrown off kilter. And it is masterfully done!

The interactions in the work, as well as the plot development and the revelations that follow, all wonderfully combine to that wondrous end. It is not happy, but, then again, when is it ever???

The Raven Scholar comes out April 29th (Aus time). I can't wait for you all to read it 💜💜

Trials? Check. Clever FMC? Check. Interesting political system? Check. Magical mystery? Check!

Every 24 years a new emperor is chosen through a series of trials undertaken by contestants representing each of the gods’ factions.

The first thing that stood out to me about this book was the age of the trial contestants. The FMC is in her 30s and the other contestants’ ages range from late twenties to forties. I found this realistic and refreshing! My only criticism is that I didn’t always feel like I was reading about older characters, some of them acted like they were in their early twenties. I’m also a sucker for a smart, studious and interesting main character. I liked that she clearly had a past and had made some morally grey decisions leading her to her current situation. I do wish that she had continued to reveal more depth though, I felt connected to Neema more in the first half of the book than the second.

Each faction had its own unique characteristics that were interesting and well-fleshed out. I enjoyed getting to know more about how the various characters thought and their histories. There were a lot of characters to keep track of which sometimes got confusing.

There were some jaw-dropping surprises! I was really impressed with how the story was woven together. I enjoyed the fantasy-mystery blend, it added a new twist to the trials trope.

I did find the narration from the ravens a bit jarring, but I’m not sure if this was also because my e-ARC was formatted weirdly when transferred to my e-reader. I suspect that the final formatting in the book will make it easier to see when the narrator POV changes. I enjoyed the addition of footnotes, that was a fun touch. This book has some romance, but it’s a very small subplot (I appreciated this).

There were some parts that felt a little slow/long for me, so that’s why (paired with the jarring raven POVs) I would give it 4 stars. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves political fantasy, high stakes trials, mystery and an undercurrent of romance.

Thank you to Hachette for sending me an e-ARC. All views are my own.

I am currently reading this and supremely enjoying it. I however don't enjoy the raven voice-overs and feel this disconnects the story. Will update upon completion

This book was incredible and I’m not sure how to write a review to do it justice but I will try…
Neema Kraa is the High Scholar to the Emperor and a member of the Ravens, one of eight factions that divides the nation based on their strengths and callings. She embodies the Ravens, with her intelligence, attention to detail and desire to follow the rules. Neema is strong and resilient but vastly unprepared for the competition she finds herself in, competing against warriors from each of the other factions. The other competitors are rich, developed characters, some Neema knows, others are new to her. I loved watching Neema develop throughout the story, and form relationships with those around her, despite her feelings of loneliness and being unlikeable. I love Neema, she is a brilliant character and she felt so authentic. Also a special mention for Sol, who nested in my heart along with Neema’s, he can be a part of my flock any day!

The storyline is so well thought out, all these neat little twists and turns that I never saw coming. What started as a story to replace the Emperor at the end of his reign became a web of deception, years long plots, magic and lies. The political intrigue was off the charts!

This book was very well written, I enjoyed the different viewpoints provided by the 3rd person POV. I especially loved the extent of the world building with the little stories added in to explain the mythology of the Eight.

This was a long book and I devoured it, I couldn’t put it down, couldn’t stop reading, and when I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it. I’m so incredibly impressed with this book and I know I’ll be thinking about it until the next one comes out!

Be wary of the one who walks behind you, And ruthless to the one who walks ahead

The Raven Scholar is a high fantasy, featuring trials and a murder mystery paired with a very unique style of writing that sometimes felt a bit overdone.

There was times that phrases and dialogue sounded very modern, and then very quickly would change to a very outdated style. There was jumps in time so this potentially is the reason for this.

The first 25% is very heavy world building and it’s not a book that you can breeze through, it requires full attention and a slow pace of reading. I do feel it could have been roughly 200 pages shorter.

I did find this story confusing at times, it would have me invested, however would quickly turn around and my interest would decline. This was a constant reoccurrence for me. I’m not sure how this series will stretch out into a trilogy.

🩷 Book Review 🩷
📚 The Raven Scholar
✒️ Antonia Hodgson
🗓 15th April 2025
💫💫💫💫

Thank you @netgalley for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book a little bit to get into but once I was there, I was all in.

The Raven Scholar is an epic fantasy that draws in the reader and absolutely obliterates them. Firstly, the narration should not have worked but it did, the changing from third to first person would typically confuse someone but Antonia did it so damn well that not once did I have to pause my reading.

Every single character is smart and driven, there is not 'let down' character that made you question why they were written into the book. They all had a part to play and they did their parts well. The hidden agendas had me guessing constantly and when I was right I yelped and when I was wrong I also yelped.

I cannot wait for book two! This world is immersive and I cannot wait to return!

My only gripe, and it might have been just the ereader version but I wanted a glossary of the mythologies and overview of the political structure so I could refer back to it. But as I said, might have been because I was reading it on an ereader.

The first few pages (Yana’s story) captivated and held my interest. It was shaping to be an intriguing murder mystery fantasy book.

The flash forward was interesting as well when we’re introduced to the FMC - Neema. I enjoyed the thought of the unique magical system and the trials for the new emperor, however, that’s when things started getting by messy for me.

I don’t know if it’s just my ARC format but the style is so messy. I just later on realised that we were in the perspective of the Raven (or first guardians as I later on thought about it).

I also hoped for an overview of the strengths and magic of each of the 8 guardians which I had to infer myself from the story.

There were a lot of storylines which I did not see the point to. I thought they were just noise.

And speaking of noise, there were so many characters whom I had no idea where they came from and what they did. There were also exiting characters (what happened to Havoc?!) that I had no idea why he left in the first place. Again, I blame the ARC formatting.

And a heads up to readers thinking this is a romantasy, it’s not. It’s 80% fantasy, 20% romance and of that 20% I didn’t think the MMC was being romantic at all (more of arsehole, insulting our FMC).

I honestly lost the plot at mark 77% and have resolved to soft DNF this one.

5/5 ✨ This was such a fun time!! An epic fantasy where everything - the world, the gods, the magic system, the trials - was inventive and new. I was swept up from start to finish because I just couldn’t guess the plot.

AND the FMC is a 34 year old BPOC whose actions throughout the whole book actually made sense! I became so attached to headstrong, clever, cynical Neema, who knew her own flaws and loved herself for them. It was SO refreshing to read about a rational FMC who didn’t make silly mistakes for the sake of the plot.

The dialogue in this book was everything - so many hidden meanings that I couldn’t guess, and best of all chaotic banter and one liners that had me cackling. The side characters were fleshed out and I became so invested in every single one of them. I loved reading about the omnipresent guardians who were the absolute opposite of benevolent.

As a romantasy girly, I wasn’t sure if this would be for me but the world building was so easy because Antonia Hodgson’s seamless storytelling between past and present had me in a chokehold. I also want to note that while the romance was only a subplot, it still broke my heart (in a good way). I honestly can’t wait to see what happens next.

——

Tropes:
- Murder mystery
- Amateur sleuth
- Politics and secrets
- Underdog / outsider MC
- Reluctant hero
- Found family
- Second chance
- Closed door spice

Firstly, I loved this book! to the point I had trouble putting it down and finished in 3 days!

In 'The Raven Scholar' by Antonia Hodgson, readers are introduced to a richly imagined world where the characters embody one of six animal "personas".
Neema, the main character, stands out as a reluctant heroine with a penchant for order and organization—think excel spreadsheets and daily planners. Hodgson deftly navigates the complexities of this fantastical realm, showcasing a diverse cast and whilst the character development is intriguing, there are moments when certain characters could benefit from more depth, leaving myself eager for further exploration in the next installment.

Overall, 'The Raven Scholar' is a delightful entry into a captivating universe that promises further adventures. Hodgson's skillful storytelling and engaging prose make it easy to overlook these minor flaws. The anticipation for the next book in the series is palpable, as readers will undoubtedly want to delve deeper into the lives of these fascinating characters and the world they inhabit.

-Slow Burn
- Competition for the Throne
- Second Chance
- Magical Animals

As an avid fantasy reader, I was extremely excited to read this one. The premise had me curious, but the execution left me wanting.

The writing is so-so, easy to read but the pacing is slow with weirdly placed descriptions - I found instead of describing something relevant to building the world, words were wasted describing something completely random.

I did enjoy the world building (the story telling felt extremely slow though) and the factions, and I love how each group functioned. I am a sucker for magical elements and I loved this system, not everyone has access to magic and it takes time and sacrifice.

I found the character connection a little weak, there was no tension or build up and I felt it was very beginner tropey - everything was just extremely obvious. I wouldve liked to have seen further development.

Oooooh this was a ride! MAGNIFICENT (surely there's no other way to describe this book? IYKYK)
I thoroughly enjoyed this first installment in a new epic fantasy and can't wait to see where the story goes next. The world that Antonia Hodgson has crafted is rich, detailed and full of it's own history. The characters were fully formed, with their own motivations and complications and traits and i loved it all. This was twisty and turny and I did have to pick my jaw up off the floor more than a couple of times.
Thanks so much to NetGalley and Hachette for the eARC and opportunity to read this one early!

Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Australia & New Zealand for a copy of this e-arc.

What a great read.

I always, always, always love a murder mystery in my fantasy novels. <spoiler>Not only did we have our main murder mystery but we also had other mysteries on top of that, like who is the emperor really? Yana also continued to haunt the entire book despite departing really early on! She had such a presence in the book which I really liked.</spoiler>

I did struggle in perhaps the first 25% as almost everyone seemed pretty unlikable up until that point, but it certainly turned around! I found myself softening to (almost) all of the characters, especially the contenders.

The worldbuilding and histories are quite fleshed out and in-depth with a scattering of footnotes throughout. There's clearly been a lot of effort there.

I didn't feel the length of this book at all and it was a nice pace and progression for me.

I can't wait to see where this series goes!

Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Australia and New Zealand for the eARC.

The Raven Scholar was not what I expected, in the best way possible.

This first book in the trilogy is a magnificent epic fantasy with twists and turns that will keep you reading to all hours of the night. It is slow to start, as many epic fantasies are, with rich world building and introduction of all the important player. We follow Neema who is as delightful as she is imperfect - a High Scholar forced to turn Contender and Investigator when one of the contenders to the crown is killed.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and can't wait for the next one.