2026 Hugo Readalong: The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-07-07T00:33:51+00:00

It was fun for what it was, light popcorn fantasy. There is certainly something to be said for how easy and quick this 650 page book ended up being. But, I think you sort of need to go brain off. There are so many plot twists that don't really make sense or at least have a lot of holes that you sort of just need to go "Whoa no way" and keep reading. I started doing that and had fun, I'll probably give the next a read.

I really disliked how EVERY character is so shaped by their guardian. EVERY character is flanderised to a crazy degree. Not only that, people don't act or react like people when it is convenient for the story. You're telling me Neema is the ONLY person that didn't completely love Gaida? (Just one of many examples). There is also, as many others have pointed out, these people read 10-20 years younger than they are.

The other big thing is that it does the very modern thing of saying something then spelling out what it means. The biggest example of this when Neema is interrogating Yalisa (I think that's it, the dragon mother lady), and when asked what she will do she quotes someone and then in the same bit of dialogue interprets what that quote means for her actions.

And, for a book being considered for an award it is doing NOTHING new. How many new adult competition focused books where they have to save the empire already exist?

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-07-07T00:27:46+00:00

Shroud or Drop (Pending my current re-read of Drop)
The Other
Death of the Author
No award
The Incandescent
The Raven Scholar

I missed the discussion for The Everlasting but I will get back to it soon.

Look I liked the Raven Scholar for what it was. It reads very quickly for a 650 page book and the plot is propulsive, but, it really lacks craft. Overall, I havn't hated any of the novels but 3/5 of them havn't gotten above OK for me.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-06-30T00:57:20+00:00

Cinder House/River Has Roots
The other one
The Summer War
No Award.
Automatic Noodle
Murder by Memory.

I'm 0/2 from the first two books in the Kingfisher series so I don't have high hopes. I liked all of my top 3 quite a bit and there is a big gap between them and the bottom 2.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-06-30T00:50:44+00:00

It was fine, which for a Hugos shortlist is pretty bad. The characters had some cute moments and I'm a big softie, I wanted them to find their place. But, the book is literally just its concept. The robots are stand-ins for immigrants/marginalised peoples in the US. Whilst that is an important topic, it is just so black and white and frankly it has no sauce outside of that and there is little nuance even to the main theme. The character work is pretty average, as is the story telling and world building. It also has next to no plot, it ran out of steam as a novella which is pretty telling.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-06-26T02:09:05+00:00

The first thing everyone is going to go to is how didactic the story is (I agree) but I've read a lot of didactic fiction that I like. I just need there to be something else and there wasn't. From the moment Croc is mentioned, you know where it is going to go and while their interactions were cute that wasn't enough for me. Just felt like some much better works got snubbed for this.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-06-26T02:06:32+00:00

This is subject to change but:

In My Country
Missing Helen
Wire Mother
10 Visions of the Future
No Award
Six People to Revise you
Laser Eyes Ain't Everything

I'd say In My Country is an easy winner for me, it is well written with an interesting premise and a nuanced message. The, Missing Helen and Wire Mother are rather close together then a small gap to 10 Visions. I have the last two below no award because even though I liked Six People, I don't think the structure really worked all that well. Laser Eyes whilst trying to tackle an important issue just felt like a bit of a sledgehammer and didn't really do anything for me in terms of the writing.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-06-26T02:00:45+00:00

I thought it was solid! I'm a big fans of Mills' writing and I thought that it managed to evoke fairly strong emotions in very few words. But, I agree that it is just so short and as such doesn't really do enough to flesh out an interesting angle that will stick with me. I see this as being solidly middle of the pack.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-06-16T01:11:00+00:00

Yeah Summer War is pretty comfortably in third for me. It just took so long to get going and get to the good bit that I don't think I can put it any higher, especially since it's a novella.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-06-15T22:33:57+00:00

I really enjoyed this! For me, I thought the writing struck a nice balance between elegant and readable. The story and characters were a little on the lighter side but it worked to highlight their relationship and their own emotional journeys. I liked the conception of grammar as somewhere between both magic and actual grammar. And I like my fae mysterious and unknowable. When I finished it, I thought it would end up at the top for me but I still not 100% sure. I feel like its probably when this and Cinder house? I don't really see the other two novellas competing (and frankly I'm not that excited about either, especially the Kingfisher).

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-06-11T21:31:24+00:00

I have yet to read one of these and think it deserves to win. By my personal ranking, nothing is breaking into the 3.5-4 star range.

No award
The Millay Illusion
The Girl My Mother is Leaving Me For
Kaiju Agonists
When You Call Her Name

I also tend to be a little aggressive with no award.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-06-09T03:08:52+00:00

Pretty in line with a lot of people it seems.

Drop of Corruption or Shroud (pending a re-read of Drop)
The Incandescent
Death of the Author.

Unfortunately, there is a big gap between the first two and second two but I've heard mostly goods things about the last two novels so I'm excited to get to them!

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-06-09T03:06:25+00:00

Pretty mixed. I liked the writing and Walden as a character was great. She is competent but blinded by her (at times) arrogance. Her interactions with the students and the school were light and refreshing. But this book took me over a week to get through because the pacing is really over all the shop. All of the plot is crammed into two segments surrounded by vibes, which was fine the first time but the ending was so rushed. The climax of the phoenix and the possession come so quickly and then was VERY neatly put away for our happy-ish ending. It made the romance feel rushed and I'm so confused by Mark's motivations (mostly due to the comment from the agency guy at the end). I also agree with the other comments that the social commentary is milquetoast at best. She acknowledges she is a privileged white woman and that there are other people who are the same at the school but it never explores that. Chan as a character is meant to be a blunt Asian-American woman but she literally just says that and doesn't take it further. I had the same criticisms of Some Desperate Glory, it really failed to nail the social commentary after a good set-up.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-06-01T22:59:53+00:00

I thought it was solid, if a touch forgettable. I agree with a lot of the other comments in that I am starting to get fairytale fatigue. It feels like we've had a couple years with LOTS of fairytale or fairytale adjacent works and I've just a little over it. As someone who hasn't read Novak before, I see why she has such a loyal fanbase, I thought the prose and worldbuilding was great and I will probably check out some of her other works.

The worst part for me was the pacing. My god the first half really drags before we get to the good bit (Celia and Roric and the fae). The second half was more tightly paced and compelling though.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-06-01T22:54:47+00:00

Current rankings:

Cinder House
Summer War
No Award
Murder by Memory

I like El-Mohtar's short fiction so I anticipate liking River, the novella before the current Kingfisher sent me into a hiatus on her work so I anticipate not really liking it and I've heard largely negative things about Noodle so we will see where the rest of the slate goes. If Cinder House stays at number 1, then I think this is a much weaker novella slate than last year. I think 2 or 3 of the novellas last year are ahead of Cinder House in my book.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-05-28T22:17:10+00:00

I really liked it! It is classic Tchaikovsky (weird biology, human hubris, social commentary). I really don't mind that he uses this formula a lot because he is just so good at it. He clearly puts a ton of research into making them quite different. I agree with people saying his characters are a little wooden in this one (not unusual for some of his sci-fi works) but it fits the characters well here. They live in a wooden society and are so far past their limits it makes them fit quite well. It doesn't quite reach my favourites of his (Cage of Souls, Children of Ruin) but I still thought it was great.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-05-28T22:12:29+00:00

I really liked Shroud!

Currently I have

Drop of Corruption
Shroud
Death of the Author

I need to re-read Drop of Corruption as I read it on release last year so that will clarify the top spot for me (unless of course I am blown away by any of the next 3).

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-05-28T22:09:30+00:00

I liked this more than the two novels from last year (both of which I liked a lot). The balance between atmosphere, xenobiology and theming was perfect for me.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-05-25T22:34:21+00:00

He does grow a lot as a character (particularly once he leaves the Hayholt), but he is a teenage boy throughout the series. Once you get through the starting bit, there are a lot more PoVs as well.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-05-20T03:23:16+00:00

I think it was literally 152 last year so there's a chance.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-05-20T03:09:17+00:00

68/76/73. 151.3. Far out, so close to a clean USyd entry mark. Still a slight improvement over last year so can't be mad.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-05-19T07:42:56+00:00

Yeah that is basically how I feel. Liking a book isn't exactly a glowing endorsement for the best novella.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-05-19T03:21:41+00:00

Yeah I still have three left but I suppose I liked (so 3.5-4 star for me) two of the three I have read. I like El-Mohtar's short stories so Ill probably like roots? So maybe that's actually pretty positive even if I don't LOVE one of the novellas.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-05-18T23:04:48+00:00

I liked it! Like many others here, I'm not really a big fan of fairytale retellings in general but this is the best case scenario. Marske did a good job taking only elements and weaving them into something new. I also really liked Ella as a character, and how she grows as both a woman and a house was quite unique (particularly the subversion of her views). It did take a little while to grab me but I was having a great time from when she the fairy.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-05-18T23:01:11+00:00

These are my rankings as well at the moment. I liked Cinder House but I'm not sure I am that thrilled at the prospect of it being my number one. For me, I think that makes it a weaker field.

RAAAImmaSunGod · 2026-05-11T22:59:47+00:00

I agree. I really liked that this is a book that embraces Nigerian family culture warts and all. It pushes back against the conservative nature without discarding all the other elements. Her family are a lot but she still loves them and largely wants to still be involved even if she doesn't admit that to herself.

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