The Raven Scholar Review: Deadly Tournament, Murder Mystery, and My New Fantasy Obsession

The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson is hands down the most fun and unique fantasy story I’ve read this year. It came into my life with the April 2025 Illumicrate box. It was one of those months I decided not to skip because I knew I was going to skip a bunch of the upcoming releases, and I really wanted to keep my subscription active.

The premise of this book sounded like a fun read: a murder mystery wrapped in a deadly competition for the crown. Nothing groundbreaking, but solid. Honestly, I wasn’t that invested at first — but after watching Cari Can Read, one of my favorite YouTubers, talk so passionately about it, I decided to give it a chance. The Raven Scholar is one of the most exciting new fantasy releases of 2025 — and it’s already among my favorite books of all time.

The Raven Scholar Book Summary (Spoiler-Free)

The story follows Neema Kraa, an unpopular royal scholar from the House of the Raven, who, after the murder of her guild’s champion, is tasked with leading the investigation — and at the same time is asked to become the Raven champion, to participate in the tournament where the best of each guild compete for the crown. No pressure… Of course, our protagonist will discover that there is a much darker situation brewing behind this murder, which will set in motion a way bigger plot — as almost always happens with this kind of story.

What Makes The Raven Scholar a Must-Read Fantasy?

The characters, without a doubt. They are fantastically written, very complex and multilayered, and some of them, like Cain, are just so much fun to follow around. All of them have a depth you don’t often see in fantasy stories. They’re not simply good or evil — they can be kind-hearted and generous. But they’re also selfish or ambitious enough to do questionable things to get what they want. None of them fit the exact mold of heroes and villains, which makes the story even juicier.

Also, can we appreciate the fact that our main characters are in their 30s and they actually act like people of that age? Older characters aren’t something you see a lot in the genre, and when you do find them, they often behave like teenagers with too much freedom. This was a very refreshing element in the story.

The world — and especially its religious system — is really cool. It reminded me a bit of the Chinese Zodiac, but with a twist. There are eight deities, each tied to a House with specific roles: Ravens are academics and lawyers, Hounds handle security, Ox are engineers and builders, Monkeys are artists, Foxes are spies and assassins, Tigers are warriors, Bears are caregivers, and Dragons wield dangerous magic. Characters’ personalities are shaped by the Houses they belong to, which creates fascinating dynamics — and later in the story, a big reveal makes this system even more compelling.

The writing style is also impeccable. The prose is straightforward — clear and concise without being flowery — but it’s filled with moments that make you pause and reflect. Hodgson has a way of phrasing things that gives the story an understated beauty. The plot is fast-paced and cleverly structured, with so many twists that it’s impossible to guess where it’s going until you hit that inevitable point of no return — something I personally find very satisfying.

The Raven Scholar Review: My Verdict

The Raven Scholar is probably my favorite 2025 fantasy book release so far, and it currently sits very high up in my all-time favorites ranking. If you are a fan of fantasy tropes like deadly tournaments, friends-to-lovers stories, morally gray characters, murder mystery plots, and stories with deep underlying social commentary, I’m sure you will also love this book.