Antonia Hodgson

I didn’t realize I was getting into an epic fantasy trilogy, and might not have picked this up if I had — that said, it’s excellent. Great world building, with cool animal spirit based houses competing for a crown. That’s extremely oversimplified but also a pleasing draw. The characters kept me coming back — Neema and Cain, the dragon affected family, the whole unfolding tragedy of betrayals. The visuals are also compelling and imaginative. I could see this as a tv adaptation, I show more very much enjoyed the inner dialogues of the Raven and the Fox. This feels like a very twisty road that I hope comes good. show less

The Silver Collar sees a welcome return for Thomas 'Half-Hanged' Hawkins. This is book four of his adventures and it can be read as a standalone story as everything that came before is explained in enough detail. However, I can heartily recommend books 1-3 if you want to start at the beginning.

The Silver Collar begins with Thomas living happily with Kitty Sparks at her (rather scandalous) bookshop, The Cocked Pistol. The year is 1728. However, I would have been amazed if Antonia Hodgson let show more Thomas live carefree for long. Trouble seems to follow him around and he has the most incredible escapades. He is the very definition of a loveable rogue, living on his wits and his charm. He's an absolutely brilliant protagonist.

Indeed, his contentment is short-lived. Why does somebody want him dead and who is the mysterious Lady Vanhook? Well, there's a lot beneath the surface in this story, and Kitty takes a step forward into the limelight this time as her past returns to haunt her. With themes of slavery as well, this is a book that is packed full of intriguing tales and capers galore.

Hodgson writes such an engaging narrative for her characters. There was a lot that made me giggle (Thomas and Kitty are a naughty pair) and the book is such an enjoyable romp, but there are also very serious and thoughtful strands too. With settings to thrust the reader right into the heart of the 18th century, a storyline that both delights and dismays, and characters that provoke strong feelings, The Silver Collar is an utterly engrossing read.

I hope we'll see Thomas and Kitty again in a fifth instalment of their exploits. I feel there are lots more tricky situations they could find themselves in. I sincerely hope so! show less

The Raven Scholar does tropey semi-YA fantasy better than an of the other's I've read. By that I mean we have an appealing fish-out-of-water protagonist who has to navigate some kind of cliquey contest with a great reward and even greater consequences for failure while also dealing romantic entanglements and growing up.

In this case, our protagonist is Neema, the immensely competent Scholar from the Raven Temple. The Orrun Empire has lasted over 1500 years on the back of a tradition of show more aristocratic selection. Each emperor reigns for 24 years, and none may pick their successor. Instead, the chosen champions of the eight temples, each associated with a mythical guardian animal a bureaucratic task and a personality type (Ravens are studious scholars, Foxes are crafty spies, Hounds are loyal guards, Bears brave warriors, etc) compete in an 8 day long trial of fights and tests, and whoever gets the most points is the new emperor. The current emperor Bersun is just coming up on the end of his rule, and the new contest will start in a few days.

A commoner, she was ostracized by other Ravens despite being best in her class for years running. She achieved her current rank by scribing the Imperial Writ of Exile for Yana, the daughter of an infamous traitor who attempted a coup, since as an otherwise unremarkable junior clerk she had the best handwriting. This first service catapulted her up the ranks, as she became a friend and confidant to the Emperor. It also made her a bunch of enemies, including her BFF and lover, the Fox Cain, who thought that "just following orders" was no excuse to send an innocent girl to a horrific death with your name on a parchment stitched into her chest.

And now, 8 years later, Neema is very much looking forward to a quiet retirement once her role organizing the current Trials is over. Except the real Raven Candidate, her nemesis Gaida, is found dead, stabbed by a blade cursed to usher in the apocalypse the next time it kills a person. Neema is quickly assigned to investigate the murder, compete in the trials, and also prevent the end of the world. And the other complication is that many of the other competitors have very personal stakes. Cain is competing for the Foxes, and they haven't spoken in eight years. Tiger Ruko got his position by chosing the exile of his twin sister Yana. Hound Shal escorted Yana to her exile and death. Amazing how in a big empire, everything can hinge on a small room's worth of people.

The writing, which is compelling and quickly paced, elevates this book. I would have read it in a single sitting, but 8 PM - 4 AM and sleep is close enough. While Hodgson plays with tropes, she isn't their slave. The competitors are able professionals around 30 who have trained extensively, not teenagers infinitely over their head. The romance between Neema and Cain is marked by emotional maturity, and there's no obligatory love triangle. While the setting has some political and social silliness, the mythic aspects hang together.

The one fly in the ointment is a rather weird moment of pacing, where a completely unnecessary chapter reveals the true antagonist to the reader well before the characters find out, drawing the punch from what could have been a truly fantastic ending. It's fine, but it's weird that it made it through editing. show less

London in the 1720s, Thomas Hawkins is still living with Kitty but has decided that he needs to make his own money and starts to 'help' people. Kitty is being pressured to close her booksellers by Gonson the magistrate but one evening she is kidnapped. Her supposedly dead mother has returned from Antigua and is hellbent on taking Kitty's money by claiming she is mad. Thomas tried to find Kitty, his search even more desperate as he knows Kitty is pregnant.
Hodgson's books are always brilliant show more but I loved this one especially. Focusing in on two abuses of liberty - slavery and asylums - she educates the reader whilst they are enjoying an exciting plot. Here the anti-hero Hawkins develops some maturity and a strong conscience. As ever the sense of time and place is superb. show less