Title: The Hob’s Bargain
Author: Patricia Briggs
Publisher: Ace Fantasy
Publication date: 2001
Length: 288 pages
Genre: Fantasy
Source: Purchased
Rating:
Beauty and The Beast
Hated and feared, magic was banished from the land. But now, freed from the spells of the wicked bloodmages, magic—both good and evil—returns. And Aren of Fallbrook feels her own power of sight strengthen and grow…
Overcome by visions of mayhem and murder, Aren vows to save her village from the ruthless raiders who have descended upon it—and killed her family. With the return of wildlings to the hills and forests, she strikes a bargain with the Hob, a magical, human-like creature imbued with the power of the mountains. But the Hob is the last of his kind. And he will exact a heavy price to defend the village—a price Aren herself must pay…
I adore the Mercy Thompson and Alpha & Omega series by Patricia Briggs — intricately plotted urban fantasy with stand-out characters, relationships, and group dynamics, high stakes, and even plenty of humor. Each new release is an event to celebrate!
I’ve always been curious about the author’s earlier works. Prior to Mercy, she’d published a few different fantasy books — a couple of duologies and a four-book series — and one stand-alone, The Hob’s Bargain. And while I’ve had The Hob’s Bargain on my shelf for years now, this week was the week when I finally decided to read it.
The book starts with a bang: Aren wakes up the morning after her wedding night feeling happy and hopeful, only to be struck by a vision. Aren has the sight, something she’s kept hidden all her life, since mages are hunted down and forced to either join the evil Bloodmages who support the land’s rulers through death magic or be executed. Aren’s vision is too late to prevent what she sees: A horde of raiders descends upon her peaceful village, and kills everyone who opposes them. Within a few short hours, Aren loses her parents, her pregnant sister, and her husband.
From here, conditions in Fallbrook get even worse. A binding that has kept the land’s natural magic under tight control is removed, and the resulting earthquake causes mountains to fall, shutting off all passages in and out of the village. The wildlings — magical creatures of the earth, forests, rivers, and mountains — begin to stir, and they’re not happy with the humans. Fallbrook is threatened by both the wildlings and the continued presence of the raiders. Once Aren reveals her sight and her access to magical gifts, she finds herself despised by many of the villagers — but also in a position where she may be the only one who can save them.
The Hob’s Bargain is an entertaining read, although the plot and characters feel a tad underbaked and rushed. At various points, I found myself confused by new developments or statements, not entirely clear how we got from point A to point B.
Still, it’s quite fun to read this early book and see seeds of themes and patterns that feature in the Mercy-verse — different types of magic and magical beings, the way humans and non-humans interact, and the dynamics between humans with powers and those without.
Overall, I’m glad to have read The Hob’s Bargain — but for those looking to experience the joys of a Patricia Briggs book, I strongly urge you to jump straight to Moon Called, the very first Mercy book. I can pretty much guarantee that once you read one, you won’t want to stop.
For a complete reference guide to all Patricia Briggs book, see here.
And enjoy these other covers for The Hob’s Bargain:
Bookshelf Fantasies 
Your review is tempting me to try this, but with 3 stars, I’d probably try the Mercy series instead. I do love seeing the alternate covers!
If you’re at all interested in Patricia Briggs (YES!!!), then I’d say do start with the Mercy books. The series is amazing. This book was good as a curiosity, but not nearly as polished or immersive.
I have similar attitudes towards her books. Love Mercy Thompson and Alpha & Omega, and have been curious about the others. I only recently realized the others are earlier works, however. Anyways, I started Masques a little while ago (and had to put it down soon after due to the descriptions of the character’s PTSD she developed due to events in the first pages. I’ll get back to it eventually), and there’s an introduction written for it describing how she’s esentially re-written the story as we see it now (as it was published in the 90s), because she wrote it *really* early in her career, and she realized how much the writing needed improving! She said she tried to leave some of the awkwardness and other flaws in it, as it would’ve been a different story otherwise, but she did greatly expand upon it and try to resolve some of the content problems with it (fill holes in plot etc.) I’m not describing it very well, but I found it fascinating to read, and to realize where it falls in her personal chronology.
She said by the time she started writing Mercedes Thompson, her writing had matured greatly, and as such, that series is much better than her earlier stuff. (And she thanks her readers for hanging in with her until she got to that point. She says without the interest in her early writing, there never would’ve been a Mercedes Thompson series, much less an Alpha and Omega!)
That’s fascinating! Thanks for sharing this. Maybe I’ll try Masques eventually. I do love Mercy et al so much!
I didn’t even know she’s written an earlier fantasy book. I do really love her Mercy Thompson books! I’ve got the new one on hold at my library and can’t wait for it to come in. 😀
I can’t wait! I’m planning to reread (listen) to the previous one between now and the new book release. 🙂