On a crag overlooking the western coast of Harlaw, opposite the Readers' Ten Towers in the east, sits the Tower of Glimmering. Its master, the humpbacked Hotho Harlaw, will one day rule the entire island. Or so he believes....
I wanted to take a look at an almost never discussed minor character and schemer who I think is pretty intriguing , Hotho Harlaw also known as Hotho 'Humpback', one of the many cousins of Rodrik the Reader vying to follow him as Lord of Harlaw , and who I believe (despite only being in a smattering of appearances across four chapters) may have a larger role in store for him as a mini-villain of sorts. He doesn't seem like much now but he keeps popping up in unexpected margins of the story and I think its kind of like how GRRM hid characters with larger futures in the Oldtown prologue (namely Alleras and Leo) amongst the bit players so as not to tip his hand too early.
We first hear of Hotho in The Kraken's Daughter, where Rodrik the Reader is reading Marwyn's 'Book of Lost Books' in his library tower - a book which Marwyn is said to have discovered three lost pages of Daenys the Dreamer's 'Signs and Portents' detailing her prophetic visions before escaping the Doom of Valyria. Rodrik tells us that the book was brought to him by none other than Hotho Humpback from Oldtown in the hopes that he would consider a marriage to his daughter. And already I feel like we're missing an interesting story here on how Hotho even obtained this book, giving it seemingly being a rare find, and how did he find his way into Oldtown (I don't often picture the ironborn in cities) but alas we can only guess. The hope with Hotho's offer seems pretty clear to me though - Rodrik the Reader is growing older and has no children to follow him... and all of his cousins have ambitions to become the next Lord of Ten Towers - Harras 'the Knight' who wields the valyrian steel sword Nightfall is the current intended next in line, but the older Sigfryd 'Silverhair' wants the position for his grandsons, Boremund 'the Blue' wants it for his sons... and Hotho, Asha tells us, 'has ambitions.' Even Rodrik's elder sister, Gwynesse, still maintains that Ten Towers is hers by rights. A marriage between Rodrik and Hotho's daughter would secure Hotho's line as the heir to Ten Towers though.... a fine plan, except, Rodrik has no real interest in wedding anyone... he just wants to curl up with some nice books. Though he does offer Asha the chance to be his heir if only she stays away from the kingsmoot (she does not).
Hotho next appears in The Iron Captain chapter. His next target? Offering Victarion Greyjoy his daughter's hand in return for his support in the kingsmoot, but again his offer is softly set aside:
>"A king must have an heir," Hotho insisted. "The Crow's Eye brings three sons to show before the kingsmoot."
>"Bastards and mongrels. How old is this daughter?"
>"Twelve," said Hotho. "Fair and fertile, newly flowered, with hair the color of honey. Her breasts are small as yet, but she has good hips. She takes after her mother, more than me."
>Victarion knew that to mean the girl did not have a hump. Yet when he tried to picture her, he only saw the wife he'd killed. He had sobbed each time he struck her, and afterward carried her down to the rocks to give her to the crabs. "I will gladly look at the girl once I am crowned," he said. That was as much as Hotho dared hope for, and he shambled off, content.
An interesting thing to note here is the daughter's hair color... seems like her mother could be from one of the many golden haired Lannister descendants, and her age (12) places her birth just prior to the Greyjoy Rebellion. A captive merchant ship leaving Lannisport perhaps? Not sure...
Even though Harras is Rodriks' heir by his own admission though Victarion is starting to wonder if its not Hotho that represents the next in line:
>"Hotho Humpback has offered me his daughter for my queen. If I take her, I will have the Harlaws."
>That took the girl aback. "Lord Rodrik rules House Harlaw."
>"Rodrik has no daughters, only books. Hotho will be his heir, and I will be the king." Once he had said the words aloud, they sounded true.
but of course they were not true - once the Kingsmoot comes it is Euron, not Victarion, who dazzles the crowd... and even as he does it is Hotho who is the first in line (outside of the crew and supporters Euron brings with him) to take his treasures and shout out his name. So what happened? Looking back we can kinda piece it together - Hotho mentions that Euron had brought three of his own sons to show at the kingsmoot, and if Hotho's prior actions are any indication he probably offered his daughter to Euron the same as Victarion. Euron doesn't care at all for his own sons, he thinks of them as little more than 'baseborn mongrels, born of whores and weepers' so it was probably nothing to give one away and secure Hotho's support, and perhaps one day all of Harlaw's.
Then it was only a matter of making sure his new supporter had the best claim to the island....
Once the Shields are taken one of Euron's many poisoned schemes is to 'gift' the rights of Greyshield to Harras the Knight - which he eagerly accepts in his pride... effectively removing him from the inheritance of Harlaw.
>Hotho Harlaw was across the table, sucking meat off a bone. He flicked it aside and hunched forward. "The Knight's to have Greyshield. My cousin. Did you hear?"
>"No." Victarion looked across the hall, to where Ser Harras Harlaw sat drinking wine from a golden cup; a tall man, long-faced and austere. "Why would Euron give that one an island?"
>Hotho held out his empty wine cup, and a pale young woman in a gown of blue velvet and gilt lace refilled it for him. "The Knight took Grimston by himself. He planted his standard beneath the castle and defied the Grimms to face him. One did, and then another, and another. He slew them all . . . well, near enough, two yielded. When the seventh man went down, Lord Grimm's septon decided the gods had spoken and surrendered the castle." Hotho laughed. "He'll be the Lord of Greyshield, and welcome to it. With him gone, I am the Reader's heir." He thumped his wine cup against his chest. "Hotho the Humpback, Lord of Harlaw."
The Shields are islands which Euron has no real plans to hold out against the Tyrells (though the glory of taking them will remain his forever). In fact, even as the ironborn move near Oldtown Garlan Tyrell has already begun gathering up forces to launch a counterattack (perhaps proving some roses have steel thorns). So Harras might just be out of luck.
But in short in the background of these chapters Hotho's ambitions for the inheritance go from near nothing to being almost fully realized... he's linked himself to the new King of the Iron Islands, had Euron remove Rodrik's intended heir, and is now positioned as the favorite.... only one thing really remains and that is Rodrik the Reader himself, who's been especially critical of Euron's plans.... That's a dangerous position for Rodrik to be in - when Sawane Botley refused Euron's claim to the Seastone Chair, Euron drowned him, then gave most of the Botley land away to his allies in House Wynch before naming the more supportive Germund Botley as the new lord of the remaining lands despite Tristifer being the rightful heir. Likewise, when Baelor Blacktyde refused to acknowledge Euron as his new liege he was cut into seven pieces with Euron claiming and wearing his sable cloak. I can't help but note that in both cases Euron kills them in ways mocking the gods they believe in. Unlike these two though I don't think Rodrik is foolish enough to decline Euron as his lord... in his own words "When you put your name before the captains you submitted yourself to their judgment. You cannot go against that judgment now. Only once has the choice of a kingsmoot been overthrown. Read Haereg." But he does aid Asha in escaping Euron and points her towards the single historic precedent to challenge the kingsmoot in an official capacity, which is especially useful since as we learn later Theon was unable to make his claim the same as Torgon the Latecomer. This could paint a major target on Rodrik's back (one perhaps Hotho will try to claim) if it comes out, if not in the Battle of Blood, then perhaps later if the results of the kingsmoot are called into question assuming Euron needs the support of that island to maintain power. Though removing Rodrik might not go to plan... first of all he's cleverer than these two may realize. But more than that they may be overestimating how much people will unite behind Hotho - almost all of Rodrik's cousins and his elder sister still have ambitions to Ten Towers, I don't see them stepping aside so easily.
Another wrench Rodrik could throw into their plans is to name Asha or Theon as his heir instead of Harras. This was something he'd aready considered for Asha previously but seemed to revoke when she attended the kingsmoot (fearing she was just another crow wanting power).... but then again he also said he wouldn't attend out of fear of Euron butchering the attendees (as Urron Greyiron once did)... and yet when Asha made her pitch he was present and so impressed by her plan for peace he was shouting her name as loudly as any. So maybe he reconsidered that too? Euron has tried to diminish Asha's power by 'marrying' her to Erik Ironmaker using a seal to stand ceremony in her absence. But... that is an unconsummated marriage easily set aside if Asha can find a way to return - especially if, as some theorize, she is already pregnant with Qarl the Maids child as she was unable to brew moon tea before her capture at Deepwood Motte.
In any case I do predict we may see Rodrik the Reader in Oldtown soon via Samwell's pov once the Redwyne fleet is defeated - why? It seems clear to me that while many of the ironborn will wish to plunder Oldtown's riches and treasures, the 'treasures' Rodrik will seek out first are the many books and volumes hidden away in the Citadel. Perhaps even rare tomes like 'The Death of Dragons' stored in its locked vaults. This seems like a pretty likely place to encounter Samwell given his love of reading and his attempts to learn more about the Others too. Perhaps they will even help Rodrik or vice versa. Rodrik should just watch his back if Hotho is on the crew of the Sea Song.... he's wilier than one might expect.