Bookgab: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
publisher/year:September 18th 2012 by Scholastic Press
genre: Fantasy
What’s it about?
‘There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve. Either you’re his true love... or you killed him.’
Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon to be dead walk past. Blue never sees them-until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks to her.
His name is Gancey, and he’s a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble. But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul whose emotions range from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher who notices many things but says very little.
For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She doesn't believe in true love and never thought this would be a problem. But as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.
The Review
I went into this book very cavalier in some ways because I’ve read one book by Maggie Stiefvater in the past, Shiver, and I walked away less than enthused about the rest of that specific series which lead to me not wanting to pick up the rest of the books and avoiding Maggie’s work all together. After starting The Raven Boys on my 12 hour bus ride home from university I soon found that it definitely will not be the case this time around!
The Raven Boys is fast paced with plot twists almost around every corner. I simply couldn't get enough of it. Just when I thought that I knew what was going to happen Maggie turns around and has me fail miserably but that is what I really appreciated about this book. The blurb on the back of the novel should be rewritten in my opinion because it sells the whole story short. What I expected to be an insta-love Edward and Bella rendition turned out to be a lot more with characters that I found myself investing in, rooting for and at times confused by.
Maggie did a terrific job with each and every one of these characters, I felt like I knew them all. I also loved the fact that the book was written in third person which meant that we were given an inside whirl inside most of the characters thoughts at random moments throughout the book. It kept everything very exciting and it made the reader, character bond so much easier to form or the reader hate character bond (some characters had major issues that I simply could not deal with).
The protagonist Blue is a sixteen year old girl with major boy problems and a house filled to the brim with psychics, her mother included. Blue however was not graced with the gift the rest of the women had but she some how magnified their gifts which made her as they put it the Starbucks table everyone had to have, near the plug. Obviously this was not what Blue wanted, she wanted to see more than we mere mortals which is what made her reconsider her policy towards boys, specifically the Raven Boys and I must say I’m so glad she does think twice.
Why you may ask? Because A; Adam and B; they are a crazy bunch of boys but weirdly troubled which is something I really appreciated. The friendship between Gansey, Adam, Ronan and Noah is one that can be admired. Even though I found it a little weirdly intimate at times I could see that it was raw and real which is what fuelled my Maggie appreciation. Let’s just say I’m a fan.
There is one thing however that I didn’t appreciate. Seeing that this is such a crucial element and that I’m willing or more than willing actually to continue with this series I advise you to not read too much into my last impression but I feel it must be said. The ending left me seriously dumbfounded and not in a good way. Compared to the rest of the novel the ending and the climax was rushed and confusing! My feelings toward one of the characters were seriously called into question but before I knew it, everything was over and I seemed to be the only one confused as to why things were being swept under the rug and everything was back to normal again? Seriously? That’s it? I understand that this is a series and that some things have to remain unsaid but with two chapters remaining you can’t tell me that you couldn’t spare a few sentences to clear up the mess?
Ahhh anyway...I don’t want to go into too much detail because I don’t want to spoil any of the major plot twists that left me reeling and very much devouring the story word for word! I will say that this book takes psychics, magic, death and (weirdly enough) energy lines to a whole new level that the possibility of each of those things seem a lot more plausible (Thanks for the nightmares btw).
Who do I recommend this to?
If you like food or air than I definitely recommend this to you! Haha if that’s too broad than I’ll recommend this to people who love paranormal books in general and books where love and romance plays a role but it doesn’t completely dominate the story. I for one had a blast and I’m sure you will too.:)
Have you read this book? What were your thoughts? Also if you have read the rest of the series let me know if they get bad or if they stay this awesome? I don't want to be dissapointed :(
About the Author
New York Times bestselling author of The Shiver Trilogy, The Raven Cycle, and The Scorpio Races. Artist. Driver of things with wheels. Avid reader.
All of Maggie Stiefvater's life decisions have been based around her inability to be gainfully employed. Talking to yourself, staring into space, and coming to work in your pajamas are frowned upon when you're a waitress, calligraphy instructor, or technical editor (all of which she's tried), but are highly prized traits in novelists and artists. She's made her living as one or the other since she was 22. She now lives an eccentric life in the middle of nowhere, Virginia with her charmingly straight-laced husband, two kids, two neurotic dogs, and a 1973 Camaro named Loki.
find maggie:
website: http://www.maggiestiefvater.com
twitter name: @mstiefvater
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