Book Review: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

They were always walking away from him. But he never seemed able to walk away from them

I read The Raven Boys Cycle for the Series Crackdown readathon to force myself to get beyond my hate for Shiver and finally read something more by Maggie Stiefvater. I don’t care yet for this series, but it is better.

Book Review: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Rating:


Title & Author: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Fantasy, Romance
Release Date: September 18 2012
Series: The Raven Cycle
Publisher: Scholastic Press

Synopsis

It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.

His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is 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 has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, 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 never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.

I give The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater three out of five hearts. I didn’t care for the characters but think the series has potential.

I liked the synopsis of The Raven Boys and that is why I put the series on my TBR a very long time ago. But then I read Shiver first, which was the worst idea ever. I hated the book so much I was really hesitant to start on The Raven Boys.

The characters came across as well developed but not really well described and because of this I didn’t understand Blue’s motivations well. The same goes for Gansey and Adam. I also had a hard time keeping them seperated when the pov switched between these characters. Only Blue stood really out from the other two.

The story itself was interesting, but the world does seems to be a little bit the same from other series. The element that I liked the Glendower. It seemed something new compared to the rest of the story. I am curious what more information the series will throw at me.

Overall I think my first impression of Maggie Stiefvater was wrong. Maybe Shiver is not the best series to read for me, but The Raven Boys Cycle has potential. Since I read this book for the Series Crackdown readathon, I will try and finish the series completely.

Let me know what you thought of this book!
If you have any requests for which book I should talk about next, please let me know in the comments down below.

For now, let books enrich your life!

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