REVIEW: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

(This is actually a review for my reread of this book. if you would like to check out the original, CLICK HERE)

INFORMATION:

Title/Author: The Raven Boy by Maggie Stiefvater

Series: The Raven Cycle #1

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Release Date: September 18, 2012

Genre: YA, Fantasy, Paranormal

ISBN: 9780545424929

SYNOPSIS:

“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love . . . or you killed him.”

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.

MY THOUGHTS:

I still cannot believe that this was my second time reading this book. I originally read it so long ago that I forgot the majority of this novel. Although I had my pros and cons for this novel, I still found myself genuinely falling in love with the characters as I did the first time.

The beginning of this novel wasn’t as good as I remembered it to be. I had a hard time getting through the first one hundred pages for two reasons: 1) it was slightly confusing and 2) i wasn’t in the mood for mythology. I feel like a lot of people can agree with me when I say that it is confusing. We have a variety of different characters, of all ages, who are on a search for a particular ley line in Henrietta, Virginia. But then there is also Blue, who gets pulled into the search after an encounter on St. Mark’s Eve. It is a lot to take in within the first one hundred pages, but it is totally worth it.

As I said above, I also wasn’t really in the mood for mythology. A great amount of this novel is about Welsh mythology. Both ley lines and a man named Glendower are frequently mentioned throughout the novel. It just so happens that The Raven Boys, Blue, and another suspicious man are on the hunt to find Glendower and rumour has it that his resting place is on one of the ley lines.

My love for Blue’s eccentric life strengthened through my reread. I always wish that I was as brave as her, but I don’t think I will ever be. Her spiky, clipped back hair and her recycled clothing are just what you can see on the outside. But her rebellious, loving mentality sets her apart from other fictional characters. I swear, you will never read about another character like Blue!

And then “The Raven boys,” also known as four troubled boys who just so happen to wear Aglionby Academy sweaters. Gansey was definitely my favorite out of the four boys and I still don’t know why! He is just such a kind, determined man. But, I will say that Ronan comes in as a close second. He’s the type of bad boy you really don’t want to mess with. I will admit, I didn’t really care for either Noah or Adam. they didn’t really appeal to me as unique characters.

I really loved how much research I can only assume that Maggie Stiefvater put into this book. I could see the idea for this novel coming to mind easily but she had to have done some research about Glendower, Ley Lines, and Psychics to get this book to its final publication.

If there is any scene that has stuck with me through both of my read-throughs, it is when Blue is serving tables at the local diner and she first meets the Raven Boys. I absolutely adored how Gansey walked up to Blue to try to hook her up with Adam. And, the name President Cell Phone is pretty suiting for him.

Overall, I gave this book 3.5/5 stars. I expected it to be a little better than it was, but it was still a really good books. I cannot wait to jump into The Dream Thieves soon! I have heard that we get a lot of Ronan in it, which excites me!

THAT’S IT FOR TODAY! I hope you enjoyed my review! Don’t forget to like,comment and follow for more posts!

Happy Reading!

~Alaina