THE RAVEN BOYS BY MAGGIE STIEFVATER

Genre: YA, Paranormal

Series: The Raven Cycle

“Aglionby Academy was the number one reason Blue had developed her two rules: One, stay away from boys because they were trouble. And two, stay away from Aglionby boys, because they were bastards.”
― Maggie Stiefvater, The Raven Boys

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.

A unique paranormal story laced with swoon worthy boys, a sassy girl, awesome and quirky ladies of 300 Fox Way, mystery, twists and loads of questions.

I have to say I am usually not a huge fan of stories being told from multiple perspectives, but the way that Maggie Stiefvater wrote and executed the story it did not phase me as much while reading. She does have a unique way of writing that took me a little bit of getting use to. She created some amazing characters that were so full of life and personality. They all hard such different quirks and it was refreshing and definitely made me fall in love with all of the characters. The story was complex and layered with suspense, surprises and shocking moments that were captivating and drew me into the story completely. I think this is the first book in awhile that has gotten me so involved and lost in the story that I was questioning everything and noticing things I don’t believe I would have if the writing didn’t engulf me into the world Maggie Stiefvater created. The writing towards the end did make me a little angry and the way the story left off and how it was ended was really frustrating (and its not just because it was a type of cliff hanger) and slightly turned me off a little from the book. (Only slightly)

The story was weaved together through the eyes and perspective of all the characters and there was a lot of work put into the plot and the setting, but to be completely honest my love for this book relies mostly on the characters! Blue was sassy and quirky and so confident in herself (although she did fall a little flat at the beginning for me and annoyed me a little later on in the book). The house full of psychics was a great addition to the story and although they were only secondary characters those woman were so quirky, witty and I couldn’t help, but laughing at their dialogue. And those boys! I could so turn this review into a complete fangirl and swooning post about the Raven Boys from Aglionby.  All of the boys had such different personalities and it was hard to choose my favorite, but I think it was totally Adam! The relationship between all of this boys was fantastic. They are a motley crew and at times it is crazy that they are all friends, but throughout the book you see how much they care for each other as they all work through their own issues and problems.

Overall I highly recommend this read. It is a breath of fresh air in the YA paranormal genre and has so many components going on that you can’t help but to get drawn in and try to figure out what is going to happen and what consequences will fall upon them.

This was the first book read for The Future Cat Ladies of America Book Club! To check out the discussions and other posts that were done by Autumn @Kitty Cat Reads and I throughout the month based on the book follow the links below!

♠ Reaction Post Week One

♠ Reaction Post Week Two

♠ The Raven Boys Fancast

♠ Reaction Post Week Three

♠ Reaction Post Week Four

We would love for you to join us in August, look out for the post announcing the August book of the month!