The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater // it legit gave me nightmares and i love it

Nothing living is safe. Nothing dead is to be trusted.

For years, Gansey has been on a quest to find a lost king. One by one, he’s drawn others into this quest: Ronan, who steals from dreams; Adam, whose life is no longer his own; Noah, whose life is no longer a lie; and Blue, who loves Gansey… and is certain she is destined to kill him.

Now the endgame has begun. Dreams and nightmares are converging. Love and loss are inseparable. And the quest refuses to be pinned to a path. 

(This review is SPOILER FREE!)

I always feel that the hardest reviews to write for me are the ones of books that I ADORE. So this review is going to be particularly difficult, because The Raven King absolutely blew my mind. Okay, where do I even begin?

When I finally got The Raven King from my library, I decided to get all the others along with it, and do a reread, because if there's one thing I love about Maggie Stiefvater, it's how her writing has so many layers and how things in previous books pop up later on in the series. Foreshadowing! Symbolism! It's fabulous. So I reread the first three (The Raven Boys, The Dream Thieves, Blue Lily Lily Blue), and finally dove into The Raven King. (I also listened to a reread of The Scorpio Races before this Raven Cycle adventure, so my life was REALLY full of Stiefvater words. This is the opposite of a bad thing.)

The Raven King is absolutely the perfect conclusion to this perfect series. Everything just kept rising towards the inevitable culmination of all the plot threats and - oh dang it was just beautiful. Everything tied up perfectly and, as I had expected, things in the past three books showed up to haunt us in the last one.

If you thought the first three books were getting dark and dramatic, let me tell you - the final chunk of The Raven King had me considering the conclusion that literally everyone was going to die and the world would dissolve in darkness. But at the same time, in between chapters where you legitimately are afraid for the ending of the book, you discover scenes that are some of the happiest and sweetest and squee-worthy in the entire series. And amazingly, it doesn't disrupt the flow at all, or feel in any way out of place. MAGGIE HOW DO YOU DO THIS?

Talking about darkness, the night before I finished the book I decided to put it down for the night since I was waking up early the next morning and couldn't afford a reading-until-midnight sort of thing. I ended at what was one of the aforementioned happy scenes in the midst of horror, and thought it was a good stopping point. Well. Usually I don't have dreams affected by what I think about before bed, but that night I dreamed about about raising people from the dead and black magic and a possessed black raven who talked in my head. NO JOKE, I SWEAR.

Okay I don't know how that is any sort of commendation for this book - "Read The Raven King it will give you creepy dreams!" - but I promise that I am telling you this story with the intention to show you how Maggie's writing worms its way into your head. MY NIGHTMARES ARE A GOOD THING OKAY? ...at least in the context of this review :-P So yes, the dark levels for this were WAY more than the previous books, but dang I loved The Raven King for just how much it freaked me out.

Let's talk characters! Because you all know how much I adore good characters, and Maggie's are some of the best. The development of all the main characters has been spot on throughout the series. I legitimately felt proud for my baby Adam growing up in BLLB, and in The Raven King Ronan got all my love and hugs. It's been amazing to see Ronan develop and, as readers, to be able to figure out what hides behind his rough exterior.

AND OMG THE SHIPS. I won't spoil any for you, but - dang, I just love all the characters. <3

With a series conclusion, it's important that everything wraps up well. and in The Raven King  it definitely did. Questions from the beginning of the series were answered, and prophecies fulfilled. But I am a forgetful little squid, and the first time I read anything, all I get from it are feelings (which, though are useful in reviews, you can't just write 100% about them - or can you?). In a book like The Raven King where there is so much going on and so many layers, I think I'll need to do another reread just to fully work out all the secrets and the twists. Maggie Stiefvater's magic never happens just because. Her worldbuilding is so on point that I know that everything happens for a reason. And because of this, I really think a reread is necessary for me to logic through the ending, as satisfying as it was.

ALSO, NEWS:
MAGGIE STIEFVATER IS WRITING A RONAN SERIES WHAT IS LIFE.

Have you read The Raven King? LET'S TALK IN THE COMMENTS. Feel free to talk spoilers down there, but please use spoiler alerts! (And if you haven't read The Raven King yet, tread lightly to avoid spoilers.)

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater // I attempt coherency

There is danger in dreaming. But there is even more danger in waking up.

Blue Sargent has found things. For the first time in her life, she has friends she can trust, a group to which she can belong. The Raven Boys have taken her in as one of their own. Their problems have become hers, and her problems have become theirs.

The trick with found things though, is how easily they can be lost.

Friends can betray.
Mothers can disappear.
Visions can mislead.
Certainties can unravel.

Let me flail for a moment, so that I can get all the fangirling out of the way before I dive into my serious and analytical review.

Alrighty then. Let's get serious.

THIS BOOK HAD EVERYTHING IN IT TO LOVE. EVERYTHING. OH MY GAAAWSH.

Yeah, no, I don't think we're getting an entirely sensible review here, no matter how much I try to get the flails out beforehand. Be forewarned.

Okay, where to begin? I don't even know.

My review of The Dream Thieves was extremely short because I was sort of blown away and had no clue what to write. This one threatens to be super long just because there is SO MUCH to write about. Maggie Stiefvater really outdoes herself with each new book on so many levels: characters, description, hidden meanings, EVERYTHING. 

The characters just keep developing further and further, even when you think you've fully understood them. They're ever-changing and ever-growing within their own selves, just like real people. And I think that in BLLB, they grow the most. 

Adam - oh goodness, I am SO PROUD of Adam. I feel like a kind of older sibling to all well-written characters in the books I read, and so WANT them to go down the right path and find happiness. And Adam finally let his past go and figured it out about Gansey and charity and kindness. I AM SO SO PROUD OF HIM. He's growing up into a fine young man. 

We're also seeing another side to Ronan - actually, it's less another side and more just a greater part of him. We've only been exposed to a small percentage of Ronan so far (though it's quite a loud bit of him), and in BLLB we have the privilege of catching glimpses of the rest of him that so often gets drowned out by that really loud bit. I think Adam is seeing those glimpses along with us, and through them, his relationship with Ronan tightens.

Really, BLLB is about the tightening of all the relationships that were forged in the first two books. All of our Main Characters get to know each other so much more and get to see parts of each other that they never thought existed. It's situations like these that make or break friendships, and I'm glad that our lovely Blue and her Raven Boys made it through so far so well. 

(A side note: I entirely empathized with Blue-learning-to-drive. Though I think I was half scared of the power I now held in my hands and half extremely thrilled [I discovered I LOVE driving fast, which comes as quite a shocker to those who know me]. Anyway, I quite often, like Blue:

...could never forget that she was a tiny pilot in a several-thousand-pound weapon. 

Except I sometimes did. When I was excited about going fast.)

Talking about relationships, can I just squeal a bit about darling Bluesey here? All the shipping comes out in full force in BLLB and UGH STAR CROSSED LOVERS. It's the worst. I'm really curious to see how Maggie Stiefvater manages it.

But seriously, Bluesey is proof of how much romance can happen WITHOUT KISSING. Think about it. We're all squirming in our couches with our hearts exploding out of our chests and all they've done is JOKE ON THE TELEPHONE ABOUT CONGRESS. 

Let's talk about DEATH (since we're talking about Gansey, of course). There was death in The Raven Boys. There was death in The Dream Thieves. But the death in BLLB somehow was more poignant and heart-wrenching - maybe because, as the series progresses, the people dying are characters I like more and more. Is this just portending the death of one of the main characters - GANSEY PERHAPS? I... hope not. But it's kinda been promised from the beginning, so...

Hey, I can hope, right? ...Right?

BLLB seemed to be, so far in the series, the book most filled with hidden meanings and secret foreshadowing and subtle commentaries. I LOVE THAT KIND OF STUFF, because, hey, I love literary analysis, but I also lovingly hate it, because there's just so much I KNOW I missed. That means that I will most likely be buying these books as soon as I get around to it, because darn it, I love a good reread!

BUT SERIOUSLY, PEOPLE. What kind of an ending was THAT? I am dead until book four comes out.

I liked OH SO MANY, but here's one of my favorites:

 

Have you read Blue Lily, Lily Blue? What did you think?

~Sophia

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater // More Maggie Magic

Summary

It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die.

At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them.

Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn’t given her much of a chance. So she enters the competition — the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen.

This is my second experience with Maggie Stiefvater (the first being The Raven Cycle, which, though technically multiple books, I count as one adventure). 

Personally, I like the Raven Cycle better, but The Scorpio Races still has those clever touches of unique writing and description that make Maggie's work such a pleasure to read. The writing doesn't just roll along in the background - it pops in your face, a part of the reading experience, but not so obviously that you can't lose yourself in the book.

I love the world that Maggie created for the island of Thisbe. The people have their customs and their culture and their beliefs - it's a true community. As a writer, I always find it hard to inject my fictional civilizations with cultures and traditions, so I highly commend Maggie there.

And the characters - what can I say? I always love her characters. Everyone loves Puck and Sean, as do I, but personally, I like George Holly, the American. I find him very, very interesting - he's almost like an objective observer that gives Sean little bits of advice to steer him on the right track. He's doesn't appear to be an extremely clever guy when you first meet him, but then he turns out to be quite observant.

But really, every person on that island has a character, and I find that fantastic. 

And everyone squees at the romance at the end, and I will happily squee along with them.

The dual points of view were not at all hard to keep track of, happily, and I liked seeing it from both sides.

One thing that I'd like to point out is that it does start off a bit slow - which I don't mind. I'll take the fantabulous descriptions of people and things above a fast paced story anyday. But that's just me - if you want a plot that races along, just know that it definitely picks up after a bit. No fear!

Have you read The Scorpio Races? What about any other Maggie Stiefvater books - which is your favorite of hers?

~Sophia

Why I Love the Raven Cycle and Thus Desire an ARC of Blue Lily, Lily Blue

Maggie Stiefvater is giving away a bunch of copies of Blue Lily, Lily Blue, and the way to win is to write (blog, tweet, post, status update) about one reason why you enjoyed reading the Raven Cycle.

The giveaway is open for ONE DAY ONLY.

So here I am writing about my love of these books when I should be getting ready for school tomorrow. 

 If you've been following my blog for the last few months at least, you'll know that there are many reasons why the Raven Cycle fascinates me: the fresh writing style, the distinct characters, the well-structured plot. But I'm supposed to only write about one reason, so I'm going to be a good little girl and follow the rules here. And for that, I'm going to choose:

Why I love the Raven Cycle: The Characters are fantastically real and distinct from one another. And I ADORE that.

Another thing you probably know (or have had shoved down your throat) if you know me is that the main criteria for me to like a book is for the characters to be excellent. The Raven Cycle fulfills this marvelously and so places itself on my Top Books of 2014 list. (That list is only in my head as of now.)

Why are the Raven Cycle characters so great? Here are some reasons:

1. No one can be mistaken for anyone else. When it's Gansey's POV, we know its Gansey's POV. When it's Blue's POV, we know that too. And when it's Ronan's POV, we definitely know it's Ronan. :-) There's no confusion. It all works.

2. There are five main characters but it's not overwhelming. Any author who can pull this off has my highest respect. This means that all the characters are distinctly Themselves, and so they are realistic. They aren't flat.

3. All characters have a backstory. Even the side ones. In the Raven Cycle, you can't trust a side character not to become a supporting character, since they're all so robustly characterized. (That sounds weird but you know what I mean.) For example, I loved that all the ladies at Blue's house have their own personalities and backstories. Who knew that Persephone would become such a Main Thing in Dream Thieves? 

I realize now that these three points are just three different ways of saying the same thing. Maggie's characters seem to just be plucked out of reality. They all have a three-dimensionality to them, whether they are leading or supporting; they all can be the main characters of their own story.

The more three-dimensional the characters are, the better I can "loose" myself in a book. And the better I can loose myself, the more I like it. 

Given this reasoning, it is of little surprise that I love the Raven Cycle so much! I'm so excited to see where my beloved characters will go in Blue Lily, Lily Blue.

~Sophia

Update: I didn't win, sadly. But I still consider this a fine post on The Raven Cycle, and maybe it makes up a bit for my teeny tiny review of The Dream Thieves. 

The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater // Not Much of a Post

Summary

Now that the ley lines around Cabeswater have been woken, nothing for Ronan, Gansey, Blue, and Adam will be the same. 

Ronan, for one, is falling more and more deeply into his dreams, and his dreams are intruding more and more into waking life. 

Meanwhile, some very sinister people are looking for some of the same pieces of the Cabeswater puzzle that Gansey is after...

(Read my post on The Raven Boys.)

I have tried, and tried, and TRIED to write a post on The Dream Thieves. This is all I could write:

You may remember that in my post on The Raven Boys, I wrote how much I LOVED that there were five main characters, and how distinctly they were each characterized. Well, The Dream Thieves shows what that sort of potential can lead to. I'd say Raven Boys was more about Blue and Gansey and Adam, and Ronan was just a confusing friend. But NOW - The Dream Thieves gives us Ronan in all his amazing, troubled, strange glory, and I love it.

I couldn't think of how to continue. I wrote and deleted and walked away and came back and tried again. And finally I came to the conclusion that it is one of those books that demands to be left un-analyzed, un-pondered, and un-probed. So I am going to leave it in my head in all its glory, and not box it into the structure of a written post. Because it demands to be left un-boxed.

In related news, October and Blue Lily, Lily Blue cannot come soon enough!

Let me know your thoughts on The Dream Thieves and on the series as a whole in the comments - remember to warn spoilers!

~Sophia

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater // Marvelous Characterization

You may know that we are currently five days into the madness of Camp NaNo, so I am furiously writing whenever I have a spare moment. (I am rather behind in my wordcount. Like, 4000 words behind. But I'm hoping to make that up this weekend.)

What that means for this blog is that my reviews and other posts will probably be short and sweet throughout July. Or some reviews may not happen at all this month, and just be written sometime in August or September. So there's my friendly warning.

Now, onto The Raven Boys.

This is my first Maggie Stiefvater book ever, and I must say that it definitely lived up to all the hype I've heard about her. What automatically makes me love an author is when they can describe things in new, clever ways, without using cliches, even subtle ones. Some examples of this kind of author are F. Scott Fitzgerald, Erin Morgenstern - and Maggie Stiefvater. So that is definitely a huge point in her favor.

I also loved the Characters. I think I've figured out that these are the two things that will make me adore a novel - creative descriptions and excellent characters. And The Raven Boys has both.
So clearly Blue is the main character. But I also would consider all four of the Raven Boys to be main characters as well. So we've got five main characters, which is a lot to work with. And on top of that, three of them get to have chapters from their own POV. If I were writing this, that would be a recipe for disaster.
But Maggie Stiefvater does it marvelously. Every character is clearly a separate defined Character, with unique quirks and a unique voice.

The Raven Boys is set in a contemporary world, but it's not super defined exactly what year. I'm only making a note of this because I'm currently reading Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, and that book is also contemporary and is threatening to become fantastical. However, it is SUPER contemporary - very much 2012 or 2013. But The Raven Boys is more ambiguous about that. Not that one is worse than the other. Just a comparison of two books I read recently.

That's all I'm going to say, because I've got to go write a bunch of words about Venice now. I loved The Raven Boys, and am looking forward to reading more Maggie Stiefvater!

~Sophia

Have you read The Raven Boys? What did you think? Which is your favorite Maggie Stiefvater book?