WELCOME TO THE FIRST DAY OF AWESOME AUGUST
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| The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater |
Recommended: I recommend this novel for anyone that is interested in a new adventure to read about. It's new, and exciting, and psychics.
Review.
Psychics and prep school boys. Did that peak your interest?
The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater was an intriguing novel right from the start. The first couple of pages had me hooked right away, and once I started, I couldn’t put it down. Granted, that happens a lot when you’re not doing anything on summer break, BUT that doesn’t take away from how good this novel was at all.
“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.”
Blue Sargent is destined to kill the one she loves. She has been told countless times, from various psychics and fortune tellers, that her kiss will kill the one she loves. And Blue is certainly not a ‘psychic skeptic.’ That would be very hypocritical of her, considering her family is psychic. Everyone except Blue, that is. Blue does have psychic powers of her own, however, they are not beneficial to her, and they only make things ‘louder’ for other psychics.
When Blue sees the spirit of Gansey on St. Mark’s Eve, it changes her perspective on her fate. Before this, she had always stayed clear of boys, as to not accidentally fall in love with one and then probably kill him. But once she knows that it is Gansey that she will kill, it’s as if he is everywhere she goes.
I sound like a broken record, but I really enjoyed this book. When I was trying to think of something to compare it to, I really struggled because I haven’t really read any books with psychics in them! I haven’t really been exposed to many stories about psychics (besides That’s So Raven, obviously!) and it was neat reading about them on a pretty intimate level. Everyone Blue lives with (her mom, various aunts, and cousins) is a psychic, in varying degrees, and we got to see how they behaved around each other.
I may not have mentioned this before, but I am not a massive fan of books that are written in the third person with multiple points of view. I find that, unless it’s done right, it can be confusing in regards to which character you’re reading when. I also find that I tend to get tired of reading from the perspective of one character, I usually prefer another character more than the other, and my opinion of the book goes down. The Raven Boys is told from many different perspectives, and though I did enjoy reading some more than others, it remained a good balance, and I didn’t passionately dislike any of the narrators, so that’s a good thing. The multiple POVs in this book, and in any multiple POV book, really, allowed for quick character building because you get to hear the thoughts of everyone.
The pace of this story was relatively fast, and I was really grateful for that! The characters, especially Gansey, were CONSTANTLY getting new information and discovering new things about the Glendower quest. This allowed for an exciting story, with very little lulls, which annoy the crap out of me! I can always appreciate when a story moves quickly enough, without being overwhelming.
ALRIGHT now onto some SPOILERY things! If you have NOT read The Raven Boys, then I suggest you click away now until you have!
OKAY GUYS LET’S TALK ABOUT SOME THINGS.
First order of business, NOAH CZERNY. DID YOU SEE THAT COMING? It takes some serious stuff for a book to shock me like that. My mouth DROPPED open when we discovered that Noah was actually dead. I knew that something was up with the guy, because they kept mentioning that he never ate, and he was described several times as ‘smudgy,’ but I certainly did not think he was dead. That reveal was great.
Let’s also talk a bit about the Raven boys and their money. Specifically, Gansey. Quite a few times when I was reading this, I stopped to think about his wealth. It’s definitely a key component in his quest, (how else is he supposed to fund this adventure?) but also in his interactions and relationships with other people. He doesn’t understand the value of money, and how intimidating it is for people like Blue and Adam to have it constantly thrown away right in front of their eyes. Now I’ve only watched about two episodes, but does this not remind you of Gossip Girl, and how rich all those characters are? That is who the Aglionby boys reminded me of.
Something that was interesting about Blue’s family is the constant aura of both mystery and certainty at the same time, if that makes sense. It was mysterious because they’re psychics, and there was the whole deal with Neeve. But there was also certainty because they’re psychics, and they know all.
The final thing that I want to mention and it only seems fitting that I save this for last… THAT LAST SENTENCE THOUGH. It confused me because you’re like whaaattT????? And then you’re like RONAN. And also I NEED THE DREAM THIEVES NOW.
If you’ve read The Raven Boys, leave a comment telling me your thoughts! Were you shocked about Noah? Were you conscious of Gansey and Ronan’s money? DID YOU LIKE THE LAST SENTENCE?
Read On,
B
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