The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

Title: The Raven King
Series: The Raven Cycle #4
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Release Date: April 26th 2016

Summary from Goodreads:

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.

Review

There is so much to say about The Raven King yet so much that would spoil it.  The Raven King was an epic conclusion to a truly magical series.  In preparation for The Raven King, I re-listened to all the books on audio.  Will Patton does an amazing job of conveying the suspense, the magical world of Cabeswater, and the always evolving dynamics between all the characters.  The Raven King audio book was no exception; the audio truly transports the reader right into Henrietta, Virginia.

The Raven King is full of magical battles, tense and high stake situations, and a dynamic cast.  Small pieces introduced in previous books come back to play bigger roles in this one.  One of the things that makes The Raven King such a strong conclusion is that it weaves together all the story lines The Raven Cycle has been building upon in the last three books.  There are surprises all the way through the very last pages.  Just when I have an idea of where something might go, it takes a completely different turn.  The relationships, all of them- family, friends, and significant other- are always changing and always growing.  There is so much to the plot, it never slowed down!

I have re-read this series every time a new book comes out and I am still picking up on new things and quotes I missed the previous times.  If you have not started the series I highly recommend it!  The Raven King had all the plot, beautiful writing, and character development that makes a fantastic book.  I have no doubt that I will come back to this series again and again.

Stacking The Shelves (167) - April 30th

Stacking the Shelves - hosted by Tynga at Tynga's Reviews - features books that you bought, borrowed, rented from the library, received for review, etc.

Upcoming Reads

---

Soldier (Talon #3) by Julie Kagawa
Love, Lies and Spies by Cindy Anstey
The Raven King (The Raven Cycle #4) by Maggie Stiefvater
Burning by Danielle Rollins

What books are stacking your shelves??

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater

Title: Blue Lily, Lily Blue
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Series: The Raven Cycle #3
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Release Date: October 21, 2014
Source: I received this ARC from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review (thank you Scholastic!)

Summary from Goodreads:
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.

Review

In true Maggie Stiefvater fashion, this book was wonderful.

The focus of Blue Lily, Lily Blue aligns more closely to that of the first book, The Raven Boys, than the second book, The Dream Thieves, the later of which was mainly centered around Ronan’s story. But do not be fooled by the title, this is not Blue's story; at least, no more than it is the others. In this book, the search for Glendower continues and the gang is closer to finding him than ever before. In fact, there is actual finding going on. We explore Henrietta more deeply and learn more of Glendower's history. I was surprised by some of the developments in this story, but in a good way. And developments there were aplenty. This might be the most dramatic book yet.

Thanks to the addition of a few new characters, the danger is at an all time high. For as much gain that might be had, there is an equal amount of loss. When reading this book, your heart will be at Stiefvater's mercy, and she will stomp on it, a few times. The ending left me gaping.

Stiefvater's books are not fast reads. They are carefully crafted, intricately detailed and definitely character-driven. But since I am in love with these characters and her words, that is completely fine with me. Gansey, Ronan, Adam, Noah, and Blue are at the forefront of the story per usual, but the secondary characters have just as much of a presence. Every single person introduced in this series has been unique, memorable, and three-dimensional. Maggie Stiefvater excels in many things, but her character development might be her best skill. I can feel each and every one of them grow and evolve the more time we spend with them. But it's not just the connection that I have with them that I love so much, it is also the connection they have with each other. The relationships in this book, as complicated as they are, are so unimaginably beautiful. These characters live and breath for each other and it is a palpable thing in this book. And the relationships are constantly reshaping and deepening and I just love watching it happen.

I also loved seeing all of the elements from the first two books come together in this third book. Ronan's skills still have a role to play, while Blue's family is more important than ever. I love that for all the information we have, there is still so much discovery left. And I can only guess at what all of the subtle hints are alluding to.

For those of you who’ve started this series, I don’t think you need much convincing to read this book but I will still promise you that this third installment in the Raven Cycle series is just as good, if not better, than the previous two. For those of you who’ve read Stiefvater’s other work but haven’t started this series, I will tell you that I think this might be her best work yet. And for those of you who’ve never read anything by Maggie Stiefvater, I urge you to remedy that. Her stories are some of the most enjoyable and most distinguishable of any I have ever read. She is a favorite author of mine for sure.

AND LOOK AT THAT COVER. I am going to frame the covers for this series in my home one day. Mark my words.

ARC REVIEW #161: The Dream Thieves (The Raven Cycle #2) by Maggie Stiefvater

Title: The Dream Thieves

Series: The Raven Cycle #2
Author: Maggie Stiefvater

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Release Date: September 17, 2013

Pages: 448, Hardcover
Source: ARC obtained at BEA

Summary from Goodreads:

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...

Maggie Stiefvater’s books have secured a place in my heart as well as on my shelf for all of my reader days. She has proven herself to be both extremely talented and wonderfully unique in her storytelling. And I am completely won over by everything she writes.

The Dream Thieves is a fantastic continuation of the story introduced in The Raven Boys. Gansey, Ronan, Adam, Noah and Blue are still stirring up trouble in Henrietta in their search for Glendower but this is no longer the main focus of the story. Ronan dropped quite the bomb at the end of TRB and therefore the attention has shifted to him and his story.

Ronan is such an intriguing character that I was thrilled to learn that this book would be largely from his perspective. And I feel like readers benefit a lot from this. TDT explores a whole new side of Henrietta such that the world, the characters and the story really develop in this second book. Stiefvater definitely took more risks this time around, but I feel like they paid off in the end.

Typical of Stiefvater’s style, this book is carefully constructed, intricately detailed and elegantly presented. It is not a ‘fast-read’ but a literary work of art to be appreciated. The characters she gives us are wonderful. I really feel for all of them in some way and I am deeply invested in each of their stories. The setting is magical and rich and really projects a fitting atmosphere for the story to unfold. And the story itself, if anything else, is pleasantly original. You have not read anything else like it, I promise you.

As much as I loved this book, it did not WOW me as much as TRB did. I think this was because it contained fewer surprises. And the ending did not pack the same punch as TRB. However, I do not want to do a disservice to this book because it was still wonderful and far superior to the average YA read. I really loved it.

I am very curious to see where Stiefvater will take the third book. The ending to TDT is open ended enough that really anything is possible. But I have no doubt that it will be as enjoyable as the first two.