Book Review: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

The Raven Boys

By Maggie Stiefvater

Release Date: September 18, 2012

Source: Library

Summary: “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.

Review: This is one of those books that I have been meaning to read forever but have never had the chance to pick up. When I decided to help out with the book club at my school and saw that one of the first picks was The Raven Boys, I was definitely excited. I was finally going to have the chance to see why everyone was obsessing over this book!

Blue has grown up with her clairvoyant mother and has accepted the fact that she'll never have abilities of her own. Instead, she's merely a "charger" who gives those around her more power. So when she goes to the graveyard with her mother like they do every year to see the soon-to-be-dead, the last thing she expects is to be able to see a boy emerge and speak to her. His name is Gansey and he's a Raven Boy. Blue knows that Raven Boys are trouble, but for some reason, when she finally meets the boy she saw in the graveyard, she's drawn to Gansey and his three best friends. As Blue spends more time with them, the more aware she is of her destiny: She will cause her true love to die. Blue was determined to simply avoid boys to avoid her destiny, but now that she's involved with the Raven Boys, she finds that much harder than she ever has before. 

Honestly, I thought I would love this book. I thought I would devour it in one sitting and fall madly in love with the Raven Boys. Sadly, I found it hard to really get into this story and connect with any of the characters. While I liked Blue enough, I wasn't a huge fan of hers as I normally am with the main characters of books. There was nothing about her that I could really connect with and I wanted more romance out of her, whether it was with her and Adam or her and Gansey. If Gansey was supposed to be the guy she's destined to be with, I didn't really feel that connection between them. I wish there was more between them and a more intense longing that Blue was supposed to be forcing herself to resist because of her destiny. 

For me, I couldn't get into the story until over halfway through when the real crazy stuff started to happen. There was so much more suspense once the whole introduction of the story and world they lived in was out of the way. You definitely have your bad guys, but you also get some uncovered bodies and attempted murders that keep you on the edge of your seat. I wish there was more time spent of the paranormal aspect of the story because I got confused at times as we were rushed through Blue's family and friends and their paranormal abilities. I think there was potential, but the execution left me wanting more to be able to grasp onto.

While everyone in the book world seems to have loved this book, it wasn't as amazing as I wanted it to be. It took too long for me to get into the story and I wanted more of a connection when it came to the love interests, as well as more connection to the paranormal aspect of the book. I don't think I'm ready to give up on this series yet, though, and hope the next book can show me why so many people love The Raven Boys!