Reviews with content warning for Terminal illness - The Ravens

The Ravens is another urban fantasy novel where I had the feeling that the story and setting had so much potential but sadly, both was not utilised enough. I was first sure that I only would give two stars, but the last third was so much better than the first two that I can give three stars.

There are two main characters: Vivi and Scarlett. Vivi goes to a new college where she discovers that she’s a witch and has to learn about her new powers. Scarlett, on the other hand, is from a famous witch family and is thus longer involved in the magical world. Her goal is it to become the president of her sorority. When strange things happen, both of them have to work together and overcome their differences to stop a greater evil.

Like I’ve said, the beginning of the book was just not that great. One of the main reasons for this is that the relationship drama/the love square(?) is so much in the focus which was just annoying. Another reason is that seemingly dramatic things happen, but they barely have consequences, showing us not why they’re dramatic in the first place. The magic system wasn’t the most creative as well; it includes both elemental magic and tarot cards which is something I’ve both seen before. What I liked though was the focus on sisterhood and how the female characters mostly work together.

Only after two-thirds, the book got interesting, leading to an amazing last third. Magic is now more in the focus and

it’s revealed that Tiffany is evil, killed Dahlia and then pretended to be her

. I loved this but I found it a bit cliché

that it was her goal to heal her mother from cancer

. Just in general, it got much creepier and more atmospheric.

I furthermore liked the college setting but it didn’t feel too authentic since our characters barely go to lectures or something. Another problem I had was with the writing style; some phrases used sounded a bit weird and especially towards the beginning, many interesting plot points are only told and not shown.

This is honestly rare for me, but I have quite a lot to say about the characters. Firstly, I appreciated generally how diverse the cast was but especially at the beginning, there was not really one character that I liked. I couldn’t understand Scarlett’s behaviour at all and that made her unlikable for me; she doesn’t even try to understand the feelings of her boyfriend Mason and is so unnecessary cruel towards Vivi. Mason was also a bit too much for me and it was annoying how offensively he flirted with Vivi. Vivi was okay; her insta love with Mason annoyed me and her character development came a bit too fast, was not very realistic, and told rather than shown. With the love interests, it was so clear from the beginning who would end up with whom. I wished we got a romance between Vivi and Scarlett since there was so much potential for it. What also bothered me were the many characters introduced at the beginning, making it hard to remember their roles.

I’m quite curious what the sequel of The Ravens will be about since it didn’t end with a cliff-hanger, and I don’t have the feeling that there are so many unsolved mysteries. Still, I’m interested in discovering more of the world of this series.

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tinysierra's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

3.75*
Pretty sure I bought this because it was on sale, Coven is my favorite season of AHS, and I liked the cover lol so I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this.

I enjoyed The Ravens. I think the pacing was just what I needed in this moment. It was fast paced and the magic system was easy to grasp. The split POV between Scarlett and Vivi worked well. It’s one of few YA books that takes place in college.

The romance:

I thought Vivi and Mason would have been adorable, especially after their meet cute… if Mason hadn’t been dating Scarlett when the book started. I just couldn’t get over that. I also did not like the girl vs girl fighting over one guy type thing. Their fighting was actually kind of mild compared to other books, but it seems so immature. I feel as if it was at attempt to highlight how the witches are supposed to have each other’s backs, but I just wish there were other ways they could have went about that. I also didn’t like Scarlett immediately falling in love with Jackson, either. Maybe I don’t understand how allosexual attraction works as an ace reader lol but I’m like dang, couldn’t she be happy being single? Does she have to jump into another relationship immediately?

There are Harry Potter mentions on pages 71 and 125 as well as other references to pop culture and celebrities. I guess we’re required to mention Harry Potter in every magic story now? -.-

I personally don’t think this book needs a sequel. Although I enjoyed this book, I don’t feel invested enough to read the next book.

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dreamweaver's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

The narration was a little exposition-heavy, especially at the beginning, but fell into a better rhythm as the book moved on.

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librarianlirael's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

The first half of this drags, and I guessed the murderer and motivations within the first 30 pages. The last half was pretty good though, with two twists I almost didn't see coming.

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mfrisk's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I really loved this book 💓 it had witchiness, sisterhood/friendship, family relationships, and I enjoyed the split perspective throughout the book and how the sisters grew together. I hope in future books we can learn even more about other characters mentioned in the book as I feel like this have us a glimpse into the world but I’d love to learn even more. Not to mention the action when it ramped up was great. I caught the twist earlier on but still enjoyed how it played out and the getting there too.

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yvonne_cl's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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pagesofquinn's review against another edition

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dark funny mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This was a ride.

At Westerly College, a coven of witches hides in plain sight as the sorority sisters of Kappa Rho Nu, known around campus as the Ravens. Rivalry sparks within the sisterhood between our two main characters, powerful new pledge Vivi and Scarlett, the soon-to-be president who is tasked with showing her the ropes despite thinking she doesn't have what it takes. However, old secrets haunt the Kappa house and the Ravens must come together to protect their sisterhood.

This book is the definition of a page-turner: action-packed from start to finish and brimming with magic and mystery. Every plot twist and revelation brought with it just as many new questions as it answered, propelling the story forwards through this blend of fantasy and thriller.

This cast of characters is so diverse and distinctive. The contrast between our two protagonists created such an interesting dynamic in their relationship as 'sisters', especially when we got to see their ongoing conflicts from both sides of the argument. The other sisters, though much less present in the overall story, popped in at perfectly placed points throughout to provide insight and encouragement which contributed so much to Vivi's growth as she struggles to understand her new-found power. I also really loved the whole theme of sisterhood that ran throughout the book and the way that all the girls banded together to face whatever threats came their way. It was really heart-warming to see them bond and learn from one another and, whether it was tricky spell-work or campus party etiquette, they always supported one another through every situation.

My one gripe with this book was the inclusion of the love interests of both Vivi and Scarlett. Both plot lines felt a little weak compared to the drama of everything else going on and, although it was a nice reprieve in amongst all of that, I almost feel it would've been better had they been left out and keeping the story focused on the sisterhood. I did really like both of the love interests individually but their respective romances didn't feel as though they had enough time to grow naturally.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would absolutely recommend it to anyone after a witchy thriller read with plenty of girl power.

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