Scan barcode
A review by iam
The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Reread December 2024:I'm not sure what it is about this book, but there is something magical about it to me.
On paper, this book - the entire series - sounds incredibly boring: a group of boys who go to a rich school are on the hunt for the grave of a dead Welsh king, and they get involved with a girl who's the daughter of psychics, and whose first love with die after she kisses them.
Yet somehow, this series kinda has me in a chokehold whenever I read it. Something about the dynamics between the characters is so captivating, and I love every one of them, all of them flawed yet lovely.
The writing is quite particular, too, and I can see how it could be annoying or pretentious, but for me it really works. The performance of the audiobook narrator is great, too.
Overall the book is both magical and ordinary, gentle and harsh, happy and sad, silly and deathly serious. Something about it is just really special to me, and I am happy to be along for the ride once again.
Reread September 2020:Audio reread made me like this considerably more than I did on first read. The narrator made me POV switches fun, and I totally failed at listening to this low-key on the side as I planned to. Instead I totally got sucked into the story and wanted to keep listening even even audiobook time was over.
First read March 2016: 3 stars
On paper, this book - the entire series - sounds incredibly boring: a group of boys who go to a rich school are on the hunt for the grave of a dead Welsh king, and they get involved with a girl who's the daughter of psychics, and whose first love with die after she kisses them.
Yet somehow, this series kinda has me in a chokehold whenever I read it. Something about the dynamics between the characters is so captivating, and I love every one of them, all of them flawed yet lovely.
The writing is quite particular, too, and I can see how it could be annoying or pretentious, but for me it really works. The performance of the audiobook narrator is great, too.
Overall the book is both magical and ordinary, gentle and harsh, happy and sad, silly and deathly serious. Something about it is just really special to me, and I am happy to be along for the ride once again.
Reread September 2020:Audio reread made me like this considerably more than I did on first read. The narrator made me POV switches fun, and I totally failed at listening to this low-key on the side as I planned to. Instead I totally got sucked into the story and wanted to keep listening even even audiobook time was over.
First read March 2016: 3 stars