Scan barcode
A review by vermidian
Call Down the Hawk by Maggie Stiefvater
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
2.5 stars on this one. Honestly, I kind of had to force myself through this book. It was not by any means a bad book, but it just didn't have the same quality of the mystery that I loved about the Raven Boys books. If you loved the ghostly vibe of the original four books, please be advised you will not get the same from this trilogy.
I would like to say that as I started reading this book, I found out about Stiefvater's poor behavior regarding the racist portions of the last Raven Boys book and it's really disheartening to hear she couldn't just own up to the fact that it wasn't her best work. There is also a line at the beginning of the book that calls special attention to the main character's surname, Lynch, which really made me feel uncomfortable. And I'm white. The line was, "He was proud of the family name, and it suited him. His mouth was always shaped like he'd just finished saying it." This came immediately after describing how intimidating and scary he is. This is her main character. I was disgusted. There is so much hurt historically attached to that word and painting your main character as a skin head, unintentionally or otherwise, is vile. It was what made me google to see what was up with that line and it was what made me discover the author's poor behavior. Not that I think authors should read reviews, but if you do Maggie Stiefvater, do better.
I kept feeling like I wasn't sure where the plot was going, and even after I got about three quarters of the way through the book, they kept introducing new characters. It was structured in such a way where you never really catch your balance with any of the characters well enough to put your feet down on solid ground. And there were a ton of characters. You get to read chapters from the perspective of about six characters if I'm remembering correctly, though you do get small chapters from throw away characters here and there. I remember being really frustrated when a new character got introduced about half-way through the book who I shall not name for fear of spoilers. I also feel like very little was wrapped up by the end of the book.
If Bryde is Ronan's dad in the next book, we fight him at dawn. I already have in on my shelf so I'll get around to it eventually, but man, this book was frustrating so it might be a while.
I would like to say that as I started reading this book, I found out about Stiefvater's poor behavior regarding the racist portions of the last Raven Boys book and it's really disheartening to hear she couldn't just own up to the fact that it wasn't her best work. There is also a line at the beginning of the book that calls special attention to the main character's surname, Lynch, which really made me feel uncomfortable. And I'm white. The line was, "He was proud of the family name, and it suited him. His mouth was always shaped like he'd just finished saying it." This came immediately after describing how intimidating and scary he is. This is her main character. I was disgusted. There is so much hurt historically attached to that word and painting your main character as a skin head, unintentionally or otherwise, is vile. It was what made me google to see what was up with that line and it was what made me discover the author's poor behavior. Not that I think authors should read reviews, but if you do Maggie Stiefvater, do better.
I kept feeling like I wasn't sure where the plot was going, and even after I got about three quarters of the way through the book, they kept introducing new characters. It was structured in such a way where you never really catch your balance with any of the characters well enough to put your feet down on solid ground. And there were a ton of characters. You get to read chapters from the perspective of about six characters if I'm remembering correctly, though you do get small chapters from throw away characters here and there. I remember being really frustrated when a new character got introduced about half-way through the book who I shall not name for fear of spoilers. I also feel like very little was wrapped up by the end of the book.
If Bryde is Ronan's dad in the next book, we fight him at dawn. I already have in on my shelf so I'll get around to it eventually, but man, this book was frustrating so it might be a while.