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A review by rays_reads
The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
Overall rating: 4/5
This book made me feel so many things at once. The prose was beautiful but the beginning was a bit confusing. The setting was simple but super mythical and magical. The pacing was slow yet steady (meaning it kept going and kept me interested). And the characters.... well.... they were probably the most interesting thing about the book because they're almost a complete contrast of what they were from the beginning.
For the characters you have Blue, the daughter of a psychic who can amplify magic, Ronan, the rich boy who doesn't care for anything or anyone (could you already tell I don't like him?), Gansey, the richest of the rich who never learns when to shut up, Noah, the shy and reserved kid, and Adam, the scholarship student trying to make a name for himself. These rag-tag team of teens make an interesting combo and are trying to find a almost discount version of King Arthur, Glendower. What makes me like them even more is by the end of the book you can really tell they've all changed in some sort of way... this book is probably the set up for the other books in the story but it doesn't really feel that way as I feel like we get a decent amount of plot progression with a good chunk of character development.Like by the end of the book... Blue who is practically powerless, starts to see and hear things that she only thought her family could see. Gansey puts on this "nice and charming persona" but what makes him so refreshing is that he's a person who truly cares for his friends and starts off the book so desperate to find Glendower yet after knowing the cost he starts to become hesitant. As for Ronan.. that bitch needs to be slapped into reality cuz omg I don't think I've met a character who's pmo as much as Ronan has... but he went from being a person who didn't care to someone who aced his finals and beat up his friends pos dad... And lastly Adam... my poor, sweet summer child.... he really got dealt a shit hand in this book and I love just how determined he became to make a name or identity for himself outside of the labels of "Gansey's friend" or "the scholarship kid"... I really feel for Adam and it sucks he was put into this love triangle ik he's not gonna win.... I'm still rooting for him anyways! As for Noah... well.. since he's a ghost I don't really expect much character development from him but seeing his ghost reveal was suprising.
One thing I will say is... I did take off a star because of plot pacing... I felt like the author introduced so many fucking minor plots to the big one that she kinda.... lost it. Like from the summary I assumed that the book was gonna talk about Blue's psychic magic coming in and her joining the Raven Boys to try and see what the magic is and how to stop Blue from killing her true love... Also finding out why Gansey is her "soulmate" or whatever what from the "kiss" could potentially kill him... But nah we were introduced to the Glendower plot then the characters side stories.... then there's the added side plot of Blue's mom trying to find her dad and.... it was just too fucking much for 1 book out of 4.. Ig seeing as there's 4 books it makes sense but I felt like the pacing could've been a lot better...
Tbh I'm not sure what else I can really say about this book as I felt like so much happened yet so did so little. The plot really picked up towards the end and I'm hoping book 2 will be more plot focused. I'm excited to read about it! Especially since I bought all 4 books LMAOOO... My wallet is never safe from a finished book series.
See ya in book 2!
This book made me feel so many things at once. The prose was beautiful but the beginning was a bit confusing. The setting was simple but super mythical and magical. The pacing was slow yet steady (meaning it kept going and kept me interested). And the characters.... well.... they were probably the most interesting thing about the book because they're almost a complete contrast of what they were from the beginning.
For the characters you have Blue, the daughter of a psychic who can amplify magic, Ronan, the rich boy who doesn't care for anything or anyone (could you already tell I don't like him?), Gansey, the richest of the rich who never learns when to shut up, Noah, the shy and reserved kid, and Adam, the scholarship student trying to make a name for himself. These rag-tag team of teens make an interesting combo and are trying to find a almost discount version of King Arthur, Glendower. What makes me like them even more is by the end of the book you can really tell they've all changed in some sort of way... this book is probably the set up for the other books in the story but it doesn't really feel that way as I feel like we get a decent amount of plot progression with a good chunk of character development.
One thing I will say is... I did take off a star because of plot pacing... I felt like the author introduced so many fucking minor plots to the big one that she kinda.... lost it. Like from the summary I assumed that the book was gonna talk about Blue's psychic magic coming in and her joining the Raven Boys to try and see what the magic is and how to stop Blue from killing her true love... Also finding out why Gansey is her "soulmate" or whatever what from the "kiss" could potentially kill him... But nah we were introduced to the Glendower plot then the characters side stories.... then there's the added side plot of Blue's mom trying to find her dad and.... it was just too fucking much for 1 book out of 4.. Ig seeing as there's 4 books it makes sense but I felt like the pacing could've been a lot better...
Tbh I'm not sure what else I can really say about this book as I felt like so much happened yet so did so little. The plot really picked up towards the end and I'm hoping book 2 will be more plot focused. I'm excited to read about it! Especially since I bought all 4 books LMAOOO... My wallet is never safe from a finished book series.
See ya in book 2!