The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater (A YA Book Review)

The Raven Boys is book 1 of The Raven Cycle, a 4-book YA series. It tells the story of Blue Sargent, a teenage girl who comes from a very psychic family. Blue herself doesn’t hold any psychic powers, but she makes the psychic energy louder for others. That all changes when on St. Mark’s Eve, as the spirits of that year’s forthcoming dead announce their names to Blue and her aunt, she sees the spirit of a boy who says his name is Gansey. Soon the paths of Gansey and his Raven Boy friends—boys who attend the prestigious Algionby School in Henriette, Virginia—cross paths with Blue and her family. Friendships and relationships develop as they share a common goal of searching for a ley line that will awaken a dead Welsh King. All the while a premonition from her psychic relatives plays in the back of Blue’s mind: when she kisses her true love he will die.

This is an amazing book and I look forward to reading the rest of the series! The narration is mostly third-person limited, but it changes with the chapters so sometimes it is Blue, Gansey, or another Raven Boy, Adam. Occasionally, we get the perspective of the boys’ Latin teacher Barrington Whelk as well. The characters are extremely well-developed, and even though it was a bit slow going at first, the action really took off leading to a climax near the end of the book. It ends in a slight cliffhanger, all is resolved temporarily until one of the boys, Ronan, makes an offhand comment that sets up for the 2nd book, Dream Thieves. Overall, I gave this book 4.5/5 stars, only because of the slow start. I read the last 125 pages in a rush to see what would happen. If you enjoy the supernatural, myths, legends, the occult, a little bit of romance, thrown in with a bit of the ordinary, then you will enjoy The Raven Boys too!