This first novel in a young adult series by Maggie Stiefvater creates one of my favorite main character names to date—Blue Sargent. Blue is the only non-psychic in a family of female clairvoyants, living in a small town. Though she seems to be “normal,” Blue amplifies the powers of those around her and so every year her mother takes her to an old church where they watch for the “soon to be dead” to walk by. Year after year, Blue never sees them until the start of the novel, when she sees a boy her own age come out of the darkness and says his name, “Gansey.”
Though Blue has never seen him before, she recognizes him as a “Aglionby” boy, a student at a private school in town. Students from this school are known as “Raven Boys” and Blue has made a habit of avoiding them. However, shortly after the vision at the church, Blue runs into Gansey and his friends, Adam, Rowan, and Noah, while working her job at a local diner. Before she knows it, Blue is being sucked into their world and into Gansey’s quest to discover an ancient magic.
There are secrets galore in this story but the biggest one is Blue’s knowledge (predicted by all the members of her family) that if she kisses her true love, he will die. This is a fun and nicely dark start to a series that I plan to keep reading.
Three stars? As somebody who adores Stiefvater I had to jump in and say I LOVE this series (only 2 out so far). The worldbuilding is original and believable. She weaves an intricate web of mysteries that propels the plot at a good clip. And a cast of characters that are both compelling while hiding a few secrets from even their closest friends. The Dream Thieves (book #2) starts a bit slow but the payoff is worth it.
I too rated this much higher, but everyone’s entitled to their own opinions. With the exception of The Scorpio Races (which everyone else loves, but which fell strangely flat for me and disappointed me), I pretty much adore Stiefvater’s work too, and I think The Raven Boys series may be her best books so far. I loved the dynamic of Blue’s family and the four boys. I can see a lot of complications in their future.
I really enjoyed this book but I’m using the Goodreads scale of three stars (I liked it) versus three stars is a C (yes, I’m a college composition teacher). By the way, a book has to blow my socks off to get 5 stars. That said, I’m in agreement with you all except for the number of stars. I’ve read #2 (just haven’t gotten the review written yet) and am all in.