The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater ARC Review

Title: The Raven Boys
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Published: September 18th, 2012
Book rating: 5 stars
Cover rating: 4 stars

“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love . . . or you killed him.”
It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.
Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.
His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.
But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, who notices many things but says very little.
For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.
From Maggie Stiefvater, the bestselling and acclaimed author of theShiver trilogy and The Scorpio Races, comes a spellbinding new series where the inevitability of death and the nature of love lead us to a place we’ve never been before.

The Raven Boys is a very unique and unforgettable story! I've personally never read any of Maggie's books before but I have heard a lot of good things about her and her books. I found this book on Goodreads and was really interested after I read the synopsis. Thanks to Justin @ Justin's Book Blog I got a copy of this amazing book to read and I couldn't put it down! I was up until four this morning finishing it because I couldn't stand not knowing what was going to happen. Then of course the last sentence in this book is literally a cliff hanger and I'm so angry the second one isn't out yet. Anyways, Maggie was able to create this unique story that sucked me in from the beginning. I'm new to the paranormal genre but I do know that I've never heard of anything like this before so kudos to Maggie for staying off of the vampire/werewolf/etc bandwagon and creating something that is her own.

I really loved the group aspect of this book and how we got to get inside several different characters heads and get to know them on a more personal level. Gansey, Adam, Ronan, and Noah were all so close and always had each others backs even if they didn't always agree with each other. I really enjoyed watching them throughout there journey in this book and how they all grew as a group and individually. Oddly enough Ronan, the bad/troubled boy of the group was my favorite. I just found his personality and his past the most interesting, I also found him sexy. Don't judge, he has a tattoo and he's a bad boy. How can you not love him? Gansey was a really interesting character, he reminded me of some mad scientist who was obsessed with proving what he believed. I was sad to see that we really didn't get to see a relationship between Gansey and Blue in this book, which I find odd because of the synopsis, so I'm looking forward to seeing how that will play out. Noah was easily one of my favorite characters also, I was shocked when we discovered his past and I just loved him for who he was in general. I found it really cute how Blue and Noah formed such a unique friendship. Adam was easily my least favorite character, I get that when you come from a not so privileged life you have a hard time accepting things from people around you without thinking it's pity but he just bordered on really annoying. When Gansey would offer him anything at all, even the smallest thing, he would freak out so I hope to see him mature throughout their story and learn to accept the love and help from those who care for him. I loved how with every flip of a page there was something new and magical to discover. There was always something different and new going on and never a dull moment in this book for me. I really enjoyed this book and the eerie mysterious feel it had to it, I'm so excited for the next book and I can't wait to see what happens with the gangs story. I recommend this book, go read it, NOW! 

Thanks again to Justin for sending me his ARC copy.

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