The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

5 Stars

Language: PG-13 (Ronan is the main culprit. F*ck, sh*t, d*mn, h*ll, b*stard)

Violence: PG-13 (Ronan's dreams get a little scary. There's a lot of blood pouring from mangled bodies, people are getting shot and stung to death by hornets. Also someone almost gets their eye gauged out. Cool stuff, bro).

Sex: PG (THE ROMANCE IS THIS STORY IS SO CUTE, OKAY. The only reason I put it at PG is because there's a scene with Ronan that you can't tell if they're just making out or if it's more).

Drug/Alcohol Use: G ( This group of kids are pretty chill m'kay)

     What can I say about this book series that would be sufficient enough to express my undying love?

     It's everything I've ever wanted in a series. Witty characters that feel like people you could actually know, (but let's be honest, Blue, Noah, Gansey, Ronan, and Adam would be the kids everyone would be afraid to talk to because of how cool they were), a plot that moves in a different direction than anything else I've ever read, and a slow romance that burns over the course of four books, a romance that builds up to one kiss that could be fatal. 

     The plot certainly pushed things forward and kept me reading but what carried the story were the characters, and not just the main characters like Gansey and Blue, but secondary characters like Maura, the Gray Man, and even people like Piper Greenmantle, and Orphan Girl. Stiefvater started many of her chapters like this: "Depending on where you begin, the story was about (Henry, Piper, the demon, Colin, etc)." This is so true. What other authors fail to realize is that their stories aren't just about their main characters but also about secondary characters who may seem to have no connection to the main characters. The way she wove together all the characters' stories was done in a way that made me believe that this story could be about any one of them.

     The characters have all been in search for one thing, pushing towards similar goals. Goals that finally come to fruition in this final book. The thing I love about this series is that things don't always turn out the way you see them turning out. Sometimes, even at the end of the story when everything is supposed to be going right, things become skewed. Dreams never come to their full realization, sometimes people don't live up to their full potential, but the moral of the story is that even when things don't go right, even when people disappoint you, you can still be happy. Your life goes on even if your reason for living has been taken from you. 

     This isn't a grand story about true love and finding hidden powers that will save the world, though it's certainly a part. This is a story about friendship and the kind of love that shines through in times of trouble and strife. Blue thought something once in Blue Lily, Lily Blue that I thought was fascinating. "Blue was perfectly aware that it was possible to have a friendship that wasn't all-encompassing, that wasn't blinding, deafening, maddening, quickening. It was just that now that she'd had this kind, she didn't want the other.” She had said right before this sentence how she was in love with each of the Raven Boys. How they were each in-love with her. Not in the romantic sense, but in the sense that these boys were friendships that captivated her which made her love them more with every day that passed.

     Now, I'm always a sucker for a slow-burning romance. A romance that transitions from a friendship. What I loved most though was that it was real. When you're a teenager relationships begin and they end. There are some book series (Mortal Instruments) who spend seven books on a fifteen-year-old's true love. Her one and only relationship. This series focuses on all aspects of adolescence and how sometimes, things just don't work out. But the Gansey and Blue relationship, that one was magical. 

     And that ending...

     The thing about these books is that you have to be okay with the writing. It was written with a beautiful lyrical prose that has turned some people off. For some it's description heavy which I can understand. It's a lot if you're looking for a quick read that you can finish in a few hours. But if you really want a series that you can sink your teeth into and really focus to understand the world, pick these up.

     I realize this is more of a review for the series as a whole, but I never got the chance to review the others, so here 'ya go!