The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

Published April 26th 2016 by Scholastic Press

439 Pages

Goodreads Summary: Nothing living is safe. Nothing dead is to be trusted.

For years, Gansey has been on a quest to find a lost king. One by one, he’s drawn others into this quest: Ronan, who steals from dreams; Adam, whose life is no longer his own; Noah, whose life is no longer a lie; and Blue, who loves Gansey… and is certain she is destined to kill him.

Now the endgame has begun. Dreams and nightmares are converging. Love and loss are inseparable. And the quest refuses to be pinned to a path.

Review: Wow!  This book was everything I could have asked for in this series finale.  The adventure of a lifetime for these characters and being able to go along for the ride was awesome.  There was such an array of emotions throughout this entire book.  And the ending… oh that ending!  I really am a bit speechless still and I finished this book over a month ago.  The final pieces of the puzzle fall into place and it’s just amazing to see the whole thing come together.  I absolutely love these characters and the story of the coolest friendship anyone could have.

5/5 Stars

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater

Published October 21st 2014 by Scholastic Press

391 Pages

Goodreads Summary: There is danger in dreaming. But there is even more danger in waking up.

Blue Sargent has found things. For the first time in her life, she has friends she can trust, a group to which she can belong. The Raven Boys have taken her in as one of their own. Their problems have become hers, and her problems have become theirs.

The trick with found things though, is how easily they can be lost.

Friends can betray.
Mothers can disappear.
Visions can mislead.
Certainties can unravel.

Review: This book has yet again reminded me how much I love Maggie Stiefvater’s writing.  Everything is told in such flowing detail that losing yourself in the story is no problem at all.  The characters feel like they are your own personal friends.  This story was a bit centralized around Blue, which I loved because she is just so rad.  It was interesting to see her character expand and come into her own now that she feels as though she belongs.  She has seemingly found her place with her friends.  The amount of adventure in this story reaches a new high and brings a lot of emotion to the table.

5/5 Stars

The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater

The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater (The Raven Cycle #2)

Published September 17th 2013 by Scholastic Press

437 Pages

Goodreads Summary: If you could steal things from dreams, what would you take?

Ronan Lynch has secrets. Some he keeps from others. Some he keeps from himself.

One secret: Ronan can bring things out of his dreams.

And sometimes he’s not the only one who wants those things.

Ronan is one of the raven boys—a group of friends, practically brothers, searching for a dead king named Glendower, who they think is hidden somewhere in the hills by their elite private school, Aglionby Academy. The path to Glendower has long lived as an undercurrent beneath town. But now, like Ronan’s secrets, it is beginning to rise to the surface—changing everything in its wake.

Do NOT read this review if you have not read The Raven Boys yet.

Review: When I started reading this book, Ronan was probably my least favorite of the Raven Boys.  He just seemed so, so angry and explosive for no reason.  But then getting into the story and reading more about him and diving deeper into his character, I grew to love him!  He is probably the most complex character in the series and I loved being able to get to know him better.  See the things that make him the way he is.  Like the first book, The Raven Boys, the writing was beautiful and so imaginative.  One of my favorite things about this series is that Maggie writes it in a way that makes it very easy to visualize the scene taking place.  I think her work as an artist helps with that a lot.  I love the whole concept of the Greywaren and the things that Ronan can do.  I don’t really know what else to say without giving things away.  So just go read it already! 🙂

5/5 Stars

WWW Wednesday – May 4, 2016

WWW Wednesdays is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words.
Each week we answer the following three questions:
-What have you recently finished reading?
-What are you currently reading?
-What are you reading next?

I’ve still been on my audiobook kick lately.  I finished book 2 of The Raven Cycle and it was awesome!  Definitely gave me a new perspective on Ronan and bumped him up to the #2 slot in my ranking of the boys.  I also listened to the audiobook for Locke & Key.  I’ve said before that I don’t listen to audio unless I’ve read a physical copy of the book first but this one was free.  I think that it just didn’t translate well to audio and I would be much more interested in reading the graphic novel.  I also did an audiobook re-read of The Cousins O’Dwyer trilogy by Nora Roberts.  I really enjoyed experiencing this series again via audio.

Currently I am reading Blue Lily, Lily Blue.  I am really enjoying it and I can’t wait to see where it goes.  I just haven’t been in the mood to read lately so it’s taking me longer to read it than it normally would.  I’m also doing an audiobook re-read of Shadow and Bone.  I absolutely LOVE the Grisha trilogy so I am totally loving re-experiencing it via audio.

As soon as I finish BLLB I will immediately jump into The Raven King!  I am so excited for that.  And then after I have finished that I will move on to The Rose & the Dagger which I am also super excited for!  I can’t wait to get back to Shazi and Khalid.  I will also be continuing my audio re-read of The Grisha Trilogy.

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What have you been reading lately?

WWW Wednesday – April 26, 2016

WWW Wednesdays is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words.
Each week we answer the following three questions:
-What have you recently finished reading?
-What are you currently reading?
-What are you reading next?

Well, without the audiobooks I would have had a pretty unimpressive week of reading.  I read the SUPER short story, The Crown & the Arrow and then I finally finished Passenger by Alexandra Bracken.  I had 4 audiobook re-reads – Incendiary, Iniquity, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

Currently I am trying to catch up in The Raven Cycle with The Dream Thieves.  I am really not far into it but am interested to see where this is going.  I also started the audiobook for Locke & Key.  Normally I only listen to audiobooks for books I have physically read before but this one has a full dramatized cast so I figured it would hold my attention more.

After I finish The Dream Thieves, I am going to move on to either The Rose & the Dagger or Blue Lily, Lily Blue.  I preordered my copy of The Raven King from Fountain Bookstore in VA so I don’t anticipate receiving it for at least a week or two so I don’t mind putting off BLLB until closer to receiving the final book in this awesome series.  Plus I am SUPER eager to start The Rose & the Dagger because I LOVED The Wrath & the Dawn!

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What have you been reading lately?