The Raven Boys (The Raven Cycle #1) by: Maggie Stiefvater

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Urban Fantasy, Paranormal
Published: September 18, 2012 by: Scholastic Press
Pages: 409
Rating: 4.5/5 stars

All her life, Blue Sargent has been told by every psychic she's ever met that if she kissed her true love, he would die. This prophecy carries her through every year, and through every St. Mark's Eve, where she stands on the footsteps of a church with her clairvoyant mother and watches all the people who will die in the upcoming year. Blue has never seen the dead people, as she possesses no psychic gift like her entire family, until one year, when she witnesses a boy in a tattered school uniform who will soon die. The boy is Richard Gansey, a student of Aglionby Academy, a Raven Boy. Blue befriends Gansey and his gang, wondering if she should reveal his fate to him, and make sure that she doesn't fall for anyone in the group as well. For they could end up dead too.

After absolutely everyone and their cousins in the bookish world raved about this book, this series, and for the dramatic finale, I decided to swing by my local library and give it a go. I was immediately swept into this series and without exaggeration, finished all 4 books in less than 5 days. I literally read a book a day. This series is unique, magical, and something so brilliantly crafted that it will pull you in and never let go.

Let's start with why the characters in this book are the best characters ever. First we have Blue, who is an outgoing feminist who comes from an amazing band of psychic women who stand by each other. Blue was one of the best female protagonists I've read, because she was fiery, tough, but at the same time relatable in a sense.

The Raven Boys are a group of 4 boys from the prestigious Aglionby Academy, whom Blue befriends. First we have the absolute gem of a guy that is Richard Campbell Gansey the Third. He's hilarious, preppy and wears boat shoes which are my favourite shoes of all time, so there's that. Then we have Adam Parrish, who is the absolute cutest boy ever and who has my heart. Ronan Lynch is a bit tougher, he is very protective but he does have a soft side. Lastly, there's Noah Czerny, who's mysterious and friendly and so awesome. These boys were supportive of each other and so well written.

I found it kind of hard to explain the synopsis of this book, because there's so many amazing elements to it that you kind of have to read it yourself to fully understand and appreciate it. I will say, that the plot of this book is so amazingly beautiful, the diction will keep you hooked and even the imagery seems so aesthetically pleasing. It's pretty amazing.

The only, and only thing that prevented me from giving this book a perfect 5 stars is that it takes a while to understand. Like in any first book of a series, it's there to act like an introduction and provide the build up into the other books, so I just thought that this book was a bit slower than the others, because there was a lot of background information to explain. However after this, it's a breeze.

I don't think this was a very coherent review because there is just SO MUCH TO TALK ABOUT with this series, that you kind of need to just experience it yourself. I promise you, you will be amazed.

Have you read The Raven Boys? What did you think?

Emily @ Paperback Princess