Genre: Young Adult / Paranormal
Page Count: 409 pages
Publication Date: September 2012
Goodreads summary:
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.
My thoughts:
Ugh… Unpopular opinion time. 
I know that the Raven Cycle is an incredibly popular series. People have been raving about it since the first book, The Raven Boys, came out back in 2012.
BUT… oh my goodness! The pace of the story is soooo slow! I had to force myself to read this book until the end, just because I try to avoid DNF-ing books in general (unless I have a serious problem with it).
So yeah, I finished it. But did I enjoy it? Heck no!
I’m not really into tarot cards and all that, and when you add a slow paced story with unremarkable characters into the mix the whole thing becomes a recipe for disaster! Saying that, I have to admit that it did get better towards the end! The pace picked up a bit and there was a bit of a mystery and magic as well… Yeah, I’d say the last third of the book deserved 4 stars.
Now, I know a lot of you who have read the Raven Boys have enjoyed the story immensely, but it’s just not for me. Sorry!
I mean, it’s the oldest trope in the world. She’s a quirky girl who’s a bit of a loner. He’s a rich popular guy. They fall for each other but can’t be together.
Quirky girl + popular guy + forbidden love = An overused trope
I just found it so hard to like these characters. Plus, reading a book shouldn’t have to be a struggle, right? It should be a pleasure! And this book was definitely not a pleasure to read!
I was going to rate this book 2.5 out of 5 hearts, but because the last third of the book was decent enough I bumped it up to 3 🙂
I have wanted to read this book for a while because I like the cover so much! but know I am having second thoughts.. haha
I cannot be that bad after 3 more books? well maybe the more the worst haha
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Haha! I like the way you think!
All I’ll say is: Read at your own risk! Haha! You never know, you might actually LOVE this series! It just wasn’t for me 🙂
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yes, that might be haha not blaming it on you. People LOVED Simon vs the Homo blabla and I was not quite in love with the book XD
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I tried so hard to read this book. Considering the love it gets on Tumblr I was expecting sooo much more. I didn’t make it past chapter 3, nothing drew me in or held me and the characters fell flat for me. So you definitely aren’t the only one with an unpopular opinion on this one
.
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I’m so glad I’m not alone in this! 😀
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I may be alone here but I love the Raven cycle. I wasn’t expecting to because that blurb… XD it makes it sounds like some terrible romance novel.
The Raven Boys is probably my least favourite of the four books but it sets up so much for the series. Reading it again after finishing the series I was amazed. EVERYTHING IS FORESHADOWED. I was astounded by the amount of planning and subtle hints that appear that only truly make sense by the end of the series. There was a sentence in TRB that is completely ordinary…unless you’ve read Blue Lily, Lily Blue and then your head explodes from how brilliantly it’s all set up.
I would recommend trying it if you haven’t read it, just in case you’re like me and you unexpectedly love it. I personally don’t mind the slow burn but if it’s not your thing then I get it. I’m with Satou Johns on not quite feeling the Simon vs the Homo Sapin Agenda love. XD
I wrote too much. Oops. 0_o
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Haha! Don’t ever apologize for “writing too much” on my comments. I LOVE long, thoughtful comments like yours! It’s like you wrote your own book review! 😀
I really enjoy books that foreshadow things in a clever way, but I have so many exciting books on my TBR shelf right now that I just don’t see myself picking up the next book in a series that didn’t really thrill me. If that makes any sense… haha!
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I read it, kind of enjoyed it but got annoyed by the fact that I finished reading and went “And what about this and that and this and that?”
So many puzzle pieces left and nowhere to go with them.. Okay, yes, there are sequels but I would’ve liked a little more closure.
And as you said, the last third of the book definitely improved the whole story. Curious to find out what I’ll think of the sequel, whenever I get around to reading it. :’)
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Exactly! There were too many loose ends at the end of the book. I would’ve liked a bit more closure as well.
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I avoid not finishing books as well. I just can’t do it. It would really have to be bad.
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