Review: The Raven Cycle #2 – #4 by Maggie Stiefvater

Hi Munchworms!

I finally finished The Raven Cycle! I’ve jotted down some of my thoughts every time after finishing an installment, but I’ll have my general opinion at the end!

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Secrets and cockroaches – that’s what will be left at the end of it all.

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Since I read The Raven Boys, I had to think about Ronan quite a bit. For some reason he was the character that stuck with me, intriguing me even when I was reading completely different books. Noticing that The Dream Thieves was practically “his” book… Let’s just say it was a fun thing to discover!

Even though I had a hard time getting into this sequel – damn you, Warcross-hangover – I did end up enjoying it – mostly because of Ronan, haha. I’m also getting used to Maggie’s writing style more and more, so I’m definitely curious about the sequels!

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He was attracted to her like a heart attack.

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If there’s one thing Maggie’s good at, it’s cliffhangers! I was honestly relieved that I already owned all books, which made it a lot easier to jump from one installment to the next.

Even though I was somehow less invested in Blue Lily, Lily Blue, I still enjoyed reading it. The only thing that kind of backfired was the huge Ronan-amount I got in The Dream Thieves. It made this book seem so.. Ronan-less..

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“While I’m gone,” Gansey said, pausing, “dream me the world. Something new for every night.”

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Before I actually started The Raven King, I had realized that… Even though I was enjoying these books, I could enjoy them more. Okay, let me explain…
Do you ever have that feeling of being still too invested in a previous book you read? Which makes it so hard to pick up other books and lose yourself in those? Even though you really are enjoying them but that nagging feeling of “I could enjoy this more” keeps popping up?
That’s exactly what I head when reading all these sequels!
For some amazing unknown reason, The Raven King cured that! All of a sudden I was simply gone. Lost in Cabeswater, lost in the world of Blue, Gansey, Ronan, Adam and Noah. God, how I love Ronan. Can’t help it.

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Ronan would start wars and burn cities for that true smile, elastic and amiable.

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All in all, I think I can say I loved The Raven Cycle but I’ll definitely have to reread them one day. I have that inkling feeling that when I do, I’ll love them more, adore them and give them a special place in my heart.
Maggie’s writing took some time for me to get used to. She has a slow but steady pace that’s present throughout all these books and, me being used to some more fast-paced novels, it took some time to appreciate it!

I’m going to give The Raven Cycle a 4 / 5 in general, with the hope that one day I’ll say it deserves to get 5 / 5.

As for the munches? Let’s just say that I couldn’t get The Raven Boys’ guacamole out of my head so I’m sticking with that, haha.

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Don’t forget the Christmas Card Exchange, people!!

Kathy