Review: The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater

Published by: Scholastic Press
Release date: 17th Sept 2013
Series: Raven Cycle #2
I got it from: Amazon

Quote: 
Quote: "His eyes were frighteningly alive, the curve of his mouth savage and pleased. It suddenly didn't seem at all surprising that he should be able to pull things from his dreams.
In that moment, Blue was a little in love with all of them. Their magic. Their quest. Their awfulness and strangeness. Her raven boys."

Goodreads summary:
Now that the ley lines around Cabeswater have been woken, nothing for Ronan, Gansey, Blue, and Adam will be the same. Ronan, for one, is falling more and more deeply into his dreams, and his dreams are intruding more and more into waking life. Meanwhile, some very sinister people are looking for some of the same pieces of the Cabeswater puzzle that Gansey is after...

My review:
I haven't been this excited about the prospect of a book for a long time. Ever since I read The Raven Boys I've been waiting, with baited breath, for The Dream Thieves to come into being. As the publication date got nearer, I became more impatient and any book that wasn't The Dream Thieves couldn't satisfy me.

I managed to time re-reading The Raven Boys perfectly, so that I finished it on the day The Dream Thieves arrived. I didn't start it until the following day though - I needed that small amount of time to soak up all of The Raven Boys and prepare myself. Because I knew it was going to be big. I was not wrong.

Stiefvater's writing has reached a new level with this series. Every single sentence has the feeling that it has been very carefully considered, while still somehow managing to flow naturally and with an energy that will bite you if you're not careful. It's like reading a ley line. Here is a book that you cannot read when you're tired. There is so much going on, and all of it, every single word, demands your complete attention. If you miss something, you will be sorry. I suspect that when I read it again (which I suspect will happen quite soon), I will find even more magic, fall even deeper in love.

I refuse absolutely to give away anything when it comes to this book. The summary, as you can see above, is short and intriguing. It's a very hard book to write about without revealing something essential. There are things which are set up in the Raven Boys which you can't possibly see how they might pan out, and when events conspire to make these things happen it is somehow both surprising and obvious. Stiefvater must surely have access to some place like Cabeswater herself, as I really can't see how all this could have happened inside one brain, in order.

Th Dream Thieves is many, many things. It is, at turns, loud, subtle, gentle, dangerous, perplexing, serious, amusing, warm and awesome. It is, at all times, beautiful, riveting and wonderful. There is just so much of it. It contains magic, and it is magic. When I saw it on NetGalley, I requested it with some trepidation, and I was actually happy when my request was declined. Because this is the type of book that needs to be made of paper. It needs to be bound, or it might fly away. If you've read The Raven Boys, you know what you want, and you can rest assured that it will not disappoint. If you haven't read The Raven Boys, do so immediately.

Thank you Mrs Stiefvater. I had unreasonably high expectations, and you have exceeded them beautifully.

Top Ten Tuesday - Books I recommend

So I've been trying to get into one of the many weekly book blog themes, and today I've decided to bite the bullet and do it! There are many, many books that I would recommend, but here's my top ten at the moment...

1. Glass Houses by Rachel Caine

I totally fell in love with the Morganville vampires - I came to this series after reading Twilight and getting back into YA, and I have to say Morganville is everything that Twilight isn't. It's kick-ass, full of action, with enough lurving to satisfy the romantics amongst you. The series is coming to a close at the end of this year, and with 15 books there's enough to keep you going for a while!

2. Saving June by Hannah Harrington

If you don't dig the paranormal/supernatural/fantasy/dystopia aspect of YA fiction, then Saving June is exactly what you need to read. A wonderful road-trip book full of emotion and great music! Read my review here.

3. Shiver/Linger/Forever by Maggie Stiefvater

Warning - do not attempt to read this trilogy without having them all to hand - you'll regret it if you finish Shiver and can't start on Linger right away! Stiefvater's writing is sublime. This is a werewolf legend with a difference, so beautiful it will linger in your heart forever. Read my review of the Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy.

4. Die for Me trilogy by Amy Plum

Just gorgeous. I've been waiting impatiently for the final book in this heart-rending trilogy for what seems like forever. Full of evocative Parisian scenes and sexy revenants, this is a zombie love story that will totally reconfigure your take on zombies! Die for Me review.

5. The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

I'm not always a huge fan of fairies/faeries/fey/whatever you want to call the winged critters, but Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series totally sucked me in. Her characters are so strong, you can't help but fall for them. Grimalkin is quite possibly the best character ever. I've reviewed The Iron King here.

6. Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton

Lots of the books I recommend are trilogies or series, which is great in a way - more to read is always a good thing, but sometimes a stand-alone story is kind of refreshing. Technically Blood Magic is the start of a series, but I'm counting it as a stand-alone as it doesn't leave you hanging. No freaky monsters here, but a very believable and quite scary kind of magic. It's dark, thrilling and very interesting. Read my review of Blood Magic.

7. Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

Werewolves again, but awesome ones! Another trilogy that I advise you procure before you start reading, because once you start you really won't want to stop. A brilliant cast of characters and the ultimate love triangle. Check out my review of Nightshade.

8. Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan

This is a brilliant Christmas present to give someone who enjoys YA fiction. A book for book lovers, a charming love story and just an all-round beautiful Christmas tale. Review of Dash & Lily's Book of Dares.

9. The Sweetest Dark by Shana Abe

If you're looking for a brand new book, give this one a go - it's out on April 9th. A gorgeous story with a romantic first world war setting, and an intriguing paranormal element. Read my review of the rather wonderful Sweetest Dark here.

10. Sorry I don't have time right now!

I'll think of no. 10 later! Or even better, let me know what you think number 10 should be!

Review: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Published by: Scholastic Press
Release date: 18th Sept 2012
Series: Raven Cycle #1
I got it from: Library

Quote: 
"She recognized the strange happiness that came from loving something without knowing why you did, that strange happiness that was sometimes so big that it felt like sadness."

Goodreads summary:
“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love . . . or you killed him.”

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 review:
Oh my. I am so in love with Maggie Stiefvater right now. I fell for the Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy quite some time ago (read my review here), but then I read the Scorpio Races and wasn't convinced by it. For that reason, along with the fact that I'm very wary of faery-based stories, it was a long while before I delved into Lament. Read it, lurved it (review to come soon), and decided I needed to give The Raven Boys a chance... So glad I did. This is Stiefvater at her absolute best - captivating, whimsical, intense and a little bit dangerous. It really has the same feel as the Shiver trilogy - that feeling that you're reading something important. Something big, a legend in the making... a piece of magic.

I'm not going to bother with the whole synopsis thing - the Goodreads summary does all that. Instead I want to tell you about how the book makes me feel. Because I think in some ways that's a lot more important than what the book is about. Sure, the fact that it has ley lines and magic makes it interesting to me, but the fact that it captures my heart and imagination means a lot more. The way it makes me want to fold myself into the pages, to become Blue and to go on a mystical quest with these intriguing and dangerous Raven Boys. The way I get irrationally irritated if anyone dares to interrupt my reading of this book. The way I feel bereft when I come to the end.

There is something lyrical about Stiefvater's writing - I get the feeling that she chooses her words very carefully, whilst at the same time allowing them to pour naturally through her from the ether where stories live. The Raven Boys is full of prophesies, legends and untold truths. It was incredibly refreshing to read a book that's not all about the romance. You might expect, given the tagline "if you kiss your true love, he will die", that the focus would be on finding one's true love and agonising over not kissing him. Nothing could be further from the truth. I should have known, given the complexity of the relationships in Shiver - a simple love story does not belong in Stiefvater's world. Instead, the intelligence of the reader is actually respected. The lives of the characters are not one-dimensional, lust-obsessed and full of teen angst - they are multi-faceted, involved and tangled up with one another. When Blue starts hanging with the Raven Boys, she is drawn quickly into the intimate and delicate weave of their lives. Written in the third person, which is something of a departure for Steifvater, we are gradually introduced to the cast of The Raven Boys - a large and diverse collection of characters, each of them fully-formed and separate from the others. You have to admire the author's talent for creating people that are so real. As I mentioned in my review of Shiver, the devil is in the detail - a tiny gesture here, a semi-concious thought there - these are the things that make her characters come so completely alive.

This is a hard review to write, actually. I can't say much about the story without giving something away, and I could wax lyrical for pages on the beauty of Stiefvater's writing, but there's nothing interesting about reading someone else's hero-worship. Plus, there's only so many times I can use words such as 'complex', 'magical' and 'beautiful' without sounding like an illiterate sap. Please, just read it. If there is even a tiny part of you that is intrigued by the idea of a very real kind of magic, read it. If you want to wake up your imagination, enjoy getting a little spooked, sigh with longing and shout out at the twistiest of twists, read it.

Review: Shiver/Linger/Forever by Maggie Stiefvater

I'm reviewing this as a trilogy, because I don't think that anyone should have to read it as just one or two books - it's too sad. The first time I read these books I only had the first two, and had to wait to get the third one. What a wait that was! I was climbing the walls! So be warned - make sure you have all three books lined up before you start.

Stiefvater is an incredibly talented author, whose books are a delight to read. They're just so real - which is saying a lot when you're reading about werewolves! That's the thing though - although there are people who turn into wolves in the books, it's really far more about the people and their relationships with one another. The Shiver trilogy is a wonderful love story - it's not all plain sailing, but then what relationship is? This is part of what makes it so real. There is pain and suffering, but there are countless sweet moments that make it all worth it.

One of the things I like most about Stiefvater's writing is the way she includes little details that very few writers would think to include. A touch, a thought, a look - these tiny, inconsequential things are what makes up a real relationship, and the fact that Stiefvater writes them into her story makes it all the more believable. Grace and Sam's connection is incredibly strong, despite all everything that goes against them, and Stiefvater manages to write in such a way that you feel their relationship progressing. It's like real life on paper; love in words.

By telling the tale from both Grace and Sam's perspectives, plus other characters as the story progresses, Stiefvater manages to create a wonderful all-round understanding of what is happening. When a book is narrated by just one character, we get a very personal, somewhat stilted account, but by allowing each character to have their own time, by letting us see what is inside their heads, we are treated to something that feels much more complete. It's like watching a film, but better! I usually want books I really like to be made into films, but not Shiver - I just don't think any filmmaker could do it justice. It's the kind of book that needs to use your imagination, because what you can imagine is so much better than what any special effects and actors can create.

Shiver is a completely new twist on the werewolf legend - I'm not going to give anything away here, but I really liked the fact that it completely ignores the whole full moon/silver bullets shebang, and creates a whole new legend of its own.

I urge everyone to read the Shiver trilogy. It's beautiful.
Buy from Amazon: Shiver, Linger, Forever Boxed set (Wolves of Mercy Falls)