Book Review: THE RAVEN BOYS

Before I start this review, I'd like to apologize. It's taken me an absurdly long time to get this review up. I blame the craziness of Nano, three different research papers, and the fact that every time I sit down to write this review, I stop and go re-read bits of the book again. It was that good. So here is my very belated, full-of-feels review of Maggie Stiefvater's The Raven Boys.

(This cover is ridiculously cool. I might actually have to go buy a hard copy of it just so I can look at it whenever I want.)

Here's the blurb from Goodreads:

“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.

From Maggie Stiefvater, the bestselling and acclaimed author of the Shiver trilogy and The Scorpio Races, comes a spellbinding new series where the inevitability of death and the nature of love lead us to a place we’ve never been before.

I'd been hearing some positive reviews of this, so when I saw it available on NetGalley I requested a copy, thinking that it would probably be okay. Ever since I've finished it I've gone and read every single review of it I can find. I practically have to restrain myself from protesting violently in the comments whenever anyone says something negative about it. The general consensus seems to be that the book was very good, but had a few issues.

My issue with it is that it was perfect.

I know, I know, no book is really perfect, at least not completely. But my heart wants to fill this review with sparkles and rainbows and tears of glorious happiness because in my heart it is PERFECT. But now that I've had time to organize and analyze my feelings for this book, I think I've figured out why I feel that way.

This is my first Maggie Stiefvater book. I've heard of The Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy and Scorpio Races, but I never really considered reading them. I'd also never researched them to find out if I should read them. And so I went into Raven Boys completely unprepared for the magic that comes along with reading a Maggie Stiefvater book.

The prose is beautiful. I don't think there's another word for it. But it never lapses into the realm of the over-done, wordy, or pompous. The words just seem organic, like they sprung fully formed from the page. And I think I was shocked by this. I'm used to reading books where the writing itself functions just as a tool, as if all it is is a device to get the story across instead of something that should stand on it's own merit. So I think most of my feelings of perfection were feelings of unexpected awe. I didn't expect beauty, or loveliness, and so when I turned the page and found it, tears of happiness may have sprung into my eyes.

I also may have formed a slight obsession with the characters. I went into this book thinking that Blue was the main character. And she is, in a way. It is through her eyes that we delve into this world of mystery and magic. But the stars of this book are the title characters.  The book, whatever the summary might tell you, is really about the relationship between the Raven boys, four boys who live at a boarding school. They're all a bit odd and messed up, but they fit together like pieces of a puzzle. And I loved them. I loved their inside jokes, their quick banter and their unswerving loyalty to each other. And Gansey *swoon* I cannot express the extent of my love for Gansey. He's so confident, but also really nervous about making the right impression, and he constantly just wants to do the right thing and help his friends AND I JUST HAVE A LOT OF GANSEY FEELS, OKAY. 

That being said, I don't think this book is for everyone. The writing is very introspective, and in contrast to how its marketed it's also a very introspective story. It's very character driven, and if you're not prepared for that, I think it could come as a bit of a shock.

Some of the comments I've seen around the web is that the pacing is too slow, that it lags, and that there's no real resolution to anything. But I think that's the point. The mystery is never solved, the romance that's set up on the back cover is only hinted at in the most subtle of ways, and the end can feel abrupt. But I think that was the point. I think it was supposed to be a slow build up with these fascinating characters to hook us into the story. This is the first of a four-book series, so yes, it served as a lot of set up. But it's set up wort reading, partly because of the prose and partly because of the characters.

So, in short, go read The Raven Boys. But if you're looking for some high-octane fueled adventure story, you might do better looking somewhere else. This is a very introspective, intricate story that spends more time delving into its characters instead of barreling you along on a whirlwind plot. But I didn't mind. The prose is gorgeous, the characters are wonderful, and it has fully convinced me to go read every book Maggie Stiefvater has ever written.

Verdict: 4 Stars

To conclude, have some gifs of me at the end of this book:

Book Review: BLACKWOOD

It's time for a book review! Today's review is on Gwenda Bond's Blackwood. (I'm sorry it took so long to finish this book. I got on a huge knitting kick and let's face it, it's practically impossible to knit while also trying to turn the pages of a book.)

(I love the snake. And the actual cover feels all silky and soft. Just saying.)

Here's the summary from Goodreads:

On Roanoke Island, the legend of the 114 people who mysteriously vanished from the Lost Colony hundreds of years ago is just an outdoor drama for the tourists, a story people tell. But when the island faces the sudden disappearance of 114 people now, an unlikely pair of 17-year-olds may be the only hope of bringing them back.

Miranda, a misfit girl from the island’s most infamous family, and Phillips, an exiled teen criminal who hears the voices of the dead, must dodge everyone from federal agents to long-dead alchemists as they work to uncover the secrets of the new Lost Colony. The one thing they can’t dodge is each other.

Blackwood is a dark, witty coming of age story that combines America’s oldest mystery with a thoroughly contemporary romance.

  

I really enjoyed Blackwood. It was a lot of fun to read and I thought the concept was neat and original. The story follows Miranda Blackwood and Phillips Rawling-- two teenagers forced to deal with crazy undead alchemists and ancient curses when 114 people go missing on modern-day Roanoke Island.

Miranda was a great main character. Her life kind of sucked, but she never fell into self-pity. Instead of whining about how awful everything was, she moved on with her life and dealt with her problems. (Often with the help of nerdy television shows). She was a very likeable, geeky teenage girl-- the kind of person I'd like to be friends with.

As for the other main character, what can I say about Phillips Rawling besides HE'S WONDERFUL AND I LOVE HIM AND YOU SHOULD LOVE HIM TOO. He and Miranda were both weird in all the best ways, and I think YA needs some more love interests like him-- guys who know who Elena Gilbert is but who can also break out of jail.

I've seen a couple of people talking about how the insta-love between Miranda and Phillips annoyed them. But honestly, as someone who wants to claw her eyes out at the thought of insta-love, I didn't see much of it. I think it's because even though their relationship developed quite quickly, it was never presented as true love. They were simply two compatible people with a connection who end up crushing on each other. And sometimes that kind of thing happens pretty fast in real life. I thought it was kind of refreshing that I wasn't reading about a couple who's true love was better than all true loves that came before it.

The plot moves along at a very quick pace. Bond keeps the action going, but never lets it feel episodic. However, my one complaint is that I think the plot could have been a little more well-developed. The book, while coming in at 325 pages, feels a little short. I know this will sound weird, but I think it could have used a little more info-dumping. (Whoa...I can't believe I just said that.) I don't mean Bond needs to throw tons of information at the reader, I just think the story never slowed down enough to offer a solid explanation. While I liked the book, and the storyline, I still can't tell you why everything happened.

So, in short, Blackwood was a fun and fast read (well, fast if you aren't trying to knit at the same time). The main characters were quirky and interesting to read about. Their relationship has become one of my favourites in YA (I'm telling you, Miranda and Phillips are frakking adorable.) And plus, the book is filled to the brim with nerdy pop-culture references! What more could you ask for! So go pick up a copy!

Verdict: 3 Stars

Book Review: GIRL OF NIGHTMARES

You guys. You guys. This book was so good. I finished it like two weeks ago and I'm still dying. That's why it took me so long to do the review. I have ALL THE FEELS.

Girl of Nightmares by Kendare Blake is the sequel to Anna Dressed in Blood. And it was wonderful. Anna was one of my favourite books of 2011 and if you read my review of it then you know how much I loved it. I was a little worried about this book because sequels are hard to get right. They always differ from the first book, and oftentimes the things we liked best are the things that were changed. But I needn't have worried, Kendare Blake knocked it out of the ball park with this one-- again.

 (Dear lord, this cover. It basically kills me with all the awesome.)

Here's the summary from Goodreads:

It's been months since the ghost of Anna Korlov opened a door to Hell in her basement and disappeared into it, but ghost-hunter Cas Lowood can't move on.

His friends remind him that Anna sacrificed herself so that Cas could live—not walk around half dead. He knows they're right, but in Cas's eyes, no living girl he meets can compare to the dead girl he fell in love with.


Now he's seeing Anna everywhere: sometimes when he's asleep and sometimes in waking nightmares. But something is very wrong...these aren't just daydreams. Anna seems tortured, torn apart in new and ever more gruesome ways every time she appears.


Cas doesn't know what happened to Anna when she disappeared into Hell, but he knows she doesn't deserve whatever is happening to her now. Anna saved Cas more than once, and it's time for him to return the favor.

I must have a thing for really weird love stories or something, because Blake's books are some of my favourite YA books with a romance aspect. I think it's the fact that they're so different. There isn't any creepily-obsessed love interest, there's no angsty brooding over tortured pasts and there is absolutely no insta-love. Cas and Anna's relationship is not a normal one, but that's okay because neither of them could strictly be called normal. And the creepy in their relationship comes from the fact that Anna is a mass-murdering vengeful ghost, not because she's a slightly abusive stalker. Their relationship beautiful in a tragic sort of way, and it's a nice change from all of the "truer-and-more-perfect-than-any-before-it" love stories that have been popping up in YA recently (*cough* Hush, Hush *cough*).

Like I said before, I think one of the problems with sequels is that the characters have been changed since the first book. They're not always the people we fell in love with. Well, it is fair to say that the characters in Girl of Nightmares have changed from Anna. But I didn't care, because it was a good sort of change.

Cas Lowood is no longer the cocky ghost hunter he once was. He is broken, and obsessed with finding out what happened to Anna after her disappearance in the first book. He is convinced that she is the only girl for him, despite the fact that she's dead. Cas is not normal, so the idea that he could just go out and find a normal girl after Anna is a laughable. When he finds out that Anna is being tortured in her own personal hell, he goes looking for her. He ends up putting himself and his friends in danger. But instead of being annoying, Blake makes his actions heart wrenching. This is a boy who deals with the dead on a daily basis, and is finding out for the first time that he can't let go of someone.

As for Anna-- what can I say, other than HOLY FLYING LAMAS HOW DID YOU GET EVEN MORE AWESOME? She's trapped in Hell, she's been tortured, broken and beaten down-- but she still managed to kick some major ass.

I loved the secondary characters just as much as I did the first go around. Carmel goes through some pretty painful character development in this book. At one point she has a bit of a mental crisis over how the supernatural has invaded her neat and orderly world. But her crisis was understandable, and didn't detract from her character at all. The wonderfully dorky witch, Thomas Sabin was back for comic relief. He was awesome, as usual.

This book did introduce us to a new character-- Jestine. She's a kind of ghost-hunter-in-training. I didn't hate her, I was just sort of ambivalent towards her. I think her characterization was sacrificed a little in the name of moving the plot forward. She felt a little flat,, and the maybe-just-me-reading-too-much-into-things romance she had with Cas didn't help matters. I couldn't quite work out who she was supposed to be.

And now for the plot. Whereas Anna was a more traditional horror story, this was more of a mystery novel with a ghostly twist. The pacing was a little slower this time. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as Blake has a lot of information to pack into 330 pages. A lot of time was spent on showing us how broken up Cas was about Anna's disappearance, which might annoy some readers. I didn't mind, because I thought it set the story's tone. Cas is a boy who his desperate to find the girl he loves, dead or not, and his desperation had to be believable for the rest of the story to make sense.

The story was satisfyingly creepy. Kendare Blake does a great job with believable, but striking imagery, and it definitely manages to amp up the scary in this book. All I have to say is don't read the Suicide Forest scene in an old and creaky hotel in the middle of the night. It won't end well.

And that ending-- wow. Going in I didn't know this was the last book in the series. While I'm sad that it had to end, I thank the book gods that it ended well. Blake could have chosen any number of cop outs endings for her book, so I applaud her for not taking the easy way out. The ending she chose was the most difficult one, but also the right one. There are going to be readers who hated the ending, but I loved it. Even though it made me bawl like a baby at one o'clock in the morning while my family slept, probably thinking I was going insane.

All in all, Kendare Blake managed to switch up the formula from her first book and make a thoroughly enjoyable sequel (enjoyable even when you cry your heart out). So go read it. Go read it now. You won't regret it (even when you're puking tears).

Verdict: Four Stars! 

P.S.-- I have decided that these books need to be made into movies. Someone get on that. Like right now.

Obligatory gifs of me at the end of the book:

  

Book Review: HUSH HUSH

It's book review time! Today's review is on Becca Fitzpatrick's Hush Hush. The book is nestled firmly into that vein of YA paranormal that everyone is tired of. Since it stirred up so much hype, I decided to start off my YA reading kick with it.

(I must admit, the cover is pretty.)

Here's the summary from Goodreads:

A SACRED OATH
A FALLEN ANGEL
A FORBIDDEN LOVE

Romance was not part of Nora Grey's plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how hard her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch comes along. With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Patch draws Nora to him against her better judgment.

But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure whom to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is and seems to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.

For she is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost Nora her life.

I can't really think of much to say about this book. Except maybe, "What the hell?" But, let's try and make some sense of this, shall we?

First off all, the characters. I feel I should get this out up front: I want to slap Nora in the face. People will go on and on about how she's stupid for loving Patch (who is the book's resident bad boy). But you know what, I don't care. I don't really give a crap that she likes a boy who wants to kill her. Because I can get behind liking someone who's not good for you. What I can't get behind is plain stupidity. Nora doesn't think her actions through, she doesn't do research things before jumping to dangerous conclusions, in fact she doesn't do anything. I can't even try to sum up her character because she was that boring. Literally the only thing that stood out about her were her astonishingly stupid actions.

Next up is Patch. I am not going to talk about how Patch is horrible for young girls to read about or how he's a horrible love interest. Countless people have already talked about that. And honestly, I don't really care. He's a bad boy, he's supposed to be dangerous. That's the whole point of his character. And honestly, that's part of the problem. I didn't feel anything whatsoever for Patch. There was no character behind the dark-past-dark-jeans facade. I didn't care about his backstory, I didn't feel bad for his tortured soul (which really wasn't all that tortured, I mean suck it up, dude!) I just didn't care one bit. He tried so hard to be hot and dangerous and it just didn't work and I honestly wanted to laugh every time he showed up.

And now for the plot.

I legitimately have no idea what to say. It was so convoluted and confused that I don't know what happened. It was like Becca Fitzpatric forgot about important details only to remember them all IN THE LAST THIRTY PAGES and then she smushed them all together and pretended it was a plot.

Lastly, the writing. I would like to find something nice to say about this book, so here it is: The writing made me laugh. Rather unintentionally, but still, laughing is always fun. In the end, though, the writing was boring and melodramatic. If I have to read one more sentence about Patch's "dark levis" I will shank someone. JUST CALL THEM JEANS, FOR PETE'S SAKE.

 Also, she named a character Chauncey. This was an important character. One who was integral to the plot. And his name was Chauncey. I'm sorry, but I cannot take anything seriously when a character has that name and it's not supposed to be funny. I just can't.

But for all it's faults, the book did keep me reading. However, I'm not sure if that was me actually being hooked by the story or just the easy writing style. It took me over a week to read the last fifty pages. That's never a good sign.

So, overall, Hush Hush was a very boring, over-hyped book with flat characters and bad writing.  Maybe if you like angels you could give it a whirl?   (But then you could just go read Supernatural fanfiction and it's online for free, so nevermind).

Will I be picking up the sequels? Maybe, if I ever want to laugh at some hilariously bad writing again. But it sure as hell won't be because I care about the characters or the story.

Verdict: Two Stars! 

(It gets two instead of one because of all the unintentional laughter it induced.)

First Real Blog Post! Review: ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD

Hello, everyone!  Or, I suppose it should be hello to the very, very few people who somehow magically stumble across this blog.  For my first ever actual blog post, I decided to review one of my favourite books of 2011, Kendare Blake's Anna Dressed in Blood.  

(I mean, just look at that cover.  You can't not pick up a book with a cover like that, it's physically impossible.)

Here's the summary from Goodreads:

Just your average boy-meets-girl, girl-kills-people story...

Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.

So did his father before him, until his gruesome murder by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.

When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn’t expect anything outside of the ordinary: move, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, but now stained red and dripping blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.

And she, for whatever reason, spares his life.

I was wandering around my local B&N when the cover caught my eye.  The summary on the back seemed quite different from the other books in the YA section: no love triangles, no speshul chosen-one protagonist and no weird and no brooding love interest.  It was straightforward and direct: this is a book about a boy who kills ghost, and there is also a dead girl who is a murdering psychopath.  They like each other.  Stuff happens.  So of course I had to read it.

I was not disappointed.

The book is marketed as a horror book, so some of you more lighthearted readers might be worried about picking it up.  Well, the book is in fact more creepy than it is outright scary.  I got goosebumps in a couple of scenes, and I became a bit wary of venturing all alone into the basement of my dorm to do laundry, but I didn't get nightmares, nor did I need to sleep with the light on.  So don't worry about the book ruining your life forever by making you sleep with a Crucifix and holy water next to your bed (I'm looking at you, Salem's Lot.)

So the book was creepy.  That's cool, I like creepy.  I also like good characters (as I'm sure most readers do) and this book was chock full of them.

Cas has had a rough life.  His father was killed by an unknown monster when he was young and instead of making friends he hunts ghosts.  He's badass.  He's good looking.  And he knows it.  I've read a couple of reviews on Goodreads about how some people found Cas's self-confidence and slight arrogance annoying.  While I'm not the biggest fan of arrogant protagonists, I didn't get annoyed because it fit Cas's character.  I mean come on, if you killed ghosts and demons for a living, you'd probably be pretty confident, too.  I think Cas is allowed a little cockiness.

And, let's admit it, Cas has got a bit of a thing for death, which some people might find creepy.  But if I spent everyday of my life with death as a near constant companion, I'd probably develop a thing for death as well.  So Cas has his flaws, he's got a bit of weirdness, but he's well-developed.  I loved his voice. I liked that he wasn't mopey over his past-- he dealt with the trauma and went out and did stuff.  And I liked that he was a bit haunted, but he didn't let that get to him, he just accepted it and moved on.  In short, he was awesome and I love him.

The side characters were also well done.  I especially liked Cas's mother.  I really like it when the parents in YA books are characters of their own, not just there to serve as plot devices.  She was funny and quirky, and you could see how a mother like that helped to make Cas the kind of person he was in the book.    I also enjoyed Cas's friends (or members of his Scooby-gang, as it were).  Thomas was funny and provided some dorky comic relief.  Carmel wasn't awful, but nor did I love her.  She was a girl in the popular high school clique and I didn't want to shoot her, so that means she was pretty well-developed.

And then we have Anna, the titular character of the book.  She is freaking fantastic.  I'm a big fan of characters aren't perfect, and Anna is anything but perfect.  She kills people, she's all bloody and she rips people to shreds.  It's awesome.  Her backstory was particularly sad (I won't spoil it for you but let's just say it made me want to cry) and it very clearly explained her tendency to want to tear people in half.  Her actions near the end of the book were also quite in character for her, which was cool to see.

Of course we also have the romance.  Or, more accurately, the tiny bit of connection that could theoretically be called a romance.  It was nice to see a book where the romance isn't the driving plot force.  Cas and Anna's connection never became a romantic plot tumor, nor was it ever overdone.  It's easy to see why Cas might fall for a ghost like Anna.  He lives with death; it stalks his every footstep and he embraces it.  How on earth would a guy like that ever really go for a normal girl?  He wouldn't, and so he must fall for Anna.  Anna's attraction to Cas, on the other hand, was never really explained (nor was it explained why she spared his life in the beginning) but I can brush that aside because of the fact that I liked them both.  (I read a review somewhere where the person said that their relationship was creepy. Errr....why is that a negative?  Of course it's creepy, what did you expect?  It's supposed to be creepy! That's the whole point of the book!)

The plot was quite well-done.  It kept me reading, and I pretty much read the book in one sitting (two in the morning reading sessions, FTW!).  I felt that that big reveal could have been explained a little better, but I can forgive it because I really did not expect it.  And that ending-- GIVE ME THE NEXT BOOK.  GIVE IT TO ME, NOW.  (Luckily the second book was just released! Woo-hoo!)

So, in short, I loved Anna Dressed in Blood.  Kudos to Kendare Blake for taking such a cool idea and running with it.  She never backed down from the creepiness or the darkness inherent in the concept.  The book will appeal to fans of paranormal fiction (especially dark paranormal fans) and perhaps fans of horror as well (just don't expect it to scare your socks off).  And I think anyone looking for a gripping book, with interesting characters and some pretty good twists will like it.  As for me, I'm headed out to get the second one!


Happy reading!

Verdict: Four Stars! 

P.S.-- There were some people I saw saying that the font was hard to read.  It's a dark red/burgundy type on cream coloured paper.  Honestly, it took me ten or fifteen pages before I realised the font wasn't black.  It didn't bother me at all and I actually really loved the effect, but this probably varies from person to person.

P.P.S-- Cas and Anna.  Like Supernatural. Omg I never realised.  Can I ship Castiel and Anna, now?  Is this a thing that I can do?  Yes.  I'm gonna do it.

P.P.P.S.-- Never mind.  I can't ship Castiel and Anna because it would interfere with Destiel.  Silly Hannah, get your ships straight!  (Lol, straight.  Haha.)