The fourth and final installment in the spellbinding series from the irrepressible, #1 New York Times bestselling author Maggie Stiefvater. All her life, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love’s death. She doesn’t believe in true love and never thought this would be a problem, but as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure … sure anymore. In a starred review for Blue Lily, Lily Blue, Kirkus Reviews declared: “Expect this truly one-of-a-kind series to come to a thundering close.”
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This is the culminating volume of the acclaimed Raven Cycle. Maggie Stiefvater is known for her character-driven YA speculative fiction, and this series is her best work to date. I loved that the story tapped into lore not often explored in YA lit, and featured a landscape that becomes as much a player in the action as the characters themselves. Especially recommended for readers who prefer delightful surprises over predictability.
Finishing up The Raven Cycle series with the series finale The Raven King! Excited!
A satisfying ending to an incredible fantasy series.
The Raven King, the last book in the Raven Cycle series, takes us to the end of the search by a group of teenagers to find a magical Welsh king buried underground. The ending is satisfying, taking us to moments that have been foretold and foreshadowed in earlier books. Surprisingly, Stiefvater also introduces new characters, conflicts, and subplots in a way that feels seamless, like those elements have always been there in the narrative.
This is a book with flourishes of romance—forbidden kisses, yearning, and curious pairings—but it’s ultimately a book about magic and friendship. As in the rest of the series, the world-building is fantastic, with not only powerful descriptions, but a sense of myth permeating it all. Even the enchanted forest of Cabeswater feels like a character in itself. And the heart of the book has always been the connections between the Raven Boys, the psychic’s daughter Blue, and the psychics in town. Those moments of friendship and family welling up between them are especially touching in this last book, where we see how much they will sacrifice to save one another.
Stiefvater began many of the chapters with the phrase, “Depending on where you began, it was a story about…” This device shows us how this tale has many possible narrators and angles. As a book so richly woven with characters, plot, and magical elements, it’s a story to reread again and again. I know I will.
Depending on where you begin, it is a story about the power of friendship, found family, love and how growing up changes all of those things and more. I don’t know how to review this book and do it justice. It is magic in its purest form, words on a page that take you to another world where you get to choose who you are and how you live. There were beautiful and poignant moments mixed with heartbreak and tragedy. The only real thing I can think to say at this point is… It was a satisfying ending to a magnificent series and you should read it. Get lost in it. Let it become your obsession and then, like the Raven Boys and their magical forest, figure out how to let go.
After thoroughly enjoying the first three books of the series, I knew I was in for a treat to see how it all ended, but I also dove into this book with a little trepidation. Wrapping up a series in satisfactory fashion is always difficult, but by now Maggie had wowed me over and over again with her storytelling prowess so I really had nothing to fear, right?
All the build up had led to this. The outer stakes ratcheted up each book. First the Gray Man, then Greenmantle, now more mysterious outsiders more powerful and untouchable than the rest. Then, there was the character stakes. Between Blue and the Raven boys, things kept getting more complicated and perilously intertwined. We’ve know since the first book that one of them was going to die and had a pretty strong hint as how that was going to happen.
So all the pieces were set up for a spectacular climax, but we only got a satisfactory one. Still a 5 star book in my opinion, but not quite up to the standard set in previous books. I still adore this series and the quality of writing. I don’t reread a lot of books, but somewhere down the road this will be one I pick up again because I have a feeling the small details will make more sense the second time around and I’ll get more out of it then. A book series worthy of a reread is the highest form of praise from me.
I seriously awesome story, great characters, and an amazing adventure
This review MAY contain spoilers.
After having finally completed this series, I am left in awe. I seriously don’t know what my feelings are right now. All I know is that there is this weight in my chest that both makes me feel like everything will be okay and that perhaps it won’t ever again.
This is genuinely a mesmerizing series. So full of imagination and wonder. The hype surrounding this series is real and valid. So many book series that are hyped as precious gems fall short at semi-precious or even faux. This series lives up to and is worth all the noise surrounding it.
One major thing that makes this series so extraordinary is the vision of this spectacular world. I have not idea how Stiefvater came up with the idea behind these books, but I can only imagine that it has something to do with magic and whimsy. Her blood itself must be laced with them to let her breathe life into this world. The world building is miraculous and infinite. While this world is nestled into our everyday humdrum, it also sparks with magic. It is both. It balances both. It makes the story itself feel like it could actually happen in our present day. Everything is described so vividly.
The other thing that makes this series worth screaming from building tops for is the characters and their relationships. The way that each character is woven into the story and how they intertwine in each other’s lives is brilliant and moving. Each character has purpose in the story. The background characters are just as important as the main characters and the reader feels pulled toward all of them at the same time. The characters get under your skin and burrow there. You scratch at them until they are a warmth within you. You love them. And you can’t imagine what your life will be when you finally reach the last page because you don’t want to let these characters go. You want to live with them always. And so they will always live with you. They are just damn incredible characters with beautiful character growth.
The plot unfolds with adept precision. Stiefvater is a foreshadowing queen. When things fell into place in the last part of the book I was blown away at all the links to past things in the series. There is so much emotion tucked into the plot. Stiefvater’s storytelling itself is quite distinctive. When I started this series I could tell that the writing style was very different from anything I had read previously. What I can only describe as quirky with a side of brilliance.
Overall, this series is unlike anything you’ve ever read. I recommend this series a billion times over! If you are a fan of unconventional fantasy or paranormal then this series will be right up your alley. This series really is something special and I am glad that I was able to experience it. Now please pardon me while I scour the interwebs for fanart of Blue and her Raven Boys. This newfound fandom has lodged in my chest cavity and it is there for keeps.
The last in the Raven Boys series was not disappointing. I enjoyed some of the other books in the series a little more, but that’s not to say this one wasn’t worth reading. It was quite good. The dots are finally connected, and the overall series arc comes to fruition. This is a series that one really must read from start to finish to truly get the most from what is happening with the characters and the story. The series is well-written and entertaining.
The development each character underwent was heartbreakingly amazing. Everyone’s relationships grew, and I appreciated that none of the characters’ personalities changed because of their relationships. Noah is honestly the best and is definitely a main character no matter what. I am SO disappointed in where his storyline went, and there were a few questions I was left with. All in all, I am thoroughly impressed with Maggie Stiefvater.