Review: 'The Raven Cycle'

by Ananthi Parekh

So, as a new student to the school, it seemed to me that Portsmouth Point was the perfect club to join; writing, active, social, my type of thing. However, when my name appeared on the latest editorial schedule, my heart stopped: what was I supposed to write? What can I write? And what am I passionate enough about to write? 

However, upon seeing a friend write about a favorite podcast of his, I was inspired to write about a series of books that have changed my perspective on literature and remain one of the most beautiful and captivating stories I have ever read.

The Raven Cycle is a series of three (for now) books about a girl called Blue, who lives in a household full of psychics. I was first introduced to the book when I was given it as a Christmas present by one of my closest friends at the time, and was instantly intrigued. The author, Maggie Stiefvater, had already written a few books that my friends had raved about, and, despite the annoyingly overused phrase, the front cover painted mystery, adventure and heart.

I must admit, it took me a few tries to actually get in to the book, but now, used to Maggie’s unusual writing style, I fall in love with it with each and every word, whether I’m reading them for the first time or the thousandth. Blue, the protagonist, and just like every other character in the book, has been presented in such a way that she has come alive in my mind in a way unlike any other character. Little details of her personality that you wouldn’t even have thought of are slipped in among the lines of the novel; she is a complete and complex character - faulted, selfish, argumentative and completely unique in comparison to every other 16 year old female protagonist I’ve ever read about (or seen on screen or stage). She is positively filled to the brim with a personality that is as true as anyone real and you see her grow - just as someone real would do.

Writing this has been unbelievably hard as my love for the books only just yielded to my wanting to do them justice. This book and its characters are so impossibly real and precious to me and I feel as if I have grown with them. 

So, for my first piece of writing I recommend The Raven Boys, and the books that follow it, to any and all lovers of writing, quirkiness and seeing the world from a different perspective.