Good Day Bookworms,
When I wax philosophical in certain moods, I like to think that my missteps might help other people. Here’s a lesson for you. If you go into a series planning to binge read the whole thing, you’d better make DARN SURE you know that the series is finished. Making the assumption that a Paranormal YA series is, in fact, a trilogy would be a good bet, but we’re not in Vegas. We’re in book land. And you know what’s worse than reading a series you’re super into and then finding out you have to WAIT for the next installment?! NOTHING. IT. IS. AGONY. AGONY, I tell you! And it’s my own fault. Also Maggie Stiefvater’s fault for making The Raven Cycle
an impossibly delicious ride. Probably her publisher’s fault for taking too long with the editing or something. Maybe I can blame the time space continuum? I don’t knoooooooooow but I want time to move faster so I can find out what happens next!
I suppose I should explain a little. I started reading (alright, alright, listening) to The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater a couple of weeks ago. I read The Scorpio Races
(review) by Stiefvater and liked it well enough, but it wasn’t my favorite. Hence, my expectations for The Raven Cycle (The Raven Boys, The Dream Thieves 
, and Blue Lily, Lily Blue
) were sufficiently tempered. I figured I knew what I’d be getting into with a paranormal YA series, more or less. I was wrooooooooooooooong!
It’s hard to talk about a series without spoiling, oh, everything, which was my main motivation for reading the whole series in one go and giving you a single write up. I really need to start paying more attention. It’s like I learned NOTHING from the whole Diviners
debacle… But I digress. The Raven Cycle takes place in rural Henrietta, Virginia. Blue Sargent is a teenage girl living in a family a psychics, exceptional only in that she serves as a cosmic antenna to clarify other people’s clairvoyance. Blue doesn’t reap any benefit from her antenna-hood; in fact, it’s a pain in the tush to find out that you will be the cause of your true love’s death. Henrietta is home not only to an odd clan of psychic women, but also an elite boy’s-only prep school called Aglionby. A group of four Aglionby boys led by wealthy and charismatic ringleader Gansey are on a quest to find something money can’t buy, and Blue is soon swept away by their search. Enter weird paranormal stuff of a decidedly unusual variety. Add awesomeness. Shake until frothy. Then STOP COLD. Because the series isn’t finished. HEADDESK.
Part of the reason I was extra super sucked into this story is that it talks a lot about ley lines (which isn’t really a spoiler, but it wasn’t in the publisher blurbs, so whatever.) Anyway, ley lines are (anecdotally, at least) concentrated lines of energy of mysterious origin that spiderweb across the globe and are often marked by ancient monuments that nobody seems to understand. Like circles of standing stones. Like in Outlander
! These books are much less scientific and get way more oogly-boogly than Diana Gabaldon ever does, but if you were intrigued by what Master Raymond may have known, you’ll probably fall hard for these books too. Also, “oogly-boogly” is my new favorite term. In case it wasn’t abundantly clear, I will be waiting until next year at least for the final installment. If you wish to learn from my mistakes, hold off on starting the series. Once you start it, I can pretty much guarantee you’ll join me in the AGONY club. My word. We should make t-shirts. And belt out show tunes. Into The Woods
, anyone?
No for reals, Bookworms. Who wants an AGONY t-shirt? I think we could make this a thing, you guys!
*If you make a purchase through a link on this site, I will receive a small commission.*
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Ashley
Ask sounds Good! I read a series by her (I don’t remember the name) and I like her writing. I did not care for the Scorpio races though!
Words For Worms
You’d like this one. Give it a whirl!
Megan M.
Oh, no! You thought it was a trilogy but Steifvater threw you a curveball! How rude! It is, indeed, AGONY waiting for a book to come out when you really, really, REALLY want to read it. My Amazon wishlist is full of books that won’t be released until like, mid-2016 and it kills me to look at them.
(*whispers* Are you reading “Carry On” yet????)
Words For Worms
So sneaky, right?! I haven’t started Carry On yet. I sort of want to save it for the inevitable winter doldrums. We’ll see how long my willpower holds.
Joules (from Pocketful of Joules)
Ugh, I’m living in trilogy purgatory right now with the “Imitation” series. I read the first two and then realized that even though the cover is on Amazon… the third one doesn’t come out until later this month. GRR! So I feel like I need to forgo reading anything else before it comes out so that the series is fresh in my mind!
Jenny @ Reading the End
I am SO SAD that the fourth book in this trilogy got pushed back. It was meant to publish in October, but there were some delays in editing, and now it is to publish in February. See. Things were so close to working out exactly perfectly for you, but then publishing schedules intervened.
WHO IS YOUR FAVORITE CHARACTER THE CORRECT ANSWER IS ADAM PARRISH.
Words For Worms
I cannot commit to a favorite character!
Heather @ Capricious Reader
Hee hee hee hee!!! LOL LOVE IT.
I DON’T KNOW, I AM RATHER FOND OF GANSEY. I can’t help it.
Words For Worms
I am rather fond of him too, though I still cannot commit to a favorite!
Brittny @ A Written Journey
Ugh- I am in the AGONY club as well. I have not tried this series yet, but as I just learned with Kami Garcia’s The Legion series (which is still missing the third book as the publish date keeps getting pushed….), I will most definitely be waiting until this one is finished!
Words For Worms
Yes, wait until it’s finished and binge. It’s soooo delicious.