The Raven King (The Raven Cycle, Book 4)

Maggie Stiefvater

Apr 2016 · Sold by Scholastic Inc.

About this ebook

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 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."

Ratings and reviews

Stiefvater's writing is as gorgeous as ever, but the pacing is bad. The climax of the book had me feeling very meh - the opposite of all the other books in the series - and there was so little payoff in pretty much every area of character development, which is what really makes this series. Adam is the only character with a satisfying or coherent character arc. Henry is a delight but seems shoehorned into this last book. Might have been better if the book had been divided into two.

I don’t know how I feel about The Raven King. I read the first three books in a row this February. But I didn’t read the final installment until May. Now, I kinda wish I just read them all in a row. I wasn’t into it at first like I had acclimate to it again instead of being submersed. Eventually, I was involved but it was after I cared about the new characters and the plot started moving. Which is much later than expected… The ending is open and fitting for the series. Especially since Maggie has talked about a Ronan centered series on Twitter. I’m interested in that because I love Ronan but I’m afraid I might have to make myself wait for its completion so the magic isn’t lost again. Her writing is amazing as always. It kept me going even when I wasn’t engaged. I made tons of bookmarks, notes, and highlights because of the writing. Too bad I didn’t transcribe them before my time was up. It’s a pity I wasn’t reviewing in February. I rated the first three installments 3 stars but don’t have notes on why. Hmmmm. Based on enjoyment The Raven King earns another 3 stars. The writing earns 5, the ending 4, the pacing 2, and the characters 3.5. So… Going with the gut feeling: 3 stars.

3 stars means it's okay and that is just what the final installment of the series is ok. I don't want to create or give you guys any spoilers but I will say that Gansey does die. I will say that for a year-and-a-half of waiting I'm disappointed. But still it is a conclusion of the series and it is an okay book enjoy

About the author

Maggie Stiefvater is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the novels Shiver, Linger, Forever, and Sinner. Her novel The Scorpio Races was named a Michael L. Printz Honor Book by the American Library Association. The first book in The Raven Cycle, The Raven Boys, was a Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year and the second book, The Dream Thieves, was an ALA Best Book for Young Adults. The third book, Blue Lily, Lily Blue, received five starred reviews. The final book, The Raven King, received four. She is also the author of All the Crooked Saints and Call Down the Hawk. She is also an artist and musician. She lives in Virginia with her husband and their two children. You can visit her online at maggiestiefvater.com.