The Raven Boys

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I totally said I would wait.  And I had every intention of actually waiting.  Maggie Stiefvater disappointed me with her Shiver, Linger and Forever trilogy.  Shiver was pretty darn good, Linger still good and Forever...bleh.  All sorts of loose ends and no proper ending.  But, my friend (Becky) got all excited when she read the blurb about Stiefvater's newest book (the first in yet another trilogy).  She really loved it and while I said I'd probably end up reading it, I planned to wait until at least one or both of the successive books were out to see if she disappoints yet again. 

And then, you'll never guess what was available in audiobook form on my local library's app.

Yep.

So, I got on the waiting list and waited and waited and waited...and waited some more.  Finally, it was my turn to check it out.  Here's the gist:

Blue Sargent is the protagonist of this story and to give you a little background, she's the daughter of the town psychic, but is not herself a psychic though her presence does enhance other psychic's abilities.  Almost from birth, Blue has been told that if she were to kiss her true love that he would be destined to die.  To quell this fear, Blue and her mother have decided that she will simply not kiss any boy.  Though, now that Blue is coming to "that" age, this might be more difficult than previously assumed.

On the night of St. Mark's Eve, Blue and her aunt head out to a local churchyard where Blue's aunt will watch for dead spirits.  On this night, everyone who will (more than likely) die within the next year will pass them...providing the psychics with the ability to tell customers whether a friend or family member will likely die in the next year.  Blue experiences her first psychic-type instance when she can see a young man, Gansey, wearing the uniform of the local private school, Aglionby Academy.  When Blue tells her aunt that she can see him, Blue is told there is only one of two reasons why...either he is Blue's true love or she kills him.

Well, hmmm...

The rest of this book entails Blue meeting Gansey and his friends (the Raven boys) and the lot embarking on a mission involving a "line of energy" and a legendary Welsh king.  Of course, there's a little drama along the way...and the ending is left open for the second book.

I thought this book was pretty good.  It wasn't my absolute favorite YA novel, but it definitely might be worth investing your time into.  I'll be really interested to see where Stiefvater leads this ghostly, supernatural, paranormal, mystical and imaginative series...