I've decided to do a new thing where I talk about something that isn't solely a book review every Monday. It's called "Marmoreal Monday" for no reason other than a) I couldn't find a synonym for "personal" that started with an "M" and b) I really, really like that word and would like to see it used more widely.
Ahem. Moving on.
I mentioned in a recent post that my favorite author was Maggie Stiefvater. I dislike the idea of having one author that is your "favorite" per se. However, in terms of YA Lit, Maggie Stiefvater is an author whose books I have had really, really strong feelings about pretty much since the I started reading her.
Basically, her Shiver Trilogy (Shiver, Linger, and Forever) is such a unique interpretation of werewolves and the romance so real and so ideal and so ... so ... I'm having a hard time articulating this, but it's one of those romances where I get that feeling of my heart being squeezed from all the emotion, and it gets difficult to speak. The feeling that is the origin of the phrase "your heart's in your throat," basically.
I also absolutely drool over her Books of Faerie (Ballad and Lament). First off, anything for folklore, particularly British or Irish folklore just gets me. (Seriously, I bought everything Amazon had from Katherine Briggs, who is pretty much the biggest name in that area). Second, I LOVE the whole "faerie" concept. (NOT Tinker Bell, like, traditional faeries. The next series I'm delving into is by Nancy Werlin and includes Extraordinary, Impossible, and Unthinkable. It involves, you guessed it, the world of the fae. So you can see, I'm really into it.) Finally, she just makes everything real, you know? Like, I believe because Maggie Stiefvater wrote about it. She just makes her writing so alive.
My favorite book from her is The Scorpio Races. One, Sean is the kind of man one can only dream about. I mean, of course, a relationship with him wouldn't really work in real life (at least for me, anyway), but it's liked he walked out of a legend. The whole book is, really. Everything is ancient and full of myth and time and meaning AND I LOVE IT! The way she writes the world is the way I wish I could see it all the time.
Her Raven Cycle (The Raven Boys, The Dream Thieves, and two more, I believe, yet to be released) is also one of my favorites. First off, ley lines? Glendower? I am all over that. One, it made my British history class actually relevant to my actual life for the first, last, and only time, but, damn, was it worth it. Two, no one handles legends as well as Maggie Stiefvater. The way she described Cabeswater and nature and the connection the characters' feel towards it is just so... stirring.
Also, I highly recommend you check out her website or something, because she is also awesome as a person! (She has tons of pets and plays the bagpipes. Really. Now, go research her, I promise you will not be disappointed with the way in which she embodies awesome.)
In short, Maggie Stiefvater is my favorite author because her books are just that good. The characters, the plot, everything is awesome. However, what really does it for me is a little more intangible than that. I want to throw around the phrase "speaks to my soul" ... however, I don't want you to think I'm off my rocker and leave. Oh, hell, it's not like anyone's really reading this. The novels of Maggie Stiefvater speak to my soul. Just the way she describes magic and legends and things ancient and eternal just gets me the way nothing else ever has. Seriously, I believe in the world because Maggie Stiefvater wrote about it.
I'll freely admit, I've always been a bit weird...i.e. attributing odd little things to elements of supernatural/folkloric natures is something I've always done, and I've always been obsessed with the past and the fae and magic and such. HOWEVER, my love for Maggie Stiefvater is completely independent of that aspect of my interests and if you have never read anything by her, I HIGHLY recommend you do so right now. Seriously, you don't know what you're missing.
Showing posts with label Maggie Stiefvater. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Maggie Stiefvater. Show all posts
Monday, December 30, 2013
The Dream Thieves (The Raven Cycle #2) by Maggie Stiefvater
Caution: You may see spoilers below.
Once again, I am late, but I've just recently got back into book blogging, and I wanted to talk about this book. Obviously, it was a wonderful follow up to the first book in the series.
What I Liked:
Once again, I am late, but I've just recently got back into book blogging, and I wanted to talk about this book. Obviously, it was a wonderful follow up to the first book in the series.
What I Liked:
- Everything! But, seriously, it's Maggie Stiefvater, who is my favorite author.
- The relationship between Blue and Gansey. Both in a plot way and in a meta wow this is really well done way.
- The continuing information about Glendower and ley lines and all that. I love nothing more than I love that stuff.
What I Didn't Like:
- I found myself a bit frustrated with the lack of information on the Gray Man. I just wanted a little more on his motivation for choosing sides.
Final Thoughts;
- Usually, I give some kind of a caveat about reading a book, but, no, this is the book for everyone ever.
Friday, January 11, 2013
The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
*This review contains spoilers.*
This is my first novel by Maggie Stiefvater (though I did buy The Scorpio Races, I haven't read it yet), so I wasn't sure what to expect. I was really surprised with how much I liked this book, in the end.
It follows Blue, a psychic's daughter, and four boys from a prestigious private school, Gansey, Ronan, Adam, and Noah. They are all a quest of sorts, which leads them discovering something magical in their little town of Henrietta, Virginia.
First, when Gansey started into his explanation of using ley lines to find the tomb of Owen Glendower, I totally screamed. (Side note: He was the last Welshman to bear the title Prince of Wales, and fought against the English conquest of Wales in the late 14th and early 15th centuries. He disappeared into the mountains and was never found. A legend has grown around him, kind of like that of King Arthur being the once and future king, that he will wake and rule again when Wales needs him.) I love ley lines, and one of my college classes (History of the British Isles) actually came in handy for something! I was freaking ecstatic! I have an affinity for the paranormal, so a a family of psychics, ley lines and a quest to discovered the tomb of Owen Glendower was so welcome in a book I cannot even describe it.
The romance of the book was very understated, but, surprisingly, that didn't diminish my enjoyment of this book. I also really enjoyed the lush landscape of the book. As for Blue, I really liked her as a heroine. If you were to ask me to describe her as a character, I don't think I could, though. It's like Maggie Stiefvater's characterization and development are so subtle that I can't outright tell you anything, but, while reading, everything Blue did, everything Blue was, was right.
One thing I didn't fall head over heels with was the treatment of Gansey's wealth, and the way the other characters made him feel ashamed of it. Like, when he used elevated vocabulary, he was somehow ungraciously flaunting what he had and they didn't in their faces. I guess I see the desired characterization for him, but that just felt a little odd to me.
Speaking of, I really liked Gansey. I liked his unerring dedication to his quest, his complete and utter devotion to his friends, his eternal desire to make a name for himself, do something good for the world. I don't know why, but he felt very raw to me. I almost want to call him fierce. I don't mean to say he was fierce in a shaved-head, tattoos and bad attitude kind of way (that's Ronan, by the way, and I found it adorable that he nursed a baby bird), just that he was exacting, almost? Not exacting, unflinching? I mean to say that he thrummed, you know? He felt real to me, like really real. I don't mean he was a good book character, who we can see metaphors and symbolism in, I mean that Gansey is a person, a real live person. He didn't feel literary, and like he had a purpose in the novel, like he did X in order to supplement the falling action of situation Y, he just was. Hell, he seemed more real than a lot of "real" people. He was different, fierce. Not just that he had his finger on the pulse of what it means to be alive, but that he was the very beating heart of humanity. I'm not making any sense, but Gansey is a character that I won't soon forget.
Since this was my first book by Maggie Stiefvater, I feel compelled to say that I've been missing out. Like I said, the romance was more understated than you usually see in a YA novel, and there are many things left unanswered, but, as a whole, the novel was seamless...like a living organism, almost. Again, it's hard to define why I feel so strongly about this book, but I do, and I will definitely be checking out the sequel(s), as it is book one in the Raven Cycle, and purchasing the collected works of Maggie Stiefvater as soon as possible.
I really recommend this book, I don't know what it was, but this book is something you shouldn't miss.
Thanks for reading!
This is my first novel by Maggie Stiefvater (though I did buy The Scorpio Races, I haven't read it yet), so I wasn't sure what to expect. I was really surprised with how much I liked this book, in the end.
It follows Blue, a psychic's daughter, and four boys from a prestigious private school, Gansey, Ronan, Adam, and Noah. They are all a quest of sorts, which leads them discovering something magical in their little town of Henrietta, Virginia.
First, when Gansey started into his explanation of using ley lines to find the tomb of Owen Glendower, I totally screamed. (Side note: He was the last Welshman to bear the title Prince of Wales, and fought against the English conquest of Wales in the late 14th and early 15th centuries. He disappeared into the mountains and was never found. A legend has grown around him, kind of like that of King Arthur being the once and future king, that he will wake and rule again when Wales needs him.) I love ley lines, and one of my college classes (History of the British Isles) actually came in handy for something! I was freaking ecstatic! I have an affinity for the paranormal, so a a family of psychics, ley lines and a quest to discovered the tomb of Owen Glendower was so welcome in a book I cannot even describe it.
The romance of the book was very understated, but, surprisingly, that didn't diminish my enjoyment of this book. I also really enjoyed the lush landscape of the book. As for Blue, I really liked her as a heroine. If you were to ask me to describe her as a character, I don't think I could, though. It's like Maggie Stiefvater's characterization and development are so subtle that I can't outright tell you anything, but, while reading, everything Blue did, everything Blue was, was right.
One thing I didn't fall head over heels with was the treatment of Gansey's wealth, and the way the other characters made him feel ashamed of it. Like, when he used elevated vocabulary, he was somehow ungraciously flaunting what he had and they didn't in their faces. I guess I see the desired characterization for him, but that just felt a little odd to me.
Speaking of, I really liked Gansey. I liked his unerring dedication to his quest, his complete and utter devotion to his friends, his eternal desire to make a name for himself, do something good for the world. I don't know why, but he felt very raw to me. I almost want to call him fierce. I don't mean to say he was fierce in a shaved-head, tattoos and bad attitude kind of way (that's Ronan, by the way, and I found it adorable that he nursed a baby bird), just that he was exacting, almost? Not exacting, unflinching? I mean to say that he thrummed, you know? He felt real to me, like really real. I don't mean he was a good book character, who we can see metaphors and symbolism in, I mean that Gansey is a person, a real live person. He didn't feel literary, and like he had a purpose in the novel, like he did X in order to supplement the falling action of situation Y, he just was. Hell, he seemed more real than a lot of "real" people. He was different, fierce. Not just that he had his finger on the pulse of what it means to be alive, but that he was the very beating heart of humanity. I'm not making any sense, but Gansey is a character that I won't soon forget.
Since this was my first book by Maggie Stiefvater, I feel compelled to say that I've been missing out. Like I said, the romance was more understated than you usually see in a YA novel, and there are many things left unanswered, but, as a whole, the novel was seamless...like a living organism, almost. Again, it's hard to define why I feel so strongly about this book, but I do, and I will definitely be checking out the sequel(s), as it is book one in the Raven Cycle, and purchasing the collected works of Maggie Stiefvater as soon as possible.
I really recommend this book, I don't know what it was, but this book is something you shouldn't miss.
Thanks for reading!
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