The Dream Thieves | Book Review

The Dream Thieves is the second book in the Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater. It continues the story from the Raven Boys, following the life of Blue Sargent, the only non-psychic in a house of psychics, and the Raven Boys, four boys who study at the Aglionby Academy – Gansey, Adam, Ronan and Noah as they continue their search for the Raven King’s tomb. However, more and more strangers are coming to Henrietta, attracted by the awakened leyline and seeking something else – the Graywaren.

Since NaNoWriMo is just around the corner, I decided to look up whether Maggie Stiefvater has joined before. Turns out she has, but her experience with it has been… how shall I say this… less than good. Okay, it’s downright bad. She wrote a rant about it, had an anti-NaNoWriMo Pep-Talk, she even acknowledges she’s been somewhat of an asshole about it but she is right in saying that NaNoWriMo is not for everyone. Anyway, enough of a detour, let’s get to the meat of this review.

The Good

Ronan is just so… I want to give him a hug sometimes. The Dream Thieves reveals a lot about Ronan’s past and his issues with himself and his family. I wasn’t convince by him in the previous book, but boy, was I proven wrong about him in this one. There are just so many layers to Ronan Lynch and this book peels away each layer and shows that every single one of them is just as interesting as the ones that came before it.

And honestly, I know this might sound repetitive, but the characters really make the series for me. They are nuanced and have many layers to them. And more than that, the relationship between the characters were honestly the best thing about it. Between each of the Raven Boys and Blue and even between Maura and the Gray Man. Speaking of the Gray Man, I think him and Kavinsky are two awesome additions to the story. I mean, Kavinsky isn’t a likeable person, but as a character he was just great. Stiefvater even mentions that he’s one of her favorite character to write.

The Bad

The plot is still on the slow side of the spectrum for me. Don’t get me wrong, I like it. And I like it better than the first book’s plot. I know a lot of people LOVE the plot, but personally I enjoyed it, but it’s not the best thing about the series. And I think I’ve figured out why. A lot of the scenes in the Raven Boys are character scenes. They explore the relationship between characters and their inner thoughts, and sometimes these scenes have little to no bearing to the overarching story. Which is why the chase for Glendower’s tomb is not really that exciting because it’s not really the focal point of the story. Not that that’s necessarily a bad thing though. Though there is a certain promise hanging that we’ll see a resolution to it come the last book.

Also, what’s the deal with the Gray Man’s brother? I thought he might turn out to be a major villain, set up for the next book, or that he’s not the evil man the Gray Man considered him to be. Either way, I expected a twist or some grand conclusion to that story arc. But it ended with a whimper. Maybe it’s supposed to be an emotionally charged scene, and I just didn’t connected with it.

 

Verdict

I’m loving the series so far. The Dream Thieves is just like the Raven Boys but better.