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Filled with mystery, romance, and the supernatural, The Raven Boys introduces readers to Richard “Dick” Campbell Gansey, III and Blue Sargent. Gansey has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on the hunt to find Glendower, a vanished... read more

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“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love . . . or you killed him.”

It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the... read more (warning: may contain spoilers)

“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love . . . or you killed him.”

It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.

His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, who notices many things but says very little.

For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.

From Maggie Stiefvater, the bestselling and acclaimed author of the Shiver trilogy and The Scorpio Races, comes a spellbinding new series where the inevitability of death and the nature of love lead us to a place we’ve never been before.

Characters edit see section history

  • Richard Campbell Gansey III: aka Dick; Gansey has it all — family money, good looks, devoted friends. Over the past few years, he has made it his mission to locate Glendower, an ancient king he believes is buried somewhere in the rural Henrietta, Virginia. His passion for the quest is not very realistic.
  • Blue Sargent: Daughter of the town psychic in Henrietta, Virginia, has been told for as long as she can remember that if she ever kisses her true love, he will die. But she is too practical to believe in things like true love. Or boys. Especially Raven Boys (the local private school boys). However, she will soon find that her life is more connected to the lives of four Raven Boys than she ever would have imagined. She tries to be eccentric with her hair and clothes and room decor, but she is all practical and it shows. Her energy enhances the power of the psychics although she is not psychic.
  • Maura Sargent: Blue's mother who makes a living off psychic readings.
  • Orla: Blue's cousin.
  • Neeve: Maura's half sister who comes for a rather sudden visit. Neeve is a more widely known psychic (she has her own television show), but no one is really sure why she's in town. She is very odd.
  • Noah: A quiet, reserved Raven Boy who spends his time with Gansey, Ronan, and Adam.
  • Persephone: Maura's best friend. She lives with Blue and Maura and is the most soft-spoken of the psychics at 300 Fox Way. She seems floaty physically and in every other way.
  • Adam Parrish: A Raven Boy (by scholarship) who works hard for all he's got, he's so determined to make it on his own that he is often at odds with Gansey. He's quiet and sincere. He wants to be independent.
  • Ronan Lynch: A Raven Boy who has a snide sense of humor and a habit of getting into trouble with authority; Declan's estranged younger brother. Matthew is his younger brother. He's not very likable.
  • Calla: Maura's best friend. She also lives with Blue and Maura. She is the most blunt of the psychics at 300 Fox Way, but provides much comic relief; she also has the talent of psychometry.
  • Barrington Whelk: A Latin teacher at Aglionby who is also interested in waking Glendower.
  • Helen: Gansey's older sister. She has her own helicopter.
  • Declan Lynch: Ronan's older brother. After their father's death, he was put in charge of the family fortune. He and Ronan are at odds. He and Declan fight physically over the ways that Ronan lets him down.
  • Malory: An old professor in the UK whom Gansey consults about ley lines. Sort of absent minded.
Show all 14 characters
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Quotes edit see section history

  • “She recognized the strange happiness that came from loving something without knowing why you did, that strange happiness that was sometimes so big that it felt like sadness. It was the say she felt when she looked at the stars.”
    Blue
  • “Blue never grew tired of feeling particularly needed, but sometimes she wished needed felt less like a synonym for useful.”
    Blue
  • “The way Gansey saw it was this: If you had a special knack for finding things, it meant you owed the world to look.”
    Gansey
  • ““You’re Maura’s daughter,” Neeve said, and before Blue could answer, she added, “this is the year you’ll fall in love.”“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve, Blue. Either you’re his true love,” Neeve said, “or you killed him.””
    Neeve
  • “Aglionby Academy was the number one reason Blue had developed her two rules: one, stay away from boys, because they were trouble. And two, stay away from Aglionby boys, because they were bastards.”
    Blue

Setting & Locations edit see section history

  • Henrietta, Virginia: The town in which the story takes place. Henrietta is believed to be on a powerful ley line.
  • Aglionby Academy: The private school attended by Adam, Ronan, Noah, and Gansey.
  • 300 Fox Way: Address of the house Blue shares with her mother and several other female relatives.

First Sentence edit see section history

Blue Sargent had forgotten how many times she'd been told that she would kill her true love.

Table of Contents edit see section history

Prologue
Chapters 1 - 48

Series & Lists edit see section history

This is book 1 of 2 in Raven Cycle. (standard series)

Followed by The Dream Thieves.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

  1. Maggie Stiefvater (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Original Language: English
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Country: USA
Publication Date: September 18, 2012
ISBN: 978-0545424929
Page Count: 416

Awards edit see section history

Links to Supplemental Material edit see section history


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