Blue Lily, Lily Blue [Raven Cycle #3] - Maggie Stiefvater - 5*

Blue Lily, Lily Blue [Raven Cycle #3]

Maggie Stiefvater

*****

No Spoilers

There is danger in dreaming. But there is even more danger in waking up.

Blue Sargent has found things. For the first time in her life, she has friends she can trust, a group to which she can belong. The Raven Boys have taken her in as one of their own. Their problems have become hers, and her problems have become theirs.

The trick with found things though, is how easily they can be lost.

Friends can betray.

Mothers can disappear.

Visions can mislead.

Certainties can unravel.

Blue Lily, Lily Blue started from the very first word; it drew you in like the first two books of the Raven Cycle, hooked you with pinchers and refused to let go, even at the very end. Almost immediately you are thrust into the world of Blue, Gansey, Ronan, Adam and Noah. Coiled up in their search for the lot Welsh King, Glendower. As we found out in the previous books, there are curses and there are promises and sometimes they really do put a spanner in the works.

I really liked that we felt more of Blue; we really got to see how her little mind worked, how she felt, having lost her mother to the underground, somewhere, she was suffering a grievous loss, which did push her closer to Gansey, as much as the two refused to let it happen, it did start to happen and my word, it really had my heart a-racing. Maggie does not disappoint when it comes to moments of awe, moments of sheer nerve-racking reading, to reach a point where tears do start to well. It has been a journey with these characters and they are so real, so three-dimensional, sometimes you forget they are in a book.

I loved how we got to see more of Ronan; he is after all my favourite. I enjoyed seeing his personality change, I think Maggie did it amazingly, the subtle little changes, the little nudges that made you see him more of as a real person, not just a dream thief with a chip on his shoulder. We saw a lot more of his and Adam’s relationship and it just seemed so real, so raw. Amazing.

The magical element, the supernatural, it is full on in this book; scrying, tarot, dream-stealing, we have it all. But the only spoiler I will give is there is a death, a death that really does knock you, right in the chest cavity. 

Maggie’s writing, her dialogue, her scenes, everything, right down to the heart-stopping, break-taking moments between a few characters, it is so real, so beautiful, you really cannot fault her or her story-telling. A real tale-spinner of old, letting you dive headfirst into a magical world full of beautiful characters all with their own story to tell. She takes you to the very brink and then drives you in a whole new direction, just when you think you are starting to know what is happening, the goal posts change and you are angling to find out more.

For those who loved Noah, he makes his appearances and I do feel we get to see more of him in the next book, more of everything, I hope. 

If you haven’t read the ‘Raven Boys’ or even the sequel, ‘Dream Thieves’ then what are you waiting for? Go loan it from your nearest library, find it in a charity shop or thrift store, buy it new, online or in a store, feel the pages between your fingertips and fall headfirst into this amazing world of Henrietta, Virginia. Follow the intertwining lives of Gansey, Blue, Ronan, Adam, Noah and Blue’s Psychic family. Bring tissues though, as sometimes it really is a ride.