The Dream Thieves

So I've surpassed my good reads target for 2017 and now I'm trying really hard to continue on with series I've started this year trying where I can to progress them and keep myself engaged before too much time passes and I lose touch with the characters and plotlines. I read The Raven Boys a few months ago and having heard really good things about the second book in the series it made sense to delve into The Dream Thieves and spend some more time with Blue and her Aglionby boys.

Book 2 is a direct continuation from The Raven Boys and picks up immediately from where we left our characters but what becomes clear about this book is that it is going to be focused on Ronan Lynch, the darkest and most dangerous of the group of Raven Boys. With the reveal at the end of The Raven Boys that Ronan was able to take things from his dreams and bring them into the real world, we were left wondering just how this would link into the story of Gansey's search for Glendower the lost Welsh King.

To be honest this book didn't progress Gansey's search for Glendower by much. This book is really about Ronan exposing his secret to his friends and then exploring how it links to his past and his father's death and coming to terms with how to use and control the power that he has. All of this is done against the ticking timebomb of people who are trying to find the mysterious Greywarren an object which is allegedly linked to the gift Ronan has.

Initially, I struggled to gel with the book, for the first few chapters I considered putting it down and coming back to it later but slowly I kept going and then bit by bit I realised I was working my way through it and actually fairly quickly. I became more engaged by Ronan's story and actually one of the characters I probably wasn't meant to like became my saviour, Kavinsky. Kavinsky was like a breath of fresh air. He was a little bit dangerous, lurking around on the sidelines and then suddenly he became a vital part of this book and any chapters which featured Ronan and Kavinsky shone for me. I am sure I was not meant to like him quite so much but against the lack of plot movement in this book he was a shaft of light.

I am still struggling a little with Adam's character as the books progress, he has gone from being quite a stand up trustworthy guy to being dark and a little isolated from the other boys. His ongoing need to do everything alone and to raise himself from the circumstances of his birth is beginning to grate a little. Yes he does work towards redemption towards the end of this book but I found I didn't enjoy reading about him as much this time around.

I am still in love with Gansey, he didn't feature as strongly in this book as the search for Glendower took a back seat but he is still the father figure, the one watching out for everyone and I love that he and Blue are starting to draw together and any time they were together on the page was lovely. But can we just take a moment to talk about Noah, and that kiss! That was one of the really standout moments in this book for me.

I enjoyed this book but I couldn't give it a 5 star rating because for me Ronan's story was almost a standalone book that could have been read apart from the Glendower story. I'm hoping that book number 3 will return to the central story and will allow our characters to be more evenly featured in the narrative.

so good

As much as I enjoyed Raven Boys, I almost didn't continue the series. Something just didn't click with me. However, someone online told me that Dream Thieves focuses heavily on Ronan (my favorite character) and might involve some illegal drag racing...which definitely sold me.

Dream Thieves continues everything that made Raven Boys so great: incredibly realistic characters, thought-provoking prose, and an intriguing story concept. Throw in a dash of stealing magical items from dreams, a morally Grey villain, and the promised street racing, and Dream Thieves easily became one of my favorite books of all time.

Don't come into this expecting fast-paced plot (though the pace definitely increases from the first book). However, if you enjoy a good story with increasing magic, character depth, and life-or-death stakes, you'll love this book.

The Dream Thieves is a sequel to The Raven Boys, which is something I (to be honest, surprisingly) enjoyed. In this one the focus is set more on Ronan Lynch, who is one of the “Raven boys” who didn't get as much attention in the last one.

Sequels are very good at making you realize what you do or do not like about a certain book, and in this one I realized it's basically just the kids I sort of care about. There's lots of fun in here with interpersonal relationships and conflicts and certain events that happen, but it didn't really excite me as much I thought it would and unfortunately I think that means I'm going to leave this series here. I still think it's good and enjoyable and maybe I'll get curious about it again someday and pick it up again, but not right now.

Time for a re-read!——–Full review and links found on The Bent Bookworm!Usually, the desire to fangirl over a book turns me into a heart-fluttering, obsessive mess. However, the fangirl aroused by THIS book, was inspired by much deeper feelings. Feelings that just left me staring off into space and generally just trying to process. This book, you guys. This. Book. (WARNING: POSSIBLE SPOILERS FOR THE FIRST BOOK)“I've been all over the world. More than one country for every year that I'm alive...I'm not saying that to show off. I'm just saying it because I'm trying to understand how I could have been so many places and yet this is the only place that feels like home. This is the only place I belong. And because I'm trying to understand how, if I belong here, it...”” — hurts so much,” Blue finished.And that is how I feel about my lovely home in Virginia (I swear Maggie Stiefvater patterned Henrietta after my adopted hometown). Because even though I don't live there now, and won't for who knows how long (if ever)...I'm pretty sure it will always, always feel like home. It hurts, because it doesn't make the most sense for me to live there, because there are part of it that make me angry and sad, and yet...this. So much this. That someone understands all the deep, intense emotions I have about home is so rare, and then to find it in a book...I'm pretty sure that The Raven Cycle is going to be one of my all time favorites.It was a massive old forest, oaks and sycamores pushing up through the cold mountains soil. Leaves skittered in the breeze. Ronan could feel the size of the mountain under his feet. The oldness of it. Far below there was a heartbeat that wrapped around the world, slower and stronger and more inexorable than Ronan's own.For beautiful, heartfelt, feel-it-in-your-blood prose like this.Anywho. Gansey, who actually plays less a part in this one, nevertheless starts off with a bang as he spouts off one of the most hilariously quotable lines in the book (I'm practically stalking for an opening in a conversation so I can use it):“So what you're saying is you can't explain it.”“I did explain it.”“No, you used nouns and verbs together in a pleasing but illogical format.”Bahahahahahaha. Ahem.[b:The Dream Thieves 17347389 The Dream Thieves (The Raven Cycle, #2) Maggie Stiefvater https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1477103777s/17347389.jpg 21598446] continues the story of the Raven Boys and Blue Sargent as they search for the Glendower, the long lost king of Wales. This second of four books focuses more on Ronan Lynch than the first, and he is arguably the MC/POV but all the others still figure well into the story. For myself, I kept wishing we would see more of Maura and the Gray Man, but then the book would probably have been too long...ah well, maybe in the next one.Ronan is still a complete and total dick. No worries, guys, your daredevil bad boy isn't going anywhere. He just proves to a be a badass with a soft spot for home, and family, and the balls to go with his sharp tongue. He's the emo, complicated boy type at its finest. With a couple of twists. Like the whole dreaming deal he has going on. I'm trying reeeeeeeally hard not to give actual spoilers but...yeah. Oh, and Ronan also has an extremely quotable line (I've already used this one, and I want the fucking t-shirt, damn it):“I am being perfectly fucking civil.”His depth of love and commitment to his family is his most redeeming quality. Ronan is so far from perfect...but the Raven Boys and Blue need him. They need him as the avenging angel that will sacrifice himself to do whatever is needed to protect them. Ronan has pretty much given up his right (and let's be honest...he gets off on the thrill so it hasn't been THAT hard for him) to an easy conscience. He still doesn't do anything SO bad...but he will protect his own, no matter what it costs him. We still get to see a softer, more vulnerable side sometimes – with his brother Matthew, and with Chainsaw. Who knew a raven could be cute?There's a lot of development of the other characters as well, almost to the detriment of the overall plot. I suppose that's a point against, but I didn't actually mind it, I was so interested in seeing more of Ronan's family, and Blue's 300 Fox Way family.For Blue, there was family – which had never been about blood relation at 300 Fox Way – and then there was everyone else.I adore Blue...she's some awesome combination of spunky and unsure and sweet...someone I'd want for a friend. Her killer kiss curse isn't quite so much in the forefront in this book, which I liked. This one just overall felt less like high school. They were focused on more important things in general, even though there's still a bit of tension of love/like between them. There's one part in particular where Blue and Noah – Noah, of all people! – almost broke my face in half, I was grinning so hard at their awkward adorableness – totally non-romantic, but adorable. I loved that we saw more of Maura, and that she was more than just Blue's mom. That's something so often left out of YA novels, it was very refreshing. Especially as an older reader, I felt like I could relate to her.The appetizers were delicious, not because of the kitchen, but because all food eaten in anticipation of a kiss is delicious.^The waiting, yo, the waiting.Last but not at all least, there is Adam. To me Adam has always been a sympathetic character and one I could identify with, for several reasons. I guess in the first book he sometimes seemed a bit whiny, but really...his backbone, ability to pick himself up again and again, and his work ethic won me over. His pride, which so often gets in the way of others helping him, is so much a part of him that no one really wants him to get rid of it. In this book he's struggling with the parts of him he's inherited from his father, struggling with being able to express himself without being cut down (either literally or figuratively) for it – and guess what? He's a teenage boy. With issues. It's hard. He makes mistakes. But he's just...he's such a sweetheart. And the fact that, of all the Raven Boys, he feels the most alone...it just breaks my little heart. I wanted to make him hot chocolate and tuck him in bed, to make him feel safe and cared for.If he had no one to wrap their arms around him when he was sad, could he be forgiven for letting his anger lead him?I really hope that Adam finds some real happiness in the next two books. If he doesn't, I swear...I'll be reduced to writing fanfic to give him some.I gave this book 5/5 stars, which surprised me, especially since the first one was only 3.5/5! I just loved it so freaking much, for so many reasons. I really fell in love with all the characters in this one, much more than in the first. I'm still very intrigued in the Glendower part of the story (especially with the complete realization of Ronan's ability to dream things into being), but right now I would follow these characters anywhere.

Me encanta el libro, por que todo se cocina a fuego lento para que hierva al final, y se desparrame por los bordes de la pota (toma metáfora culinaria). Y como dije ayer en snapchat: hijosdeperrilla quiero el tercero xD

muitos nadas acontecem durante o livro inteiro (mas melhora no fim).
Até parece que é o segundo livro de uma trilogia (inclusive medo do próximo livro ser só mais uma combinação de nadas que acontece).

Eu entendo que é um livro sobre evolução de personagens. É um livro pra você entender motivações e personalidades de cada um, mas sinto que a história praticamente não avançou de um livro pro outro e senti muita falta disso!

Também não curti muito o que a autora parece estar fazendo com o Noah. Como a história dele é meio que contada no primeiro livro, ele (até então) perdeu um pouco da sua utilidade. A impressão que eu tenho é que agora o Noah mais parece um mascote do grupo do que de fato um personagem com personalidade própria e sentimentos.

Vamos ver o que o terceiro livro me reserva.

maggie stiefvater has crafted a series too fucking beautiful to really exist. i mean, i'm a stiefvater fan and i've read so many of her books.

but this.

this blows the previous book, and all her other ones, out of the water.

holy crap wow i did not expect to love this so much.

@ Ronan's second secret: you have not been as inconspicuous as you think you've been

second read - october 2019

despite there being a number of things in this book that i don???t super enjoy parts of it also leave me reeling. adam???s first reading with persephone? the sequence at the barns? the last couple of chapters in general? those are the words that magic is made out of.

first read - march 2016

I enjoyed this book so much more than The Raven Boys. I feel like in this book, I really got to know each of the characters more and I really got to start making predictions about what is to come.

While I have made a few small predictions, I still have no idea where this story as a whole is headed. I know I am only halfway through the series so there is a lot of story left, but I'm still very unsure of the overall direction.

This book started and ended with secrets and I really, really liked that. It was great parallelism that tied the book together. That being said, there was also quite the cliffhanger at the end and I'm very curious to where this leads us for Blue Lily, Lily Blue.

I definitely liked this one more than the first.

this will forever be my favorite book in the series

Fascinating how my sympathies fled from Adam to Ronan. Blue is awesome. The “sensible one”, surrounded by magic with none of her own, except a belief in her family and friends that borders on being a power itself.

This book is such a great improvement over the first, while still feeling very much like the same series. I enjoyed it, though admittedly I stopped reading it for a few months in the middle. It's not a particularly gripping read– it moves at a very leisurely pace for three fourths of the book, and then suddenly everything happens all at the same time to conclude all the loose threads. It's poor pacing that is sadly consistent from the first book to the second, which is a little sad because it means it'll likely show up in the third book as well.

But I do intend to read the third book, and the fourth when it arrives. The characters are interesting and the story is compelling. The series has potential, and shows great growth from the author, even from book to book.

When Steifvater is on, she is on. Her writing of Adam's trauma and struggles with class are incredibly spot-on, they feel real and realistic and are one of the book's major successes in poignance and feeling. She's also very good at subtly writing Gansey's flaws, and making Ronan's motivations seem more complex than just raging anger issues. Blue's emerging sense of identity and maturity is fun to watch. The Grey Man is a hilarious and unexpected source of comic relief and a wonderful subversion of the sleek, cool, collected hitman archetype.

And then there are characters like Kavinsky, one-dimensional villains who are so over-the-top they seem almost to be parodying themselves. Kavinsky gets such morally complex and elegant lines as, “consent is overrated,” and, “can we go before I have to get high again,” just in case you weren't sure what kind of character he is. I know we were supposed to hate him, but I ended up disliking him not for himself, but because here he was again, taking up space with his tryhand antics when I could read about something more interesting and remotely believable. In a book with magical dreams, undead Welshmen, a dragon, and an actual wizard, the fact that a rude teenager sticks out as the most unbelievable part is notable.

Basically, what I'm saying is that this book– this series– is an incredibly mixed bag. I'm willing to stick with it, though, and even recommend it.

Oh, to be wild in the summertime. To eat magic for breakfast and possibility for dessert. To taste immortality at the bottom of a bottle or the tip of a pill. To be seated on top of a roaring engine, to have a bank account like a bottomless pit, to have a well of dreams to build castles for your friends and a prison for yourself.

What it would be, to be a magical teenage boy.

Now that we've set the mood, how about some tunes? Barring actually listening to a symphony of rubber tearing over asphalt, I recommend Kavinsky's OutRun album (preferably “Deadcruiser” or “Testarossa Autodrive,” though Stiefvater slants towards “Blizzard” according to her Tumblr), and we're good to go.

So, Ronan Lynch. This kid's got issues. Still reeling from the horribly violent death of his father and the mandate in the will that's kept him from his childhood home, one of his close friends is a ghost, another made a deal with a magical forest, and the last is revolving around a tenuous future that banks on the location of a centuries dead Welsh King. Meanwhile, Ronan's dreams are becoming reality, many of which are pretty ugly. When he isn't venting his anger through lashing out at his friends and slamming car doors, he's balling his rage into a duel of sexual frustration and combustion engines with Aglionby's resident Buglarian gangster brat, (the aptly named) Joseph Fucking Kavinsky.

Kavinsky and Ronan stalk each other like vultures hungry for each other's meat. Their confusion about themselves becomes a relationship of competition and self-destruction, and even a competition of self-destruction. One second Kavinsky is despicable in Ronan's eyes, the next he's got shoulders as “beautiful as a corpse.” The feeling is clearly mutual. They are two angry lonely boys, but one is much lonelier and angrier than the other, and slowly, with Stiefvater's careful don't-call-it-a-plot-but-I'll-be-damned-if-it-isn't-a-climax pacing, emerges one exhilaratingly obnoxious teenage villain. You don't know whether you want to spit on him, hug him or cheer him on when he throws Molotov cocktails at his own car.

How do you chase death and destruction and be simultaneously convinced that you're invincible? Ronan is realizing his life was nothing but vapor, that he was raised in a house built on dream things, and he keeps falling in love with things that want to eat him. Adam and Gansey are both recognizing the futility of their missions in life, that they may never get what they truly want, but they don't know how to stop. And Blue, the smartest of the bunch, begins to understand that even if her inevitable love story is a tragic one, it's still a love story, one made of magic, wonder and her impossible boys.

Stiefvater has a gift for the impossible, making the intangible feel as real as shit. Her words let you taste the Henrietta air, smoking with magic the way lightning singes the atmosphere. You can feel the ley lines as distinctly as Adam does, you can smell the ammonia in Ronan's dreams. There are freaking psychics running around consulting their tarot cards and turning over stones in people's back yards, while a hit man drives around in a champagne-colored rental car and takes Blue's mother out on a date. Like I said in my Raven Boys review – real and unreal.

I think it should be obvious by now that I absolutely love this book. It's explosive in a way that The Raven Boys wasn't, which suits its primary protagonist, and instead of meandering happily the way the first book did, it barrels forward. Where is it going? Hard to say, this is Stiefvater we're talking about. If you're looking for a refined, organized plot you will never get one from her. She's all about the journey, the ride, fuel burning up in the engine. My advice? Get in the damn car.

I couldn't put this book down. I really enjoyed it but wow! So many F words. I almost quit after a few chapters, but the storyline and characters kept me reading. It would have been such a great book if Ronan and Kazinsky would have stuck with speaking English and Latin and not used so much bad language.

I think I'm falling in love with Maggie Stiefvater's The Raven Cycle series. The Dream Thieves is book 2 in this series and it takes off from where the first left off. Blue, self-proclaimed anti-psychic, lives in a world of magic. Where she and her friends from an all boy school are on the hunt for the grave of a long lost king.

In this second tome, the book focuses on Ronan, the self-destructive one of the bunch, and the shy but changed Adam. The two boys are growing into their powers and seem to be tied to the Cabeswater area. They learn how to use their powers for good (and some bad) and in the end, they grow stronger in their abilities to help the group.

Like I said, I love this series. Stiefvater's language is magic and so is the world of Henrietta. I love that this story combines a hero's journey with tarot and magic. As a tarot reader, it pleases me to see the cards used correctly. It's also fun to sneak peeks into Blue's family house and watch their banter together.

The only thing I'm disappointed in is that it's going to be a bit of a wait for the next book.

Bottom line: if you love stories filled with magic, hope, tarot, and adventure buy this book.