Early Review – Blue Lily, Lily Blue (Raven Cycle, Book 3) by Maggie Stiefvater (4/5 stars)

Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Paranormal
Length: 400 pages
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Release Date: October 21, 2014
ISBN-13: 978-0545424967
Stand Alone or Series: 3rd book in the Raven Cycle
Source: eGalley from NetGalley.com
Rating: 4/5 stars

I got a copy of this book to review through Netgalley. This is the third book in the Raven Cycle and I really enjoyed it a lot. These books continue to be a bit dreamy in writing style and this book is once again told from many viewpoints. The fourth book in this series is due to release out late 2015.

Blue’s mother has disappeared and Blue is desperate to find her. In seeking her mother she learns about a prophecy. Supposedly three sleepers are hidden in Cabeswater; two need to be awoken and the other should be left sleeping at all cost. Gansey is still desperate to find Glendower, the lost king, and the crew figures out that Glendower is one of these sleepers. Adam is trying to cope with the deal he made to become part of Cabeswater and is learning to communicate with Cabeswater. Their search leads them deep into the caves and crevices of Cabeswater unraveling secrets that might be better left untouched.

I would not recommend starting the series on this book. There is just too much going on here. The last book was very much Ronan’s book, this book was a bit harder to pinpoint. Adam is in the story quite a bit, so this might be more Adam’s story. We do learn quite a bit more about Adam and his dad. However, Blue is in the story a lot and most of the story is about the search for her mother.

Ronan isn’t in the story as much, he still plays a role but he is much more in the background. Ronan spends the majority of the book off at the Barns doing mysterious things by himself. Gansey is also in the story a lot. He is still a bit of an enigma to me; mostly he seems like a pretty bland character but every once in a while he has some very intense moments that make him a lot more interesting. There are also a lot of emotionally packed Gansey/Blue moments in this book…much more than in any previous book. We also finally get to meet Gansey’s mentor.

Blue’s family continues to flitter in and out of the story just like in previous books. There are a couple new characters as well, Greenmantle and his wife Piper. These two have reasons of their own for tracking down Glendower. They end up being tied into the story of the mysterious Grey Man.

The plot is well done and, although it at first seems a bit scattered, things are starting to come together nicely. The story does end on a pretty awful cliffhanger, so just a warning to those who hate cliffhangers (does anyone actually like them?)!

I continues to enjoy Stiefvater’s slightly dreamy and ambiguous writing style. There is some beautiful description in here and some wonderful thoughts and conversations between characters. It’s tough to explain but these books always make me feel warm and snuggly, while still being a little odd and creepy. Stiefvater’s writing style is just so distinctive that every time I pick up a book by her I feel like I am reading an old friend.

Overall a very well done continuation of this series. This book is more magical realism than outright magic, it is a bit ambiguous and dreamy at times as well. However I continue to really enjoy the quirky characters and am enjoying how this story is unfolding. I also loved reading about all their underground explorations. Recommended to those who enjoy paranormal YA or to those who are fans of Stiefvater’s writing style in general.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– Ebook Reading Challenge
– You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge