The Dream Thieves (The Raven Cycle #2)

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Author(s)

Maggie Stiefvater

Publisher

Scholastic Press

Genre(s)

Age Range

13+

Release Date

September 17, 2013

ISBN

0545424941

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The second installment in the all-new series from the masterful, #1 NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author Maggie Stiefvater!

Now that the ley lines around Cabeswater have been woken, nothing for Ronan, Gansey, Blue, and Adam will be the same. Ronan, for one, is falling more and more deeply into his dreams, and his dreams are intruding more and more into waking life. Meanwhile, some very sinister people are looking for some of the same pieces of the Cabeswater puzzle that Gansey is after....

Editor reviews

4 reviews

Overall rating

5.0

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5.0(1)

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I cannot get enough of this series.

October 23, 2013

Can I just have my review say one word? Gansey. Done, there you have it! No? Okay then.

But seriously, Gansey. What is it about this boy that I love so much? I love...LOVE his character. I love how intelligent he is, I love how motivated he is (even if it's a bit crazy), and I love his loyalty to his friends. I love you Gansey!

Okay, moving on.

I seriously feel like this series is Maggie Stievfater's best series yet. And I'm a HUGE fan of hers, so that's saying a lot. I read The Raven Boys and was blown away. BLOWN AWAY. And The Dream Thieves is even better. This is how you write a sequel.

Things I loved:

Gansey. Heh..bet you didn't see that one coming.

Ronan's story. I love how Ronan is a central part to this book and the background information we learn about. He is a complicated boy and I now I finally understand why. Also, how in the world is this boy able to live like he does? My goodness Maggie...well done! What a superb character!

I absolutely love the magical, mystical feel of this world Maggie has created. I want to live in this world. But only if I can meet Gansey.

Blue and Gansey. The sheer heartbreak of their relationship is enough to make me cry. I want things to be so different for them. My heart breaks for Blue. I love how both of them are realizing their true feelings for each other in this book, but hate how they cannot act upon it! However, their relationship is incredibly romantic. Sigh.

What left me wanting more:

I only want more of the story! I cannot wait until the third book.

All in all, superior book! Outstanding writing. If you haven't started this series yet, what are you waiting for?

Jillian Van Leer Top 50 Reviewer 304 reviews

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Completely Brilliant

September 23, 2013

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5.0

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“Brilliant. Completely brilliant.” Those were my thoughts upon finishing Maggie Stiefvater’s THE DREAM THIEVES, the second book in The Raven Cycle series.

THE DREAM THIEVES is the follow-up to Stiefvater’s THE RAVEN BOYS, set in a quiet yet very supernaturally active Virginia town. Blue and the boys of Aglionby Academy are back on their hunt for Glendower, a centuries old king who will grant his discoverers whatever they ask for. Helping – or maybe hindering – this search is Ronan, one of the Aglionby boys, who has recently discovered he has the ability to bring things back into reality from his dreams. Ronan and his friends quickly learn that the phrase “dream come true” will have much darker consequences than the term implies.

This was such a solid sequel to THE RAVEN BOYS that it made me want to return to Stiefvater’s Henrietta, Virginia even more so than I did at the end of the first book. Stiefvater has somehow worked magic in that she exponentially adds obstacles and confusion to the hunt for Glendower this go around, yet that doesn’t feel upsetting or disheartening in the least. Rather, these additional challenges made me feel a part of the group, and like I was helping to solve this mystical riddle along with Blue and the gang. Stiefvater stuck me into this world so completely and convincingly that I even found myself researching ley lines in the hopes of uncovering something that could help locate Glendower.

So much of this feeling of inclusion in the discovery of Glendower comes from Stiefvater’s way with words. She is able to describe everyday actions and emotions in the most cerebral and ethereal ways. For example, consider this statement: “He was polite like tentacles were polite, testing the surface carefully, checking to see how it reacted to his presence.” I mean, come on! Who else could deliver the ordinary sentiment, “He was polite,” in such a thought-provoking way? These sort of descriptions abound in the book, and make every scene feel poignant and meaningful regardless of whether a jaw-dropping piece of information (of which there are many) was just introduced into the story.

Without hesitation, THE DREAM THIEVES gets five stars. I would give it more if I could, but I’m sure too many stars gravitating toward one body would throw the universe off balance. I gotta tell you though, it would be worth it.

Jason Gallaher Top 50 Reviewer 106 reviews

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3 reviews

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4.9

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4.7(3)

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Incredible!

November 02, 2017

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5.0

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I really loved The Dream Thieves! It was a fun, magical and captivating novel.

The Dream Thieves continues Gansey's, Ronan's, Adam's, Noah's and Blue's quest to search for the Raven King. Ronan is learning more about his dreams while some sinister people are looking for something magical in Henrietta too.

Maggie Stiefvater's writing is amazing and beautiful. She draws you in from the very beginning and till the very end. The plot, the twist, the mystery, the intrigue and the characters and were just amazing!!

I really liked seeing more of Maura, Persephone and Calla. And getting to know more Ronan's life and Gansey's family!

It's needless to say that I love The Raven Cycle and am looking forward to see how everything plays out!!

Fay Tannerr Top 50 Reviewer 243 reviews

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I'm in Love!

February 15, 2017

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4.7

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I want to start of by saying I usually hate slow books. I don't mind if they start slow to world build or to get to know the characters but if a book stays slow, I get bored. That is not the case with this series!

These are the only slow books I've ever enjoyed. They are magical and beautiful. The characters are so real, they are the true stars of this series. They are so real, they each have flaws and areas where they shine like the sun. Just like every one of us. I could not love these characters more.

This one is mainly about Ronan who can pull items from his dreams. It also deals with Adam coming to terms with the changes inside himself from The Raven Boys. There is a lot more of The Raven Boys themselves in this book than Blue. Her role is smaller in this one but she is still there so don't worry. The plot keeps moving so slowly towards the finish line.

Blue and Adam 'break up' in this one and she has a moment with Gansey. I use the quotations because I don't think Blue and Adam were every really dating. They never seemed like it at all. Ronan is hinted at being gay in this one. It is weird that I'd love to see him and Adam together? I think that they would be a wonderful couple.

My biggest problem with this book is the drugs. Maybe dream drugs? I don't like drugs in my books. As someone who grew up in a drug culture, I can't approve of it and I'm glad Ronan got away from it. I was so proud of him for doing that.

The Gray man is freaking awesome! I love the plot twist with him. I actually did not see this twist coming and I love when this happens, it's nice to be entertained and not surprised by a great book. Overall, another great book in this series. I'm loving it so much so far!

Carrie Artrip Top 50 Reviewer 113 reviews

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I want to marry this book and have children with it.

October 03, 2013

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5.0

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Excuse my theatrics, but I want to marry and have children with this book.
Maggie Stiefvater's "Raven Boys" sequel "The Dream Thieves" hasn't just got the most awesome title in the whole history of anticipated sequels, but it also properly delivers. It's an uplifting, yet eerie conundrum of point of views, a mix of light and dark places, and it completely manages to effortlessly suck you into the magical world of Henrietta and Blue and her Raven Boys once more.
"The Dream Thieves" picks up where its predecessor left us hanging, coaxing us into the quest for Glendower on a hot and sweaty summer's day. I did not think this book’s magic was able to get more powerful, but it most certainly did, especially with adding more of Ronan’s point of view to the story. There’s still the humour I so loved with the first book, but it’s going to darker places with a more proper introduction to Ronan’s and his brothers psyches, and his relationship with Aglionby Academy student/criminal Kavinsky. Stiefvater manages to paint a fine line between the lighter and darker thoughts of her characters, even more so with a new villain, the ominously named The Gray Man, a nameless hitman who’s out for the Greywaren and his dream objects.
There’s a decent amount of romance going on (as much as I love the Gansey/Blue relationship, it’s definitely and thankfully not just about them); what stands out about this sequel is that it puts the quest’s darker side to the foreground, and the doubts and insecurities this adventure brings out in our characters. There’s tumult for everyone - Blue’s own search for her something more, Adam’s dealing with the consequences of his choices from the first book, Noah’s longing for liveness, Gansey’s fear of losing his friends and himself in the process of finding his Welsh King, and of course Ronan’s job to keep his brothers safe from his ever-unravelling history and present.
“The Dream Thieves“, even though it can be downright depressing at some points, always manages to keep up that peacefulness that “The Raven Boys“ set out on. It’s still a hopeful story of friendship and loyalty, highlighting real struggles that every relationship would deal with. Once more, the prose is incredible, hilarious at one point, and then hounding the next, creating some serious tension that will keep you from putting this down once you’ve started. The characters remain real and vulnerable, but their struggles and how they ultimately live up to them or not are fascinating to observe. This book is a big puzzle box when it comes to twists and turns, so be prepared for Cabeswater and some serious power blackouts and surges in both the plot and our five favourite characters lives!