Review Detail

“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.