Good post about Stiefvater's The Raven Cycle

[firecat]

I love The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater. The fourth and final book was released last month. (I didn't think the fourth book was quite as good as the other three, but still a worthy ending.) Five people involved with the blog WomenWriteAboutComics.com talk about the series, and they get at a lot of what I love.

http://womenwriteaboutcomics.com/2016/05/19/searching-glendower-reflecting-raven-cycle/

A few non-spoilery quotes (there are a few more spoilers at the link, but only for stuff that happens very early, until you get to the big red banner that reads SPOILERS AHEAD):

Stiefvater is just such a great writer, especially when it comes to building distinct and fully realized characters.

Stiefvater treats its young adults the way I appreciate seeing young adults treated: like people with brains and emotions that don’t melt into a puddle of love juices and angst over their love interest....he friendship between the boys is so heartbreakingly beautiful, and the unquestioning loyalty between Blue’s aunts is so powerful. This is a YA book that does not forget that there are others who help shape the lives of the main character and gives those people such depth.

I love Blue because I relate so much to being a “sensible” teenager and her wanting to rebel against that sensibility....I also love that she’s so prickly, opinionated, and stubborn.

It’s a much more realistic portrayal of family, in a way, than other YA books.

Comments

[snippy]

I have just started listening to it, so will save the link for later.

[snippy]

Okay, I've finished the audiobook (well, all of them at this point) and read the link. While I liked the books, I don't think the ending was earned by what preceded it. There was a lot of build up, foreshadowing, implied doom, and at the end POOF everything was okay.

I liked The Scorpio Races better.

[firecat]

On the one hand, I agree about the ending and I expect part of the reason it is so abrupt is lack of skill on the part of the author. On the other hand, I think the ending kind of fits with how I have experienced aging emotionally -- I used to get myself so worked up about achieving certain things, and then once I achieved them they just stopped mattering.

I will check out The Scorpio Races!

[snippy]

She even lampshaded it in the last book, how quick the ending was! So I assume it was intentional, maybe for the reason you describe. But as someone who spent years listening and then waiting between books, I felt cheated of the catharsis I expected from the tension that built up over the course of the experience. I think the value of catharsis is underestimated in general right now-when people have "celebration of life" parties rather than funerals or memorial services is where I've gotten prickly about it before.

The Scorpio Races! Trigger warning for carnivorous sea horses! I suspect you will understand why I liked the book so much when you've finished it.

[firecat]

I understand feeling cheated of catharsis, and agree that catharsis is underestimated. (I personally don't seem to get much out of it, but my dysthymia shouldn't spoil it for everyone else.) And celebrating people's lives is all very well, but one ought to have an opportunity to publicly MOURN.