SPOILER
ALERT! If you haven't read the first book in the series, The Raven Boys,
Stop! I don't want to ruin the series for you.
"If
you could steal things from dreams, what would you take?"
Blue
Sargent is the only non-clairvoyant in a family full of psychics. Over and
over, she has been told that she would kill her true love if she were to kiss
him. She had also been informed that this was the year that she was going to
fall in love. Blue and her aunt Neeve both saw one of the Raven Boys walking
the corpse line on St. Mark's Eve. To look at Richard Campbell Gansey III now,
it doesn't seem possible that he will be dead sometime in the next year. Blue
doesn't think she is in love with Gansey but she really doesn't know what love
feels like. She has had a vision of kissing Gansey and it was nice. He is busy
looking for the legendary Welsh King; Owen Glendower whom he believes is asleep
somewhere within Cabeswater along the Henrietta ley line. Legend has it that
whoever finds the sleeping King will be granted one wish. Even though Gansey
doesn't know his supposed fate, for his sake Blue hopes that he is the one to
find it. If fate didn't have a say in anything, Blue would like to pick Adam
Parrish to be her love.
Ronan
Lynch has a secret that he has told. He is able to pull objects from his dreams
into the world. One example is Chainsaw, his pet raven. The middle son of Niall
Lynch, he was the one who found his father's body. The tire iron that was used
to viciously beat Niall was still lying next to the body when Ronan woke up
from a good night's sleep only yards away. That was the last night he slept
well. According to Niall's will, all three of his sons were now incredibly
wealthy but it all hinged on one condition; they were never to set foot back at
home which they called the Barns. They were unable to disturb the house, its
contents or property. That condition also included their mother. The Lynch boys
were exiles. Ronan has dreamt many times of returning home. One night in his
dreams, he returns with a small box from his house. Sleepless, Ronan goes to
see if Gansey is awake. He is working on his model town of Henrietta. Ronan
shows him the box which turns out to be a puzzle box. It translates words in
English to other dead languages. One is unknown to either boy. Ronan suggests
that they drive out to the Barns but Gansey isn't going to agree to do anything
illegal.
Declan
Lynch; Ronan's older brother was viciously attacked in his dorm room by a man
who calls himself the Gray Man. He demands that Declan tell him where the
Greywaren is. He threatens to kill him and then go after his brothers. Declan
finally tells him that he doesn't know where it is, just that it is. The Gray
Man is working for Dr. Colin Greenmantle. He is looking for the Greywaren, a
relic that allows the owner to take items out of dreams. He is using various
instruments to search for its energy. Greenmantle calls and tells him that he
must find the relic quickly. There are others looking for it as well. The Gray
Man follows the rapid beeping of his instruments to a well casing behind a
farmhouse. A rose brush is planted in front of the well and its trunk and
branches have so much growth that it appeared to be growing itself to death. He
decides to remove the well casing to if he can see anything. Suddenly, his
instruments stop beeping. He takes a photo of the rose and leaves.
Adam
Parrish has next to nothing but he is on his own. Living in a tiny and cramped
room above the St. Agnes rectory, he is working three part-time jobs over the
summer to ease the financial burden somewhat so he could concentrate on his
classes at Aglionby Academy in the fall. He wanted to go onto college. Adam was
desperately attracted to Blue Sargent even though she was troubling to him. He
has been ignoring a letter from St. Aglionby's for the past two days. He knows
what it is not. Coming home from his job at the local garage, Blue is waiting
on his doorstep. He invites her in and before too long they are in each other's
arms. Just as Adam decides that he could kiss Blue, she throws the brakes on
the situation. Both are hurt but Blue doesn't tell him the reason she stopped
him. He goes to take a cold shower and thinks about the sacrifice he made to
Cabeswater in order to wake the ley line. Seeing that nothing about him has
really changed, he leaves the bathroom conflicted about whether or not he still
wants Blue to be there. She is standing at the door talking to the office lady
for the rectory. She has good news for Adam. He rent is based on the building's
tax assessment and his rent will be dropping by $2400. a year. He thanks her
and she leaves. Suspicious, Adam opens the letter from Aglionby to find that
his tuition will rise by $2400. and his scholarship will be unable to cover it.
His mind begins to think that Gansey has found a way to secretly help him. He
becomes furious and unfortunately takes it out verbally to Blue. She lets him
know that she will to stand for him to talk to her like that and will be
waiting outside the door in case he calms down before she has to leave for
work.
Gansey,
Blue, Ronan, and Adam decide to back to Cabeswater for the first time since
Adam made his sacrifice. As they crest the hill to see Cabeswater for the first
time! all that is in front of them is fields; hundreds of acres of field with
no sign of trees having been felled. The Camaro is quiet as Gansey checks his
journal for the GPS coordinates he wrote down. Blue checks their position on
her phone. They are in the right place. The four of them listen to the Camaro
slowly die and stop. Adam believes that it is the alternator. Trying to decide
what to do, Blue and Gansey see that there is a general store nearby. Ronan is
angry and Blue asks if he has a better idea than continuing to break things.
Adam feels the sting of her words as though they were directed towards him.
Adam thinks about how Noah faded out at the Dollar Store, the Camaro sputtered
to a stop and now Cabeswater is gone. Awakening the ley line has blown transformers
around town because its energy is so strong. A lack of energy now is a complete
mystery.
Why
has Cabeswater disappeared? Is Ronan in possession of the Greywaren? Is the
relic why he can retrieve items for his dreams? Does Blue fall in love and with
whom? Is Gansey any closer in his search for Glendower? Who is The Gray Man?
What did Adam sacrifice to wake the ley line? Will Adam continue to make it on
his own or will he finally let Gansey help him? Will Blue or her family of
psychics figure how Gansey is supposed to die? Why are the Lynch boys not
allowed back home?
There
are two more books in The Raven Cycle.
