Synopsis from Goodreads:

“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love…or you killed him.”

It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them — not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.

His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He has it all — family money, good looks, devoted friends — but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, who notices many things but says very little.

For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.

My review:

“Fate,” Blue replied, glowering at her mother, “is a very weighty word to throw around before breakfast.”

I thought the synopsis of this book was detailed, but wow, it doesn’t even begin to cover it.

I expected some YA angst and drama and forbidden love. This was so much more than that. It was captivating. It was family and magic and understanding. It was right and wrong and life and death. It was beaten-up Camaros and pizza from Nino’s. It was bruises and birds and bones. It was fate.

How do I say this without sounding like an idiot? I feel as if I know the true essence of every character. The character development was astounding. It’s as if I was given access into the minds of almost everyone: Blue, Neeve, Maura, Persephone, Calla, Whelk, and most importantly, all of the notorious Raven Boys.

I can’t explain how thrilled I was throughout the entire book. I was literally on the edge of my seat. Seriously. My leg has an odd cramp in it because I was so tensed up.

I wanted to say that the world-building was perfect but it wasn’t necessarily a new world. It was our world, but with undiscovered magic and the quest for purpose and trees that speak Latin.

★★★★★ (5 stars) for the eccentric sensibility of Blue and all the ghosts who are our friends. For Gansey.