If you're part of the romance reading community, chances are you've heard about The Ravenhood series by Kate Stewart. It has been receiving a lot of hype, and people are gushing about it. I've put it off for a while now. This series keeps coming up in discussions on Facebook, and I see videos about it on TikTok and YouTube. Clearly I cannot avoid talk about The Ravenhood. So I've decided it is time to pick up the series. Now to determine if I have a similar reaction to those who have read it.
Here's the thing, I can't recap this book. The Ravenhood trilogy is one that you need to go in without knowing anything.
What I can say is that as Flock opens, we have Cecelia telling us she is returning to Triple Falls. Then after the prologue, we go back to when she was 19, and Cecelia had just moved to Triple Falls to live with her father. They have an agreement where she needs to work for the company for a year before she'll get her trust fund. It is at the company where she meets Sean. From that point on, everything changes. Some for the better, some not so much. One thing I want to say is that Flock is all about setting the stage. It is giving us some information, but definitely not all of it. If anything you'll leave Flock with more questions than answers. And that curiosity will lead you to immediately picking up Exodus.
Flock by Kate Stewart
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
3.5 stars
This book had a lot of hype, and that’s the reason I chose to read it. I don’t think it lived up to that hype though. At least not for me.
Now that I’ve finished reading Flock, I don’t know what to think. The story was decent. Albeit a bit confusing at times. I’ll admit that I am curious about what is going to happen next, and for that reason I will read Exodus.
View all my reviews
Exodus is going to rip your heart out. We start this book still in the past, witnessing everything that is going on. Half way through, we jump to modern day, and that friends is when things start to make a bit more sense. You'll start to understand, and if you're anything like me, you'll be drawn in. Before you know it the book will be over. Your heart will be in shreds, and you'll jump into The Finish Line.
Exodus by Kate Stewart
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
4.5 stars
Exodus was far superior to Flock.
There, I said it.
This book grabbed a hold of me and would not let go. I fully believe that it is this book that gives the series so much hype. It has the action, it has the suspense, it has the drama. It has you questioning the relationship between Cecelia and the person she loves.
Loved this book, and am curious about The Finish Line.
View all my reviews
The Finish Line is where healing takes place. The storyline alternates between current day, and the past. It gives us insight into how all of this has lead up to today, and how the organization was formed. It is in The Finish Line that we also see Cecelia stand her ground, and really push back. And ultimately, we wind up at the finish line.
The Finish Line by Kate Stewart
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
These two have been through so much over the years. Then with everything that happened in this book? Dang. The hits just keep coming.
I really enjoyed how Cecelia managed to do what she did. I liked how confident she was, and how she put past issues behind her to reach out to those necessary.
Over all I enjoyed the trilogy.
View all my reviews
Now I'll be honest, while Flock was good, it wasn't my favorite. It is heavy on setting the stage, and putting these questions into your head. You're reading what is happening, and can be a bit confusing at times. Because of all the stage setting, it felt a bit slow to me. Ultimately I have it 3.5 stars. Exodus though, oh that book! I gave it 4.5 stars. The Finish Line was originally meant to be a novella, but the characters spoke, and suddenly it was a full length novel. I really enjoyed how this one played out. My rating for The Finish Line was 4 stars.
So did it live up to the hype? Kind of. It was a fabulous story that is for certain. The steamy moments were just that, steamy. Was it the best trilogy I ever read? No. No it was not. Yet I'm glad I read it.
If you're looking for a dark contemporary series to get invested in, then pick up The Ravenhood. One thing I do want to say is to check for trigger/content warnings if certain subjects are difficult for you to read about.
I know I was vague about things, but just trust me when I say it was necessary. The HEA does come, it just takes time. Speaking of time, this series is an investment. By no means is it a quick read. The books are long, they are intense, they will hit you in the emotions. You'll feel the passion, the hurt, the anger, the frustration, the heartache, the healing, the relief, etc.
Thank you for taking time to read my thoughts about the series.
Laura
Laura
Can you keep a secret?
I grew up sick.
Let me clarify.
I grew up believing that real love stories include a martyr or demand great sacrifice to be worthy.
Because of that, I believed it, because I made myself believe it, and I bred the most masochistic of romantic hearts, which resulted in my illness.
When I lived this story, my own twisted fairy tale, it was unbeknownst to me at the time because I was young and naïve. I gave into temptation and fed the beating beast, which grew thirstier with every slash, every strike, every blow.
Triple Falls wasn’t at all what it seemed, nor were the men that swept me under their wing. But in order to keep them, I had to be in on their secrets.
Secrets that cost us everything to keep.
That’s the novelty of fiction versus reality. You can’t re-live your own love story, because by the time you’ve realized you’re living it, it’s over. At least that was the case for me and the men I trusted my foolish heart to.
Looking back, I’m convinced I willed my story into existence due to my illness.
And all were punished.
Can you live a lie?
It’s a ghost town, this place that haunts me, the one that made me.
It’s clear to me that I’ll never outgrow Triple Falls or outlive the time I spent here.
I can still feel them all, my boys of summer.
Even when I’d sensed the danger, I gave in.
I didn’t heed a single warning. I let my sickness, my love, both rule and ruin me. I played my part, eyes wide open, tempting fate until it delivered.
There was never going to be an escape.
All of us are to blame for what happened. All of us serving our own sentences. We were careless and reckless, thinking our youth made us indestructible, exempt from our sins, and it cost us all.
I’m done pretending I didn’t leave the largest part of me between these hills and valleys, between the sea of trees that hold my secrets.
It’s the reason I’m back. To make peace with my fate.
And if I can’t grieve enough to cure myself in my time here, I’ll remain sick. That will be my curse.
But it’s time to confess, to myself more so than any other, that I’d hindered my chances because of the way I was built, and because of the men who built me.
At this point, I just want to make peace with who I am, no matter what ending I get.
Because I can no longer live a lie.
Secrets and Lies...
I’ve lived the entirety of my life wrapped up in subterfuge for one purpose—revenge.
Through the years, I lived more as an enigma than a man.
For so long, I denied I had a beating heart of my own.
Until her. Until she unearthed the starving vessel inside, forced me to acknowledge it, forced me to understand that I’m capable of bleeding the same as any other.
For that, we paid. We're still paying.
Yet, she demands it still, the useless heart of the ruthless thief and shameless villain she fell for. My fear is, I’m no longer that man.
With the lies I’ve told, the life I’ve led, my mistakes are beginning to catch up with me, day by day, one by one.
This is my last chance, and I have no intention of losing her again, but as the deception of my past starts to unravel and close in, shedding my humanity may be the only thing that can save us both.
Maybe it’s already too late.
