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BOOKS IN THE R AVEN
SERIES
2 THE DREAM THIEVES
Book
Club
Discussion Guide
CYCLE
Author Information
After a tumultuous past as a history major, calligraphy instructor, wedding musician, technical editor, and equestrian
artist, I'm now a full-time writer living in the middle of no- 
where, Virginia, with my charmingly straight-laced husband,
two kids, four neurotic dogs who fart recreationally, and a
1973 Camaro named Loki. I'm also an award-winning colored pencil artist, play several musical instruments (most
infamously, the bagpipes), and an ex-Navy brat. I recently
acquired a race car.
 What other books have you written? What are you working on? You can see the whole lot of the books that I have
out on the novels page. I’m now working on the sequel to
The Raven Boys and also on Requiem, the third and final 
book in the Books of Faerie series. I’ve also just finished
collaborating on an anthology, The Curiosities, with Tessa
Gratton and Brenna Yovanoff. And of course I also have
short stories available for free at Merry Sisters of Fate.
 Who wrote the music from the book trailers? Where can
I find it? Can I use it for my fan video? All of the trailers
feature music composed by me. The songs are available 
for free download on the respective books’ pages in this
site. Feel free to download for your listening pleasure and
for any non-commercial purpose. For fan videos, please
credit me with a link back to my site.
 Can I use your lyrics/ words/ poems with my own music?
You can sing them all you like so long as you don’t try to
sell them or mass-produce them (I realize this removes
most of the fun from it). The rights to the lyrics belong to
me and to Scholastic and the only versions of Summer

Girl, etc., that are out there on iTunes have been approved
by both of us. So, singing them in the shower = good.
Singing them at your local gig = bad.
 What are your favorite books? You can read all about
my favorite books on my Goodreads page and my Shelfari 
page. I put only my absolute favorite books on Goodreads,
usually with a review, but I put everything that I read on
my Shelfari page.
Will the books be movies? What’s going on with the movie? Can I be in the movie!? Don’t make the movie! Do
make the movie! I get asked about the movies. A lot. A
lot a lot. Here's what I know: The Raven Boys has also
recently been optioned, this time by New Line/ Warner
Bros. So, The Raven Boys does not have a release date
No, they don't have trailers. No, they are not yet casting. I
get asked a lot if there are new developments. Trust me, if
there were new developments, I’d be howling them from
the rooftops. And by rooftops, I mean Twitter.
What is your stance on fan fiction? I consider it a pretty
steep compliment. So long as I’m acknowledged as the
creator of the original characters and no money is being
made on the derivative fiction, fanfic away! I am not,
however, a fan of derivative works—i.e., fanfic where my
writing is taken word for word with only the characters or
minor details changed. Please don’t plagiarize!
I want to be a writer. What should I do first? Google is a
godsend. Check out as many editor, agent, and author
blogs as you can find — the internet is like a free crash
course to the writing business and craft, available 24/7.
There’s just not any excuse not to be well-versed in the
writing world now. I’m afraid I don’t have time to answer Photo and author information taken
from Maggie Stiefvater’s website
specific writing questions via e-mail. If you leave writing
questions on the blog as comments, I may tackle them in a and Scholastic’s Maggie Stiefvater
group blog post at some point.
website.
Will you read my unpublished or self-published short
stories, novels, poetry, or grocery lists? Unfortunately, I
can’t, mostly for legal reasons, but also because I only
have time to critique the in-progress works of my two
critique partners.
How do you pronounce your last name? “Steve-Otter.”
Like the name, “Steve,” and the little furry animal otter.
Other
Books by Author

Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy
 The Scorpio races
 Lament
 Ballad
 Requiem
 The curiosities
 Kiss me deadly
 Demons
What’s it all about?
W EBSITES
“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,
Maggie Stiefvater’s official
they can only mean trouble. But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t
website:
entirely explain. He has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—
maggiestiefvater.com/
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
The Raven Cycle trilogy website:
but says very little. For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned
maggiestiefvater.com/the-raventhat she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a
boys/
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.
TO CHECK
OUT
Discussion Questions
1) Reread the quotes in the prologue from Edgar Allan Poe
unfavorable feelings for someone to keep up appearances
and Oscar Wilde. Do they mean something different to
and traditions?
you now that you’ve read The Raven Boys? What charac- 9) Which character from The Raven Boys do you identify
ter or characters does each quote remind you of? Why?
with the most? Why?
2) The characters’ clothes were referred to on many different 10)It seems like nothing is good enough for Gansey, and he’s
occasions throughout the story. Adam’s Aglionby unialways striving for more. Why is he so hard on himself?
form isn’t as pristine as Ronan’s or Gansey’s, and Blue
Have you ever felt like you put too much pressure on
often creates new outfits from bits of older ones. What
yourself to succeed at something? Is so, how did you
does each character’s clothes say about him or her? Do
feel? What, if anything, made you feel better?
each character’s outfits truly reflect the image that he or 11)Adam, Blue, and Gansey had very different experiences
she is trying to portray?
inside the hollowed out tree in Cabeswater. What did each
3) Blue is the only person in her family who is not a psychic.
one see? Do you think they was their futures, nightmares,
How do you think she really feels about this? How does
or dreams? Why do you think this?
this shape her personality? Is there something that
12)In the book, legend says that the person who wakes Glenmembers of your family excel at that you cannot do? How dower is granted a wish. Explain what you think the foldoes this make you feel?
lowing characters would wish for if they woke Glendow4) Blue spend every St. Mark’s Eve on the ley line helping
er: Blue, Gansey, Adam Ronan, Noah, Whelk, Neeve, and
her mother record the name of the people who will die the
Maura.
following year. How do you think this affects Blue?
13)Adam mused that : “Glendower was more than a historiWhat would you do if you were Blue and knew which
cal figure to Gansey. He was everything Gansey wished
people in your town would die in the next twelve months?
he could be: wise and brave, sure of his path, touched by
5) A ley line “is a perfectly straight, supernatural energy path the supernatural, respected by all, survived by his legacy.”
that connected spiritual places.” After knowing how
Do you think that Adam’s assessment is true? Why or
powerful ley lines are, do you think that this is an accurate
why not?
description? Why or why not? Do you think that things 14)Why would Gansey—someone who has the means to buy
like ley lines exist in real life? If yes, explain what they
anything he could ever want or need—need a wish from
are and where you believe you can find them.
Glendower?
6) List three pros and three cons of having psychics in your 15)Whelk’s motivation to wake the ley line was ignited by
family.
the loss of his fortune and reputation. Do you think that
7) Adam has trouble disconnecting from his upbringing and
he has any redeeming qualities, or is he completely conbreaking free from his father’s constant abuse. Even
sumed by greed?
though he obviously doesn’t want to live with his parents 16)Why was Czerny important to Whelk when he was both
under the circumstances, he struggles with the decision to
alive and dead? Why did Whelk think that Czerny made
leave. Why is it so hard for Adam to leave? Do you think the perfect sacrifices? Was he right? Why or why not?
he should have left home and moved into Manmouth Man- 17)On more than one occasion, Noah’s friends describe his as
ufacturing before he finally did? Why or why not?
“the smudgy one.” Do you think this is an accurate de8) Ronan and Decland can’t stand each other, but every
scription? Why or why not? How does this make it more
Sunday they put their feud aside to attend mass together— plausible that Noah’s friends never suspected that he was a
no matter what. Do you think you could put aside your
spirit?
The discussion questions came from The Raven Boys Scholastic Discussion Guide.
Goodreads’ trivia and quizzes
for The raven boys:
www.goodreads.com/trivia/
work/18970934-the-raven-boys
Seventeen’s interview with
Maggie Stiefvater:
www.seventeen.com/
entertainment/features/maggiestiefvater-interview
Scholastic’s The Raven Boys
Discussion Guide:
www.scholastic.com/teachers/
sites/default/files/asset/file/
scholastic_ravenboysdg.pdf
United States of YA Image and
list of books came from Epic
Reads:
www.epicreads.com/blog/theunited-states-of-ya/