Review: The Ravens (The Ravens #1) – Kass Morgan and Danielle Paige
I received a free ecopy of this book in return for an honest review. Many thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and to NetGalley for the opportunity.
Both Kass Morgan (The 100) and Danielle Paige (Dorothy Must Die) have successful book series behind them, so this was always going to be an exciting collaboration. Throw in a coven of witches and a possible witch-hunter and let the fun begin.
The background of this book is Kappa Rho Nu, an ancient coven of witches, disguised as a sorority house on a Savannah campus. The book is written from two viewpoints. Scarlett is a legacy Kappa with one eye on the presidency and her perfectly mapped out future and the other on her equally perfect boyfriend. Vivi, on the other hand, has lived a transient life, moving around the country with her flakey, fortune-telling mother, and is looking to use her freshman year to reinvent herself. Scarlett is unimpressed by Vivi and both are unhappy when Scarlett is appointed Vivi’s mentor, but bigger things are happening. The coven is suffering from escalating harassment which may have its roots in a past misdeed of Scarlett’s.
Of the two characters, I much preferred Vivi. I empathised with her when she was nervous about not fitting in, and loved watching her discover her powers and form lasting friendships. In contrast, Scarlett was a snob. She had rigid ideas and expected other people to fit around them. Scarlett’s best friend Tiffany seemed a much more interesting prospect, with an irreverent attitude, and a wicked sense of humour, and with a terminally ill mother she also garnered the sympathy vote. Like all good books though, the characters developed and, while I still wasn’t a Scarlett fan by the end I did respect her.
This book is written for the junior end of the Young Adult audience. It is clean, and, with one eye on Christmas, would make a great present for a young teen or someone a little younger than that. Older readers will enjoy the whodunnit aspect of the book, with a few twists, not all of which I saw coming. It’s an easy read and encapsulating enough to transport the reader away from the grim realities of 2020. If you want a little magic in your life, The Ravens is out now.
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