I tend to really enjoy books involving magic and witches, and The Ravens was no exception! The idea of a college sorority hiding a coven was just brilliant. "The Ravens", as the Kappa Rho Nu sisters call themselves, are the most exclusive and envied sorority on campus - they throw the best parties, wear the most fashionable clothes and always look perfect and gorgeous, winning everyone else's adoration and envy. What no one on campus knows, though, is that this is all possible thanks to magic.

The actual magical system was quite easy to understand, based on tarot cards and each witch's natural affinity to one of the elements (earth, water, fire and air), and I really enjoyed discovering how the sisters could work together to increase their powers. There was a real focus on sisterhood and cooperation throughout the book that I really loved to read about.

Which brings me to my biggest moan about this book: the whole Scarlett-hating-Vivi dynamic, which is a constant for the majority of the book, is brought on by... yes, you guessed it - a guy.

This feels like such a cliché I was seriously disappointed to see it in an otherwise great book promoting solid female friendships. The romantic interests in general seemed to be in the book just... because? They really do very little beyond acting as a catalyst for conflict between the two main characters.

Aside from that, the characters were well-developed, and I did like to see them grow into themselves and deepen their bond. I really liked the fact that all characters got a fair shot, even the secondary ones. Vivi and Scarlett, with their alternating POVs, were beautifully fleshed out and so relatable, despite being very different from each other.

There were a few intertwining mysteries The Ravens had to solve and, even though I had a fairly good idea of where we might end up, I was glued to the page wanting to see what might happen next. I got some serious Pretty Little Liars vibes from this, which was weird given the college rather than high school setting, but it was very enjoyable all the same.

Overall, this was a gripping read than made me regret having life commitments that meant I couldn't read this all in one setting. Despite the one major flaw for me, it really works and is a great start to a new series. I can't wait to see what the future has in store for The Ravens!


I received an e-arc of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. This did not affect my opinion of the book in any way. ( )

2.5 Stars
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Guys— COLLEGE!! And SORORITIES!! And WITCHES!!!

Add in 2 powerhouse authors and I thought for-sure this was going to be amazing.

It was not. ( )

CW: Death of loved ones, blood, gore, terminal illness (cancer), animal death as part of magic ritual.

Well, once the actual witchy stuff started I was quite engaged, however, it took too long to get to that point and I expect that this slow beginning may result in some DNFs. I understand that the scene needed to be set and characters introduced but this felt unnecessarily long. It is also undoubtedly a YA story with ample high school type snark and drama. That being said I liked the conflict that was introduced and the slightly sinister vibe that came with it. A bit more spell casting would have been preferable but not for the beauty makeovers we had to endure. The concept of the magic system and coven were quite good and I am interested to see where the author takes book two. ( )

Witches. Check. Magic. Check. Sisterhood. Check. Left me wanting more. Check. Once I got into this book, I couldn’t put it down. I would love to read a prequel about the days Vivi and Scarletts moms were in Kappa and how they created the path that their daughters went down. Learning more about the history would be great. Still a little stuck on the twist, no spoilers!!! ( )

First of all, I am not the target audience for this book. I got it through my monthly book box and it is not something I would have ever bought myself.
It is so fricking boring!
It is the same old story of a supposedly ugly duckly turning into the Queen Bee with the twist of a witchy sorority ... yawn.
Sorority stories are not my tea to begin with, it is a concept I just can't get into. And this book is serving every cliche there is. The new girl falls in love with the popular girl's boyfriend, popular girl hates new girl and in the end everyone is buddy buddy.
All paired with questionable messages about how important looks seem to be.

If I have to say one nice thing about it, then it would be the back and forth of the story telling from the two main characters. But overall it felt like a forced story, which was already told a gazillion times and the witch aspect didn't add anything new to it. ( )