The Raven Saga Part I: Raven, by Suzy Turner, is a good effort at starting an intriguing and shadowy storyline about a thirteen year-old girl named Lilly and her family. I wanted to give Ms. Turner's work a chance, despite the fact that I normally don't read books on mystical subjects. Ms. Turner sites J.K. Rowling as one of her inspirations and not once, but twice, are the Harry Potter series referenced in this book, a series I haven't read. Nonetheless, I am glad I read Raven because I found the whole otherworldly theme to be more a vehicle to deliver a story about other significant topics.
First, this is a tale about self-discovery. If one were to remove entirely the supernatural elements, what you'd be left with is the story of a young girl on the verge of growing up, who, after escaping terrible circumstances, discovers her roots, real family, and ultimately herself. And it all happens very quickly from where the story starts. This kind of topic can ride on the back of just about any foundation and be successful, if done well. It intrigues us all, the idea of going from a dysfunctional family, social awkwardness and rejection, to everything positive-love, family, and acceptance. But now let's add the mystical underpinnings. In addition to everything else, our main character discovers unimaginable things about herself and family, things most people would not accept or believe. It's a ride from one extreme to the next that most adolescents could not handle.
Secondly, this is a story about family issues. Our main character, Lilly, is raised by an unloving mother and estranged father. The father, we later find out, had been manipulated and almost killed by an evil I will leave unnamed here. Ultimately, the father abandons Lilly and this becomes one of the cliff hangers at the end of the story. In general, stories where there are father issues captivate many of us, as Hollywood has discovered. After the big move, Lilly discovers a new father figure in her grandfather, and several mother figures in other relatives.
This book has an expository writing style that some readers will like and some won't. Written in the first person, one feels as if one were reading from the personal diary of our main character. This makes the writing very descriptive in nature. There are long stretches where there is no conflict or suspense, but hints of the unknown thrown at the reader here and there keep things moving. I had to remind myself that this book is intended for a young audience, adolescence to young teen perhaps. Hence, it was easier to forgive what is really lacking in many parts of the story-detail. The plot moves along quickly, leaping over large periods of time where many events and interactions among characters would have happened. There is also not a lot of imagery given to certain characters, which leaves the rest to imagination.
One bone to pick some readers may have with this story is the romantic relationship formed between the main character and a seventeen year-old boy. Perhaps this is not so farfetched anymore, but some perspective is in order. Throughout the story, Ms. Turner tries to convey the fact that Lilly is mature for her age and has come to find out things about herself much sooner than expected. All this is supposed to make her more grown up than any typical kid her age. But from a practical standpoint, seventeen may be a bit too old. I don't know what Canadian laws are, but once he's eighteen, he would be in trouble for kissing her the way he did where I reside (in California). But not to worry, his character is removed from the story after an incident where he makes a discovery he cannot accept.
If you enjoy stories about vampires, werewolves, changelings and the like, you'll find elements in The Raven Saga Part I: Raven that you'll enjoy. It's a fun, light read that moves along quickly and is easy to follow. If you keep in mind the bigger picture, you will be able to engage with the story and follow it to the somewhat enigmatic and cliff-hanging ending.
