A Very Declan Christmas

The Raven Cycle #0.2

by Maggie Stiefvater

"I’ve done a holiday short for the last few years. Here’s another one from the Raven Cycle universe." - Maggie Stiefvater

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Short Stories, Fiction, Novella, Urban Fantasy, Christmas

4 pages, ebook

First published December 24, 2018

About the author

New York Times bestselling author of The Shiver Trilogy, The Raven Cycle, and The Scorpio Races. Artist. Driver of things with wheels. Avid reader.

Maggie Stiefvater plays several musical instruments (most infamously, the bagpipes) and makes art in several media (most generally, colored pencils).

She lives in Virginia with her husband, their two children, many dogs, a bunch of fainting goats, and an irascible tuner car.

Reviews

[Maggie Stiefvater]

a short cozy tale of dysfunction and magic in the Raven Cycle universe: http://maggiestiefvater.com/a-raven-c...

[Dark River · Rating 5 out of 5]

You don't understand my love for Declan Lynch.

No, no, shhhhh ..

You don't.

[Olivia-Savannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

You know you have a pynch fanfiction problem when you read a canon short story /written by the actual author/ and think: oh, this reads just like fanfiction!

In all realness though, this story was just so cute. I felt like in the main series Declan's storyline disappears even though it looks like it is going to be something in the Dream Thieves. So it was nice to see him making an appearance. Either way, from what we do see of him we can see that he is misunderstood (but at the same time, understood?) by Ronan. And I loved getting to see their brotherly childhood and relationship from this age. I can't imagine how challenging it must be to have an otherworldly upbringing but be slightly disconnected from it all yourself...

It was short, it was sweet, it was well written and it was the ending that I expected and was happy to see. Great short story!

[jacobi · Rating 5 out of 5]

declan lynch did a few things wrong but we shouldn't hold them against him cause he was trying his best and his life is literally a horror movie.

[alexandra]

i scream

[Lauren Lanz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Apparently people are still sleeping on Declan Lynch; the big brother that's been through hell and would still do anything for his brothers.

This novella is demonstration enough of how disconnected Declan felt from his family as a kid. He was the only person in the house that was anything except magical. We get to see the way he interacts will little Ronan during Christmas, which was heartwarming.

The Lynch brothers will always be close to my heart <3

[Jiana]

I genuinely have no idea what I just read. I literally don’t know if even Maggie herself understands what she writes.

Anyway, only one phrase matters in this:

I’d like a bird army, Ronan said.

Ronan Lynch and I are one person thanks.

[Kristin Hackett (Merrily Kristin)]

<3 <3 <3

[cossette · Rating 4 out of 5]

i can fix declan lynch

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll never get enough of TRC universe! Another amazing new short story from the series!

[Giulia · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Declan was tired of managing secrets. There was nothing brilliant about dreaming for the one left awake."
Good short story about Declan's childhood and Christmas.
Still a too brief short story but definitely better than the previous two since it gave a bit more, and actually added something new to the Raven Cycle Fandom 👌🏻

[Robin (Bridge Four) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good short featuring Declan. I find myself feeling sorry for the boy surrounded by dreamers and dreams, just trying to live a normal life.

[Sophie_The_Jedi_Knight · Rating 4 out of 5]

*4.5
All the feels.

Poor Declan. This made me appreciate him more than ever - I forgot how much he had to deal with, how much he fought to protect his brothers.

I'd like to quote a review by jacobi: (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/4...) "Declan Lynch did a few things wrong but we shouldn't hold them against him cause he was trying his best and his life is literally a horror movie." So true.

This made me feel so bad for Declan - things weren't easy for him. He did so much that we should be appreciating him for.

Damn.

[sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am thisclose to rereading the series for the second time this year.

[Nidofito · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holy, I had to look through other people's reviews to remember Matthew. Still, a lovely addition to the Raven cycle.

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was nothing brilliant about dreaming for the one left awake.

SCREAMING. THAT ENDING. omg I'm so glad I read this, and honestly I've been wanting to reread this series so I'll probably do that next year because I just love it so much *sobs*

[prag ♻ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometimes you need a warm cup of hot chocolate and soft music, and sometimes all you need is a story about Declan Lynch protecting and watching out for his little brother.

[sage (semi-hiatus)]

“Smile, little Declan. Don’t tell anyone about this secret.”

5 holiday stars. dam, this makes me want to read call down the hawk RIGHT NOW.

[Katie • forevermorepages · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well.

Thanks for the emotions. Totally didn't need them.

[E. · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 🌟

Give me anything from The Raven Cycle Universe and I'll be happy 😍😍😍
Declan was such a good older brother though. Nial's favouritism messed that up :/

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[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve always had a soft spot for Declan ever since it was revealed that Ronan thought up Matthew because he wanted a brother to play with him; that realization killed me. Plus, he was protective of his brothers! But the comment of how he wasn’t either of his parents’ favorite was what really sold me. Jeez!
So it’s no surprise that I really loved this short story about him, and it is no surprise that I like and understand him even more! He deserved better.

[S. ≽^•⩊•^≼ I'm not here yet · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story of four of the Lynches: Niall, the charistmatic father, Aurora, the dulcet bride, Declan, the eldest, and Ronan, the youngest but nonetheless natural heir to everything important Niall possessed.

[fiona ☁️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

how did i not know about this until now. Also how does maggie manage to make me feel such emotions with, like, one tumblr post

------------------------------------

FAVOURITE QUOTES:

🌌 "There was nothing brilliant about dreaming for the one left awake." 🌌



🌌 "Ronan was everything all at once. He was irascible and adoring, eager and reticent, joyful and furious. Niall had said once there was a saying about Irish weather: if you don’t like it, wait a minute.
That was Ronan." 🌌


🌌 "'Smile, little Declan', she’d say, and tousle his curly hair. There’s so much to smile about.'
There was a lot to be worried about, too, though." 🌌



🌌 "What do you want for Christmas this year?" Aurora asked.
'No more secrets', Declan thought. 🌌

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this. It was great getting inside Declan's head as a child and to see how his childhood influenced who he was as an adult. I felt bad for Declan and I'm hoping he gets more love in The Dreamer Trilogy.

[Ophelia &#x1f49b; · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh wow! I'm amazed <3 and I want so much more!

Ronan was everything all at once. He was irascible and adoring, eager and reticent, joyful and furious. Niall had said once there was a saying about Irish weather: if you don’t like it, wait a minute.

That was Ronan.

[Jade Juniper · Rating 5 out of 5]

My whole heart MELTED. I was ill prepared...

[Dove · Rating 5 out of 5]

My heart. Can you not, Stiefvater?

[theravengirlMariem · Rating 5 out of 5]

AWWWWWW I M SCREAMING 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[Sahil Javed · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Very Declan Christmas is prequel novella to The Raven Cycle and is told from the perspective of Declan, Ronan’s older brother, and recounts the story of how Ronan pulled Matthew out of his dreams.

“Declan was tired of managing secrets. There was nothing brilliant about dreaming for the one left awake.”

Declan is such a complex character and when he was first introduced in The Raven Boys, I disliked him, but throughout the series, and especially in The Raven King when we see more of him, I started to understand his character more and why he was the way he was. And reading this novella really made me feel sorry for him and also helped me to again understand Declan’s behaviour towards Ronan throughout the series. And I’m officially announcing that I love Declan Lynch and that he needs to be protected at all costs, please and thank you.

[Aleja Carstairs (Shadowhunter Encyclopedia) Semi-Hiatus · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is what I call an awesome short story. It gave me perspective on the characters, had me wondering where it was going, and then gave me an unexpected resolution. Of course, if you haven't read the Raven Boys quartet before, this might be the most confusing piece of fiction ever written. And if you read this immediatly after reading the books it will give you some nice backstory to some of the plot twists and events that happen surrounding the Lynch family. I really love Maggie Stiefvater's way of telling a story, even one as short as this one. I'm oficially a fan of her Holiday shorts.