by Maggie Stiefvater
Published: August 1, 2009
For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf--her wolf--is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without. Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human . . . until the cold makes him shift back again. Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human--or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.
I am not into wolves. But at some point I decided to venture out of my preferences and read Hemlock which I did not regret at all - an amazing choice to cure my disinterested heart. I thought I HAVE to read more wolf books which is not what I immediately did. I've known about The Wolves of Mercy Falls Series for who-knows-how-long; it's popular and Maggie is after all, a New York Times Bestseller but still, no. And then I heard of her book The Raven Boys and said 'Ah, ok. This. I'm definitely going to read this!' And man, did I fall hard. I was so captivated with Maggie's writing then that no further incentive is needed for me to pick up her other books.
Shiver is one of the BEST paranormal love story I have ever read that made me scream my head off with frustration at how part of my mind refused to acknowledge this book before. And what if the world ended last year? It would be a shame to have died without reading this.
Another thing I loved: remarkable characters. Grace, Sam, Isabel and all the others, they're the kind of person I can easily associate myself with. I especially loved Grace. I liked her since the first part of the book. The romance is tragic but at the same time refreshing. It's not always that I find books with this kind of love story. I've always thought there are better ways of writing about love that does not have to be a word by word and detailed description of everything you think must be included in such stories. What's important is that it's genuine and has substance. Grace's and Sam's definitely falls into that category. It was made even better with the alternating POVs of Grace - human but feels the loss of something unattainable - and Sam - as a human who longs for the girl he loves from afar and as a wolf struggling to remember the part of himself wishing, hoping for something he deserves.
I think everyone should give this book a chance. I know this has both positive and negative reviews but I don't let them initially decide or tarnish what I think before I get to read the whole thing myself. This book is just amazing! I'm so glad to have read this; it's a wonderful start to the series and after that ending, waiting is an impossibility.
Words!
Isabel’s voice was high. “I don’t understand what you’re saying. What are you saying sorry for? For disappearing? For getting bitten in the first place? For—”
“For Chloe,” the boy said.
There was a pause. “What do you mean, ’for Chloe’? What does the dog have to do with all this? Do you know where she is?”
“Isabel. Hell. Haven’t you been listening? You’re so stupid sometimes. I told you, I don’t know what I’m doing after I’ve changed.”
I covered my mouth to keep from laughing. Jack had eaten her dog.
“Are you saying that she’s—you—God! You’re such a jerk!”
“I couldn’t help it. I told you what I was. You shouldn’t have let her out.”
“Do you have any idea how much that dog cost?”
“Boo hoo.”
“So what am I supposed to tell the parental units? Mom, Dad, Jack’s a werewolf, and guess what, you know how Chloe’s been missing? He ate her.”s
________________________________________
Isabel said, “He’s in the living room next to the fire. He just stopped throwing up before you got here. He puked all over the carpet. But that’s okay because I like having my parents pissed at me. No point interrupting a constant pattern.”
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by: ScholasticTeens
Great review! Shiver was one of the very first books I read.
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