Review: Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

    Stiefvater, M. (2009). Shiver. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.

    "I was close enough to smell the wild odor of his coat and feel the warmth of his breath. Then I did what I had always wanted to – I put a hand to his dense ruff, and when he didn't flinch, I buried both my hands in his fur. His outer coat was not soft as it looked, but beneath the coarse guard hairs was a layer of downy fluff. With a low groan, he pressed his head against me, eyes till closed. I held him as if he were no more than a family dog, though his wild sharp scent wouldn't let me forget what he really was." (Stiefvater, p. 20).

If you consider yourself to be on "Team Jacob" (pardon the overdone reference) then this book is almost certainly for you.

Grace is saved by a yellow-eyed wolf as a young child and becomes emotionally attached to this same wolf. As a result, she becomes obsessed with the wolves that haunt her backyard during the winter months. Sam is the yellow-eyed wolf boy who saved her and is now running out of time. They fall in love despite living in two separate worlds. This novel alternates between the voice of Grace and Sam. Grace is not the stereotypical girl. She is independent and borders on stoic while Sam is the emotional one. The reversal of stereotypical feminine and masculine traits develops the characters in such a way that makes them real and makes the reader fall for them. I recommend this book to anyone that enjoys supernatural romances. As well as anyone who is fascinated by wolves...