Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

I just finished the best book I have read this year; Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater. I couldn't put it down from the moment I opened the beautifully illustrated front cover.  

Grace, a pragmatic, strong willed and independent teenager, has watched the wolves from a distance for six years following their attack on her one cold winter's day when she was a girl.  There is one wolf, with sad yellow eyes, that she feels particularly drawn to. 

Sam doesn't just become a boy trapped in wolf skin at the first sign of winters icy chill.  He becomes a wolf, a tortured shell of his human self with wild and unpredictable instincts.  When he finally meets Grace, the girl he's been watching from the woods, he fights to stay human to be with her but winter tugs at his human skin and threatens to take him away from her forever.

The book is told from both Sam and Grace.  The transition is easy to follow and both characters are so unique and strong in their realism that there is no confusion as to who is speaking.

I highly recommend this book, not only to those with a love of the supernatural, but to anyone looking for a good fantasy with a soft romantic element.  (She's working on the sequel now!)



  • Reading level: Young Adult
  • Hardcover: 400 pages
  • Publisher: Scholastic Press (August 1, 2009)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0545123267
  • ISBN-13: 978-0545123266




4 comments:

Jess (The Cozy Reader) said...

I don't agree about the easy of knowing who was speaking. There were several times that I had to stop and back track to make sure who was talking. It didn't happen a ton but I do remember stopping and it interferred with the reading flow.

That's the only thing I had any issues with.

It was a great read and I'm really interested in the sequel Linger. :)

My review is up on my blog. :)

Lacey J Edwards said...

I'm not a pro book reviewer so work with me lol

But I was surprised at how the double view points didn't slow me down. When I read another book that had that it drove me crazy.

Anonymous said...

I'll definitly have to look up on that! sounds like a fantastic book.

Culture Served Raw said...

A very insightful review, rarely do any inspire me to pick up a book, but this one has definately tugged at my sleeve, and I'm not typically a fan of Young adult fiction!

Glad to be following,
Val.

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