Shiver (The Wolves of Mercy Falls, #1)

by Maggie Stiefvater

[Leah]

I’ve been meaning to read a Maggie Stiefvater book for years – literally. I’m sure I even owned Shiver at one stage, but I was never as into wolves as I was vampires, to be completely honest, so I never read it. BUT WHAT WAS I THINKING??? Because Maggie Stiefvater is a fantastic writer! And Shiver is a fantastic novel! I was so stupid to think otherwise, and believe you and me, I will not be waiting long to read Linger, Forever and Sinner – I have them reserved at the library and I am just waiting for them to come in! Shiver is such a gorgeous book – and it seems to go from 0 to 60 in such a short space of time. I started reading and I liked it, but then Sam turned into a human and I was like woah there! This is awesome! And I couldn’t put it down from there (I mean I had to, to go to work but if I hadn’t I would have read it in just the one sitting).

I really liked both Grace and Sam. Going into the book I had no idea if I would like it, because I had scared myself reading the horrible GoodReads reviews. Note to anyone: Never, ever read up on a book on GoodReads before you read it, otherwise you’ll legit never read anything, ever. I love GoodReads, but some reviews are just harsh – if you don’t like werewolves or romances, then obviously Shiver isn’t for you. *Shrugs* People, eh? I, however, loved the book. Grace seems to come across quite young/naive at first, but she’s actually incredibly strong and I loved the way she was so forthright with Sam about a lot of things, unwilling to take his crap or take no for an answer. I respect that. And I liked Sam! He was adorable, kind of like a puppy, which is probably not the best analogy considering… I liked the wolf mythology, that they change in the spring/warmth to humans and in the winter/cold to wolves. But I did tear up on numerous occasions at the whole can only change for a certain number of years thing. And not only for Sam!

What I liked most about Shiver was the ending. In book series, books number one and two usually end on an annoying cliff-hanger you have to wait a year to resolve but Shiver ends in a nice, self-contained way. No, everything isn’t fixed and there are still lots of questions, but if I have to wait a little bit for Linger, I’m not exactly gnawing off my arm or rushing to my local Waterstones to devour it – I still *want* to devour them, but it isn’t a manic need you get from knowing a book is a year away and by that time you’ll not even know who Sam or Grace are. I am dying to read Linger, don’t mistake what I’ve said for me not being bothered because I AM!!!!! I’m actually hoping that by the time this review goes live I’ve finished the series, but knowing my local library (which I love and adore) it did take two months for me to get the last two of Teri Terry’s Shattered trilogy and I’m still waiting for the first book in another trilogy, even though books two and three have arrived so yeah. Shiver is a fantastic read. It’s cute, it’s quick to devour, the story is amazing, the characters are just delightful and I am a wolf convert, and I’m also kicking myself for not reading it sooner! Boy, have I been missing out.