Review of Linger by Maggie Stiefvater

~In Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver, Grace and Sam found each other. Now in Linger, they must fight to be together. For Grace, this means defying her parents and keeping a very dangerous secret about her own well-being. For Sam, this means grappling with his werewolf past?and figuring out a way to survive in the future. Add into the mix a new wolf named Cole, whose own past has the potential to destroy the whole pack. And Isabelle, who already lost her brother to the wolves?and is nonetheless drawn to Cole. At turns harrowing and euphoric, Linger is a spellbinding love story that explores both sides of love-the light and the dark, the warm and the cold-in a way you will never forget.~



I have been waiting to read this book since I devoured the first novel in this series, Shiver. I was so impressed with the author's mature writing style and unique take on werewolves (shifters really) that I couldn't put that first book down until it was finished. I was nervous wondering if Linger could live up to the standards that Shiver had built up.

The answer was yes. Hell yes.

I was slightly disappointed to learn that the book would not be immediately available for Kobo.I am finding that usually one has to wait at least a week or more for newer books to be available for purchase. For some books this is fine, but for Linger it was not.

I was actually quite surprised to see the hardcover edition available for purchase at Chapters earlier than the noted release date of July 20th. This made me ecstatic and I scooped it up eagerly on my weekly Saturday visit, lured in by its gently glowing green cover. I even had to buy myself a new wolf bookmark, slightly tinted green just for this particular book. Can you say OCD much?

Upon opening the book as soon as I arrived home I was tickled pink (well green actually) to discover the text of the whole novel matched the lovely green colour of the cover. Something so small, yet so amazing I couldn't tear my eyes from the pages. (Luckily I didn't buy this on the Kobo as I would have missed that nifty little tidbit.)

Once again, Stiefvater's writing creates images so vivid its more like watching a movie play inside my head than reading a book. I am a huge fan of her rotating first-person narration. The story just wouldn't be the same with any other narration technique. It can sometimes be a little disorienting shifting to another person's viewpoint in the middle of a chapter, but the characters are so clear you quickly pick up who is telling the story (together with the person's name being noted at the beginning of each new section).

The only negative comment I have is the sense of the dreaded cliffhanger the reader is left with at the end of the novel. I notice more and more authors, especially YA authors, are using this to pull in their readers and leave them hanging with their tongues out for the next installment. I don't find this necessary at all. Shiver did not end this way and I was still so eager to get my claws into this book. In fact being left this way makes me more angry and less likely to want to read anything more by this author because I don't like the feeling of being held hostage. Vampire Academy's Richelle Mead has also recently jumped on this bandwagon (luckily only for her second to last book) and it drives me insane!

But beyond all that I have to give credit where it is due. Maggie Stiefvater is a very talented writer who brings stories to life for her readers. I certainly do suggest reading this series to anyone who loves wolves, good young romance tales, and amazingly good writing.

My rating?

4 super scribble spiders out of 5!