Header Menu

Thursday, August 26, 2010

118) Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

The Blurb -

Grace is his summer girl as Sam says in one of the songs he has written for her. She is everything that holds him into his human form and she is everything he ever could have wanted.

For Grace, Sam is her lonely, sad wolf that always lingers near her house in winter but never shows up in summer. Because of that winter is her favourite time of year and she can't wait to see him, touch him - feel him.

Not yet does she know about her beloved wolf's secret, his second nature and Sam is to shy to tell her when he is able to.

The two of them share a past - and will hopefully share a future together, which only begins to start when Grace finds her wolf one day in front of her house - not at all an animal but a naked boy...

My Thoughts -

It seems like everyone had read this book except me. So when I saw this cheap on Audible I decided it was high time to see what all the fuss was about. Shiver had amazing reviews all over the place but the blurb made the book sound boring. I wasn't sure if this was going to be good or bad but knew that I had to try it.

Things started off quite interesting and the whole concept wasn't that bad. Grace, one of the main characters, is actually a nice girl and Sam, the other main character, had a good strong presence. All in all there wasn't anything to complain about. However as things progressed I found myself taking long pauses between listening to the book. The story was just so drawn out and long winded that I needed to take a break from it.

There was enough going on and it wasn't at all boring but I just wanted something big to happen. Something amazing, something special, something that would make this book as wonderful as everyone else seems to think it is. Nothing happened. I waited and waited but I didn't get 'it'. Maybe I am too old for this Young Adult novel but it didn't make me want to rush off and start recommending it to my friends.

For me there was a 'Twilight' problem. This book may not have vampires, may not two guys fighting over the same girl but it did have a big 'Twilight' feel to it. Lovey dovey teenagers falling for one another without really knowing each other always annoys me because it sets a bad example to the young people reading the book. Things like that do happen but life isn't always that easy. Also Grace's parents being conveniently 'away' all the time gave the wrong impression. I am sure there are children growing up like this all over the place but it just came across as silly and unrealistic.

There is a second book and I believe even a third book in this series. While I wasn't totally in love with Shiver I might still check out the second part. If I had picked this up to read in book form I don't believe I would have finished it but as an audible with the good narrators it wasn't too bad to listen to. So if I see Linger sometime, going cheap, I will check it out. I will admit I am a little curious about what happens next.

4 comments:

LupLun said...

Ummm...

You read Shiver, not Linger. Linger is the sequel. ^_^;;;;

*ahem*

I had similar problems with Shiver, actually. It felt very padded, and I wasn't sold on the way the main couple hooked up. And you're right that Grace's parents are almost absurdly negligent. (Shameless plug: read the review at my site.) It does, however, get better near the end.

If you liked it at all, I suggest giving book 2 a chance- I'm only halfway through it, but it's a huge step up in terms of pacing and characterization.

Beverly said...

Hey there! Just wanted to stop by as many of the blogs that I follow as I could during the Friday Hop timeframe! If you have a chance, stop by The Wormhole and check out my 300 follower giveaway! Happy reading – have a great weekend!

Unknown said...

@ LupLun - Ooopss!!! Thank you for pointing that out!!! I was looking on Amazon to see what comes next and got them both mixed up :) It was late...

I will give the second part a chance at some point. I will be checking it out on Audible.

Jessica @ a GREAT read said...

Linger does pick up a little bit I think. There might be some slowness here and there. But things that I at least questioned in Shiver come up here in Linger.

I liked the book a lot. I see some of the points you made and I agree with them completely. It's Romeo and Juliet all over again!

But Linger does have some nice interesting bits here and there. You should give it a try if it goes cheap and you find yourself in need of something to read.

Good, honest review though!