Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Title: Shiver
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Paranornal YA
Pages: 400
Publisher: Scholastic Paperbacks (June 1, 2010)
Source: My Kindle
Summary: Grace, 17, loves the peace and tranquility of the woods behind her home. It is here during the cold winter months that she gets to see her wolf—the one with the yellow eyes. Grace is sure that he saved her from an attack by other wolves when she was nine. Over the ensuing years he has returned each season, watching her with those haunting eyes as if longing for something to happen. When a teen is killed by wolves, a hunting party decides to retaliate. Grace races through the woods and discovers a wounded boy shivering on her back porch. One look at his yellow eyes and she knows that this is her wolf in human form. Fate has finally brought Sam and Grace together, and as their love grows and intensifies, so does the reality of what awaits them. It is only a matter of time before the winter cold changes him back into a wolf, and this time he might stay that way forever. Told from alternating points of view, the narrative takes a classic Romeo & Juliet plot and transforms it into a paranormal romance that is beautiful and moving. Readers will easily identify with the strong, dynamic characters. The mythology surrounding the wolf pack is clever and so well written that it seems perfectly normal for the creatures to exist in today's world. A must-have that will give Bella and Edward a run for their money. --- Amazon (link to buy)

Stars: 5 STARS

Review: I am by now means a werewolf fan, but this book sucked me in right in the beginning. The novel follows a 17-year-old girl named Grace, who after surviving a wolf attack as a young girl, sees "her wolf" every winter; this is the wolf that saved her. As it turns out, "the wolf" is in fact a boy her age named Sam, who pines for Grace. During the warm months, Sam is human and the cold makes him turn back into a wolf. However, Sam's months as a human are dwindling as you can only change so many times before you become a wolf forever.

Sam and Grace meet and fall in love, with Grace finding out Sam's secrets just as her town prepares to kill the remaining wolves in the town because they supposedly killed a popular student.

Shiver is indeed a well-written book, with strong descriptions and a great love story. It is the first book in the Mercy Falls Wolves Series (the final book Forever comes out in July!) and I recommend this book for anyone who enjoys a love story with a bit of paranormal mixed in.