Review: Linger by Maggie Stiefvater

LINGER (Wolves of Mercy Falls Series #2) by Maggie Stiefvater

Pub. Date: July 2010

Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.

Format: Hardcover, 362pp

Age Range: Young Adult

Series: Wolves of Mercy Falls Series, #2

Source: Publisher

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 into 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 love Maggie's writing style! Her words are mesmerizing which pulled me into the story page by page. First, I want to mention Sam and Grace. SHIVER managed to bring me to tears with the beauty of Grace's & Sam's love for each other. In the continuation of their journey together, it was nerve wrecking experiencing the turmoil that these two go through trying to cope with the changes of their bodies and their wants for the future. Sam struggles with his loyalty to the wolves while trying to do things that he never thought he could do before, while Grace plans for a future with Sam that's not likely to happen with her parents looming over her all of a sudden. Right at the start of this book, I got a sense of the struggle to come with these characters. I could not have imagined the impact this book would cause with the possibility of these two being torn apart - especially with how hard they fought to be together in SHIVER. Once again, I fell in love with these characters all over again.

LINGER'S alternating viewpoints between Grace, Sam, Cole, and Isabel lures you into the inner workings of these character's hopes, dreams, struggles, and more. You get up close and personal with what they have to deal with. There are some scenes in this book that took my breath away both in its beauty and complexity. Cole, the tortured rock star, his characterization was the most complex amongst the four. Cole's journey stood out to me more between the four. It was interesting being inside of his head as he embraced his wolf side to get away from his issues. His pairing with Isabel was special as she seemed to be the only one to break down his barriers. Isabel’s guilt about being responsible for her brother's death changed her and she's trying to escape just as the rest of them. I liked Isabel more and more in this installment for stepping up to the plate and encouraging Sam to do what's right. All of these characters seem to be trying to escape their past or outrun their future.

Maggie's brilliance and lovely prose and imagery captured my heart. She continues to amaze me with her writing and I can't wait to see what the next installment brings. Her characters are so flawed; you can't help but empathize with them. I can't get enough of the wolves of Mercy Falls and I can only hope that the final installment is as good as its predecessors. This series is a must read!

Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

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Check out the book trailer for Linger