Linger by Maggie Stiefvater

Title: Linger
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
ISBN: 9780545123280
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Page #: 360
Source: From my public library

Summary:
"the longing.
Once Grace and Sam have found each other, they know they must fight to stay together. For Sam, this means a reckoning with his werewolf past. For Grace, it means facing a future that is less and less certain.

the loss.
Into their world comes a new wolf named Cole, whose past is full of hurt and danger. He is wrestling with his own demons, embracing the life of a wolf while denying the ties of being human.

the linger.
For Grace, Sam and Cole, life is a constant struggle between two forces - wolf and human - with love baring its two sides as well. It is harrowing and euphoric, freeing and trapping, enticing and alarming. As their world falls apart, love is what lingers. But will it be enough?"
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First Lines:

"This is the story of a boy who used to be a wolf and a girl who was becoming one.
Just a few months ago, it was Sam who was the mythical creature. His was the disease we couldn't cure."
Page 1
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Review:

I read the first book in this series here:
Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

The first book leaves you on a complete cliffhanger, so if you haven't read that one yet, I would highly recommend you do before reading any more reviews. You will completely ruin the first story for yourself.

Because of that cliffhanger, I was really worried about how this book was going to turn out. I had read a few reviews that were a bit mixed - saying it wasn't as good as the first one and all that... But I don't think that's true. I honestly enjoyed this second book in the werewolf story of romance and choosing life. There were some marked differences in this book than the first, but none that made it less-than.

This is more about the story between Sam and Grace and how everything around them starts falling apart - including themselves. There are a couple of new characters introduced in this story, so you have a bit more background to catch up on. But I also think that those new characters help this story from feeling a bit stale and repeated from the last book. That's the way the author kept this book from seeming too much like the wronged lovers.

One thing that bothered me a little bit was all of the adult characters. They literally were the villains throughout the entire book. Each parent had something going on that was not helpful - or directly harmful to the teens in the story. I mean, I can see how that would resonate with teen readers, but it almost felt like too much. I was waiting for a let-up in that department, but it really didn't happen.

There is also a lot of bouncing around in terms of point of view. With the new characters, there are a lot more lives to follow. I didn't really mind it so much, but there were a few times that I forgot who was supposed to be speaking and had moments of confusion. I know some people aren't into changing point of view novels... so perhaps this one wouldn't be for you - unless you could get over that for an awesome story.

I know you're wondering if this book leaves you on a huge cliffhanger like the first book. The answer for me was... not really. I mean, it does leave you with a lot more story to be had. But it wasn't as much of a shocker to me as the first one was. Perhaps I was just waiting for it to happen. I spent the last part of the book wondering how it was going to leave us - so maybe it was just that which kept me from being shocked.

I'm sure anyone who loves paranormal romance will be totally into this series. Stiefvater is an amazing author and I honestly couldn't put this book down. I was just so eager to find out what happened that I really couldn't stop. So, purely from that stand point, I am highly recommending it. Give the first book a go and see how much you love it :).

Check out Maggie Stiefvater's website - I'm already excited for the next book to come out (Forever in summer of 2011). I know it's going to be equally amazing!
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Other Blog Reviews:

The Reading Zone
Presenting Lenore
Alison's Book Marks
Kinnelon Library Teen Blog
Jen Robinson's Book Page
YA Highway
Bella's Bookshelves
The Compulsive Reader
This is only a small selection of reviews I was able to find. I'd suggest looking at a few more of them as well - lots of good opinions out there. Not to mention that it's just a good book.