Real Teen Award:
- Best Book Published 2010
-Best Female Character Read in 2010: Isabel Culpepper
If you have not read Shiver, then read at your own risk, this contains spoilers!
The Gist
The shiver was the cold, the promise of forgetting, the shift that hung in the air like a bad omen. The linger was the heat, the touch of fever, the animal inside clawing to get out. This is the story of a boy and a girl; of a wolf becoming a human and a human becoming a wolf. Grace and Sam have fought through everything to be together and now – after battling the cold, the shift, and meningitis – it finally seems like things could be settling down. Sam is still Sam despite the chilling winter, and Grace doesn’t have to worry about him shifting anymore, or wolves attacking. For a few simple, normal weeks, everything is perfect. Then things start to go downhill. Grace develops a mysterious illness no one can identify, one of Beck’s new wolves shifts back absurdly early, and Sam battles with memories of his damaging past. Their world crashes down around them as Grace’s parents become a stubborn and unwelcome force in her life, pushing Sam out, and desperation in. Sam’s wishful paper cranes are useless against the sickness ripping Grace from the inside out. Isabel and Cole’s (Beck’s new wolf) cold demeanor do nothing to save Grace from an illness they’re not sure she can cure. With stress building up, and anger boiling over, they figure it’s only a matter of time before somebody cracks.
What We Think
Reviewed by Dream Catcher
Number of Pages: 360
When I picked up Shiver, not too long ago, and promptly finished it, I assumed it was a book that would stand alone. I never suspected another book – it’s sequel – would come along. But that didn’t stop me from nearly having a joyful heart-attack when I heard about Linger. Immediately I was jumping up and down with excitement, earnestly awaiting the published copy of Linger to appear in stores. After a few days of thought, however, I was a bit hesitant. How could it live up to the expectations I had set for it based on what Shiver was? I certainly didn’t want to be disappointed by it. But I shouldn’t have worried. Upon it’s arrival I was again overly enthusiastic - and for good reason. The book was amazing. The plot was very interesting and unexpected. The characters I knew from Shiver were just as real and unique. The new characters were mysterious and intriguing. I had half-expected the plot to be some fluff – just filler so she could publish another book. It was most certainly not like that at all. There was romance, there was uncertainty, there was anguish, there were werewolves, and (much to everyone’s surprise) there was parenting. The plot had it all and kept me reading until I was finished. Then I immediately begged for more. As for the characters, they weren’t exactly different, but they seemed…deeper, almost. I felt for them even more than I had while I read Shiver. Grace and Sam seemed stronger (benefit of all that fighting to be together) and even more determined to get a happily-ever-after. Their sorrow in knowing they may never get it was moving. Isabel is just as mean and just as cold as she was before. But now (finally) a few blessed souls are trying to defrost her. This added something else to the book that I wasn’t expecting. Her resistance to kindness, I suppose. Then there was the one-of-a-kind compassion from Isabel which was something I never saw coming, but welcomed with open arms. And then there was Cole. Ah, Cole. No one will ever be sure what to make of him. Me included. He was an enigma; pure apathy personified. The addition of this character made the book a lot darker, and set it apart from Shiver. I can’t say anything civil about her parents, so you’ll have to read and decide for yourself about them. They also play a part in making the book dark and, well…somewhat depressing. Together, the fascinating plot and beloved characters make for a truly amazing book you’ll fall in love with instantly. My summary? Linger is a dark romance full of doubt and desperation. A book that will pull you in and only release you once you’ve finished the final word of the final page.
Real Teen Rating~ A+ : Why are you still reading this, go buy this book NOW!
Reviewed by The North Star
Reviewed by The North Star
The moment I finished Shiver I was both sad and happy at the same time. Happy because of the happy ending but sad because the book was over and then I heard that there was a sequel and I couldn’t believe what I was hearing and was overjoyed that there was going to be not only two books but THREE. I quickly got my hands on a copy and started reading it as soon as possible. I really couldn’t tell after finishing Lingerwhether I liked Shiver or Linger more. Linger was without a doubt more on the darker side in comparison to Shiver, but still very enjoyable. The thing that I loved most about Linger would have to be how the author just easily put people into the story and made characters who weren’t as big, bigger and pushed other characters to the back of your mind without allowing you to forget them completely. She brought the new character Cole into the story and at times I forgot that he wasn’t in the first book because his character was very natural. She also made Isabel a huge character in this book where in the last one she wasn’t as large and I liked seeing the story from her point of view because you didn’t really get a sense for what she was going through in Shiver. As Dream said this plot was unexpected and kept me on my toes the whole time. The other different thing about this book was that the book was told through Sam, Grace, Cole and Isabel’s point of view, which I really liked because then you could experience something new every chapter because there were almost 2 different stories going on. One story with Isabel and Cole and one with Sam and Grace, so by doing 4 different points of views you get two stories out of one! For people who readShiver and loved how sweet Sam was shouldn’t worry because Sam is just as sweet in this book if not sweeter. The passion between him and Grace is also there so if there is any doubt as to whether that aspect will be there I wouldn’t worry at all. In the end, Linger is much more depressing than Shiver but almost equal in quality, you may even have a tear slide down your cheek.
Real Teen Rating~ A+ : Why are you still reading this, go buy the book NOW!
Reviewed by Living Destiny
Reviewed by Living Destiny
I was super excited when I heard that we had a copy of Linger to read, because I’d been waiting with a painful sort of anticipation for it to come out since I finished reading Shiver two months ago. My expectations for this book were pretty high, which I usually try to avoid with books, because with high expectations or hype I always find myself let down (The Hunger Games, anyone?) But with Linger I just couldn’t help myself. For once, I was not disappointed.
Linger was incredible. That’s really all there is to it. The old characters were more developed, but in subtle ways. the new characters were interesting and filled in the story. I didn’t really think the series needed any more characters, but when I met Cole, I realized how there would have been a hole in the plot without him. He was a surprising character, and very hard to figure out. You couldn’t really pin him down to any stereotype, or even any one description.
Like North, I thought it was cool how the story was told by four characters, instead of just the original two (Sam and Grace). It was fun to see what was going on from other perspectives, especially Isabel. In the first book, she wasn’t that big of a character, but she becomes much bigger in Linger. It’s nice to see her side, because she goes through a lot of pain and she has a very different train of thought than the other characters. It’s also nice to read from Cole’s perspective, because otherwise you wouldn’t get as much background on him. Hearing his thoughts gives you a better (though still meager) understanding of what he has gone through and is currently going through. And of course, hearing from Sam and Grace is always good, because their characters are the deepest, and I felt for them more because I knew them the best.
The plot was so wild! I thought Shiver was intense, but this was ten times more heart stopping. Everything about it was so terrific and there were times when putting the book down was literally painful. And because the main characters were all so easy to connect to and understand, I really felt for them. Their pain, their excitement, their happiness, all of it. It was like, what they went through, I went through. There were times when I even imagined myself as the characters, and thought of what I would do in their places (and not too much changed!)
I almost cried at the end. There, I said it. I almost cried. The ending was just so extremely, overwhelmingly sad! But it was like a good sad (not to be confused with a happy sad, because it was most definitely sad). It was depressing, but it felt right.
Just as one final note: you know an author is good when they can make you feel strong emotion for their characters. Maggie Stiefvater is therefore amazing for making me feel such passionate hatred towards Grace’s parents. It was so bad I found myself having to put down the book and wait a couple of days before continuing.
Linger was a great follow-up to Shiver, and an all around stunning book. I can’t think of any complaints, except maybe one: we have to wait a year for the last book, Forever?!?! NO FAIR!!!
Real Teen Rating~ A+: Why are you still reading this, go buy the book NOW!
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