"The characters and plot were wove so intricately that I couldn't help but race through this novel." — Miss Remmers
From Amazon.com...
"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."
Shiver is a novel that I have heard much about for the past few months, especially since the release of Linger. It took me awhile to finally purchase my own copy and sit down to read this novel, but as soon as I did I couldn't put it down.
With alternating perspectives and short chapters, initially I thought the book to be rather choppy. But I soon got over this small detail and found myself consumed into Sam and Grace's story. It also took me a while, probably the first half of the book, to get over the "creepiness" of a girl falling in love with a wolf. But once I came to terms with it, I fell in love with the characters and plot.
I loved the different take on "werewolves" — it was refreshing to read something different in regards to wolves/men than Team Jacob and the general conceptions put out into literature. It was fun and exciting to discover this new type of werewolf.
The tone of this novel was exceptional in most cases; I can see myself using parts of this book for an example of good literary tone. For example, after watching a movie (from Sam's point of view): "After the sci-fi flick ended (the world was saved but civilian casualties were high), I sat with Grace... " (227). This is a great example of literary tone because it's so honest and true to what a teenager would really say. I think in today's YA literature good examples of tone are hard to come by. I will mention, however, that most of Rachel's dialogue suffered as a result of stereotypical over tone; all of the "oh my God," "like," and "whatever"'s really wore on my soul.
Overall, this was a fantastic book. The characters and plot were wove so intricately that I couldn't help but race through this novel. Plus, I love the setting of Northern Minnesota!
Originality: 10/10
Ending: 10/10 (Ah-MAZING!)
Characters: 9/10
Plot: 8/10
My reaction/enjoyment: 10/10
Theme: 10/10
Imagery: 10/10
Setting: 5/5
Voice: 5/5
Style: 4/5
Tone: 4/5
Cover: 10/10
Overall: 95/100 A
To the FTC, with love: Bought