Book Review: Shiver

TITLE: Shiver
PART IN SERIES: Book 1 in the Wolves of Mercy Falls series
AUTHOR: Maggie Stiefvater
PUBLISHED: 2009
GENRE: Young adult, series, romance, werewolves
PREMISE: Grace has always been enthralled by the wolves that live near her. Then she discovers their secret...
MY REVIEW: I will not lie: there are definite similarities to Twilight in this. But like all the other Twilight wannabes, it is much better then the book it's trying to emulate. This is a romance that doesn't get on my nerves, that has characters I like and root for, and a few bad prose aside is actually written well. Also, unlike Twilight, I do see the need for a sequel and thus can't wait for Linger (out in July for those that don't know).
I will say, I felt the romance was a tad bit cliche but I found it believable and sweet without being sacherine. The book is not completely predictable (the romance part is, but there are other interesting things to make up for it) and I found the characters interesting. The idea behind the werewolves in this was also kind of interesting.
All in all, the good far outwieghs the bad and it's worth getting it if like me, you were drawn to it strictly because of its beautiful binding (seriously, how GORGEOUS is the packaging on this book? I love it). While I didn't like it as much as I liked Maggie's other series, I still think it's a solid book and she's fast becoming one of my favorite writers.
WHO SHOULD READ: Twilight fans, werewolf fans, romance fans
MY RATING: Four out of five wolves

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