Review: Linger by Maggie Stiefvater

Title: Linger (sequel to Shiver)
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Release Date: July 20, 2010
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Length: 358pages
Format: ARC

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 wold 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 entrapping, enticing and alarming. As their world falls apart, love is what lingers. But will it be enough?


Review:

Linger was like reading butter. The writing was silky smooth, fatty, and addicting. A guilty pleasure. But eating too much butter at once gives you a stomach ache, so I read this in pieces at a time, because the writing was so thick and beautiful that I would have become obese with jealousy and awe if I read it in one sitting.

Linger is told in the four alternating viewpoints of Sam, Grace, Isabel, and Cole. I did have a few issues with this, as Sam, Grace, and Isabel's voices so closely mirrored each other I had to keep flipping back to the beginning of the chapter to remind myself who was speaking. Cole's voice, however, was distinct and by far the most interesting and complex character. He opted to become a wolf in an attempt to forget about the complications, pain, and regret in his human life. This created an unbelievable tension between Sam and Cole, a tension that makes your stomach twist with apprehension.

The beginning of the book did linger for me a bit (no pun intended), as it took the time to set the stage for the events to come in the latter pages. I admit, I probably would have put it down if 1. The writing hadn't been so magnificent. 2. I hadn't been so compelled to figure out Cole and 3. The mystery of Grace's illness wasn't so gut-wrenching. You may be in for a surprise for this one, because I definitely was. I also have to admit this: If I had put the book down after the first 30 pages, I would have made a huge mistake. This book is worth reading again and again and again.

And you should be prepared to possibly shed a tear at the end.



Grade: A-

Review: The Tension of Opposites by Kristina McBride

Title: The Tension of Opposites

Author: Kristina McBride

Release Date: May 25th, 2010

Publisher: EgmontUSA

Length: 288 pages

Format: ARC

Summary:

Up / Down
Hot / Cold
Free / Noelle


It’s been two years since Noelle disappeared. Two years since her bike was discovered, sprawled on a sidewalk. Two years of silence, of worry, of fear.

For those two long years, her best friend Tessa has waited, living her own life in a state of suspended animation. Because how can she allow herself to enjoy a normal high school life if Noelle can’t? How dare she have other friends, go to dances, date boys, without knowing what happened to the girl she thought she would share everything with?

And then one day, someone calls Noelle’s house. She’s alive.

A haunting psychological thriller taken straight from the headlines, The Tension of Opposites is a striking debut that explores the emotional aftermath of a kidnapping on the victim, and on the people she left behind.

Review:

First off, let me say that I hold high expectations for a book. I’m picky, so to actually pick a book up, I expect to love it. Most don’t live up to these somewhat ridiculous high standards.

Not only did the Tension of Opposites live up to those expectations, but exceeded them.

Kristina McBride made it seem seamless the way she wriggled herself into the mind of a girl, Tessa, whose best friend Noelle was kidnapped and then returned two years later. She describes Tessa’s fear of strangers that has budded since the kidnapping as though it were her own, which contributed to the impressive creep factor.

It was refreshing to have Tessa ease into a relationship, not instantly fall in love with the love interest because he’s attractive. The best way to describe this is in Tessa’s own words:

“I tried to keep from noticing how beautiful he was because thoughts like those can make you vulnerable, leave you open for attack. Having a squared jaw, smooth skin, and full lips certainly didn’t make him safe.”

My one complaint was Noelle, Tessa’s best friend and the girl who had been kidnapped. I don’t think her fear after the incident was captured as well as Tessa’s. I know she was trying to be portrayed as tough, strong, and guarded but some of her actions threw me off. Like after she escaped and returned to her family, she would sneak out in the middle of the night. By herself. Her explanation for this was because everyone in her house was suffocating her, which was true, but I can’t see her having the bravery to sneak out after all she went through for two years.

That really was my only problem with this book. The rest was beautifully written, and for the most part, the characters were 100% believable. Opposites played an important part in the plot, and Kristina McBride managed to balance the opposites of dark and light. There was enough darkness to make me want to run to bed and have my parents check my closet for monsters, but enough light to give me hope for victims of a traumatizing event.

Grade: A-