Book Review + Giveaway: Linger by Maggie Stiefvater

Linger (The Wolves of Mercy Falls, Book #2) by Maggie Stiefvater

Genre: Young Adult Fiction
Release Date: Available Now
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Pages: 368
Source: Received from publisher for honest review

Summary: In Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver, Grace and Sam found each other. Now, in Linger, they must fight to be together. For Grace, this means defying her parents and keeping a very dangerous secret about her own well-being. For Sam, this means grappling with his werewolf past . . . and figuring out a way to survive into the future. Add into the mix a new wolf named Cole, whose own past has the potential to destroy the whole pack. And Isabelle, who already lost her brother to the wolves . . . and is nonetheless drawn to Cole. At turns harrowing and euphoric, Linger is a spellbinding love story that explores both sides of love -- the light and the dark, the warm and the cold -- in a way you will never forget.

My Review: Maggie has done it again! Linger delivered a fantastic follow-up to Shiver that left me drooling like a wolf. The beautiful, poetic writing I remembered in the first novel continued to warm my heart. Maggie's way with words are distinct and have the ability to move mountains. Grace and Sam's relationship blossomed and I enjoyed seeing their love come to light even more after the change. In my eyes, Sam will forever stay the sweetest character in YA. The way he carried himself through rough situations proved how much he loved Grace. If only all guys acted like Sam, all would be right in the world. But, then we would never have characters such as Cole, a newly infected wolf who was a complex rock star with demons. He was perceived as cocky and different from the others. At first, he was a mystery but once I started peeling back his layers I started to sympathize with him.

Another individual I got to know better was Isabel, Jack's sister. She was very entertaining from start to finish. Isabel's blunt personality definitely helped her get away with a lot of questions others wouldn't be able to ask. On top of that, she was hilarious and I caught myself laughing out loud. As for the lovely Grace, she was still an amazing, down-to-earth character that I admired and respected. By the end of Linger, I was surprised and shocked. The twist left me eagerly anticipating the third book Forever. It's just unfortunate that I have to wait until next year! Maggie yet again blew me away and I look forward to seeing how Sam and Grace deal with the new obstacles in their relationship.

My Rating:
Book Trailer:

Author's Info:

Maggie Stiefvater is a twenty-seven year old writer, artist, and musician. Her debut novel, Lament: The Faerie Queen's Deception, was published by Flux in 2008. Linger, the sequel to Shiver, will be published on July 20, 2010. She lives in rural Virginia with her husband and their two young children.

For more info on Maggie, visit her site(s):
-Website
-Blog
-Twitter
-Facebook

-GoodReads

Want the chance to win a finished copy of Linger? Scholastic has been kind enough to give away a copy to a lucky follower. Look below for details!

::Contest Details::

CONTEST IS CLOSED.

-This contest is for U.S. residents only.
-Deadline will be on August 2, 2010 at midnight EST time.

(Please enter through form and not comments, thanks!)
!! FILL THIS FORM OUT TO ENTER !!