Hawksong - Amelia Atwater-Rhodes

"Danica Shardae is an avian shapeshifter, and the golden hawk’s form in which she takes to the sky is as natural to her as the human one that graces her on land. The only thing more familiar to her is war: It has raged between her people and the serpiente for so long, no one can remember how the fighting began. As heir to the avian throne, Danica will do anything in her power to stop the bloodshed–even accept Zane Cobriana, the terrifying leader of her kind’s greatest enemy, as her pair bond and make the two royal families one. Now Danica must convince her people that Zane is just as committed to peace as she is–though she can’t help fearing that, despite his word, he will strike as swiftly and lethally as the cobra that is his second form. Among the serpiente, she’ll have to pretend to be in love, though when they’re alone, her reserve threatens to keep her and Zane worlds apart. And in their midst are dissenters who will do whatever it takes to destroy this union. Trust. It is all Zane asks of Danica–and all they ask of their people–but it may be more than she can give."

4/5 -  Lovely.

Love. Love. Love.
There's something about this book that is simply amazing. The idea may seem a bit cliche and you may be thinking right now 'I know exactly how this is going to end'...which is somewhat true. Regardless, this book is filled with tragic passion and somehow surprising twists and turns. The characters really bring the story to life. I can't help but adore Zane and strongly respect Danica, and they were cleverly written so that their personalties contrast one another to bring out each other's strengths and weaknesses beautifully.

I've actually read this book twice (and I'm sure I'll read it several, several more times), and every time I'm reading it, no matter what, I find myself smiling at the book like a total idiot. It's adorable and precious in a gently passionate way that I've never seen portrayed so masterfully in any other book. Ideas of love and hate are presented in a new light, along with the desperate desires of peace and the union of two opposites to create something new and stronger. Hawksong is exciting, romantic, funny, and full of truly amazing, dynamic characters. This is a book you'll want to pick up over and over again, just to get swept away by this oddly formal but magically unique love story.

I Am Number Four - Pittacus Lore

Nine of us came here. We look like you. We talk like you. We live among you. But we are not you. We can do things you dream of doing. We have powers you dream of having. We are stronger and faster than anything you have ever seen. We are the superheroes you worship in movies and comic books but we are real. Our plan was to grow, and train, and become strong, and become one, and fight them. But they found us and started hunting us first. Now all of us are running. Spending our lives in shadows, in places where no one would look, blending in. we have lived among you without you knowing. But they know. 

They caught Number One in Malaysia. Number Two in England. And Number Three in Kenya.They killed them all.

I am Number Four. I am next.

4/5 - Exciting.

I absolutely could not put this book down for more than five minutes. I loved it. Everything about it drew me in and kept me reading. Despite the fact that it wasn't an altogether brand-new, original, never before used idea, Pittacus made this story his own. Aliens coming to Earth to re-inhabit may seem cliche, or even just plain stupid, a statement that I would usually agree with, but this book is different. I'll never think of aliens as little green men with big heads ever again.

Apart from a great, strong, admiral lead character with a strong sense of justice (John/Number Four), the supporting characters in this book were outstanding. They are what made the story real and alive to me. Also, for some reason, the settings appeared crystal-clear in my mind, undoubtedly realistic and genuine. Pittacus took familiar, every day settings we are used to and turned them into battle grounds full of aliens and hideous beasts. I know, sounds cheesy. Maybe it is a bit cheesy, but with just enough originality and new ideas to make it it's own and keep me intrigued.

The last 50 or so pages of this book can only be describes as intense. My heart was pounding as I flipped the pages, eager to find out what would happen. The book was very well-paced, always keeping me extremely interested.

My sister read this book and didn't care for it. Perhaps it's just a different taste in books, and I'm sure this book could be either a sink or swim with broader audiences. As for me, I view the book as a great teen read and am eager to see the movie being release February 18, 2011. This book will surely be adored by sci fi lovers everywhere who are open to something new, but I think that this book can stretch to broader audiences. If you're open to something different but classic at the same time, 'I Am Number Four' is the book for you.

Specials - Scott Westerfeld

“Tally thought they were a rumour, but now she’s one of them. A Special. A super-amped fighting machine, engineered to keep the uglies down and the pretties stupid.

But maybe being perfectly programmed with strength and focus isn’t better than anything she’s ever known. Tally still has memories of something else.

But is’s easy for her to tune that out – until she’s offered a chance to stamp out the rebels of the New Smoke permanently. It all comes down to one last choice: listen to that tiny, faint heart-beat, or carry out the mission she’s been programmed to complete. Either way, Tally’s world will never be the same.”

5/5 - Simply Amazing

This is one of those books that just takes my breath away.

It makes my head spin to think of all three books as a whole and see how these characters have grown, changed, and developed. Westerfeld has truly brought Tally and Shay to life. Specials blew my expectations out of the water with this exciting, enthralling, thought provoking third book. It was full of action that had me holding my breath with unexpected twists and turns that kept me guessing how the book was going to end.

The end of the book was simply spectacular - a true work of art. The closure this book provides leaves me with so many emotions all tangled up, but very, very content. This is one of those books that will keep me thinking for weeks on end about the true meanings of beauty, friendship, love, betrayal, and being yourself. 

This book is an original masterpiece that is out of this world, full of creativity that brings me into an entirely different world full of danger, excitement, and truly special circumstances where things are never as they seem.  


See Also : Uglies, Pretties

Pretties - Scott Westerfeld

Gorgeous. Popular.Perfect. Perfectly wrong.

Tally has finally become pretty. Now her looks are beyond perfect, her clothes are awesome, her boyfriend is totally hot, and she's completely popular. It's everything she's ever wanted.

But beneath all the fun -- the nonstop parties, the high-tech luxury, the total freedom -- is a nagging sense that something's wrong. Something important. Then a message from Tally's ugly past arrives. Reading it, Tally remembers what's wrong with pretty life, and the fun stops cold.

Now she has to choose between fighting to forget what she knows and fighting for her life -- because the authorities don't intend to let anyone with this information survive.

4/5 - Enticing

I love this book almost as much as the first one, Uglies, which says a lot.

It was very fresh and set itself aside from the first book, , with a new and interesting plot and loveable new characters, all the while keeping the integrity of the original characters despite the fact they'd undergone dramatic changes from the first book. Fresh characters, fresh setting, and diving even deeper into the concepts of beauty in this futuristic world that is driven by appearances. It kept the same page-turning-intensity that I loved in the first book and progressed the storyline of Tally and Shay very effectively. 

The hope represented by the Smoke and the suspense created by the conflicts presented simply makes it a masterpiece. It ended with a total cliffhanger that left me scrambling to get my hands on the next book. I really love this book. Westerfeld keeps me falling in love with these complex characters and keeps me intrigued with the world that he has created. These books have everything - adventure, romance, suspense, philosophy, and that simple fact that you just can't put it down. Pretties is a book that I think young readers everywhere can, and should, enjoy.

See Also: Uglies, Specials

Mockingjay - Suzanne Collins

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she's made it out of the bloody arena alive, she's still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss. And what's worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss's family, not her friends, not the people of District 12. 


Powerful and haunting, this thrilling final installment of Suzanne Collins's groundbreaking The Hunger Games trilogy promises to be one of the most talked about books of the year.

3/5 A Decent Finish.

I was a tiny bit disappointed by this book. The first two books were amazing, but this one didn't wrap them up quite as well as I think they should have. Throughout the book distance is built between the reader and one of my favorite characters, Peeta, only to have him return in the end as though things never changed. There was a pattern of a lot of buildup for some intense scene, only to have Katniss knocked unconscious and wake up in a hospital. That was very frustrating.

The book had a pretty good sense of closure, though it wasn't as deep and awe-inspiring of one as I thought it would be. It was a good book over all with a lot of unexpected twists and turns and new characters that I kept falling in love with. Collins truly has a gift with creating individual characters that seem to leap off the page, and this book was as good of an example as any of that strength. Nonetheless, the overall plot was lacking. It was totally worth reading to finish out the series, but it could have been better.

If you've read the first two, go ahead and read this one, but remember that the first one is the best it's going to get. It was a decent finish to one of my favorite trilogies of all time.

See Also: The Hunger Games, Catching Fire

Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the annual Hunger Games with fellow district tribute Peeta Mellark. But it was a victory won by defiance of the Capitol and their harsh rules. Katniss and Peeta should be happy. After all, they have just won for themselves and their families a life of safety and plenty.
 But there are rumors of rebellion among the subjects, and Katniss and Peeta, to their horror, are the faces of that rebellion. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Suzanne Collins continues the amazing story of Katniss Everdeen in Catching Fire, the second novel of the phenomenal Hunger Games trilogy.



4/5 Genius.

I wans't sure at first how I felt about a sequel to The Hunger Games . The Hunger Games was brilliant and I wasn't sure how it could be topped or carried on without feeling too much like a sequel. Collins pleasantly surprised me with this book. Although the plot felt repetitive in a way, it wasn't pointless. It was very logical and introduced new characters to keep me interested. Collins outdid herself once again on action and suspense that carried a deep, emotional, passionate content that kept me hanging on through the drier portions of the book (which were few and far between). The characters kept their integrity very well throughout the whole book, making me fall farther and farther in love with Peeta and Katniss.

Catching Fire was not quite as good as the first book, but it's hard, if not impossible, to top such an amazing original novel with a sequel. Catching Fire is a well rounded book that added to the story of Panem and kept it moving in a heart wrenching way. Fans of the Hunger Games are likely to love this book, because I sure did.

See Also: The Hunger Games, Mockingjay

The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

Twenty-four are forced to enter. Only the winner survives.

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. Each year, the districts are forced by the Capitol to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the Hunger Games, a brutal and terrifying fight to the death – televised for all of Panem to see.

Survival is second nature for sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who struggles to feed her mother and younger sister by secretly hunting and gathering beyond the fences of District 12. When Katniss steps in to take the place of her sister in the Hunger Games, she knows it may be her death sentence. If she is to survive, she must weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

5/5 Brilliant.

This book took my breath away. It was original, fresh, and clever, despite the fact that it was using a time frame and idea that's been done a thousand times over - a future, post apocalyptic world. The story was driven by politics and selfish desires of a cruel government in a future America where one can never know if it'll be their child that is given as a tribute to fight in the fatal Hunger Games against their own people. I was totally captivated by the world that Collins created, seeing very few, if any, flaws or seams in the structure of this setting. I felt it was real, that it could truly happen, and the characters brought it to life in a way that I'd never seen before. The characters were very, very real to me, very deep and passionate human beings that I could understand and relate to.

The action and the unexpected twists and turns kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the entire book. This book has soul to it, but also so much suspense that it's enough to drive one crazy while reading it as they can't turn the pages fast enough. I would recommend it to anyone who is looking for an amazing, original, unique, and totally thrilling read. In my opinion, this is one of, if not the, best book written in 2010.

See Also: Catching Fire, Mockingjay

Uglies - Scott Westerfeld

Everybody gets to be supermodel gorgeous. What could be wrong with that?
Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can't wait. Not for her license -- for turning pretty. In Tally's world, your sixteenth birthday brings an operation that turns you from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty and catapults you into a high-tech paradise where your only job is to have a really great time. In just a few weeks Tally will be there.
But Tally's new friend Shay isn't sure she wants to be pretty. She'd rather risk life on the outside. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world -- and it isn't very pretty. The authorities offer Tally the worst choice she can imagine: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. The choice Tally makes changes her world forever.


4/5 - Enthralling.

I absolutely love this book. I applaud Westerfeld for his wonderful uses of character development and creating a totally unique post apocalyptic environment that deals with the concepts of beauty and perfection on a psychological and emotional level. Something that sets this book apart from others in the category of characters is the way that Westerfeld does not shy away from showing all the selfish desires of teenagers and how they would respond to the possibility of being beautiful, playing on their vanity. This might make the characters seem undesirable, but I believe that part of what makes them so repulsive is the fact that they display the same selfishness that we might feel ourselves, even if we don't admit it.

Tally is a love/hate character that you might not know how to feel about it, but her role in the book is brilliant and strongly complimented by the roles of Shay, David, and the evil Dr. Cable. This book always gets me thinking and is exciting and futuristic without being cheesy or cliche at all. It's filled with adventure, action, and even romance, all underlined by this complex ideal of beauty that many teens wrestle with. It's a truly great, captivating book that draws you into a fictional future that seems almost a little bit too realistic.

See Also: Pretties, Specials

A Kiss in Time - Alex Flinn

Talia fell under a spell . . . . Jack broke the curse.

I was told to beware the accursed spindle, but it was so enchanting, so hypnotic. . . .

I was looking for a little adventure the day I ditched my tour group. But finding a comatose town, with a hot-looking chick asleep in it, was so not what I had in mind.

I awakened in the same place but in another time—to a stranger's soft kiss.

I couldn't help kissing her. Sometimes you just have to kiss someone. I didn't know this would happen.

Now I am in dire trouble because my father, the king, says I have brought ruin upon our country. I have no choice but to run away with this commoner!

Now I'm stuck with a bratty princess and a trunk full of her jewels. . . . The good news: My parents will freak!

Think you have dating issues? Try locking lips with a snoozing stunner who turns out to be 316 years old. Can a kiss transcend all—even time?

3/5 Enjoyable.

This book fell a little flat of my expectations, though I think it was worth my time to read. It was pretty cute over all, following Flinn's style of taking a classic Disney fairytale and bringing it into modern time, as Flinn did in 'Beastly'. This time, Flinn did a modern take on 'Sleeping Beauty', which is one of my favorite Disney Princess classics. It's a great idea that didn't work quite as well in this book as it did in 'Beastly', but I still really, really liked this book.

I never grew particularly attached to the main character, Jack, though I did completely love Talia. She was adorable, funny, and witty, because there's nothing quite as hilarious as a pampered fairytale princess thrown into a modern day setting. Some of the messages and ideas in this book really stuck with me and still come in and out of my head. Ideas of beauty and what it really is and what it means, and ideas of dreaming. These beautiful ideas were presented in a fun, charming, witty way that I can't help but love.

I wasn't too happy with the resolution of this book. It seemed a bit cheap and cheesy, but it didn't ruin the book as a whole. Overall, it's a great read that I'd recommend to anyone who wants something fun and refreshing to read.

See Also: Beastly

Beastly - Alex Flinn

I am a beast. A beast. Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog, but a horrible new creature who walks upright – a creature with fangs and claws and hair springing from every pore. I am a monster.

You think I’m talking fairy tales? No way. The place is New York City. The time is now. It’s no deformity, no disease. And I’ll stay this way forever – ruined – unless I can break the spell.
 Yes, the spell, the one the witch in my English class cast on me. Why did she turn me into a beast who hides by day and prowls by night? I’ll tell you. I’ll tell you how I used to be Kyle Kingsbury, the guy you wished you were, with money, perfect looks, and a perfect life. And then, I’ll tell you how I became perfectly beastly.

4/5 Adorable.

I loved this book. It's a cute, modern take on the classic story of 'Beauty and the Beast' that kept the integrity of the story as well as the overall magic feel without coming across as a cheap remake of an old idea. This book made the story and the characters its own.

Kyle is a character that you don't connect with at first. He seems perfect and is completely arrogant and a jerk. But as time goes on and things get worse for him, and as he is turned into a beast, it, ironically enough, brings out the more human side of him, who is much more loveable and beautiful than the boy with the perfect face that he is originally potrayed as. The romance between him and Lindy is soft, gentle, and adorable. The constant paralell between the roses that him and Lindy both love and the rose from the original story of Beauty and the Beast retains some of the whimsical, fairytale feeling that we're so familiar with.

I think that some parts of this book could've been a bit better, but I'm not complaining at all. 'Beastly' is a personal favorite and a cute book that readers everywhere can enjoy as this classic is brought into the 21st century.

See Also: A Kiss In Time

Speak - Laurie Halse Anderson

Malinda Sordino busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops, so her old friends won't talk to her, and people she doesn't know hate her from a distance. The safest place is to be alone, inside her own head.

But even that's not safe. Because there's something she's trying not to think about, something about the night of the party that, if she let it in, would blow her carefully constructed disguise to smithereens.
 And then she would have to speak the truth.




3/5 A good read.

I really did enjoy this book overall. It had an interesting combination of humor and realistic, dark matters that I'm not altogether sure was my favorite. It made the book unique and memorable, and it was written in a way that dealt with harsh circumstances but was easy to relate to and humorous, making it easy to read and hard to put down. It dealt with the consequences of not speaking, of not telling what is on your heart in a rather touching way. The main character, Medlinda, was somewhat frustrating throughout the story, but showed great growth by the stories end, becoming a stronger person and a strong role model.

I did not fall in love with 'Speak', although I think it was worth my time to read. I have a love-hate relationship with the writing style, but it kept me intrigued through and through. It had strong meaning and was impacting overall, with some emotional connections if not to the characters, than to the circumstances. I would recommend it to people who want a quick, casual read, even if it won't become their favorite book of all time.

Unwind - Neal Shusterman

In a society where unwanted teens are salvaged for their body parts, three runaways fight the system that would "unwind" them. Connor's parents want to be rid of him because he's a troublemaker. Risa has no parents and is being unwound to cut orphanage costs. Lev's unwinding has been planned since his birth, as part of his family's strict religion. Brought together by chance, and kept together by desperation, these three unlikely companions make a harrowing cross-country journey knowing their lives hang in the balance. If they can survive until their eighteenth birthday, they can't be harmed- but when every piece of them, from their hands to their hearts, are wanted by the world gone mad, eighteen seems far, far away.


4/5 Thrilling.

This book captivated me. This book is more enticing for its plot, not so much its characters, and yet the characters managed to be very real and easy to sympathize for, though they were not too all together memorable and I didn't completely fall in love with them. This book was especially refreshing and very devoid of stupid cliches. It presented many strong ideas of morality and philosophy that I found extremely interesting, all the while keeping me on edge with the suspense and action.

'Unwind' was a disturbing and yet thrilling read that ended with one of the best senses of revolution that I have experienced in a book. The plotting was well paced with great rising action that constantly introduced new settings and situations that kept my attention span engaged without seeming random and overbearingly quick paced. The goal of surviving until age 18 provided constant suspense and desire that you could feel for the characters. It was somewhat graphic but not in an unnecessary way. I was fully engaged from the first page to the last, and would recommend it to anyone who wants a thrilling read that'll have them on the edge of their seat.

Thirteen Reasons Why - Jay Asher

Clay Jenson doesn't want anything to do with the tapes that Hannah Baker made. Hannah is dead, he reasons. Her secrets should be burned with her.

Then Hannah's voice tells Clay that his name is on her tapes - and that he is, in some way, responsible for her death.

All through the night, Clay keeps listening. He follows Hannah's recorded words all throughout his small town...
...and what he discovers changes his life for forever.



5/5 - Beautiful.

This book was hard to read, but I couldn't put it down. It deals with the very real issues of teenage suicide and all the little things that add onto an already breaking heart. This book lets you see life through the eyes of a girl that's already committed suicide, and through the eyes of a guy who barely knew her and yet feels somewhat responsible for her death.

'Thirteen Reasons Why' is beautifully tragic in a way that kept me holding my breath on every page. It's a harsh dose of reality that isn't cushioned by ideals of innocent teenage life. It deals with premarital sex, rape, and drinking, but not at all in a way that advocates them. This book doesn't beat around the bush, but tells all the dirty little secrets that have become common in teenage life, along with the results of them. It also deals with the dangers of not telling and not reaching out to those who are struggling. It also deals with the very realistic neglect of adults who dismiss the struggles of teens as a power trip. The girl who died, Hannah Baker, becomes more than just a name on a page. Clay Jenson, the boy who is taken on a journey by the recorded last words of Hannah, shows development and personal growth by the book's end.

As difficult and heartbreaking this book was to read, it is one I would recommend, but only to those who are willing to be taken on a harsh journey that pushes the limit, dealing with what we so often decide to overlook instead of diving right into it.

Stuck in Neutral - Terry Trueman

Shawn McDaniel's life is not what it may seem to anyone looking at him. He is glued to a wheelchair, unable to voluntarily move a muscle -- he can't even move his eyes. For all Shawn's father knows, he may be suffering. Shawn may want a release. And as long as he is unable to communicate his true feelings to his father, Shawn's life is in danger.
To the world, Shawn's senses seem dead. Within these pages, however, we meet a side of him that no one else has seen -- a spirit that is rich beyond imagining, breathing life.





2/5 - Hardly worth it.

I was totally captivated by the concept presented in this book. The first few pages did a great job of pulling me in, but the overall plot fell flat. The pacing was slow going despite the fact that it was an extremely short novel. Many of the events in the rising action were unrealistic at best, and seemed cheesy, whimsical, and somewhat new age-ish. Not an all together great combination. The main character, Shawn, undergoes seizures in which his spirit is released from his body and he is floating through space. The rest of the story was very realistic, and this strange, magical twist simply made the story ridiculous.

The fact that Shawn's father had plans to kill Shawn for the entire story built a lot of tension, but never got resolved either way. Shawn's mother not dealing with this fact did not add to the plot.

On top of that, in one part of the book Shawn's brother grows angry at someone for insulting Shawn and then beats the guy within an inch of his life, pouring gasoline on him and almost catching him on fire. This seemed unrealistic, seeing as the guy just walked away and the brother never got in trouble or anything.

I loved the concept and the ideas that were presented and argued,but the end left the story unresolved and unappreciated. This book could have been so much better. I was sad to see it fall so short of my expectations.

Linger - Meggie Stiefvater

This is the story of a boy who used to be a wolf and a girl who was becoming one.
Just a few months ago, it was Sam who was the mythical creature. His was the disease we couldn’t cure. His was the good-bye that meant the most. He had the body that was a mystery, too strange and wonderful and terrifying to comprehend.

But now it is spring. With the heat, the remaining wolves will soon be falling out of their wolf pelts and back into their human bodies. Sam stays Sam, and Cole stays Cole, and it’s only me who’s not firmly in my own skin.



4/5 Definitely worth your time.

Linger is the sequel to Meggie Stiefvater's 'Shiver', and I must say, this is one sequel that did not fall short at all.

The first book ended with a great sense of closure, making you think that this story of the Mercy Falls wolves was over with, but still wanting more. 'Linger' did not at all feel like a sequel that was written just for money. It opened the story back up without throwing too much new random crap in to try to get a decent plot going. It kept the integrity of the story and of the romance between Grace and Sam without feeling forced at all. It tied in well with the first book, bringing to light many things that were at first overlooked. It introduces a new character, Cole, who is easy to fall in love with, and fleshes out the character Isabel from the first book, showing a side and soul to her that you never got to see in 'Shiver' without making it feel fake or like her sudden personality change was simply to fit the plot.

Suspense builds over the course of the book as new difficulties are thrown Sam and Grace's way, all the while keeping up the romance that I fell in love with in the first book. The last chapters had me biting my nails as I waited to see what happened, only to leave me with the biggest cliff hanger of all time. Now I'm eagerly awaiting the third book to the sequel, 'Forever'. Hopefully this final installment will live up to the rest of the series.

'Linger' doesn't detract from 'Shiver', as man sequels do, but simply adds to the beauty of the first book.

See Also: Shiver

Shiver - Meggie Stiefvater

The cold. Grace has spent years watching the wolves in the woods behind her house. On yellow-eyed wolf — her wolf — watches back. He feels deeply familiar to her, but she doesn’t know why.

The heat. Sam has lived two lives. As a wolf, he keeps the silent company of the frill he loves. And then, for a short time each year, he is human, never daring to talk to Grace…until now.

The shiver. For Grace and Same, love has always been kept at a distance. But once it’s spoken, it cannot be denied. Same must fight to stay human — and Grace must fight to keep him — even if it means taking on the scars of the past, the fragility of the present, and the impossibility of the future.

5/5 - A must read.

Shiver is, by far, one of my favorite books of all time.
A lot of people say that it's the sort of book that Twilight fans will enjoy, but upon reading both, I don't see a whole lot of correlation between the two apart from the fact that they both feature some form of werewolves. I myself enjoyed both Shiver and Twilight, but I think that Shiver can be enjoyed by a much wider audience than just Twilight fans, including readers who didn't care for the Twilight Saga.

Shiver includes a somewhat fresh take on the ideal of werewolves, and is truly brought to life by the characters. It's easy to fall in love with both Sam and Grace, especially because they share telling the story from first person point of view, which gets you into the the minds of both of them.

The story is well paced with an excellent plot that has you holding your breath until the very last page. This book pries at your emotions and lets you feel exactly what both Sam and Grace are feeling. You get to know them both on a personal level- Sam, the hesitant, shy, but caring boy and Grace, who is strong-willed, passionate, and stubborn. These two act as literary foils that bring out the best in eachother.

This is one romance book that managed to be tragically beautiful without being cheesy or sappy. It set my heart churning and left me wanting more. My hat is off to Meggie Stiefvater for this beautiful story of love, passion, loss, and hope. I recommend you read this book to fall in love with this winter boy and his lovely summer girl.

See Also: Linger