Review: Forever by Maggie Stiefvater

Title: Forever
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Publish Date: July 12, 2011
Genre: YA, paranormal
Pages: 386
Series: Wolves of Mercy Falls
1. Shiver
2. Linger
3. Forever

Synopsis:
The thrilling conclusion to #1 bestselling Shiver trilogy from Maggie Stiefvater.

then.

When Sam met Grace, he was a wolf and she was a girl. Eventually he found a way to become a boy, and their love moved from a curious distance to the intense closeness of shared lives.

now.

That should have been the end of their story. But Grace was not meant to stay human. Now she is the wolf. And the wolves of Mercy Falls are about to be killed in one final, spectacular hunt.

forever.

Sam would do anything for Grace. But can one boy and one love really change a hostile, predatory world? The past, the present, and the future are about to collide in one pure moment - a moment of death or life, farewell or forever.

From Goodreads

***Warning, SPOILERS if you haven't read SHIVER and LINGER yet!***

I feel like such a disappointment for not having reviews for Shiver and Linger, the previous books in this series, but in my defence, I read them before I started blogging and reviewing books. I promise to review them someday. That said, I feel I should warn you about the gushing I am about to do about Maggie and her writing. (For an example, see my review of Lament, Maggie’s debut novel).

I loved the prologue: the little snippet of Shelby’s mind. It had me wondering throughout the novel who it was that Shelby had encountered and what kind of consequences it would have for the characters. I was also really excited to see that Cole and Isabel were back as narrators again, because I love both of their voices, especially Cole’s. Their experiences and relationships both past and present are so drastically different from Sam and Grace, that it adds a whole new level to the story. I’m always excited to see “Cole” or “Isabel” at the beginning of a chapter. That’s not to say that I don’t love the Sam and Grace parts. I absolutely, 100% feel connected to them and their relationship. I feel what they feel, and it’s frequently heartbreaking (you’ll see why).

That’s one of the things I love about Maggie’s writing. She makes you feel what her characters feel, whether it’s anger or love or jealousy or nostalgia. Also, her writing has a way of grabbing your attention and holding it with her captivating lines that flow so easily. To add to that, there’s the poetry and lyrics, the quick chapters and changing viewpoints, the plot line! Roll all of that up into a nice little package (or a book and call it FOREVER), and you’ve got a story that people can’t - and don’t want to - put down.

On another note, I won’t lie to you and say I didn’t cry. I cried several times. It was that silent, tears welling up in my eyes before falling, crying. So be prepared. It’s the last in the series, so of course it’s a roller coaster of emotions.

That being said, I need to talk about the ending (no spoilers!). Starting about 50 pages from the end, everything started to snowball. It was really a great climactic ending, I loved it. It was after that that disappointed me. Since it was the last of the series, I was expecting more of a “where they go from here” type roundup, but it kind of ended abruptly. That was the only thing that I didn’t really enjoy.

All in all, I’m really happy this book is finally out and that I know how the series ends! On the other hand, I’m so so so sad to see it end. I wish we could hear many more stories of the Wolves of Mercy Falls. But I’ll take what I can get, which is - just like everything else Maggie - awesome.

Look! The Book Depository is promoting it on their buttons! Go grab yourself a copy!