Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Forever by Maggie Stiefvater: Review

Forever (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #3)
by Maggie Stiefvater
Expected publication: July 12th 2011 by Scholastic Press
Pick up your copy today at Amazon,B&N, or your local indie!!

Synopsis borrowed from Goodreads:

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.


Darkfallen's thoughts:
With ta-tings & jazz hands compliments of Greta!!

*~*~* WARNING IF YOU HAVE NOT READ SHIVER & LINGER DO NOT READ THIS!! THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE FIRST 2 BOOKS. HOWEVER I PROMISE THAT THIS IS A SPOILER FREE ZONE WHEN IT COMES TO FOREVER *~*~*

Darkfallen: Maggie won over my heart in Shiver. Shiver was my first werewolf read and I have never looked back.

Greta: I think Shiver was the first teenage werewolf book that stole my heart ;) Hunger Like No Other was my first werewolf book.

Darkfallen: Then there was Linger that took things to a whole new level and Maggie seemed to perfect the art of the evil cliffy!

Greta: Oh snap!

Darkfallen: I mean in Shiver you’re on the edge of your seat at the very end, biting your nails, tears are disobeying your cease and desist order, and then….Sam steps out of the woods, very solidly human and more importantly alive!

Greta: Squee!!

Darkfallen: But OMG in Linger you meet Cole which can I just take a moment to drool over him here?

Greta: Dude... DUDE..... DUDE!!!!

Darkfallen: Ok I’m Back!

Greta: Took you long enough!

Darkfallen: We meet Cole and we get a deeper look into Isabel. While Isabel is still the resident bitch you find you kind of like having her around, maybe you even start rooting for her a little bit. Cole intrigues you and you want more, need to know more! And Grace and Sam are as sweet as ever. You can’t help but love them, and now the tears stream down your face off and on the whole time. You cry for Isabel. You cry for Cole. You cry for Sam & Grace. And you don’t ever bother with the cease and desist order anymore. You just let it happen. Letting Maggie grab your emotions and take you where she wants you. Only she leaves you standing on a blood smeared floor in a hospital room, staring out a broken window. Glass shards crunching beneath your feet as the tears pull and mix with the blood on the floor. Your frozen there with the book in your hands staring at a wolf…staring at Grace…and inside you die a little....lots..

And now everything we have been waiting for…

All the answers we have been searching for…

Everything we have been waiting forever for…

Comes down to this!

Greta: Will there be puppies?!!!

Darkfallen: ? What?! NOES!!

Again Forever is written from four points of view and while most would say “Isn’t that confusing?” I have to tell you it’s not. Not even a little. In fact I wouldn’t want it any other way. I learned so SO much about Cole and Isabel in this book. I loved every minute that I got to spend inside their head. And yes I swoon for Cole even more now. Now that I know, that I finally understand the man behind the mask that is Cole St. Claire.

He is broken and twisted. Lost inside himself and it is killing him, but we see him grow, see him change. In the end we couldn’t have asked for a better person to be in Sam & Grace’s life.

I get it now... Why Beck picked him.

Greta: Yes sir re bobby!!! It totally makes sense now.

Darkfallen: Isabel also seems to thaw a lot more in this book and now I DO love her and I have no problem admitting it. In fact…I even cried for her.
There I said it!
And I’ll say it again. I turned my emotions back over to Maggie and she lead to a place I least expected…
Crying with Isabel on a bathroom floor.
(once you read it you’ll understand. NO I was NOT actually on a bathroom floor *winks*)

Greta: Are you sure? You sure did sound echoy the last time I called ;)

Darkfallen: Why do I always feel the need to slap Greta? lolz
Anyways where was I?
Oh yea...
Then with Sam & Grace…what can I say? Their love is so perfect, simple yet complicated, innocent, and all-consuming that you can’t help but feel it. It’s that I-will-do-anything-include-die-for-you kind of love,

Greta: That reminds me of Robin Hood. (fun fact: Greta loves "Prince of Thieves")

Darkfallen: and while in some series the author strives for that but it never quiet makes it. They always fall just short of believable…NOT here.
You believe every part of it and take it all with you when long after you have read the last page. I especially love how Grace & Sam finally handle her parents. I wanted to hug them both for that.

Greta: I loved the slow blink of Christmas lights and pizza flavored........

Darkfallen: SHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!
*smacks Greta*
I do want to say this though…

A long time ago I made predictions for how this series would end. I was right about so much, yet wrong about EVERYTHING!

Greta: I on the other hand had EVERYTHING wrong and not a dang thing right!

Darkfallen: With that being said I say this: From a writers point of view the ending is flawless. Most writers can’t find it in them to leave it the way Maggie did, and for that I applaud her. It’s not all nice and neat, perfectly packaged and tied with a pink bow.
It’s more like she put everything in the box, left out the tissue paper, handed you the wrapping paper, ribbon, tape, and scissors, and said “Here ya go,” and walked away.

Greta: Most awesome!

Darkfallen: From a readers point of view, my imagination is getting the better of me and I’m slowly tearing apart all of the possibilities, knowing that this is it, I’m not getting another book, but in its own way Forever leaves you with, maybe not an evil cliffy, but definitely a tormented one…

I find myself here knowing that it’s time to let them go. But I can’t and I won’t …not ever!

Greta: Let's read it again!

Darkfallen: Yes, yes lets!!!



Until next time...
*wipes tears* *cries I can't believe it's over* *throws herself in Greta's lap*
Omph! Sorry guys I gotta take care of this. Darkfallen has a hard time with goodbyes;)










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