Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Stiefvater, M. (2009). Shiver. Scholastic. New York.

 Grace remembers that she was almost killed by wolves when she was 11 years old, until one yellow-eyed wolf saved her. That wolf is Sam and he and Grace watch each other outside her window every winter.  Sam is a human in the summer months. Now as young adults, Grace discovers who Sam really is after he shows up at her doorstep having just been shot.  Grace and Sam fall in love and Sam reveals the history of his parents and Werewolf background.  Together they look for a way that Sam can stay human forever based on the knowledge that they know about how Grace survived a wolf bite herself.  This is the first book in a trilogy.

 Shiver is a fantasy novel with supernatural characters being werewolves.  Stiefvater creates a romance between a human and a werewolf who is struggling to become human once again. A characteristic of fantasy is for the supernatural elements to make sense. Stiefvater succeeds in this by describing the rules and possibilities of how werewolves work in this world which makes for a good foundation and introduction to the rest of the books within a series.  The book uses both Sam and Grace's points of view in alternating chapters.  Recommendations for follow up readings include the the sequels- Linger and Forever as well as the werewolf romance trilogy by Bree Despain- The Dark Divine novels.