Twin Pigeon » maggie stiefvater

[News] One last Shiver update…

Corey — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:48:08 +0000

Maggie Stiefvater has posted the cover and first chapter of Linger, the sequel to Shiver.

To check it out, just follow the jump!

(Warning: The opening chapter will be spoilerish for those who haven’t finished Shiver)

• grace •

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.

[Review] Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Corey — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:17:40 +0000

The Superficial: Gorgeous cover. The blue, bare trees set the mood of the novel while being eye catching. The simplicity of the monochrome scheme is refreshing and beautiful and really makes the blood droplet of the “i” pop. I also love how subtle the wolf in the trees is; I didn’t even notice it the first time I picked up the book.

The Short of It: LOVE IT.

The Long of It: Normally, books focusing solely on romance don’t quite ring my bell. Romance as the icing on a zombie-hunting cake? Yes. Just babyIloveyou romance? Meh… Or so I thought. Maggie Stiefvater’s Shiver transcends the teen-romance genre to become something more personal. The story revolves around Grace and her life-long fascination with the yellow-eyed wolf that roams the woods behind her house every winter. Her obsession gets a little creepier once she starts seeing a local boy with strikingly similar eyes to “her wolf.” The awkward comfort between Grace and Sam (her wolf-boy) set the tone of the novel, somehow making the impossible seem familiar. The real power of the novel, however, comes from Stiefvater’s amazing writing. The author makes you feel the chill of the woods and the tension in the air without resorting to purple prose or cliche page-fillers. She takes a old theme, werewolves, and adds new levels of meaning while still keeping the time-tested core of mythos. The result is a novel that creates a world that feels so familiar, yet exciting at the same time. Stiefvater also excels at creating characters that seem levelheaded and realistic, not just creatures who fall in love and out of sanity; they instantly become entranced with one another, but the awkward tension of their strange situation is palpable. I am not calling Shiver a perfect novel, as Grace’s obsessive love over a wolf crosses the border of Cute into the land Creepy, but, while I was reading it, it was the perfect novel for me.

Opening Lines: I remember lying in the snow, a small red spot of warm going cold, surrounded by wolves. The were licking me, biting me, worrying at my body, pressing in. Their huddled bodies blocked what little heat the sun offered. …I could have screamed, but I didn’t.

Score: 10/10. Buy it now.

[SOUNDTRACK SATURDAY] Shiver

Corey — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 04:39:07 +0000

Mmm watcha say

In honor of my upcoming review of Shiver, this week’s Soundtrack Sunday is about the ball of love that is Maggie Stiefvater’s Shiver playlist.

After finishing Shiver in the wee morning hours, I immediately scampered to my computer to look up the author’s blog, crossing my fingers for a track listing. And cue the Hallelujah chorus, I found one! One of my most favorite things in the world is seeing the inspiration behind writers’ imagined worlds–my favorite of the favorites, of course, being the novel playlist.

I don’t want to spoil the outcome of my upcoming review (…oh hell, who I am kidding. SPOILER ALERT: I AM IN LOVE WITH A BOOK), but I have to say that this novel took me over completely. After finishing the book I was desperate to find music that matched my mood and kept Shiver’s captivating world alive just a little bit longer. And the Shiver soundtrack delivered.

But before posting Maggie’s official playlist, I have to say this: Maggie Stiefvater may be the most awesome author on earth. She writes. She draws. She composes music. And she plays bagpipes. BAGPIPES! I don’t even know the woman, and I totally want to be her BFF. Her ability to rock so many creative outlets should make anyone envious. Ahem…anyway, Maggie put several of these talents to use when she made her own trailer for Shiver. Not only did she create all the cutouts and filmed the stop-motion video personally, but she also wrote and arranged her own Shiver theme song. I’m telling you, ENVIOUS.

To hear the full version of Maggie’s song, The Golden Woods, as well as snag a free download, visit her official site.

And now to the playlist! To see the complete list, as well as the story behind it, take a peek at Maggie’s blog.

Let me just warn you, listening to Hide and Seek after reading Shiver’s car scene had me bawling like a baby for an hour. No joke, bawling.

I honestly can’t wait to do a second read-through with this playlist drifting in the background, and I hope a few of you will do the same.