Forever – Maggie Stiefvater

Book 1: Boy loves Girl. Girl loves Wolf. Wolf turns into Boy. Girl Loves Boy. Boy hides tragic secret(TM). Girl saves Boy’s life.

Book 2:Boy is a permanent Boy (no Wolf). Girl hides a tragic(TM) secret. Boy saves Girl’s Life. Girl is now Wolf.

Book 3:Boy loves Girl. Girl is Wolf. Boy pines over wolf-girl. Wolf-girl pines over Boy. Very tragic(TM), plus a wolf-hunt.

Essentially, this one was good – a definite uptick from the previous – but it still didn’t grip me the way I wanted it too.

I wanted the all-consuming experience of reading a book past midnight because you don’t need sleep, you need answers.

And what I got was…a book that I could pick up, put down, return to the library and check it out months later without much fanfare.

I think it was (in part) because of the frustrating side characters – I get that the parents are supposed to misunderstand the teens and provide much of the backlash for the book...but by-Gawd...did Stiefvater have to make them THAT dumb?

In addition…I don’t think my mind can comprehend the sheer amount of pining present between all the characters.

There’s the pining between Sam and Grace – separated by the werewolfism and teenage angst.

Then the piningbetween Cole and Isabelle – the couple that can never be.

Then there’s Grace and Isabelle’s piningover lost friendships.

Then Cole and Sam’s pining– for each other’s lives.

Good. Lawd.

My brain couldn’t handle it.

So. Mother-effing done.