Linger continues the story of Sam and Grace, a boy who was a wolf and a girl who might become one. It also takes up the story of Isabel and Cole, a girl who's brother died and a boy who wants to die. That's a very simple overview though, because Linger is far more complex and nuanced than that. The love story of Grace and Sam, set against the backdrop of the wolves' dilemma - cold makes them wolves, heat makes them human, and eventually they will stop being human forever - is heartachingly well written.
It's also a sharp contrast to the developing relationship between Isabel and Cole. Whilst Grace and Sam have fought - and still fight - seemingly impossible odds to be together, Isabel and Cole are self-destructing, fighting their own demons, lost, hurting, and their abrasive attraction makes a great counterpoint to Grace and Sam's lovely, gentle romance.
This book takes us deeper into the werewolf mythology begun in Shiver, as it is speculated that the basic understanding werewolves have of their condition is flawed, and that Sam's apparent "cure" is no such thing. Nothing is resolved as such in this volume, but the seeds are planted for the third book, and I'm excited to see what Stiefvater has in mind for the finale. Linger is a slow-burn of a book, building chapter by chapter into an emotional firework that left me desperate for Forever. Sometimes it seemed as though not much was happening, but actually the careful building and breaking down of relationships carried the book along quickly and smoothly towards the ending (which was beautifully sad).
I loved the juxtaposition of the four leads (even if I occasionally found the changing viewpoints confusing). Cole's self-loathing and selfishness versus Sam's compassion and need to belong, and the way they reacted to each other, deepened both characters and offered new perspectives on them by means of contrast. Isabel and Cole worked great together too - Isabel is probably my favourite character, so I loved being in her head, and I liked the slow way the pair of them opened up to each other. Grace is perhaps the hardest character to get to grips with for me, but I enjoyed her journey in Linger, enjoyed her battle for independence and her future, both with her parents and her wolf heritage. I would have loved to see Olivia return, but I guess that's for Forever?
I would love to do a really intelligent analysis of why this is such a good book, but I'm still a little overwrought - it's not often I finish a book and feel weepy. Stiefvater has an elegant, melancholy style that imbues every word she writes with meaning and feeling, and I envy that. Between Grace and Sam, the littlest gestures have the deepest meaning. I cannot overstate the emotional impact Linger had on me, and I had to go order Forever immediately. Can't wait to see how this story ends.
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