Sinner (Wolves of Mercy Falls/Shiver Series)

by Maggie Stiefvater

Overview

SINNER follows Cole St. Clair, a pivotal character from the #1 NEW YORK TIMES bestselling Shiver Trilogy.

found.

Cole St. Clair has come to California for one reason: to get Isabel Culpeper back. She fled from his damaged, drained life, and damaged and drained it even more. He doesn't just want her. He needs her.

lost.

Isabel is trying to build herself a life in Los Angeles. It's not really working. She can play the game as well as all the other fakes. But what's the point? What is there to win?

sinner.

Cole and Isabel share a past that never seemed to have a future. They have the power to love each other and the power to tear each other apart. The only thing for certain is that they cannot let go.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780545654579
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	07/01/2014
Series:	Wolves of Mercy Falls Series
Pages:	368
Sales rank:	218,205
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.40(d)
Lexile:	HL660L (what's this?)
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Maggie Stiefvater is the #1 NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author of the novels SHIVER, LINGER, and FOREVER. Her novel THE SCORPIO RACES was named a Michael L. Printz Honor Book by the American Library Association, while PUBLISHERS WEEKLY selected Maggie's THE RAVEN BOYS as a Best Book of the Year. She is also the author of LAMENT and BALLAD. Maggie lives in Virginia with her husband and their two children. You can visit her online at www.maggiestiefvater.com.

Editorial Reviews

05/12/2014
Stiefvater expands on her bestselling Wolves of Mercy Falls novels with a side story built around Cole St. Clair, werewolf front man of the defunct band Narkotika. Now sober, Cole attempts to resurrect his career and his dysfunctional love affair with Isabel Culpeper, who’s working retail in Los Angeles. From a vacuous live phone interview in the opening pages to the semi-trashy web series Cole winds up starring in, the glitzy, manic tropes of TMZ culture dominate. For the most part, attachment to these characters (and knowledge of their history) must be carried over from the original trilogy. But Stiefvater’s talent for wordcraft and her powers of observation are as sharp as ever, and the L.A. setting gives her even more cause than usual to treat cars like characters. It’s less a romance than a conjuration of the monolith that is mass-market entertainment, the trappings of fame, and the narrow spaces they leave for being human. Or wolf, sometimes. Ages 14–up. Agent: Laura Rennert, Andrea Brown Literary Agency. (July)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for the NEW YORK TIMES bestselling Shiver trilogy:

* "Beautiful and moving." -- SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, starred review

* "A lyrical tale of alienated werewolves and first love . . . [Stiefvater's] take on werewolves is interesting and original." -- PUBLISHERS WEKKLY, starred review

"Beautifully written, even poetic at times, and a perfect indulgence for readers of all ages." -- BOOKPAGE

From the Publisher

When is a sequel not a sequel? When it is a spin-off, which is what author Maggie Stiefvater seems to be attempting with this fourth book in the Shiver series. Despite the author’s attempt to make this book stand alone, it is important that the reader knows the backstory of the two central characters, Cole St. Clair and Isabel Culpepper. Therefore, reading the book out of sequence is not as satisfying as reading it in series order. Cole is literally a rock star, but also a werewolf whose secret Isabel knows. Having previously crashed and burned with drugs and addiction, Cole is now trying to recover his career and Isabel by going to Los Angeles and signing on for Baby North’s new reality show. The show, ostensibly about the making of his new album, is really a set up to see Cole self-destruct on the small screen. Meanwhile, Isabel is struggling to make a new life apart from Cole and separate from her dysfunctional family, which is suffering its own implosion. Stiefvater has a large and enthusiastic fan base, so there will be demand for this book. However, despite her well-styled writing, this story is challenging because of its rambling and disjointed manner. It takes fully half the book for the Cole and Isabel story lines to weave together and, by then, some less committed readers may lose interest. New and newly fleshed out characters add interest in the form of Jeremy, the base player from Cole’s former band, and Leon, Cole’s driver/father figure. The strength of the book is how the two central characters handle their individual demons so that they can, ultimately, come together in an expected conclusion. Reviewer: Lois Rubin Gross; Ages 14 up.

Children's Literature - Lois Rubin Gross

2014-05-14
After the Shiver trilogy, Cole and Isabel reunite in Los Angeles.Cole St. Clair has returned to California and his music career. He's teamed up with an Internet reality TV producer, Baby North, to star in a Web show ostensibly about the making of his new album. Baby's a life destroyer who specializes in train wrecks—everyone is hoping to watch the now-clean Cole relapse into drugs, debauchery and self-destruction. Antagonist Baby is willing to engineer things if that's what it takes to create good television. Meanwhile, ice queen Isabel is living with her mother, divorced aunt and awkward cousin while Isabel's parents' marriage enters the end stages of implosion. Her trust is fragile and her feelings toward Cole, complicated. Stiefvater is not overreliant on misunderstandings between the two narrators, as too many other romance writers are, instead opting for a believable, realistic portrayal of damaged people struggling to fit their quirks together in a relationship. The relationship between the richly drawn characters is the heart of the book—it is light on paranormal and wolf action. Cole and Isabel are both jerks, but they are jerks with hearts, and they keep up with each other's witty banter. The ending wraps up a bit too neatly, but getting there is an absolute delight.A spectacularly messy, emotionally oh-so-human romance. (Paranormal romance. 14 & up)

Kirkus Reviews