A werewolf version of Twilight? Not exactly

MANILA, Philippines - Looking for a werewolf version of Twilight? Maggie Stiefvater’s bestselling Shiver is a worthy—if not the better—counterpart.

While Stephenie Meyer’s successful young adult series deals with the inter-species love between a gorgeous vampire and a school girl, Shiver is of a young romance between a good-looking werewolf and a school girl.

More elegantly written than Twilight (except for its attempts at poetry), Shiver alternates between the points of view of young werewolf Sam and independent-minded Grace as they fight to keep Sam away from the cold that triggers his morphing back to animal form.

Long before meeting Sam as a human, Grace has long been fond of a yellow-eyed wolf that occasionally appears at her backyard from the woods that lie beyond her house.

No matter how tastefully written, though, details of Grace’s undue affection toward the brute may be uncomfortable to some readers. Many might also be turned off that the book later labels the attraction as “love.”

The wolf gets shot and transforms into a human being, however, revealing himself to Grace as 18-year-old Sam bloodied at her doorstep.

The two, smitten with each other from the outset, decide to stick together by living under one roof: Grace's house. Her parents remain clueless that Sam imprudently shares their daughter’s bed.

The book, in a nutshell, is a story of how Sam battles to remain human motivated by a newfound sensual romance that unrealistically promises forever while he pursues answers to protect his “family”—the pack of werewolves he grew up with in the woods.

Grace, on the other hand, shifts her preoccupation and interest from books, school, friendships and family responsibilities to Sam, Sam and Sam.

Like in Twilight, it is the boy in the relationship who struggles to keep it chaste, as the girl pushes him to cross the line. Shiver, though not obscene, might require parents to discuss the text with their children. Teens who read the book should also remain convinced that what is between Sam and Grace is not true love and they are therefore not a couple to admire.

For parents or adults looking for a book to recommend to younger people, be cautioned that Shiver poses parallel problems as Twilight does: It may give young female readers false expectations of boys and relationships, while suggesting that emotionally-driven romance is the be-all and end-all of existence.

Stiefvater’s work, though no better than Twilight in its shaky attempt to make the characters believable and lovable, does boast of slightly more literary merit with its turns of phrases on feelings and situations.

Unlike Meyer, Stiefvater does not waste space in drawing up dialogue after dialogue between the lovers. Instead, the author risks losing readers’ attention by dwelling at length on the wolves’ side stories.

In fact, such subplots on loyalty, family and friendship make Stiefvater’s work—if made more interesting and exciting than its romantic intervals—stand out and create its own niche away from Meyer’s vampire-hungry market.

"Shiver" is the first of three books of  "The Wolves of Mercy Falls" series published by Scholastic.