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

Even by the end there doesn't seem to be nearly enough to hold Cole and Isabella together - either as individuals or as a couple. Cole's LA is at least somewhat recognizable, but limited advantage is taken of the setting nor does any sense of real feeling for it settle into the story. ( )

I didn't realize this book was part of a series. Now I understand why I wasn't understanding the back story with the death of the old drummer.
Cole and Isabel are privileged whiny people who totally deserve each other. Cole turns into a werewolf sometimes. Isabel just whines a lot about her terrible life, but she is the least likeable character and least empathetic character I've ever read about. Of course, she wants to be a doctor and somehow gets through college and medical school in two years. ( )

Cole and Isabel have a very, very messy past, but Cole wants to change all that, so he goes to LA to find Isabel and make his rock star comeback. But will it be as easy as he hopes it will? Of course not, but where would be the fun in that?

I love, love, love The Wolves of Mercy Falls series and looked forward to seeing where the story between Cole and Isabel went. Cole is loveable and funny and flawed, so I connected with him right away. Unfortunately, Isabel spent most of the book being icy and cold to everyone around her, so I had some trouble with her. Maggie Stiefvater definitely took the time to explain why she was this way, but I still felt disconnected from her, and this took away from my ability to enjoy this story as much as I would have liked. And although I loved the ending, I felt like it was a bit rushed. I wish it had been drawn out more.

All in all, I did enjoy this book, just not as much as I had hoped I would.

3/5 stars.

*** I would like to thank NetGalley, Scholastic Press, and Maggie Stiefvater for the opportunity to read and review this book. ( )

Obviously Steifvater knew that she had an interesting character in Cole St. Clair that she would write a book outside of the original trilogy centering around him. In this book, we get only Cole and Isabel's POV, both ending up in L.A. after the events of the Shiver series for different reasons. Isabel and her mother moved back to California to get away from Isabel's father, Cole goes for Isabel and to reignite his defunct music career (and fame).
While Cole is a fun character to read even at his lowest points, I have a huge problem with Isabel. It's good that Steifvater writes in a lot of vulnerable moments for her because otherwise Isabel would be completely unlikable. She is the definition of cold bitch and being a 17 year old with a privileged life, it's hard to have any sympathy for her or to relate to her in any way. She's a spoiled brat and treats everyone around her like she's completely above them in every aspect, even Cole who she keeps trying to convince herself she hasn't fallen in love with. How or why Cole keeps trying to get past that to have a relationship with her is beyond me as I would have given up on her much faster. They didn't have a sexual relationship until near the end of this book so you just want to yell at Cole to move on, there was literally nothing to be gained. Isabel is a character that needs professional help but not in a way you can feel sympathy for, you just want her to seek help to keep her from hurting literally everyone around her.
I still gave this book 5 stars because besides the problems with characterisation, I loved the story and the arc of the book. It was a book I didn't want to put down and that's all you can really ask for. ( )