Review: Shade by Jerri Smith-Ready

Title: Shade

Author: Jeri Smith-Ready
Publisher:  Simon Pulse
Publishing Date: May 4th 2010

Pages: 320
Genre:  YA Paranormal Romance

Series: Shade #1
Source: Audio

  

Aura can see ghosts. Born after the Shift, a little-understood event that enabled younger generations to communicate with the dead, Aura is relentlessly pursued by these violet-hued spirits. They need help to pass out of this world and into the next. And some are so angry they are on the verge of becoming Shades, dark vortexes of energy. But Aura just wants the ghosts to leave her alone so she can spend time with her boyfriend, Logan. When Aura is paired with a new foreign-exchange student to research the Shift for a class project, she is determined to ignore her partner’s sexy Scottish accent and discover the cause of the Shift so she can reverse it.
Then Logan dies a most untimely death. Forced to reconsider her relationship with the living and the dead, Aura is caught in a love triangle with her violet-hued boyfriend and her hot research partner... one of whom may hold the key to reversing the Shift.

I’ve had this book on my TBR for a very long time. I am not sure what took me so long to read it. I love the cover, the synopsis sounds very intriguing and yet I waited forever. I missed out for years I tell ya! I thought this book was amazing. It captured me from the very start and didn’t let go until well after the last page.

Aura can see ghosts and she’s not the only one. Once upon a time a shift happened and everyone born after the shift can see and hear ghosts. Crazy right! This ability is not cared for by many. Ghosts are everywhere and they all wants something before they can cross over. If they don’t cross over they have a chance of becoming a shade…. A very nasty mean spirit.

Aura is dating Logan. On the night of Logan’s birthday, a night that Aura had planned to be a night to remember, Logan dies. Logan does not cross over, Aura and Logan continue their relationship even in his death. Creepy! Everything seems to be ok until we add a new boy into the mix, a sweet and good-looking Scottish boy, Zachary, and Aura becomes confused… Ghost or a real live boy. Doesn’t sound so tough to me, but Aura has a hard time letting go and moving on, especially when she can still see and hear Logan.The closer that Aura gets to Zachary the more distance she puts between her and Logan. Secrets are revealed, truths are questioned, bonds are created, and Logan’s afterlife is in danger.

I really enjoyed this book. It grabbed me from the very beginning and was very well paced. The storyline was interesting and different, full of mystery and romance, I was never bored. There was a lot going on in the story, almost 2-3 different storylines intertwined perfectly to complete the big picture. The story is very character driven, which I love, and the relationships are the focus of this book; however I did feel at times I was missing something. The only complaint I had with the story is the explanation of the shift. I assume this is coming in the next installment and this book focused more on the relationships and was building up to something bigger. I felt like the questions were brought up but never answered. This did not take away from the story though, I still loved every moment.

I absolutely loved Aura, Zachary, and Logan. I really don’t like love triangles but this is a different type of triangle since Aura knows she needs to let go of Logan. I felt for Aura as well as Zachary and Logan. Aura was a very strong girl, but she was completely crushed by Logan’s death. She was aware that her relationship with Logan was not healthy but she couldn’t find a way to let go until she was forced to spend time with Zachary. Zachary was a wonderful character. He was mysterious and at times I found myself questioning his motives, but he always seemed to be genuine and really cared about Aura. In the end I felt I could trust him but one can never tell. Logan was sweet to, funny, really into Aura, but I had a harder time wanting him to stick around. My heart belonged to Zachary for sure.The romance was nice in this book. The romance between Aura and Logan was a lifetime friendship turned to romance, my favorite kind. They knew each other inside out and everywhere Aura went, there were memories haunting her. The romance between Aura and Zachary started at friendship and quickly turned to a bit more. A romance that was built on tragedy, connections, and security. It was more sweet than passionate and I really enjoyed it.

I also want to add that I really liked the narrator in the audio version. I feel she captured Aura perfectly. 

I am sure this book is on a fast track to be one of my favorite reads of 2013. I can’t wait to get my hands on the next installment. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes paranormal romances.