Shade by Jeri Smith-Ready

Published: May 4, 2010 by Simon Pulse
Received: gifted by Jen from Makeshift Bookmark

Love ties them together. Death can't tear them apart.

Best. Birthday. Ever. At least, it was supposed to be. With Logan's band playing a critical gig and Aura's plans for an intimate after-party, Aura knows it will be the most memorable night of her boyfriend's life. She never thought it would be his last.

Logan's sudden death leaves Aura devastated. He's gone.

Well, sort of.

Like everyone born after the Shift, Aura can see and hear ghosts. This mysterious ability has always been annoying, and Aura had wanted nothing more than to figure out why the Shift happened so she can undo it. But not with Logan's violet-hued spirit still hanging around. Because dead Logan is almost as real as ever. Almost.

It doesn't help that Aura's new friend Zachary is so understanding—and so very alive. His support means more to Aura than she cares to admit.

As Aura's relationships with the dead and the living grow ever complicated, so do her feelings for Logan and Zachary. Each holds a piece of Aura's heart...and clues to the secret of the Shift. {taken from goodreads.com}

This book has been mentioned quite a few times, but for whatever reason it kept being forgotten (I know!! how is that even possible??!!).  Shade is like the diamond in the sand that keeps getting buried each time the wind blows.. but it just takes one person to unearth it & let it shine in all it's glory!  That one person would be Jen from Makeshift Bookmark - she gifted me with this book & what a gift it's been!  The story that takes place between these pages is one not to be forgotten.  It's originality & depth went further than I expected.  This book was a pleasant surprise for me.  And to think, I may have still been waiting around to read it if it hadn't been for one of Jeri's biggest cheerleaders.. Miss Makeshift Bookmark herself!

The story starts out about a teenage girl, who has a boyfriend (a hot Irish-American boyfriend) in a band.  Said boyfriend, named Logan, is on the brink of making it big with his band, and said girlfriend, Aura, is on the brink of feeling as though she's going to lose her boyfriend to stardom.  Meanwhile there are ghosts.  Yes, ghosts.  They are floating around as if this is normal.  However, it wasn't always this way.  These ghosts are only seen by those who are Post-shifters (meaning: under the age of 17).  So here we have a bunch of kids (under the age of 17) who can see those who have died, but haven't quite passed on.  A ghost has two options: they can find peace & pass on in the more natural way, or they become violent & angry & turn in to Shades - a form of being that is never able to pass on.  So with that being said, we understand the make-up of this ghostly world that Jeri Smith-Ready has created; and ironically made believable amongst this story.

Then something bad happens.  Something terribly awful.  SPOILER ALERT!!!!!  Logan dies -- I won't go in to detail so that I won't completely spoil the story for you.  Aura is left grief stricken.  What was once her perfect life, has now been shattered in to a million pieces.  Her future with Logan wiped completely off the map.  And in it's wake stands Logan's ghost, in which Aura can see & hear since she is a Post-shifter.  At first it's a sign of hope, something for Aura to cling to.  Maybe Logan really isn't gone?  But how long can one cling to a ghost?  And how long can Logan last as a ghost, but not be able to experience life the way he once used to?

In walks Zachary (hot Scottish boy).  Did I mention there's a lot of hot Scottish/Irish boys in this book? because there ARE!  Immediately Aura is drawn to Zachary & the secrets he hides.  The two are paired up to work on a school project together, but this project is meant for Aura to uncover bits & pieces of her past in hopes of finding out the origin of the Shift.  During this time spent together Aura is being tested.  Does she continue this unhealthy relationship with Logan, her dead boyfriend?  Or pursue these unknown feelings she's developing for Zachary, the mysterious boy for whom she can actually touch?  The pull that Aura feels seeps off the pages.  I found myself caught between which way she should go.  Logan is the boy she grew up with, the young man she fell in love with, the same guy she was meant to live forever with.  But when circumstances arise, her dreams & wishes are altered. 

The creepiness of the ghosts intrigued me.  The fact that not everyone could see or hear them was interesting to me too.  This allowed the younger generation to be more vulnerable to the ghosts.  I know what it's like to lose someone very close to you, the hurt & awful pain that goes with it.  I could not imagine what it would be like to see their ghost again, only to realize that it's not permanent & you must endure the pain all over again when they do decide to pass on.  The world in which Jeri has created is one that is believable through it's characters, yet mesmerizing due to it's para-normalcy.  The ending left me grasping for more.  Good thing Shift, the second installment in this series is almost out.  I'm not sure I could have waited an entire year with THAT sort of cliffhanger ending!  Much praise to Jeri Smith-Ready for writing this tantalizing tale.  I need more hot Irish-American & Scottish boys!  Oh & ghosts? perhaps??