Shade by Jeri Smith-Ready

Title: Shade
Series: Shade Series #1
Author: Jeri Smith-Ready
Simon Pulse Publishing
May 4, 2010
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Synopsis: 

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.

I'm not even sure where to begin with Shade. I spent most of the book in tears. It has been so long that I have read any book that truly took my breath away, I almost didn't know what to do. Two words to describe Shade - Heart-Achingly Beautiful. The prose is both poignant and eloquent. Every word written is important in one way or another. I tend to skim over paragraphs that I deem unimportant in a book. I can honestly say there is not a single word I did not read with utter interest. The characters were just...wow. Each of them with a dynamic and significant place in this alluringly woven love story.

• Aura Salvatore was born post-shift, meaning she can see and talk to ghosts who have not passed on after their sudden deaths. By day she works with her Aunt Gina, by night she is a supportive and loving girlfriend of a soon-to-be rockstar. 
• Logan Keeley is the rockstar boyfriend. He enjoys being in the spotlight as much as he loves Aura. He just needs to prove this to her. The boy loves a party...too much. His life is about to change in ways he never imagined.
• Mickey Keeley is the oldest of the Keeley Brothers and the second half of this made-for-stardom duo. Mickey is a little more level-headed than Logan, also more brooding.
• Megan is Aura's best friend and Mickey's girlfriend. Megan is self-sacrificing with her feelings in order to support Aura and Mickey which causes her to have some resentment toward her friends.
• Siobhan Keeley is Mickey's twin sister and plays the fiddle as a part of the Keeley Brother's band. She loves her music but knows there are things that are more important in life. 
• Dylan Keeley happens to be the youngest of the siblings and not musically inclined. He is the "geek" who collects action figures and plays video games. 
• Zachary Moore...oh, Zach. How many ways do we love you? As a newbie in the States and at Aura's school, he is both mysterious and sensuous. Aura finds herself drawn to this sexy Scottish boy in ways she knows she shouldn't be. As the last person born before the shift, he holds a completely different set of powers from Aura. Maybe a compliment to her ghost-seeing abilities, maybe a cure?
• Aunt Gina has been a mother to Aura since her mother died when she was three. Gina is someone I grew to truly respect as a person and a mother-figure. She is empathetic, compassionate, but unafraid to take a stand. 

Shade is like any other book I fell completely in love with...I glanced at it in the store and thought a ghost story...nope, don't think so. Then I began reading review after review of how amazing this book was and thought, okay, maybe I should give it a chance. I was already in love with the covers so I decided I had to own both Shade and Shift even if I didn't like them. Well...after the first chapter, I knew I that not liking them was completely out of the question. After the second chapter - I was in love. The third - completely addicted.

This is a tragic love story with a complete different twist. I warn - it is not for the faint of heart. Actions cause consequences - always. Some consequences just aren't worth the actions. The lessons to be learned in this book are very real and should never be underestimated. I was literally torn to pieces a few times. I appreciated Aura's strength in recognizing that things had to change and I equally appreciated that it was tremendously difficult for her to make those much needed changes. Both of these things added to the reality of the love portrayed in the story.

Jeri pulls you so smoothly into the Keeley's world of music and partying that I felt like I was right there with the characters; experiencing their excitement, their misery, their heartache, and their accomplishments. I was drawn into the mystery surrounding the Shift and it's lore. Drawn into all that was Logan, all that was Aura, and all that was Zachary.

Even though I completely adore Zachary, there were a few times I wanted to jump into the book and hit him in the head. I wanted to yell at him as bad as Aura did. Fight for her man...come on.

A couple examples of completely amazing writing...

• I looked past her at my bed, remembering the day Logan lay there with me. The afternoon sun had slanted through the blinds, glowing golden against his bare skin. The light had seemed so much a part of him, I'd imagined it shining from within his body and streaming out the window instead of in. - Page 121

• A hole opened up inside me, so raw I had to curl up on my side away from his light, pulling my good knee to my chest to ease the ache. The hole gaped so big it seemed like I could crawl inside, let the darkness swallow all thoughts of the future that once stretched before us. - Page 281 

My Reviews of -
Shade
Shift
Shine (TBR May 1, 2012)