Shine - Jeri Smith-Ready

Shine – Jeri Smith-Ready

Pages: 399

Publisher: Simon Pulse (S&S UK)

Release Date: 7^th June 2012

Edition: UK paperback, review copy

Other Titles in the Series: Shade, Shift

Life can change in an instant, and no one understands this better than Aura. It’s been almost a year since her boyfriend, Logan, tragically died and Aura is finally letting go of his violet-hued ghost, but not her search to uncover the truth about the Shift – and her past.

As the first in a generation who can see ghosts, Aura is convinced that she has a connection to the Shift, and with the gorgeous Zachary by her side, she is on the brink of discovering her mysterious secrets. But when Zachary’s life is threatened in an attempt to expose Aura’s secrets, she realizes she must stop at nothing to protect herself and the one she loves...even if that means betraying her own heart.

I feel in love with Aura and her world within the first couple of pages of Shade and so I’ve been anxious to see how her story would end. I wasn’t at all disappointed by Shine.

Jeri Smith-Ready really isn’t afraid to heap misery and stress on poor Aura. Shine jumps straight into the action and things are getting serious with the DMP and their attempts to control the ghosts, shades and everything surrounding and threatening them; that means Aura and Zach. I won’t spoil just what happens; I want you to take a horrified intake of breath when it’s revealed just as I did. I was horrified and a little panicky as to what was happening to Zach, and so was Aura...

I can’t help but once again gush about how awesome Zach is. I love the way that his accent came across in the nuances in his speech and the odd word that confused Aura. It really does give him an extra dose of personality and made me fall for him all over again. And once his experience with the DMP was over, he made my heart ache.

The spark between Aura and Zach was even more intense in Shine than it had been in the previous two books as Logan was now out of the picture, but not completely out of Aura’s mind, of course. They have a sizzling chemistry and I just wanted everything to go right for them. But of course there were more than a few obstacles they had to try and avoid killing them.

The connection to Newgrange in Ireland was established very early in the trilogy but it really came alive in Shine when it was visited by Aura and Zach. I’ve never had a particular desire to visit Ireland before, but now I’m dying to go. It sounds absolutely beautiful, full of history and legend and I do love an Irish accent! And then they went to Scotland, and I’ve always wanted to go there, specifically Edinburgh, but now that urge is even stronger. It’s a good job they’re not that far away really!

For a while, I wondered how on earth Shine could possibly give Aura and Zachary a happy ending, but Jeri Smith-Ready pulled it out of the bag and I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect finale.

Thank you to S&S for proving me with a review copy.

Sophie