I do realize it is Monday, but this is a Review Tuesday…on a Monday. Why? Because this releases tomorrow and I want you to get the chance to grab this book now! I’ve been waiting for another story from Shari L. Tapscott for awhile and was pretty excited to get an ARC of Shimmer and Shine.
I made the mistake on downloading this late at night. I made another mistake when I started reading it late at night. Around 3 in the morning I forced myself to put in down (due to continued grumbling from the husband). The next morning I got my boys off to school and my girl distracted so I could finish it. Yeah, this is one of those books. Is it because a lot of shocking, crazy stuff happens? No! It’s because the characters are awesome, the writing is great, and the pacing is just about perfect.
Riley has just graduated high school and moves in with her aunt for the summer. She discovers right away the ‘perfect’ summer fling for her. Zeke, a brooding artist. She also meets Linus, who is the ultimate nice guy. The question is will she go for the exciting rebel or learn that nice doesn’t necessarily mean boring.
I loved Riley! She was pretty self-aware, which is nice to see in a character who lives a semi-charmed life. I liked watching her attitude change as she realized that being cool just didn’t matter anymore, that now was her time to be herself. Oh, and I loved watching her attraction to Linus develop. No insta-attraction here, but the gradual appeal of someone who just gets better looking as you get to know them.
Linus was perfect. He should be a poster boy for perfect boyfriend material. All teenagers should read this just so they know what kind of guy to look for. A Linus type.
I like Zeke too. I loved watching him morph in Riley’s eyes. At first she see only his looks, but learns there is more to him…and a lot of it isn’t good.
This is a great read. I mentioned the pacing before because I think this is some of the best pacing I’ve read in a contemporary romance. The relationships grew over time in interesting ways, my frustration with characters never lasted overly long, and the problems were realistic and never overly dramatic. I would recommend this for anyone, but mostly for everyone! Happy reading, my friends!
