When her best guy friend falls victim to a vicious hate crime, sixteen-year-old Cat sets out to discover who in her small town did it. Ages 14 up.Source: Hardcover, Published May 1st 2011 by Amulet Books The final faceoff strains believability and the conclusion is a tad neat, but readers will find themselves thinking about Cat's complicated rural community long after the mystery has been solved. These details and the thick mystery that Cat unfurls will keep readers engaged and suspecting several characters, as Cat does. Myracle (Bliss) paints the desperate poverty and bitter divisions within Cat's mountain community well, with memorable details like a friend coloring the duct tape patches on her couch to match the fabric or a meth cooker's bathtub filled with funnels and coffee filters. Even so, when a horrific and possible hate crime leaves openly gay Patrick comatose, she decides to 'look straight into the ugliness and find out who hurt him.' She grows suspicious of her brother's friends, 'the redneck posse,' who were with Patrick the night of his attack especially as she learns they are keeping dangerous secrets, including dealing and using meth. YALSA 2014 Popular Paperbacks for Young AdultsĬat has been distant from childhood best friend Patrick for three years (she began to 'ignore the whole world' after an older friend of her brother's molested her). WINNER: Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award for young adult fiction

Cat’s reflections on these moments are spot-on.”

“Myracle captures well the regret that many feel for things in their past about which they are ashamed. “Dramatic in both content and presentation.' – The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books “The page-turning mystery and Cat’s inspiring trajectory of self-realization will draw readers in and give them plenty to ponder.” “Cat eventually uncovers the truth in a cliffhanging climax in which she confronts fear, discovers that love is stronger than hate and truly ‘shines.’ Raw, realistic and compelling.” Smart, fearless, and compassionate, this is an unforgettable work from a beloved author. Richly atmospheric, this daring mystery mines the secrets of a tightly knit Southern community and examines the strength of will it takes to go against everyone you know in the name of justice.Īgainst a backdrop of poverty, clannishness, drugs, and intolerance, Myracle has crafted a harrowing coming-of-age tale couched in a deeply intelligent mystery.

Shine by Lauren Myracle