Ten years ago, Devon gave up the love of her life, fearing she would one day fall victim to the mental illness that has slowly ravaged the mind of her mother, who is now being cared for in a private facility. Just when it seems Devon might have a chance to make up for past mistakes, her best friend Cass becomes a suspect in the murder of her sister's drug-dealing boyfriend.
Devon knows Cass is lying about the details of her involvement and the lead detective on the case, convinced that Cass is guilty, is relentless in his pursuit of justice.
When her mother's young, emotionally disturbed roommate insinuates she knows something about the night of the murder, as well as details from Devon's own life that no one else is privy to, Devon becomes desperate to uncover the truth before Detective Lake does. As the investigation continues, Devon is led down a path she never expected and forced to face her greatest fears of life and love.
Tangled in a web of lies, regrets and questions, can she find a way to let go of the past and start again? And, once the mystery is solved, can she live with the secrets she's uncovered?
Join author Devon Pearse in this semi-autobiographical journey through the most heartbreakingly beautiful and deceptively mysterious events of her own life and the lives of those closest to her.
Devon is caught in the past. A past before her mother slipped away into the gray mists of mental illness that has kept her hospitalized for over a decade. A past where three little girls ran and laughed and played, before one of them was killed before her sixteenth birthday. A past where Drew was always there waiting for her; the love she'd always imagined.
But the past's tendrils can't stand up to the forces of the present. The present where Devon has lived for over a decade without Drew, who she sent away due to her fear of ending up like her mother. Now things are breaking and changing and Devon must adjust.
For one thing, Drew is back in town. Can Devon and Drew pick up where they left off, or is their love forever in the past? Next, her mother shows signs of emerging from her illness, but is this because of the teenage girl who is now her roommate and who seems determined to take Devon's place in her mother's life? Finally, the abusive boyfriend of her best friend's sister has been brutally murdered, and suspicion falls on Cass, Devon's best friend. Can Cass untangle the mystery and save everyone's life?
Devon Pearse has written a haunting novel, although the fact that her main character is also named Devon Pearse may be confusing at first to the reader. She has created characters that seem strong one minute, then shadowy the next, echoing the way mental illness recedes and then reconquers the sick mind. The values of love, friendship and family are strong propellers of the action, and the reader will want to finish to find out what happens to the people met between the pages. This book is recommended for readers of family relationship novels and those interested in characters who grow within the confines of a book.
KrittersRamblings
Posted June 29, 2012
Check out the full review at Kritters Ramblings
A Lighter Shade of Gray is a dramatic book that while the cast of characters was numbered, the plots were cumbersome. It is easy for the reader to fall in love with these characters fast, but while there were a few too many major plots going at the same time, I was also discouraged to see the story really pick up when it was almost halfway over.
This isn't the book you think it is. :) This book is a good lesson about life. It is about Devon Pearse's life....a life filled with sorrow and regret and a mother who began to develop mental illness when Devon was around twelve, but also a life with a loving father. Devon constantly was concerned about developing the same illness her mother suffered from.
The book takes you through her childhood - through love and tragedy - and moves to the present with Devon as an adult and with her continuing problems and problems of friends with secrets.
The author is quite clever in her writing style and insinuations...she aligns the "shades of gray" with how a mental illness fades a person just as a photo fades. She used colors as the comparison of moods and stages of reality to explain how colors indicated where Devon's mother was in terms of reality. Pearse is an outstanding writer...very eloquent and interesting. She makes very profound statements about life and about the choices we make about our life's dreams….dreams that we either "murder" or fulfill. She does this in a very interesting way and with very appealing characters.
It takes a while to get to the gist of the story, but once you arrive, you will enjoy the book's purpose and plot. Ms. Pearse takes you on an emotional ride that includes love, lies, mystery, secrets, murder, and dealing with mental illness. You will become attached to Devon and to her emotions as she deals with and reacts to them in the right or wrong way but in a way only she knows how to deal with.
The beginning of the book gave background information on her family, and it was all weaved into the very absorbing tale that unfolded. Some of the book isn't pleasant, but you will learn about mental illness and also about life in general...you may even learn some things that could help you in your personal life. A LIGHTER SHADE OF GRAY is about family, friendship, and decision-making along with a creative murder plot. It is a book that I would deem thought provoking.
I enjoyed the book even though it took a few pages to become intriguing....but it is definitely worth the wait....it is a captivating, unique novel. My rating is 4/5.
Anonymous
Posted June 18, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Overview
Ten years ago, Devon gave up the love of her life, fearing she would one day fall victim to the mental illness that has slowly ravaged the mind of her mother, who is now being cared for in a private facility. Just when it seems Devon might have a chance to make...