Signs
A warm, story-driven guide for grieving or spiritually curious readers who want to believe loved ones can still reach them, with simple steps for asking for signs.
What It's About
Signs is Laura Lynne Jackson's follow-up to The Light Between Us. Its premise is that the dead, along with what she calls spirit guides, are always trying to communicate with us, and that anyone, not just a professional medium, can learn to notice their messages. The book presents this as a learnable skill rather than a rare gift, and its goal is to help readers spot meaning in coincidences they might otherwise dismiss.
Most of the book is made up of short accounts from people who believe they received a message: an animal behaving strangely at a meaningful moment, a song playing at just the right time, a name or number showing up when it seemed impossible. Jackson mixes these with episodes from her own life and readings, then draws practical lessons from them. The most concrete advice is to ask the universe for a specific, unusual sign of your own choosing and then stay open to it appearing.
The tone is gentle, earnest and consoling. It reads quickly, more like a collection of comforting anecdotes than an argument, and many readers move through it in a few sittings. If you already lean toward believing in an afterlife, it will likely feel uplifting and validating. If you are a skeptic, you will find heartfelt testimony but no attempt to rule out chance or wishful interpretation. The book is best treated as a source of comfort and reflection, not as evidence.
Read this if you…
- are grieving someone and looking for comfort and a sense of ongoing connection
- already enjoy books about mediums, the afterlife or meaningful coincidence
- liked The Light Between Us and want something more hands-on
Skip it if you…
- want evidence or a critical look at psychic claims rather than testimonials
- find spiritual self-help that treats coincidence as messages from the dead off-putting
Key Ideas
- 1
Everyone can receive messages, not just mediums
Jackson's central claim is that her own abilities are just a stronger version of something everyone has. Signs from the Other Side, she argues, are not reserved for gifted people. Ordinary readers can notice them if they pay attention and stop explaining every meaningful coincidence away. This framing is what makes the book a guide rather than a memoir about her own work.
- 2
Ask for a specific sign
The book's most practical suggestion is to choose a distinctive sign, ideally something unusual enough that it would be striking if it appeared, and ask your loved ones or guides to send it. Jackson presents this as a way of opening a two-way conversation, and many of the stories she shares feature people who asked for something specific and later felt they received it.
- 3
The forms signs typically take
Through repeated examples, Jackson sketches the recurring channels she believes messages travel through: animals that approach or linger, songs, numbers, names, found objects and odd electrical events. Grouping the stories this way gives readers a loose vocabulary for interpreting experiences in their own lives, which is what she means by learning a secret language.
- 4
A supportive team on the Other Side
Jackson describes a group of departed loved ones and spirit guides who, in her view, look out for each person and steer them toward love and good choices. Signs, in this framing, are not just reassurance that the dead live on. They can also be gentle nudges about career, relationships or life direction, which gives the book a motivational, self-help flavor alongside its focus on grief.
Limitations
The book relies almost entirely on personal anecdotes, and it makes no real effort to address confirmation bias, chance or the human tendency to find patterns. Skeptical readers often call it unconvincing, and even sympathetic ones sometimes find the stories repetitive once the pattern is clear. The practical guidance is fairly thin compared with the volume of stories. There is also a risk worth naming: grieving readers who ask for a sign and do not see one may feel worse, a possibility the book does not explore in much depth.
Questions Readers Ask
- Do I need to read The Light Between Us first?
- No. Signs stands on its own. The Light Between Us focuses more on how Jackson discovered and understands her abilities, while Signs is more practical and centered on other people's experiences. Reading the earlier book adds background about the author, but it isn't required to follow or benefit from this one.
- Is Signs helpful for someone grieving?
- Many readers in grief find it deeply comforting, because the stories suggest that bonds with loved ones continue after death. It works best for those open to that belief. If you want grief support grounded in psychology rather than spirituality, a book like Megan Devine's It's OK That You're Not OK may suit you better.
- Does the book offer scientific proof of an afterlife?
- No. Jackson mentions that her abilities have been tested by groups that study mediums, but the book itself is built on personal stories, not research. It is written to inspire and console, not to persuade skeptics. Readers should approach it as spiritual testimony.
- Published
- 2020
- ISBN
- 9780399591617
- Difficulty
- beginner
- Category
- Body, Mind & Spirit
Book details and cover from Google Books.
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