Horror

Prelim review: It gave me chills at times and made me tear up at the end.

Also, who wants to have a Hallow's Eve party like the one in the book?

---
For the record I just want to say that while the cover makes me think of Edward Scissorhands, I think it sets the creeptastic mood of this book pretty well. Also, I love Creagh's website. Its beautifully put together and I think reflects Nevermore perfectly.

Moving on.

Nevermore is the sort of book that the concept left me feeling 'meh'. I do not like Edgar Allen Poe. At all. The closest I've ever come is the Simpsons Halloween short they did based around 'The Raven'. In 10th grade I memorized that bloody poem so I could ace English class and that made me never want to go near his works ever again. It wasn't until I began reading reviews that I moved on to wanting to at least check it out. And then Eleni was giving away her ARC and I was like 'good timing!' and thus did it come into my possession.

This is a chilling novel. Even when dealing with the teen angst, Creagh would detour into creepy shadow in the corner of your eye territory. I appreciated that, since otherwise the teen angst would have been unbearable. I'll never understand teenagers, or high school, politics. Didn't understand it when I was a high school student and I sure as rain don't understand it now that my sister is a senior in high school. Izobel perfectly fit that mold for me; I didn't understand half of what she did. Brad seemed to have no redeeming qualities; arrogant, pushy, territorial and aggressive, and this is before he comes onto the radar of the shadows.

The sensation of being watched, or of seeing a shadow fleetingly from the corner of your eye or hearing your name on the wind, that's all used to build up an atmosphere of spooky that slowly begins to surround Izobel. Small things at first--tapping on the window, a guy in the doorway one second and not the next, black birds everywhere--but gradually they became more menacing, more frightening, as the book went on. I don't think I'll be getting the image of the half-eaten bird out of my head for a while let me tell you.

I wasn't sure what to think of Varen at first. The backcover names him as Izobel's 'dream guy', but honestly for the first...half of the book maybe more they spend more time patronizing, sniping and condescending to each other then anything else. I couldn't tell you when things seem to shift, it was such a subtle thing that it crept on me as I was reading, but he slowly went from creeper to kind of romantic in a morbid way. I wish we could have seen more of the story from his perspective--the novel follows Izobel in third person--because so much of what he said, did or behaved was totally at odds with what a sane person would do. I wouldn't say Varen is a flat character, he shows a lot of complexity, but it feels more like he is a half-painted portrait that an artist is describing what it will look like once complete.

Izobel showed a lot of strength, sticking to her idea of 'right' even when allowing the wrong thing to happen would be a form of justice. Gwen annoyed me quite frankly. She was such a spastic character I didn't want her on the page. Alyssa I didn't understand her motivations in hating Izobel so much, if I had pegged anyone to act like that it would have been Nikki, who surprised me by the ending.

My one true complaint about the book is that it was really long. It might have been necessary, to set the menacing atmosphere, but the story felt like a ping pong game at points. Brad is mad at Izobel about Varen, Izobel is worried about Varen, Varen is being cranky towards Izobel, Brad does something to Varen--lather, rinse repeat at least three times. I would have preferred learning more about Varen, or seeing Pinfeather (who I liked, even though he was the very definition of evil menacing creeper) or heck more time spent at the Grim Facade party would have rocked.

The first thing I did when finishing the book was to find out if there is more forthcoming. Thankfully there is. I was tearing up at the end, between Izobel's choice and reality of the situation, I felt so bad for her. I am eagerly anticipating the next book!
( )

Trashy fun until it wasn't.

I knew from the beginning that I was reading this book because I thought it was a fun trip and I wasn't taking it too seriously. I can brush aside a lot of the things that would normally bother me because of this, but it just became a bit of a snooze fest. Why is it so so long?!!!

Other than that, the only notable plot issue for me is the supernatural element. It's not described well at all, and doesn't make any sense lol.

If I was in 9th grade reading Poe and Cask of Amontillado. And most importantly, 13 years old. Maybe then I'd like this book.

*

Okay Okay Okay I wrote most of that with 100 pages left. Little did I know. This book ended worse than I even thought and expectations are for FOOLS.

YOU'RE TELLING ME IT WAS JUST INSTALOVE?????

I thought it was going to be they were convolutedly somehow reincarnated versions of Poe and his cousin, or maybe like. He was a vampire or something. THEY HAD NO REASON TO LIKE EACH OTHER!!!!! OH MY GOD!!!!

Not a fan. ( )

This is one of those books where the blurb on the back totally gives away important parts of the plot that don't really come in until closer to the end of the book. The last 150 pages or so were pretty intense but everything leading up to it was typical, uninspired, petty high school drama, which didn't even make sense half the time.

I like that the main boy and girl didn't fall for each other right away, but I have no clue why Varen would be interested in Isobel. She pretty much left him to do all the work for their English project and didn't really treat him like a normal person because he was so different from her and because of some rumours she heard about him... I guess the coolest thing she did was stand up for him in front of her friends. But after that, she just becomes kind of helpless and flounders about for a while until the last 150 pages where the action picks up.

Overall, I'm fairly disappointed. This book got such great reviews and has a great premise (Poe, dreams coming to life, pretty awesome right?) but instead of really focusing on that, the author wrote about cheerleaders and jocks versus goths (boring). But I do kind of want to read the next book because it looks like it'll focus more on the paranormal elements and, of course, I'm completely intrigued by Varen. ( )

This is a Poe-style version of twilight but without the vamps and Bella. ( )

I wanted to love [b:Nevermore|7129598|Nevermore (Nevermore, #1)|Kelly Creagh|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1294381693s/7129598.jpg|7391743], I really did; to be fair for the most part, I did. But unfortunately I think I'd set my expectations too high and in all honesty, I didn't like certain aspects of the novel..

I mean, I personally loved the relationship between Isobel and Varen and the simple high-school life.. All the things that you expect to love.

But whist other people seemed to be pleasantly surprised with how much the enjoyed the otherworldly aspects of the novel; I didn't.
I just couldn't seem to merge the supernatural story-line with that of the lighthearted and simple high school one in my head. I mean don't get me wrong, I knew from the beginning that the main part of the story was the supernatural side of things, but I just could not get my head around it.

And don't even get me started on that ending. I mean, what was that? I know there's a sequel and all, a sequel that I really don't want to read because of how little I liked this but now feel obliged to, but I just don't understand how Isobel didn't see that coming.. I thought the outcome was pretty clear from the party on wards..

Going to stop now before I get emotional..
I really did want to like this..

Over & Out, T xx ( )

I wanted to love [b:Nevermore|7129598|Nevermore (Nevermore, #1)|Kelly Creagh|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1294381693s/7129598.jpg|7391743], I really did; to be fair for the most part, I did. But unfortunately I think I'd set my expectations too high and in all honesty, I didn't like certain aspects of the novel..

I mean, I personally loved the relationship between Isobel and Varen and the simple high-school life.. All the things that you expect to love.

But whist other people seemed to be pleasantly surprised with how much the enjoyed the otherworldly aspects of the novel; I didn't.
I just couldn't seem to merge the supernatural story-line with that of the lighthearted and simple high school one in my head. I mean don't get me wrong, I knew from the beginning that the main part of the story was the supernatural side of things, but I just could not get my head around it.

And don't even get me started on that ending. I mean, what was that? I know there's a sequel and all, a sequel that I really don't want to read because of how little I liked this but now feel obliged to, but I just don't understand how Isobel didn't see that coming.. I thought the outcome was pretty clear from the party on wards..

Going to stop now before I get emotional..
I really did want to like this..

Over & Out, T xx ( )

WOW. I NEVER SAW THIS BOOK COMING. I WAS TOTALLY SURPRISED BY EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED. *sarcasm*
THIS BOOK DID NOT END RIGHT!
until I found that there is, indeed, a sequel.
but for the first tow years after first reading this book, I said to everyone, THIS BOOK DID NOT END RIGHT!
( )

really 3.5 I like to round up... =]

I LOVE E. A. Poe, so I liked this one - it had that going for it, and it set up the story well in terms of where it was going and who the leads are. I liked that she [Isobel] wasn't the typical vapid cheerleader and Varen wasn't the typical emo guy.. though in high school who is really typical when you lift the curtain or get under the facade. Brad however tended to be the typical football/bully guy, and that was sad. It could have been more stressful (think soul-tearing) for Isobel/Varen/Brad... but like I said it did set up the rest of the story line. ( )

Well, where do I start? ( )

Varen is considered a high school outcast. Isobel is a high school darling. When the two are assigned to do an English paper together, they choose Edgar Allen Poe as the subject of their report, a topic that Varen knows well. By working together Isobel and Varen learn that there is more to each other than their original pejudices. This is the basic plot of Nevermore by kelly Creagh, but it’s not the part of the story that I found the most enjoyable, there is also a fantasy aspect to the plot. There are things haunting Varen and they seem to have taken notice of Isobel, worse yet, she seems to be the only one who sees them.

I have a love/hate relationship with this story. I really want to love it and there are times that I do love it, but what really puts me off about the plot is the contrived initial conflict. Isobel’s boyfriend, Brad, is very jealous when it comes to Varen and doesn’t want Isobel hanging with him - dispite the fact that she would fail her class and be kicked off cheerleading if she doesn’t complete the assignment. All of her friends seem onboard with Brad with is mindboggling, either Isobel’s friends don’t really care about her at all or they are all just a bit insane. The other frustrating part is that she starts sneaking around and lying to her parents about her assignment, and it makes me wonder why her parents seem to not care enough about her education to let go of their prejudices against Varen.

While I understand why the author does this - a lot of Isobel’s character is revealed to Varen and the reader during this struggle - it seemed too artificial and I found that it was something I couldn’t accept. It was that frustrating. After we get past the initial conflict and we see more of Varen and Isobel and well, Edgar Allen Poe, the story becomes a million times better.

Kelly Creagh’s narrative pulls you in, her descriptions of the invisible creatures, the otherworld, even the emotions that Isobel feels practically leaps off the pages. It engages the reader and I found myself cheering Varen and Isobel on while also trying to figure out what was happening. The story has a lot of references to Edgar Allen Poe and his stories, particularly the Masque of the Red Death, and (while trying not to give too much away) Kelly provides the reader with a very graphic imagery of this particular story.

I think Poe fans will enjoy this read, I know fantasy fans definitely will.
( )

[Monday, ‎January ‎28, ‎2013] I just got this book. Can't wait, read so many good reviews and it helps that I'm a Poe's fan.

[Tuesday, ‎January ‎29, ‎2013] When cheerleader Isobel Lanley is assigned to work with goth, Edgar Allan Poe fan Varen Nethers on an English project, she is swept into a horrific dream world that he has created in his mind.

[‎Sunday, ‎October ‎6, ‎2013] it's 2:18 am, and I just finished reading Nevermore. Let me tell you this: I can't breath. I feel like Varen and Isobel; suffocated, filled with longing and despair.

But I have to say I adore Reynolds. There is a damsel-in-distress inside of me that loves a hero who eagerly leaps to assist the fallen beauty.

This book made me read many Poe poems and short stories online and made even read his biography. I lived the thriler aspect of the story and the mixed up reality tinged with nightmares. I loved how the Isobel changed through the book from a normal cheerleader who cares about popularity, cheer leading, girlfriends drama and jerk boyfriends to a girl fighting demons to save the man she loves.

I am glad I pre-ordered the book before I finished reading this book... I might get the second book this week. Oh and it's Halloween this month... Just like the book. ( )

[Monday, ‎January ‎28, ‎2013] I just got this book. Can't wait, read so many good reviews and it helps that I'm a Poe's fan.

[Tuesday, ‎January ‎29, ‎2013] When cheerleader Isobel Lanley is assigned to work with goth, Edgar Allan Poe fan Varen Nethers on an English project, she is swept into a horrific dream world that he has created in his mind.

[‎Sunday, ‎October ‎6, ‎2013] it's 2:18 am, and I just finished reading Nevermore. Let me tell you this: I can't breath. I feel like Varen and Isobel; suffocated, filled with longing and despair.

But I have to say I adore Reynolds. There is a damsel-in-distress inside of me that loves a hero who eagerly leaps to assist the fallen beauty.

This book made me read many Poe poems and short stories online and made even read his biography. I lived the thriler aspect of the story and the mixed up reality tinged with nightmares. I loved how the Isobel changed through the book from a normal cheerleader who cares about popularity, cheer leading, girlfriends drama and jerk boyfriends to a girl fighting demons to save the man she loves.

I am glad I pre-ordered the book before I finished reading this book... I might get the second book this week. Oh and it's Halloween this month... Just like the book.

( )

(4 stars for the second half, 2.5 for the first half.) I had to read this book, I love Poe, his poetry, his mysterious life. The first half of the book was most filled with teen drama, cheerleaders, jocks, goths... and their clicks crossing each other, with some expected and unexpected results..
The second half dark, twisted and "Poe-ish" I could not out it down. thrown into a dangerous, nightmare with almost no hope of escaping, IZ and Varen, find a bond to hold. Everything is dark, scary and trying to tear their bond. Reynolds a strange man slowly delivers answers to the mysteries of Poe and this nightmare they are stuck in.
The story blends wonderfully into Poe's poems. I could not put it down.But dang it, cliffhanger ending.... it's a trilogy do it will be while before I can find the answers. ( )

First off, I LOVED THIS BOOK! Ok, so you know how inarticulate I can get when I am gushing over a book I love. We will go one deep breathe of excitement at a time. This book is everything you could possibly want in a young adult novel. There is excitement, bad guys, jealously, drama, cliches, universe-opposed love and then a dash of dark literature thrown in. If you haven't read any Poe before reading this book, you will definitely want to afterward.


The characters in this story are so like every cliche young adult character ever written but at the same time they are the opposite. Ms. Creagh takes the best from the cliche and marries that with characters who have their own personalities, charm, and charisma. Isobel and Varen both have something that draws the reader to them and makes them care about every single nuance of their lives. I wanted to know Varen's favorite color (well maybe that is obvious), his favorite sports team, and his most prized possession and I wanted to know the same for Isobel. They draw you into the story and make you want to keep reading just so you can get to know them better.


The plot starts out slow but it feels like that was purposeful on the author's part in order to get you to understand her characters and their motivations before you have to jump into some twisted plot. I love that the author keeps a bit of the mystery until the end but not so much that the reader is confused and in need and grasping for something to hold onto...she actually pretty much throws everything out in the beginning but not so much so that you won't want to read the book.


I love Ms. Creagh's writing for many reason. One, I think that I saw various lines throughout the story that were from 'The Raven'...expertly sneaked into the pages...I may be wrong but...that is what I thought I saw, let me know if you saw it too. I love the poetry and love that Ms. Creagh also puts into her story, there are a few snippets of Poe's work throughout the book (DUH) but you can feel the love Ms. Creagh has for the poet in the pages of her book. I also, as I have said many time before, love when YA authors add older classical authors into their work, opens the door for more young adults to take an interest in classical literature outside of English class. The last of my favorite part of the author's writing was her imagery, her imagery in some parts are almost poetic and she writes them in ways that are so different from other authors but make the most sense as a reader. I love love love this book and with the ending of this one I have to wait with baited breathe for the next. ( )

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: A dark, horror young adult novel that felt like a cross between Edgar Allen Poe stories and Labyrinth!

Opening Sentence: Edgar opened one eye to a slit.

The Review:

Nevermore is a young adult, horror love story about a cheerleader who falls in love with a *gasp* goth boy. The first half of this novel kind of plays like a contemporary love about two people who couldn’t be more different yet like each other and the people around them who keep telling them they shouldn’t be together. The second half holds the horror and paranormal showcasing Poe’s work in a dreamscape setting.

Isobel Lanley is teamed up to work with Varen Nethers in English class. They have to work together outside of class because their lame teacher won’t give them class time to do the project. The project must focus on a great American writer/poet with Poe being the obvious choice. Isobel is not happy with her partner. Varen is the crazy goth boy who has terrible rumors saying that he is a vampire and drinks blood among other things. When Isobel actually meets Varen for the first time she is drawn to him. She can’t quite figure it out. But Isobel’s boyfriend, Brad, has to be an utter Neanderthal/psycho/little man that he threatens Varen every chance that he can get. He doesn’t want Isobel doing a project with Varen. Isobel begins to realize how terrible Brad is and feels for Varen.

Strange things begin to happen to Isobel, things that are tied to Varen. She just thinks she’s going crazy or at the very least daydreaming. Her feelings toward Varen begin to grow into something that she just didn’t think was possible, but everyone keeps seeing the outside layer of Varen and warning her away. They don’t see the quiet, soft-spoken boy who has captured her imagination and her heart. Varen actually takes care of Isobel and pays attention to her unlike that jock of a boyfriend. Varen ends up getting drawn to deep into another world where Isobel must find him and hope that she can save him.

For the most part, I did like Isobel. She parted ways from her friends when they were just awfully rude. No one should have to go through the stuff her friends put Varen through. Or the language used. Isobel stuck to her guns even though she ended up losing her IN crowd, but because of this she made new friends that she probably wouldn’t have otherwise. I did have a little bit of a hard time believing in her feelings for Varen but by the end I really believed in her desperation. (Plus, I imagined Varen as the lead singer in a band I listen to so that help me with her feelings.)

Varen was pretty much what I would expect of his type of character, quiet and soft-spoken unless he’s talking about something he is passionate about. He has a bit of desperation about him but he is a little rude trying to warn Isobel off of him because he doesn’t want to get hurt by her spurning him.

I may have been a bit presumptuous likening the story to The Labyrinth movie but I really got the vibe from Isobel and Pinfeathers during The Grim Façade scene with the music, the dancing and the strange creatures.

I would definitely recommend Nevermore for fans of Poe and for readers who want something a little more different about their paranormal reads. I already can’t wait to see how this series will go on and can’t wait to pick up my copy of Enshadowed. Nevermore is told entirely through Isobel’s third person point of view, except the Prologue which is Edgar’s.

Notable Scene:

He spun her before she could wrench away, and they coiled in a tight circle. The world blended into a mesh of chaos, color, and noise.

“Stop!” she shouted, but he ignored her, throwing her into revolution after revolution, almost swinging her into another pair of masked dancers who scampered aside, laughing.

“Where’s your mask?” he asked. “Everyone is wearing one but you, cheerleader. Are you trying to say you have nothing to hide?” He dragged her through the steps.

“Let go of me!”

“You know, I’ve been chatting with your friend all evening.”

“Varen? Where is he?”

“Really, cheerleader. I’m beginning to think you have a one-track mind.” He pushed her away violently, and Isobel stumbled onward, nearly toppling into a pair of courtiers dressed as what she thought must be a pair of black spray-painted toucans. She stared at them confused, and in return, they glared at her until Pinfeathers yanked her once more into the dance. She crashed flat against him and he spun her again.

“I meant your other friend,” he said. “Then again, you have so many. It’s been hard to keep them all straight! I wouldn’t exactly say he’s much of a conversationalist, though. Kind of the strong, silent type. At least until he screams. You look beautiful tonight, by the way, have I told you yet?” He smiled.

FTC Advisory: Atheneum Books for Young Readers/Simon & Schuster provided me with a copy of Nevermore. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. ( )

While I enjoyed this book enough to devour it, I also had no idea what was going on most of the time. Isobel makes for a refreshing change of pace--she's perky and blonde, a cheerleader too, and doesn't completely lose her personality when she falls in love. Varen is a bit too much of a jerk for my tastes, but he's better than most of the heroes in this genre. ( )

I finished this book in one night, I am not kidding. When I ordered this on amazon a couple weeks ago, I didn't expect myself to finish the 543 page paperback in one night! But I did, wow. The cover did not have me thinking great things. I mean, he looks like he could be a starving (look how hollow his cheeks are!) axe wielding assassin, and she his "I am so mysterious, you can't see my eyes. I have so many secrets" girlfriend. Okay, maybe i am exaggerating... a bit. Well, anyway, Isobel and Varen are much better than that!

My favorite part of this book is the wild fantasy, I have always been a sucker for those kind of books! Kelly Creagh makes the dark fantasy so haunting and realistic. I shuddered many times throughout Nevermore's pages. Thanks to this book, I now have a tiny spark of interest of Edgar Allen Poe. Except did you hear he married his cousin or something? (Sorry, couldn't resist, if you have read this book you'll understand the inside joke. If not, read Nevermore now!)

Nevermore sucked me in. I can't really explain why. I loved the fantasy, I loved most of the characters. Maybe it was because it felt so realistic to me, so plausible. While I was reading this i felt like I was dreaming it. I could see everything, hear the voices, understand the characters.

My favorite character was Gwen. She was just a lot of fun to read about. The absolute perfect person to make you smile and laugh.

One of my only complaints is that Varen wasn't as spectacular as a main character could be. I rated him "normal" in the "how much do I like the characters rating". I mean I don't have anything to point out that I hated, it is just I could have felt a little more for him than what I did!

I REALLY recommend this book. If you love real fantasy, you'll love the originality and darkness of Nevermore.

I give this 4.5/5 stars ( )

I have to start this review off by saying that I don’t normally read these types of books. Paranormal romance has just never been my thing. When I accidentally stumbled upon this book, I was immediately intrigued by the Poe aspect of the story; I’ve always been an Edgar Allan Poe fangirl. I happened to glance at some of the reviews, which generally seemed pretty positive. I took a chance, and let me tell you what, I am SO happy that I did.

This book tells the story of Isobel and Varen, a cheerleader and a goth who end up being paired together for an English project. Neither one of them is very happy about this arrangement. Isobel’s possessive, football playing boyfriend isn’t happy about it either.


This book doesn’t have that immediate opposites-attract, love-at-first-sight aspect (THANK GOD). We slowly see Isobel become aware that you can’t judge a person by what they look like and what others think of them. At the same time, Varen doesn’t just see her as a dumb cheerleader anymore. You can tell, even with his aloof mannerisms, that he genuinely cares about her and wants nothing more than to protect her. It is so refreshing to see a romance that develops in a realistic way. Just about when you are ready for them to start admitting their feelings for one another, strange things begin to happen. Isobel begins to have intense dreams that seem all too real when she wakes up. She is hearing voices. She is being chased by invisible adversaries through the woods. Why did all this begin as they started this project? What does Edgar Allan Poe have to do with this?


I am so impressed by the writing of this book. This is one of those stories that could have definitely had a crash-and-burn if it wasn’t executed perfectly. Kelly Creagh managed to weave the story of Isobel and Varen seamlessly with her references to Poe and the mysterious circumstances that surrounded his death. She has given her readers a so-crazy-it-just-might-be-true explanation, and that is one of the greatest things about the book. You are left sitting there wondering...could something like this have really happened?

I think the only bad thing I could possibly say about it is the cliffhanger ending, and I truly don’t know how anybody who read this when it first came out was able to handle waiting for the second book. Thankfully, I have already downloaded it onto my Nook, and plan to begin reading it after I post this review. ( )

Let's give this book the stars it deserves:



Oh, là.
That's better. ( )

Pros:
* Mythology based around Poe
* Awesome Poe references
* Hot Goth boy -- complete with lip piercing

Cons:
* Prose is overly poetic
* Secondary characters are flat and often exist only to provide exposition (or in Gwen's case, rides).

I really enjoyed Nevermore. It was nice to read strong YA that was new. No vampires, werewolves, zombies, angels, ect. As someone who enjoys Poe it was nice to see the history and speculation woven throughout.

There are some plot points I wish we had seen developed/explained a bit better - like how Varen was able to build the initial connection. ( )

RATING: 4.5 stars!

Finally an YA urban fantasy/paranormal with a story that hasn't been totally overdone! :p

Isobel Lanley seemingly has it all: she's pretty (and blonde), popular, a cheerleader and dates the most sought-after guy in school (who is, of course, a football player). So when her English teacher pairs her with Goth (and very unpopular) Varen Nethers for an assignment, she is less than thrilled.

Suddenly her whole (and perfect) life changes as her friends draw away from her for even talking to Varen, her boyfriend has jealous fits and even her father seems to think she is turning into a troublemaker for spending time with whom he calls "a hooligan". Worse, she can't seem to get out of trouble long enough to actually meet Varen and get their work on Edgar Allen Poe done. Not to mention, of course, the strange voices she's been hearing or the weird man that seems to follow her everywhere. As she draws closer to Varen and away from her former life, Isobel begins to understand that Varen is more than just a tortured Goth... he may just be in real trouble.

"Nevermore" was a veritable breath of fresh air. Do you like YA urban fantasy but are tired of reading about a) exclusive and mysterious private schools/ academies where supernatural beings go to school and everything seems to happen or b) melodramatic and irrealistic love stories between a mortal and a supernatural creature? Well, then "Nevermore" is the book for you.
In this book, there are supernatural creatures and supernatural events, yes, as it is after all, urban fantasy; but both the hero and the heroine are human; there is also a romance, but it happens gradually, not after two chapters... and this, for me is worth an entire half-star, because I am ever so tired of all the Twilight rip-offs out there where the characters fall madly in love at first sight. Ugh. Also, the heroine isn't totally useless and actually has some backbone!

Of course, while I found the plot and characters refreshing, this book still had some problems.

For instance, for the first 60 or something pages I found some of the character interactions and general attitudes a little unrealistic and exaggerated. I just couldn't understand why Isobel's friends immediately started an intimidation campaign towards Varen when it wasn't even their choice to work together, it was their teacher who decided to pair them up for school work.
It's not like I didn't expected it to happen eventually if and when Varen and Isobel started to spend more time together (I could understand the boyfriend's jealousy then, for example) but I didn't get why they freaked out as soon as Isobel told them she was working with Varen. Later on, when it became apparent that some of the girls wanted things that were Isobels' (like Alyssa, who wanted her place as main flyer in the cheerleader squad), it made a little more sense, but I still didn't understand Brad's attitude or Nikki's.

As for the story, while the pacing was really good, I think the author didn't flesh out her dreamworld well enough. There are a lot of things left unexplained, the most important of all being what is exactly this dreamworld (how and why does it exist, etc), why Varen could interact with it and change it (or Poe, for that matter) and why did the queen want a fusion between worlds. Maybe all this will come in later books, but I found the vague information a bit confusing and since it wasn't explained very clearly why the Queen of the dreamworld wanted both worlds connected, I didn't quite get the point of the whole story.

Still, the author managed to write a very compelling and fresh story and as it's the first in a series, maybe these questions will be answered later. Pretty interesting overall. ( )

At first glance (and for the first ~100 pages) this seems to be your typical “popular girl is forced to work with unpopular boy, they surprisingly fall for each other and, against all odds, manage to overcome adversity (social standings, football playing boyfriend, etc.) to get together” type of story. However, Nevermore is so much more than a tale of star-crossed lovers – there are much darker paranormal forces at work, inspired by Poe’s works and his tortured life, which is when things start to get very interesting.

While the promise of Edgar Allan Poe initially piqued my interest, it was the characters that caused me to fall in love with this book in the way that I did. Isobel is so much more than your typical blond cheerleader – she is smart, strong, passionate and close with her family, who play an important role in the book. Varen is wonderfully sarcastic, intelligent, and a bit of a mystery. I’ll admit that I added him to my list of book boyfriends as soon as he referred to Poe as a “literary god” and my love for him continued to grow as the book progressed and his vulnerable side was brought to light. Their relationship was believable, sweet, complicated – and it wasn’t the main focus of the book, which made me like it even more.

Kelly Creagh’s writing style is beautiful. The descriptions are so detailed that you can visualize everything perfectly. You can certainly tell that Creagh did her homework – the portions involving Poe’s life are meticulously researched and interesting, and will inspire you to pick up a copy of The Complete Works of Edgar Allan Poe. As some mysteries are solved, many other questions will arise, resulting in a fast paced read that seems much shorter than its ~543 pages and will leaving you wanting to read Enshadowed straight away. ( )

For me, Nevermore by Kelly Creagh has become the gold standard of debut authors and YA paranormal in general. This is a book I keep coming back to over and over again, enjoying the characters and storyline just as much on a re-read as the first time. I never get tired of it and have recommended it to everyone who loves YA paranormal books, from teens to grandmothers. With a prologue featuring Edgar Allen Poe and strange creatures that no one else can see, we are plunged into the world of Nevermore.

After the opening Poe sequence, Creagh switches us to a typical high school as seen from the perspective of Isobel Lanley, a blonde cheerleader who has just been paired with Goth classmate, Varen Nethers, for a literary project. Isobel is focused on cheerleading, her boyfriend Brad (a football player) and school work – in that order. She is appalled when she finds herself forced to work with Varen, of whom dark rumors abound. Varen is not exactly thrilled either, but resigned to the situation. It is his intention to focus the project on Edgar Allen Poe, his works and mysterious death. As they get deeper into their project, Isobel and Varen realize there is more to each other than meets the eye and romance slowly blooms. As they grow closer, Isobel finds herself pulling away from her clique and drawing closer to the school fringes, such as bohemian Gwen. But Isobel’s relationship with Varen is hampered by a stranger named Reynolds, who appears to Isobel with dark warnings about Varen and the dream world he inhabits. When Isobel ignores the warnings, her world and Varen’s dreams collide with devastating results.

Isobel and Varen are both very strong characters and I loved the fact that they did not instantly get along, but actually irritate each other. Isobel is a cheerleader, but not a bubble-headed cliché. While she is too accepting of some of Brad’s and her other friends’ actions, she does manage to stand up to them when it really counts. Varen follows his own path and exhibits a quiet endurance in the face of threats from Brad. He escapes through the pages of his journal and his dreams. The gradual introduction of Varen’s dream world is smoothly done, with quick glimpses developing into longer dream sequences and then a final immersion into the world in the final third of the book. It is, ironically, in Varen’s dream world where Isobel’s strength truly shines. Ties to Poe are strong throughout, and we are brought to realize that what is seen by Poe in the prologue is just a sliver of the world into which he and Varen have fallen. The contrasts between Isobel and Varen are glaring: cheerleader/Goth, realist/dreamer, athlete/artist. She comes from a solid upper middle-class family with parents she actually talks with and a younger brother that annoys her, while Varen comes from a wealthy background and unsupportive family. In fact, this book is very much about contrasts – bullying Brad vs. enduring Varen, popular vs. not, fickle old friends vs. solid new ones, and bright reality vs. dark dreams.

Creagh has done a lot of research for Nevermore. She focuses on the athleticism of cheerleading and shows the dedication required at the high school level. The sub-cultures of Goth and bohemians in high school are detailed, with the fashion and customs drawn realistically; one of my college-age niece’s first comments on the book was that she went to school with people like Varen and Gwen. The levels between the “popular kids” (the football players and Isobel’s fellow cheerleaders) and the fringe groups (Goth and bohemian) are well-delineated. Poe’s life and work are meticulously woven throughout.

An incredibly well-done and original young adult paranormal/fantasy debut that holds up through repeated re-reads, with interesting characters, romance, and moments of horror all blended together in a compelling story. Nevermore has become one of my all-time favorites.

And, by the way, the cover art is gorgeous. ( )

Wow, I just finished so my head is still spinning. Pretty cheerleader and goth boy have to do a paper together. Has a Romeo and Juliet feel because it seems they cant seem to make anyone happy when they are together. Isobel, the pretty cheerleader has a boyfriend (football guy named Brad) and he dislikes Isobel having anything to do with Goth boy Varen. Bring on the petty jealousies that high school has. The author spins her Poe tale quite well in a creepy way. I can't wait for the second book!