Top Ten of 2013: books I'm looking forward to in 2014

Hi there, welcome back to day 3 of the Top Ten of 2013 event organized by Rachel from Fiktshun, Jaime from Two Chicks on Books and Mindy from Magical Urban Fantasy Reads.
Thanks so much for hosting the event, girls! It was a lot of fun :)

This is the last day of the Top 10 of 2013 , and I'm kinda sad it's over already :( I liked going back over what I've read this year, and checking out everyone else's lists! Anyway, here's the last topic of this year's event...


Top Ten Books I'm looking forward to in 2014

Well, actually I've already done this list as part of Top Ten Tuesday. You can see what I picked back then here. So now I get the chance to feature some more books that didn't make the list a couple weeks ago, though my top two picks here are old ones that I just couldn't bear not mentioning again.





If the cover's not pictured, there isn't one yet.


The Retribution of Mara Dyer (Mara Dyer #3), by Michelle Hodkin
Well. As I said in the earlier post, book 2 was a game changer, and in book 3 I want revenge. I want a certain someone dead, and I want to know what's up with the whole frame narrative. More Noah/Mara wouldn't hurt either. Just gimme the bloody book already! ;)

Oblivion (Nevermore #3), by Kelly Creagh
Well. I expect more heartache, more amazing Poe references, mystery, and I'm still kind of hoping for a sorta-happy ending for Isobel and Varen. Please? And the wonderful writing. Can't forget that.

Cruel Beauty, by Rosamund Hodge
I'm almost finished with it, and I tell you guys - you really really need to get it when it comes out in late January! It's soooo good, and I love the mixture of fairytales, Greek mythology, and various other lore.

Ignite Me (Shatter Me #3), by Tahereh Mafi
I haven't read Unravel Me yet, but I know once I do, I'll be pining for book 3.

Hunting the Dark (Moth #2), by Karen Mahoney
I really like Mahoney's take on vampires and Moth as a character! There isn't a cover or description yet though, even though the book is supposed to come out in February :/

The Cure for Dreaming, by Cat Winters
"At the turn of the 20th century, a seventeen-year-old is hypnotized into seeing people's true selves. Illustrated with late-Victorian images."
After the wonderful writing and the fitting images in In the Shadow of Blackbirds, I can't wait to see another supernatural historical by Cat Winters!

The Forever Song (Blood of Eden #3), by Julie Kagawa
After what happened to Zeke at the end of book 2, the wait for book 3 seems very long! I can't wait to see Allie go into full-on pissed-off vampire mode though! I also already miss Kanin's quiet presence and Jackal's sarcasm.

Unwept (The Nightbirds #1), by Tracy and Laura Hickman
This one is still fairly new to me, but the promise of an unearthly killer and the mixture of thriller and (maybe) paranoia as Ellis tries to remember what happened to her has my full attention! The setting and group dynamics will also be interesting to observe. Plus, just look at that pretty cover :)

The King Killer Chronicle #3, by Patrick Rothfuss
At least I heard it's coming out in 2014. No cover or title yet, though. I've yet to read The Wise Man's Fear, but hey... at least the wait for book 3 will be shorter ;)

Where Silence Gathers (Some Quiet Place #2), by Kelsey Sutton
Some Quiet Place was about Fear (whom I loved as a character, see my book boyfriend post from yesterday), this one is about a struggle between Revenge and Forgiveness. I hope for more of that captivating prose, and maybe a Fear cameo?

Honorable mentions:
Dreams of Gods and Monsters, Sweet Reckoning, Isla and the Happily Ever After, Wings... and a ton more.

What do you guys think of my pick? Are you also pining for these? What were your own choices?

Top Ten Tuesday: 2014 releases I'm dying to read

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every week they post a new topic that the participants come up with a top ten list for.

This week is about which of next year's releases we're most excited about


Aaah, I love this topic! :D I always marvel at how many great books are coming out. Here's the ten that look best to me, though there are many more I could have included.
I hope the slideshow works, if you're reading this as an email you might want to open it on the actual blog.





Unhinged (Splintered #2), by A.G. Howard
I loved Splintered so much and really hoped there'd be a sequel! I need more Morpheus and I felt that Alyssa had unfinished business.

The Retribution of Mara Dyer (Mara Dyer #3), by Michelle Hodkin
It was supposed to be published this October but got pushed back to June 2014. I. Need. It. Now!!! Seriously I just want to see Mara kick ass and, well, get her retribution. Because does she ever deserve it.

Fiendish, by Brenna Yovanoff
I really like that Brenna Yovanoff writes standalones! It's a nice change from the usual YA, which seems to be all series. I love the look of this one. Creepy houses and girls... yes please!

Oblivion (Nevermore #3), by Kelly Creagh
I've seen three versions of this cover so far and I'm not happy with the coloring of any of them quite yet. No matter what though, the content will be fantastic and is very likely to rip my poor heart to pieces.

Talon, by Julie Kagawa
New series! With dragons! And an order tasked with finding and destroying them. Can't wait for it to get a cover and a more precise description.

Throne of Glass #3, by Sarah J. Maas
Again, no cover, no title. But I need this sequel!! The end of book 2 suddenly made the world of this series so much bigger, I can't wait to see where it all goes from here.

Between the Spark and the Burn (Between #2), by April Genevieve Tucholke
I'm not quite happy with the font here. I think they should have stuck with the one from the first book. Bug again, as long as I get more of that lovely prose, I'm not about to get all huffy ;)

The Winner's Curse, by Marie Rutkoski
I really enjoyed Rutkoski's The Shadow Society and I love the concept of this one! I also remember reading a very early review and it was extremely positive, so my hopes are high.

Dreams of Gods & Monsters (Daughter of Smoke & Bone #3), by Laini Taylor
Duh. Who doesn't want to know how this all pans out?!

The Lovely and the Lost (The Dispossessed #2), by Page Morgan
The description is very vague as of now but I love the Gargoyle lore and glimpses of further world building, and I'm very curious to see where this  series is going.

Runners-up: Cruel Beauty (by Rosamund Hodge, I have an ARC), Tell the Wind and Fire (by Sarah Rees Brennan, apparently a modern retelling of A Tale of Two Cities), Strange and Ever After (Susan Dennard).


Okay, that's it! Do we have any picks in common? I'm very curious to see what people came up with and add some more to my TBR of upcoming books :)

Top Ten Tuesday: Authors that deserve more recognition

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every week they post a new topic that the participants come up with a top ten list for.


This week's topic: top ten authors that deserve more recognition

The tricky thing about this topic for me is that sometimes I'm not actually sure just how well-known an author is... so maybe some of my picks are a bit off? Let me know in the comments, I guess ;)

Cat Winters
Her debut, In the Shadow of Blackbirds, is haunting and brilliant. It made me feel anything ranging from happiness to sadness to anger or despair. I'm looking very much forward to reading more from her! I think the book has gotten a bit of coverage in the blogosphere (and rightfully so) but still I think the majority has never heard of it.

Karen Mahoney
A British author whose books I love! She concluded the Iron Witch trilogy in April with The Stone Demon and I can't wait for the next book in her series about Moth, a teen vampire. She has a great sense of humor and I enjoy the aspect of popular culture/nerdiness and snark in her books ^^ She's also really nice to talk to on twitter!

L.A. Weatherly
Her Angel series is amazing! She crafts strong, likeable characters and I love how she balances action and romance! I met her in April in the context of a writing workshop and she was very approachable and gave great, concrete advice :)

Sarah Rees Brennan
Not sure she really belongs in this list? Anyhow, I think many people know of her as Cassandra Clare's friend, but I actually read the Demon's Lexicon books before I heard of Cassie and The Mortal Instruments and damn, they're amazing! The snark! The dangerous, unique magic!

Kate Griffin
When I read A Madness of Angels, I put sticky notes all over the book because there were so many amazing passages! It will make you look at the city in a whole new way. One of my top favorite Urban Fantasy series!

Susan Dennard
Another case of I'm not sure she's 'unknown' enough for this list? Anyhow, her series is awesome! It's a great mixture of historical, steampunk, and zombies. I can't wait for A Darkness Strange and Lovely!

Kelly Creagh
I can't fawn enough over her Nevermore series! If you love E.A. Poe and creepy YA, you should definitely give it a try! She also wrote one of my favorite book boyfriends into existence - Varen Nethers. Her writing is wonderful and I love how she incorporates Poe and his work so seamlessly into the story! It's way too long until the release of the final book :(

Bethany Griffin
Another Poe-person! I love her Masque of the Red Death duology. Her writing is lush but with an unflinching sharpness to it. She's not afraid to hurt her characters but she also shows that they can find moments of beauty in despair. Can't wait to see what her next book will be about!

Gina Damico
If you like reaper books, get this one asap!! Gina Damico is hilarious - I laughed so much while reading Croak on the train that I kinda wanted to stop because everyone was looking at me all weird but I just couldn't because it was so damn good! She mixes the horrible and creepy with the sarcastic and absurdly funny and her imagination is made of awesome.

Susan Kaye Quinn
I've only read episodes 1-6 in her Debt Collector serial but I tell you, it's amazing! If you want male POV New Adult that is not a contemporary but an awesome kind of sci-fi retro-noir story - give it a shot! Fantastic world-building, mysterious characters, and very engaging writing! After reading episode 1-3 I had to get the bundle for 4-6 immediately and I read it all on the same day.


Well... I can't really stick with 10 this time around, so here are four runner-ups that I think are amazing but also well-known -ish, I think? Not sure.
Holly Black, Kelly Keaton, Kiki Hamilton, and Rachel Vincent.


So, what do you guys think of my picks? Have you heard of these authors? And who do you think deserves more recognition? Link me up :)

Top Ten Tuesday: Authors on my auto-buy list

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every week the participants post their top ten to a specific topic.

This week is about authors that are so amazing and that we trust so much, we'd buy anything they wrote.

There are only a few authors from whom I'd buy absolutely *anything*. I mean, if I read the book description and it's about an issue that just doesn't interest me, or if they suddenly go into another genre, or if their new book is about a topic that is a trigger for me, I'd stay away, or at least not buy the book immediately. But there are many authors that I trust and whose writing I am totally in love with so that I preorder their books.

1. Melissa Marr
   I love love love her writing style. I've read all her Wicked Lovely stories including the mangas, many stories she has in anthologies (though not all because there are so many and I only have so much money and time) as well as Carnival of Souls. However, not sure about that middle grade series she has coming out soon... but that's because at this point I'm just not into MG.
   
2. Holly Black
   Her. Writing. Is. Magic. I've loved it since I read (and reread and reread and re-borrowed so I could re-read before I had my own copy) Tithe. I'm so excited about The Coldest Girl in Coldtown coming out in the fall! And the Curseworkers books just blew my mind.
   
3. Kim Harrison
   The Hollows series. Rachel. Jenks. Ivy. Al the coffee-loving demon. Kisten. Enough said ;)
   
4. Jeaniene Frost
   Cat and Bones are among my favorite couples :) Also, I love how she combines fun writing and banter with action and creepiness. She creates memorable characters that come to life on the page!
   
5. Richelle Mead
   Fun, action, heartbreak, redemption... I've read all her books apart from the Dark Swan ones because I haven't gotten to them yet. Her style is just so readable for me, I don't want to stop and just dive into the worlds she creates :)
   
6. Kelly Creagh
   Her writing is just sooo beautiful! I love how she brings the Poe elements to life in her books but also twists them and makes them her own! I read her books slowly just so I can savor them. I'm very curious about what her next project after the Nevermore trilogy will be!
   
7. Rachel Vincent
   Her writing is just so gripping and real! And I love the characters she creates. She doesn't shy away from letting them make risky decisions and facing the consequences. Very strong heroines. No sugar-coating the bad things. I'm very curious about that new YA project she's been hinting at!
   
8. Erin Morgenstern
   She's only published one book but seriously I loved The Night Circus so much I couldn't even review it because I have no idea how. It's a masterpiece. I'll buy whatever she releases next without thinking twice about it.
   
9. Kate Griffin
   What an imagination! I love her version of urban fantasy. So magical! Gives me a book high and lets me see the world with fresh eyes. Also, reluctant heroes that don't want to do heroic things by default. Love it :) Oh Matthew Swift...
   
10. a tie between Julie Kagawa and Sarah Rees Brennan and maybe Cassandra Clare
    Yup. Julie because I was hesitant about trusting her with the vampires but she was amazing at it, and I also loved her adult story in the 'Til The World Ends anthology. If she decides to go for adult horror next, I'm in.
    Sarah Rees Brennan because her writing is jus so fun and addictive, but also heartbreaking! She sure loves to torture us poor readers :P I loved the Demon books and Unspoken, but I haven't bought Team Human yet. I just don't know if I want to. I'm sure it's funny but... I dunno. The co-authoring bit might also play into my decision...
    Cassandra Clare because I don't know if she can do anything non-Shadow Hunters. I love those novels, the Infernal Devices even more so. But another trilogy? I mean, I'll certainly read it, but I'd also like to see her branch out a bit. I read a non-nephilim short story of hers in an anthology once but that one didn't really do it for me...

There are quite a few authors I feel sort of bad about not including but yeah... there can only be ten. And unlike for other people, J.K. Rowling is not an auto-buy for me.

What do you think of my list? Anyone you'd like to chuck out? Someone you also picked? Also, leave a link to your own list, I'm curious about maybe discovering new authors :)

Review: Enshadowed, by Kelly Creagh

Release date: August 28, 2012
Publisher: Atheneum Books
Format: Hardcover, 429 pages

Description from the dust jacket:

Varen Nethers is trapped in a perilous dreamworld – a treacherous and desolate realm where the terrifying stories of Edgar Allan Poe come to life. Isobel Lanley, plagued by strange visions and haunted by nightmares of Varen’s creation, is the only one who can save him.

Isobel knows that her only hope lies within a Baltimore cemetery. There, in the early morning hours of Edgar Allan Poe’s birthday, a mysterious stranger known as the “Poe Toaster” will make his annual homage at the legendary poet’s grave.

Only the Poe Toaster holds the key to the way between worlds. But great dangers lie ahead for Isobel. An ancient evil, draped in veils of white, is watching, challenging her for Varen’s affections. When Isobel finally finds Varen, he is no longer the quiet and brooding boy who once captivated her, but a dark force, powerful and malevolent.

Could Isobel’s greatest love also be her greatest adversary?

The following review is based on a copy I purchased myself.

Do not read if you haven't read Nevermore and don't want to be spoiled!!!

Review (no spoilers):

I have waited for this book for more than a year, with big expectations and not a little fear for what the novel would hold in store for Isobel and Varen – I was not disappointed on any of those accounts. Trying to review Enshadowed is difficult for me because there is just no way I can do this book justice. Anything I say will be bland compared to the experience of reading it. It made me laugh, it surprised me, it scared me, intrigued me, and it left me in pieces – as it well should.

The ending of Nevermore left Isobel in the real world while Varen was a captive in the dreamworld he helped create. Enshadowed picks up a few weeks later. Isobel has still not found a way to reach Varen but is trying to convince her parents to take her to Baltimore for a ‘university trip’ so that she can then sneak off and intercept Reynolds, aka the Poe Toaster, at Poe’s grave and make him take her to Varen. Meanwhile, she is under a lot of strain because the police, her teacher Mr Swanson, and basically the entire student body think that she has at least an idea about where Varen went. Isobel feels terrible for leaving him behind, even though she was tricked by Reynolds into doing it, and she is hell-bent of finding him and bringing him back no matter what.

However, there are signs of Varen reaching out to her in her dreams and Isobel is finding it harder and harder to distinguish between waking and sleeping, between what is real and what should not be real. Pinfeathers, one of the Nocs created by Varen, is haunting her both in he dreams and in the real world. I never thought I’d say this but I grew to love Pinfeathers. In Nevermore, he plain scared me (though during the re-read I learned to appreciate his sense of humor) but the Pinfeathers in Enshadowed is changed, and Isobel can no longer be sure about who is friend and who is foe. The connection between Pinfeathers and Varen is one I found very fascinating, as are the parallels between Varen and Poe and their relations to the dreamworld and to the veiled female figure who lured them there and whom I cannot really talk about without spoilers.

Isobel is a very strong heroine, refusing to give up even as everyone around her, in the know or not, tells her to turn her back on Varen and get on with her life, lies to her, or otherwise tries to hinder her. Comparing her to the spoilt cheerleader she was at the beginning of Nevermore, she has undergone incredible growth! And she does not wallow in self-pity, even though she has reason enough to do it.

Also the minor characters gain a lot more depth in the sequel: Isobel’s family plays an important role, we get to know Gwen better and there is also some light shed on Varen’s parents and his past in general. I’m still not sure I have figured out how it’s all connected but I have theories ;) Kelly Creagh definitely keeps the reader guessing, and I loved that!

Of course what I loved most of all was the wonderful, rich and lyrical prose. Not once does Creagh resort to a clichéd description; instead, she comes up with wonderful new similes and metaphors that fit her story perfectly. She creates moods and scenes that will pull the reader right into the story, at her mercy to be awed or terrified. Poe’s writing is a phantom haunting the story, woven through it in an unobtrusive yet recognizable way to those who know his stories and poetry. And it’s not just random phrases, quotes or allusions – it’s the deeper themes, the places, the names… I could write an essay just on intertextuality in this series.

All in all, this is a wonderfully crafted, dark read full of mystery and its very own brand of magic, both in the story and in the words Creagh uses to tell it. It will make you laugh and cry and shake your fist at the injustice of the world, and like the notes of a certain lullaby, it will haunt your mind for a long time to come.

I could rhapsodize on forevermore but this is a novel you just have to read for yourself to feel its full effect. I can’t wait for the conclusion of this trilogy!

P.S.: And yet I feel I should ramble on because this is too short to possibly do the story justice… maybe I’ll edit it at a later point. My brain is still too bedazzled but I had to get this on the page while still ‘under the influence’, so to speak.

Have you read Enshadowed? What were your thoughts? Predictions? Fears? Favorite bits? Let me know in the comments :)

Teaser Tuesday: Nevermore

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

add it on goodreads

I'm still not quite finished with my re-reading of Nevermore to prepare for Enshadowed, so I'm giving you a teaser from here this week. You can read my review here.

I am shamelessly extending the two sentences thing this time...

"Read me something?" She heard herself say, as though someone else was speaking through her.
He hesitated. Then, after a moment, she felt him slide nearer, causing every one of her senses to become amplified. His shoulder brushed against hers, igniting a tremble that ran through the length of her, and she tried to hide her shaking hands by gripping the sides of the book. He began turning pages once more. She could feel the movement of each sheet with her entire frame, fist as it lifted, then as it settled on the other side.
At last he stopped, and she stared down at the printed column of words, unable to comprehend a single one. His hand, warm and steady, wound its way around hers, wrapping it like a spider would its prey. She surrendered it to him, unable to watch even as his thumb traced the place, just above her knuckles, where he had once written his number in deep violet. Isobel ceased to breathe. Her heart pounded in her chest, her thoughts shattering into senseless fragments. All the while, her eyes remained trained and unblinking on the open page. [...]
"Ulalume," he began, and the word itself, which he'd pronounced "You-la-loom," flowed from him like a string of notes. [Creagh, page 290-291]

 *Sigh* I love Varen Nethers. I could have chosen so so many bits and pieces of this book. He is the guy I always wished I'd meet but never did. And to have a guy with his dark intensity settle beside me and read to me? Woah... But enough of my non-existent love-life :P

What are you reading and teasing us with this Tuesday? Leave a link in your comment :)

Stacking The Shelves

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews for us to showcase any books we've gotten that week, be they gifted, bought, or received for review.

My book haul :) All of them are bought apart from Origin, which is a signed ARC I won in one of the author's competitions :D It's my first ARC and it makes me very happy and I just want to dig into it already ^^
Enshadowed, by Kelly Creagh
Black Heart, by Holly Black
Touch, by Jus Accardo
Uncommon Criminals, by Ally Carter

I've been meaning to read Touch forever, but whenever I wanted to get it, it was out of print or only available in an edition that for some reason was very expensive. I put of buying Black Heart for a long time because I was reluctant to buy it because of that dreadful cover change, but I finally caved. I hate that all 3 books look really different from one another on my shelves thogh :( This is such an amazing series and I would have loved to own them all in the same edition and format!
Enshadowed will be my next not-for-review read, just after I've re-read Nevermore. And by not-for-review I mean that I don't need to have it read or reviewed at a certain time, not that I won't review it at all ;)
I'm also looking forward to reading Uncommon Criminals because the first book, Heist Society, was so much fun! It's not top priority though; I have sooooo many unread books at the moment that choosing between them is making me crazy >.<
There are some more books that I ordered that are supposed to arrive hopefully soon... for example I got an email that Unspoken, by Sarah Rees Brennan, was pre-released and sent on its way, so I hope it'll get to me by release day / Tuesday!

It's been quiet here as concerns reviews this week. The reason is that I've read one book for a blog tour and can't post the review till next week, and I'm still on the book I started after that. It's been a bit slow going with my reading, but I hope my speed will pick back up soon!

What new books did you get? Show off your book haul and leave me a link so I can check it out :)

Review: Nevermore, by Kelly Creagh

From the back of the book:

Some nightmares can follow you into realiy. Even when they’re not your own.

Cheerleader Isobel Lanley is horrified when she is paired with Varen Nethers for an English project. Cold and aloof, sardonic and sharp-tongued, Varen makes it clear he’d rather not have anything to do with her, either. But soon Isobel finds herself making excuses to be with Varen. Steadily pulled away from her friends and her possessive boyfriend, Isobel ventures deeper and deeper into the dream world Varen has created through the pages of his notebook, a realm where the terrifying stories of Edgar Allan Poe come to life.

As her world begins to unravel around her, Isobel discovers that dreams, like words, hold more power than she ever imagined and that the most frightening realities are those of the mind. Can she save Varen from the madness taking hold of him? Or will they both be consumed by the shadows of his nightmares?

Published August 31, 2010 by Atheneum

Hardcover, 543 pages

Review:

I’m going to admit that my review won’t be unbiased, since I absolutely loved this novel. And not only because of the gorgeous cover. Finally, finally something different! Not that I don’t love reading about vampires, werewolves, fairies and shapeshifters – but it’s nice to be confronted with something new every once in a while. Yes, there are strange, terrifying creatures and occurrences here, but they are of Kelly Creagh’s own design. There is another world, but until the very end it is hard to say in what connection it stands to our own. Is it a different realm? Is it based on Varen’s mind alone, or on the minds of others like him? Is it a dream space? How is it connected to E. A. Poe, whose writings and imagination permeate the entire novel? And who is Reynolds, the ambivalent figure who seems to alternately help and hinder Isobel in her quest to both help Varen and get her own life back on track?

Another thing that I liked is that for once, the main female character is not an outcast but the head cheerleader. I was a bit doubtful about whether the author could make me like Isobel and empathize with her (I’m definitely not the cheerleader-popular-preppy-type of girl), but she did. Yes, Isobel’s got a knack for pink stuff, and she’s rather superficial at the beginning. However, she changes and develops over the course of the novel as her world begins to unravel all around her. Ever since she was paired with Varen and he wrote his number on her hand in purple ink (OMG! Scribbled on by the freak! Eww!) her life has been spinning out of control. She loses her boyfriend (no big loss there, though), her place on the cheer team, her friends, the approval of her parents. She might even be losing her mind. This forces her to extend her mindset and take decisions with far-reaching consequences. She needs to be proactive and figure out what is happening – and how to stop it.

Need more convincing? The supporting characters are also great. Gwen, Isobel’s new friend, has an awesome sense of humor. She is also unforgivingly direct and doesn’t take no for an answer. She sticks with Isobel when she has no one else left, even though they barely know each other. Also Isobel’s younger brother is a great kid and it was nice to see how their relationship changes and develops. And Poe himself is also a character in the book, though he is more of a looming presence in the back of it all. An unanswered and prominent question during the whole book is: how exactly did Poe die?

Then there is Varen himself, of course. Mysterious, gloomy, composed. Wearing far too much black and chains to be in Isobel’s comfort zone. He’s no overdone goth cliché though, and he’s got a healthy sense of humor and self-irony. He’s also tortured and haunted by his own creations as he loses control over his imaginative powers. Of course, all of that makes him Isobel’s father’s and boyfriend’s kryptonite. Plus, how much and in what way Varen cares for her is anything but sure. This is no Romeo & Juliet type of story.

This novel is steeped in Poe and his tales & poems, but not in a way that makes it easy to foresee what is happening. Nevermore is always one step ahead; you’re drawn into the story but you can never guess where it’s all leading. No one really explains things to Isobel, and it’s not one of those situations where you have to bash your head on the desk because the character is just too stupid to figure out what’s going on. Much is left unsolved in the end, which makes is REALLY hard for me to wait for the sequel, which is called Enshadowed  and will be released in late August. You can also check it out on my last Waiting on Wednesday post.

All in all? One of those books which absorb you while you’re reading them and haunt your mind and your dreams while you aren’t. Kelly Creagh has great talent for creating atmosphere and making the characters and places appear real to you. The novel also made me buy a big, fancy hardcover edition of Poe’s tales and poems. If you already know some Poe it will enhance your reading, but it’s not absolutely necessary to get the story.

I hope I could give you a notion of the book without being spoilery, and that I got some of you intrigued so that you’ll read it. This book deserves way more recognition than I think it has gotten so far!

Have you read Nevermore? What did you think of it?

Waiting on Wednesday: Enshadowed, by Kelly Creagh

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating. This week, I was deliberating between picking Rachel Vincent's Before I Wake and Kelly Creagh's Enshadowed. But I thought that since BIW is releasing so soon and is probably covered more often, I'll go with the latter. It's the sequel to Nevermore, a book I loved so much the wait for the sequel was really killing me for those first few weeks.

Kelly Creagh - Enshadowed (Nevermore #2)

goodreads

Publication date: August 2012
Publisher: Athenum
Kelly Creagh's website: http://www.kellycreagh.com/

From goodreads:
[From the back of the ARC] Varen Nethers is trapped in a perilous dream world -- a treacherous and desolate realm where the terrifying stories of Edgar Allan Poe come to life. Isobel Lanley, plagued by strange visions and haunted by the nightmares of Varen's creation, is the only one who can save him.
Isobel knows that her only hope lies within a Baltimore cemetery. There, in the early morning hours of Edgar Allan Poe's birthday, a mysterious stranger known as the "Poe Toaster" will make his annual homage at the legendary poet's grave.
Only the Poe Toaster holds the key to the way between worlds. But even greater dangers lie ahead for Isobel. An ancient evil, draped in veils of white, is watching, challenging her for Varen's affections. When Isobel finally finds Varen, he is no longer the quiet and brooding boy who once captivated her, but a dark force, powerful and malevolent.

The ending of Nevermore left me heartbroken. Seriously. I was pining to read more of Varen and Isobel! This book made me buy a jacket so I could decorate it like Varen's. Also, the big, hardcover B&N edition of the collected stories and poems of E. A. Poe. The prose of Nevermore was just sooo beautiful, I can't wait to get more of it. I'm curious to find out what exactly is going on with Varen, how he is connected to Poe and Reynolds. Also, Pinfeathers! Unique, creepy character but I was intrigued.
How will Isobel deal with the changes in her life, and what she will do to try and get Varen back? Although the description makes it sound like getting him back might only be the first step of many...
I'm anxious. On the one hand, I can't wait to read it - but on the other hand I find it hard to imagine a scenario in which there is a sort-of-happy ending for Varen and Isobel...

Have you read Nevermore (or been lucky enough to get an Enshadowed ARC) ? What books can you not wait to get your hands on? Comments make me happy :)