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And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted - nevermore!
— from "The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe
At once an homage to one of America's greatest writers and a page-turning psychological mystery that is equal parts horror, humor, and romance, NEVERMORE is the story of Varen — a Poe-fan and goth — and Isobel — a cheerleader and unlikely heroine. When a Lit. project pairs the two together, Isobel finds herself steadily swept into Varen's world, one that he has created in his notebook and in his mind, one where the terrifying stories of Edgar Allan Poe come to life. Isobel slowly learns that dreams can be much more powerful than she'd ever expected, and that pain and despair come in all shades. As labels of "goth" and "cheerleader" fade away, she sees more in Varen than a tall, pale outcast, and a consuming romance is braced against the ever-clearer horror that the most terrifying realities are those within our own minds.
When Isobel has a single chance to rescue Varen from the shadows of his own nightmares, will she be able to save him — and herself?
"Verses from Poe's poems and synopses of his stories are woven seamlessly into the story, and the ghoulish spirit Pinfeathers is memorably menacing and gory. . . . a creepy, otherworldly climax." —Kirkus
"This Gothic Romeo/Juliet story is an English teacher's jewel box, with high appeal for readers who might ignore classic literature. Veiled and overt allusions to Poe, Shakespeare, and Frost will support discussion about love, loyalty, popularity, and independence beyond the trendy, dramatic, supernatural action." —VOYA
“Always one step ahead of the reader, Nevermore is a book to engage in, speculate over, and savor.” –New York Journal of Books
“ . . . I fell in love with Nevermore. . . . The chemistry is perfect and it simmers slowly throughout the novel at a beautiful, restrained pace. . . . Absolutely recommended.” –TheBookSmugglers.com
“One of my favorite 2010 debuts. It has all the components of an amazing YA novel. A sympathetic, fun main character; a sexy, dark dude; a perfectly-paced plotline; a classic-inspired story arc; and a damn good love story!” –NaughtyBookKitties.com
1
Assigned
By the end of fourth period, Isobel’s espresso buzz from that morning’s venti latte had long since worn off. She yawned, fast approaching crash-and-burn territory and shifted in her seat as Mr. Swanson droned on and on about the green-eyed monster, Desdemona, thus, thou, and yea verily. She traced and retraced the looping spiral design she’d all but ground into the front of her blue notebook.
“And with that,” Mr. Swanson said, finally snapping closed his ultrathick teacher’s copy of their text, cueing the rest of the class to follow suit with a unanimous thunk, “we’ll leap into further discussion about Iago and his supposed honesty on Monday.”
Isobel straightened in her seat, brushed her sheet of blond hair behind one shoulder, and shut her own book with relish.
“But hold on, hold on,” he said above the rustling and scraping of chairs. He raised both hands and lowered them through the air, as if such a motion somehow held the power to still the room and reinstate the Elizabethan-literature-inspired stupor he’d managed to cast over all.
Kids jonesing for lunch and already halfway out of their seats sank back down again, their butts reconnecting with their chairs like magnets snapping together. All around, backpacks slipped from shoulders and chins returned to hands.
They should have known better, Isobel thought wryly. Swanson never let them out early. Never. Especially not as early as a quarter till.
“Don’t go and get antsy on me yet, folks,” he warned, now brandishing a stack of what looked suspiciously to Isobel like fresh-from-the-copier pages.
“Heads-up to the syllabus being passed around,” he called, licking a finger and leafing through the first few. Then, rewetting his fingertips, he sent out the next stack, and the next.
Isobel blanched as she watched the papers make their way toward her, and she hoped she’d be lucky enough to snag one relatively free of Swanson saliva.
“We’ve avoided it long enough.” He sighed in mock remorse. “Now, I’m sure the seniors all warned you about this one. Well, here it is. The big one. Better to get it over with early in the year, I say. You guessed it—the Swanson project.” He announced this last bit cheerfully (if not maniacally), and a grin spread its way beneath his wiry gray-white mustache.
Groans arose from key points around the room, Isobel’s own buried in the back of her throat.
Projects took time. A lot of time.
“This is to be a partner project,” Swanson continued, “due the last Friday of the month. That’s Halloween, for those of you who haven’t got your iPhones or BlackBerries or Kicksides or whodiwhat calendars handy—which I hope for their sake no one does.”
The boredom that had only a moment ago made Isobel’s limbs heavy and her mind sluggish slipped away from her in a quick whoosh, like a magician’s cloth.
Hold up. Did he say Halloween? Uh, yeah, where was his calendar? Did he not know that was the night of the rival football game against Millings? Lift up the rock, Swanson. Breathe. It’s called air.
Isobel’s grip tightened around her pen. She kept her gaze steady on her English teacher, all dials now tuned to the Swanson channel.
“This project,” he said, “will consist of both a presentation and a detailed ten-page paper. I want you and your partner to select a famous American author—any American author. Though, in the spirit of Halloween, let’s make sure they’re dead, okay? In other words, no Stephen Kings, Heather Grahams, or James Pattersons. Also, this is an assignment to be completed outside of class, since we’re currently in the middle of Othello.”
Ten pages? Ten pages. That was epic. That was like . . . the freaking Gettysburg Address. Was Swanson really going to sit down and read all those papers?
Probably, she thought. And love every minute of it too.
She just didn’t get it. Why did Swanson have to assign a huge project due on the day of the rival game? No one ever got any work done that week. He could have at least given them that weekend.
It always amazed her how teachers seemed to think that students didn’t have lives outside of school. They couldn’t seem to grasp that by the time she got home from cheer practice, ate dinner, and scribbled down something on the mound of homework she already had, it was practically time to go to bed.
Isobel started an immediate scan of the room. This was serious, and she needed to locate a brainer—stat.
She eyed Julie Tamers, marching band geek extraordinaire, and began to plan a strategic route to the open chair next to hers when Mr. Swanson spoke again.
“FYI,” he began, class roster poised in one hand, chin tilted down, wire-rim glasses perched at the tip of his nose, “I’m trying something different this year in hopes it will both broaden your perspective and improve overall project results. That said, I’ll take a moment to include my little disclaimer that all pairings have been made at random. So after I read your names off the list you can partner up, brainstorm among yourselves, and then head to lunch. Starting with Josh Anderson and Amber Ricks.”
Isobel felt her jaw unhinge.
Wait, she thought. Just wait. Random pairings were so third grade. He could not be serious.
“Katlyn Binkly and Alanna Sato,” he continued. “Next we have Todd Marks and Romelle Jenkins.”
Around her, those whose names had already been called rose from their seats to find their corresponding partners. Isobel sat stunned at their willingness. For real? Was she the only one who felt the burn of injustice? Wasn’t anyone else going to say anything?
“Isobel Lanley and Varen Nethers.”
She felt her chest contract.
Oh.
Oh, no. No way.
She turned her head slowly and took a long, reluctant look to the opposite end of the room. He sat in the back row against the far corner, slumped in his seat and staring straight ahead through shreds of inky locks, his thin wrists lined in black leather bands specked with hostile silver studs.
This could not be happening.
Her hunger forgotten, a gnawing discomfort tugged at her insides instead as she wondered how many of the freaky rumors about him were true. For a moment she seriously thought about requesting another partner, but knowing Swanson, she realized that would probably fly about as fast and well as cafeteria meat loaf.
Isobel frowned and bit her lip. Maybe, just maybe, it wasn’t going to be as bad as all that. Another glance at him, though, had her thinking otherwise.
Lost in the curtain of his dyed black hair, he hadn’t even acknowledged her presence, let alone the fact that—hello—they were supposed to be using the time to discuss this monstrosity of a project.
She wondered if she should get up and go to him, since it didn’t seem like he would be heading in her direction anytime soon.
Resigned, Isobel rose and collected her notebook. She fumbled for her backpack strap as her mind repeated all the whispers she’d ever heard linked with his name. There were rumors that he sometimes talked to himself, that he practiced witchcraft and had an evil eye tattooed on his left shoulder blade. That he lived in the basement of an abandoned church. That he slept in a coffin.
That he drank blood.
She approached him with steady steps, the way someone might inch up to a sleeping snake.
Slouched in his seat, one arm draped over the desktop, he was one long line of black, his well-worn, tightly strapped boots crossed at the ankles. Pinned beneath his arm dwelled the ratty black hardback book she’d seen him disappear into more than once during class.
In fact, it always seemed as though he was jotting or sketching something into its pages, though she could only guess at what. And maybe part of what made that whole thing so weird was that Swanson never called him on it, just like he never asked him to read out loud or answer questions. And that was weird too, because no one ever called Swanson out on that.
Isobel drifted to stand at a solid and safe four-foot distance. She waited, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. What was she supposed to say? Howdy, partner?
She glanced to the clock on the wall. Seven minutes left until lunch.
Aaawwkward, she thought as he continued to just sit there and stare off like she didn’t exist. His enthusiasm was almost catching.
“Look, I’m not doing the work all by myself,” she said at last, deciding to crack the rather thick ice with that little mallet of for-your-info.
He didn’t move, but he spoke.
“Did I say that?”
Isobel felt a sting of surprise at the sound of his voice. It was as if she’d half expected him to be made of wax. His voice was calm and low and reasonable, not troubled and gruff like she’d assumed. He’d never spoken in class before, though. Ever, that she could remember.
“No,” she said, stiffening, tempted to just bail. Nikki would never believe this, she thought. Her getting paired up with the king of goths? Talk about breaking news. “I just thought I’d let you know,” she said, clearing her throat. “I mean . . . because, actually, you’re not saying anything.”
Feeling dumb for being the last person in the room standing, Isobel finally slid into the seat next to his, her gaze darting over the room.
A low murmur started among the pockets of groups, growing in volume as everyone went about exchanging ideas. After swapping scribbled sheets of notepaper, two groups even got up and left. And here she was, still stuck trying to commune with a member of the living dead.
Her jaw tightened. She was starting to think that Mr. Swanson’s claim that all pairings had been made “at random” was a bunch of bull. This was probably his idea of a great joke, his way of getting back at her for not turning in that stupid paper on Don Quixote.
“As long as we’re getting things out on the table, so to speak,” he said, calling her attention back to their little space in the corner—it was so weird to hear him talk. “I’m not doing it on my own either.”
He turned his head and caught her with his eyes.
She froze, locked by the intensity of his stare. His eyes were stark and cold, the concentrated green of pale jade. Outlined in smudged black kohl, those eyes focused on her, unblinking through the feathery strands of his jet-black hair, and it was like being watched through a cage by a complacent and calculating cat.
Discomfort welled in her, thick and black as an oil spring.
Who was this guy and what was his royal problem? Her gaze flicked briefly to the small metal loop that hugged one corner of his bottom lip.
He blinked once, then slowly lifted one hand and crooked a beckoning finger at her.
Isobel hesitated but then as though spellbound to obey, she found herself leaning in.
“What are you staring at?” he whispered.
She drew back, her face going hot. She swiveled away from him and put her hand in the air. Mayday, Swanson. Do you read me?
There came a slow, ominous clink of chains from behind her. Isobel went rigid. She lowered her hand and, looking up, found him towering over her, all tall straightness and stone pale.
She bit back a protest as he took her hand in his. She gawked as one long-fingered hand grasped hers and stared, unblinking, at the black pen that appeared from nowhere and began moving against her skin, the tip as cold and sharp as those eyes.
Oh. My. God. He was writing on her.
She tried to make a noise but couldn’t.
His face remained emotionless as he made small, careful lines with the pen. The steady impression of the ballpoint tickled, creating knots in her stomach.
All she could do was stare at an enormous ring, molded into the shape of a silver dragon, as it snarled at her from his middle finger.
When at last he finished, he released her hand and, with one final almost admonishing stab of that razor gaze, turned away. Grabbing his black book, he slung his beaten leather satchel over one shoulder. “Don’t call after nine,” he said, and tucking the pen behind one ear, strolled out of the classroom.
Isobel’s face burned. Her skin tingled where he’d touched her, with an almost imperceptible electricity that she couldn’t be sure if she was imagining. Like the tips of her fingers had somehow fallen asleep.
She took a quick inventory, first of her senses, then of the people still in the room, afraid to see who had noticed, amazed that apparently no one had. Even Eagle Eye Swanson had just returned to his desk, where he now sat munching a sandwich and leafing through the school paper, the Hawk’s Call.
Isobel looked down at her hand again.
In deep purple ink, he’d written “V—555-0710.”
© 2010 Kelly Creagh
Anonymous
Posted September 7, 2010
I Also Recommend:
This book is perfection! I have so many wonderful things to say about it that I don't even know where to start, not to mention it would take a while. But I will say this... I LOVE Isobel and Varen, especially together. The author did such a great job that I felt Isobel's emotions. My heart was racing the first time they kissed and I cried when she cried, (I won't ruin it for you by saying why she was crying). The "paranormal" aspect of it was so creative and original and just so different from what everyone is writing these days. It was a bit slow going at first but once it got to that point we anticipate in all books, I couldn't stop reading. I finished in a day and have thought of nothing else since. I can't even decide on something new to read because I'm sure it won't measure up to the perfection of what I've just finished. Don't skip this book!
15 out of 15 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.I love it when I come across a book that seems completely unique. It is hard to find a good paranormal YA book that is not about Vampires, Werewolves, or Faeries. Not that I am saying that I don't love books on these subjects but I think we can all agree there are a lot out there right now. Nevermore is fresh and new. I also love books that pull in real historical events to serve as a backdrop for paranormal events. It makes the story seem more realistic.
Isobel Lanley: perky, blond, cheerleader
Varen Nethers: mysterious, dark, goth
The simple laws of the high school class system says that they can never be friends, but when they are paired up for an English project they are forced to work together. Varen and Isobel are not the only ones who are upset by their pairing. Brad, Isobel's boyfriend waists no time putting Varen in his place and Lacy is not to fond of Isobel spending time with her boyfriend either.
Despite their initial aversion to each other, both soon discover an attraction hiding beneath the surface. The closer that Isobel and Varen become the stranger their lives become. Soon Isobel is being followed, watched and visited by various beings who seem to be sending her a message, "Stay away from Varen Nethers." Despite their warnings Isobel falls hard for Varen. When he vanishes before her eyes Isobel ventures into the dream world Varen created through the pages of his notebook, a realm where the terrifying stories of Edgar Allan Poe come to life in order to save him from a fate that seems inevitable. Choices are made, lies are told, and Isobel discovers that dreams, like words, hold more power than she ever imagined.
Be prepared for a cliffhanger ending this one is a series! I simply could not put this one down. Kelly Creagh's debut is enticing, exciting, and nerve racking. And it's all balled up into this fresh take on the mystery that surrounds America's first master of horror, Edgar Allen Poe.
Interesting tid bit: I love the cover art for this book but I was surrprised to find that when the book arrived Varen was missing the lip ring shown in this picture. He has one in the story and on most cover art you find online but on the actual book it has been removed. Weird!
7 out of 7 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.If you are a fan of Poe's dark and dreamy landscape of the imagination, you will fall into this novel with both a sigh...and eventually a scream. Kelly Creagh does a fantastic job (in her first book yet! You go, girl!!!)of creating a realistic picture of high school life with its dangers of both fitting in and not fitting in while simultaneously penning a spookily surrealistic world of whispers and creatures seen only from the corner of the eye. I've noticed that some of the best YA paranormal lit of the last few years are the ones with great guy characters (i.e. Hush, Hush's fallen but redeemable Patch, Bleeding Violet's crazy/sexy Wyatt, Beautiful Creatures' loyal and romantic Ethan, Wicked Lovely's awesomely awesome Seth (did I mention he was AWESOME?!), and the upcoming (9/21) The Replacement's otherworldly (seriously) Mackie...and, of course, that Edward guy. But somebody's gonna have to do some serious creatin' to beat Nevermore's wondrous and winsome Goth, Varen Nethers. I mean, does the picture on the front of the book not paint his Gothic-y, smart-but-maybe-troubled-boy in all his dark Princelyness? Great cheekbones, interesting nose, even Isobel mentions his lips, a suggestion of a cleft to the chin, and all that black hair...which becomes even more attractive when we learn he dyes it - why...maybe to indicate that the innocence of that blonde boy in the photo has long ago been destroyed. One trip to the beautiful Victorian house and a meeting with his drunken and abusive father shows Isobel and the reader all we need to know about beautiful facades covering the rottenness within. For all the "dark and dreary" of this Poe inspired novel, there is deeply felt romance between the odd couple pairing of smart but withdrawn (and pretty much universally feared as some sort of vampire)Varen and the blonde but no dummy Isobel. The family dynamics of both kids are well layed out, that swift revelation of Varen's showing us all we need to know about his psyche whereas Isobel's habit of arguing with her little brother and her dismissal of his game-playing just shows how normal her family is in contrast...and little bro does come through eventually. Also the whole popular crew showing themselves as a violent, vandalizing pack when everything doesn't go their way pretty much fuels the fire of Isobel's growing interest in Varen. If you're not a fan of Poe's 3M's - misery, melodrama, and melancholia - don't worry because there is humor, too. Isobel can be very snarky in her internal dialogue - "Mr. Creepy McCreepers," and her efforts to fit in with other less popular cliques after she's ousted from her old pack are funny and tragic simultaneously. Poe and his tales and mysterious death are just the engine behind this book...he's the matchmaker, you might say, along with the English teacher who puts Isobel and Varen together on their project to write about a dead American author...right before Halloween. The last quarter of the book is where the real creepiness ensues as both the characters (and the reader)are submerged into a nightmare world from which everyone can't return. And if you know your Poe, you shouldn't be surprised that the ending leaves you...hoping and praying for an immediate - if not sooner - sequel. Loved it enough to read it in one evening and cannot wait for book 2.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.xoxomlrxoxo
Posted September 6, 2010
Okay, so I read the synopsis for Nevermore a week before it was released and I was hooked. So I went to buy the book on Saturday. I've been reading since then and I'm pretty fast at reading, so I'll be done tonight-maybe. In my opinion, Kelly Creagh has done a fantastic job at writing this book, and for some reason, (even though I'm not a big fan of cheerleaders) I am super excited to see what happens in the end with Varen and Isobel. And (for your information) I never heard of Edgar Allen Poe before reading this book, so I'm gonna tell the fans of this amazing poet, that its not a book that COMPLETELY revolves around him. Poe IS included in this book for projects and events, but the story isn't completely about him. BUT THAT COMMENT ISN'T SUPPOSE TO STEER YOU AWAY FROM READING THIS BOOK! It is a VERY, VERY, VERY great novel that I will definintely be wanting and waiting for more!! So please try this book out--IT IS SOOOO WORTH IT! :)
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted December 5, 2010
Okay first of all I will say that I LOVED this book at the first. Then it went down hill for me. In the dreamworld I didn't really understand what happened. Plus there better be a squeal or I'm going to come up with one of my own. Where Reynolds dies and we don't have to hear from him again. Also, I didn't like Varen in the dream world, I wished he would have fought harder to free himself and be with Isobel. Other than that, I thought Kelly did a great job writing it and Pray that there will be a second book. So then we can get an answer to all of our questions.
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Okay, I love Poe, Im a poet and I read him all the time so I was excited when I read the synopsis of this book. I started to read and I loved the exerts form his stories and poems then the actual plot started and wow was I BORED!..............The characters are not very well developed the environment outside of the dream world is very drab and un original. I think the author felt required to write in a similar style as Poe but with a modern twist and for me it was just over written and far long for how slow the story was..........If the book was shorter then the plot might not of seemed so slow but I could barely finish the book..................The idea was original and I enjoyed it but how it ends is ridiculous! I know they are leaving room for a second one but I wont be buying it...................The romance is very immature and over done in dramatics for nothing to happen at all. They kiss once and the rest of the book is spent whining and following a mystery that frankly didnt reveal anything spectacular in the end. Most mysteries are supposed to shock you in the end or at least make you feel your effort in reading it wasn't wasted........................This book left me wanting more but not in a "I cant wait for the next one!" way. I wish I could of been better because Poe was one of the greatest writers of all time but sadly I think only the ignorant will enjoy this book. Because if you know of Poe or have a deeper literary knowledge this book will leave you with regrets!
1 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.When I saw this book, I had high hopes for it. Being a huge Poe fan, I was excited to see a teen book that dealt with one of my favorite authors (who's work you don't see included in very many teen books). So I was disappointed when I actually read the story. The language is wonderful and all, and it has great snidbits of Poe and other greats, but the plot was lacking. I felt like I'd read this before, somewhere else in the teen section, in some other book with different character names and a different title. The plot could have been so much better, and with the writer's style it would have been great, but...more of a pop fiction that's been done than an original story.
1 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.PatriciaJL
Posted September 2, 2010
Nevermore is a rare find in books. This book has been bumped up to one of my favorites, and I cannot wait for the sequel. The cover alone is amazing and just makes you want to pick up the book right away.
I do not know where to begin with how AMAZING this book was. The character development was top notch. Both Isobel and Varen were completely believable both as human beings and as high school students falling in love. While this book is Paranormal, it is not overtly obvious like other Paranormal books are. With Kelly Creagh's touch of Poe, there is a Gothic touch to this novel, but at the same time it is very much set in reality.
In the beginning of the book Isobel comes across as your typical cheerleader, but she also shows how she is not just any typical cheerleader. What I liked best about Isobel's character was how much she grows. Isobel finds herself having to stand up to people that can danger her "popularity", and she does so without second thought. At the same time, she shows how typical she is in being a teenager - sneaking out of her house while she is grounded.
Varen is also very unique. He puts up a front that he is aloof to everyone's gossip about him being a 'vampire' and dark and scary. But you find that he is affected to some degree by it all.
The plot of this novel was also top notch. Of course with book being over 500 pages you are given quite a few events, but the plot does not skip around. You are actually given a very detailed plot, but not overly detailed. I was on the edge of my seat during this entire book. I couldn't wait to read what would happen next. I felt for both characters, was frustrated by them, but I also understand the decisions they made. I think that Kelly Creagh did an AMAZING job in her first book.
1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted May 10, 2013
This is one of the greatest young adult novels I have ever had the pleasure of reading, and believe me when I say that I've read a lot. The story is enthrawling. A page turner. And incredibly original. I would reccomend this to absolutely anyone.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged. I was intrigued by the mystery behind this book and went into it with high hopes but that didn't last long. My first bump in the road were the characters. They are so incredibly immature. I mean, Varen writes his number on her hand so that she can call him and set up a time that they can get together to do this project that they've been paired up to do. No big deal, except to maybe EVERYBODY! Isobel freaks out that he's writing some voodoo symbol and sentencing her to death while her big, buff, jock of a boyfriend goes ape-sh*t crazy because of it. Not because of the voodoo but because Varen is encroaching on his territory. So he starts beating up Varen and literally terrorizing the poor kid. Then when Isobel decides that this project's grade isn't worth the drama, she finds herself in a doozy of a situation. Her boyfriend and their "crew" go out for ice cream, which just so happens to be where Varen works. Is it a coinkidink? I think not! The boyfriend and "crew" start vandalizing the place and it isn't until the boyfriend opens the register to steal the money that Isobel decides enough is enough. I mean, seriously?! Red lights would have been flashing the moment my boyfriend flipped out over someone giving me their number so that we can do a school project.
Aside from the characters being the clique teenage "populars", the story had some merit. I like the mystery behind it and the fact that you really didn't know what the heck is going on with Varen. Hell, even after finishing the book I still didn't know what the deal was with Varen. One minute some freaky stuff is going on and then all of a sudden I'm thrust into chaos and I have no idea how I got there. I was completely lost the entire last quarter of the story when the sh*t hit the fan and that sucks because I'm sure that was the best part of the story. Maybe a page from the book was ripped out and I missed a vital part but I was left literally scratching my head. By the time I got to the last page I was thoroughly confused on what I read and what happened.
Will I be giving the second book a shot? No. Not until I figure out what the hell happened in the first book since no doubt my confusion will just roll over into the second book.
Anonymous
Posted March 27, 2013
How much romance does it have?
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Integrity-Consultants
Posted March 17, 2013
Quoth the Raven, Forevermore!
I was very pleasantly surprised by this book! It's an intriguing premise that I truly hope the author explores further. I was most surprised that the truly original "poe-esque" world was found in a YA novel. I would love to see this concept on a larger, or even darker, scale. What gets trite about YA novels is the teeny-bopper, school-aged mean girls and love triangles, where the hardest decision the character ever has to face is what to wear to a school dance. I found those elements to be minimized in this book, and I applaud the author for letting the fantasy elements be the star here. While it's not the most tightly written or unpredictable of reads, it was original enough to hold my interest and leave me reaching for the sequel. Well done!
Anonymous
Posted February 20, 2013
I love helping fellow readers almost as much as i love varen and isobel! Almost.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted February 18, 2013
THANKYOU, I will definitly have to buy it. Oh yeah, thankyou again.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.A unique story. Loved every page of it. I fell asleep reading it because I didn't want to stop. Great page-turner. Already purchased the second book. :)
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted October 17, 2012
How to describe a book like this? BEST BOOK EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Everything a book needs and more packed in an eBook or hardback or paperback. So amazing. If your wondering if its worth it wonder no more. Dont do anything other than click confirm. I almost had a heartattack reading this its just that good!@%#%&@%$*#%$*@$*+#&$&@-$&@-$#*@***%@$&#@
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted October 14, 2012
This is by far my favorite book. I have fallen in love with it.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted October 3, 2012
I was very sceptical about this book when I first read the overview. Cheerleader, Goth guy, right. After the 2nd chapter, I couldn't put it down. I loved this book. It was beautifully written and offered so much more than your average YA book.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted September 11, 2012
I'm not a big poe fan but the dreamworld that this author creates is amazing bringing something new to the supernatural world
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.HorrorChick2
Posted September 3, 2012
The best book I've read in a really long time. Kelly is an amazing writer who knows how to draw people in. The book is excellent! Isobel and Varen's relationship is written in an amazing way. Thank you Kelly for giving the world the best book I've ever read!
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Overview
And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies ...