Enshadowed (Nevermore #2) by Kelly Creagh

Have you ever wanted to read a book so badly that when it came out you had to force yourself not to jump on it like a starving dog with a bone?  Enshadowed was that book for me this year.  I just got it with an Amazon card that I won.  I'd been putting off reading it because I knew I'd tear through it then have to wait forever like I had to when I read Nevermore and LOVED that book like one of my children.  Here is the beautiful, haunting cover and the Goodreads blurb:

True love takes a twisted turn in the second book of this modern gothic romance trilogy channeling the dark brilliance of Edgar Allan Poe.While Varen remains a prisoner in a perilous dream world where the terrifying stories of Edgar Allan Poe come to life, Isobel travels to Baltimore to confront the dark figure known throughout the world as the Poe Toaster. This man, the same man who once appeared to Isobel in her dreams and abandoned her in Varen’s nightmare world, holds the key to saving Varen. But when Isobel discovers a way to return to this dream world, she finds herself swept up in a realm that not only holds remnants of Edgar Allan Poe’s presence, but has also now taken on the characteristics of Varen’s innermost self. It is a dark world of fear, terror, and anger. When Isobel once more encounters Varen, she finds him changed. And now Isobel must face a new adversary—one who also happens to be her greatest love.

I will be honest, I have NEVER liked cheerleaders.  I was a poor, nerdy girl in the smart kid classes so cheerleaders were not nice to me and I in turn wanted them to eat a cheeseburger... and choke on it.  Not a mature or respectful stance, but teen angst rarely makes sense.  Isobel is a cheerleader that I could actually like.  She realizes that the life she had been living had been fine but not particularly deep or fulfilling.  With Varen, she saw things differently.  She could see her "friends" for what they were: bullies.  Varen saw so much more in life and the world around him.  Even if it hurt, it was worth seeing- to him.  In this book we see how Isobel is dealing without Varen and how she decides to go about getting him back.  She decides that saving him is more important than cheering, than school, than anything.  WOW!  What an emotional read.  We get to see a fair amount of Isobel's parents and little brother, Danny.  We also see a lot of Gwen, which was nice.  Gwen is the only person who can be there for Isobel and I love that she's there for her even when she isn't sure how to be.  Gwen and Isobel are a great team.  I can not wait for the third and final book that is due out next year.

You can click here to add Nevermore and Enshadowed to your Goodreads.  You can find out more about the books and the world of Nevermore on Kelly Creagh's website.  You can also find Kelly Creagh on Twitter.  Enshadowed gets 5 Fairies as my number one must have book of 2012 and one of my all time favorites.