Stacia in Progress

"Side by side we'll fight the tideThat sweeps in to take us downHand in hand we'll both withstandEven as we drown."I have this desire to want to dust off some Edgar Allan Poe and get lost for a little while after reading this second installment in the Nevermore series. This was better than the first book because it didn't feel like the story was divided into two halves - the "before dreamworld" (realistic romantic fiction) and "after dreamworld" (paranormal horror) segments. Enshadowed felt more like one cohesive book, which made me appreciate it that much more. The funny thing is, even though so much of this book didn't have much going for the story other than Isobel being on one big search to find someone, there was never a moment where it felt overworked or tedious, the way I'd felt the first book to be in parts (or a completely unnecessary effort like the second book in the Beautiful Creatures series was). The beauty of Enshadowed was that there happened to be an effortless blending of the past and present, of the paranormal and the normal. I adored the greater addition of Poe's character into the story. I appreciated that the author brought into the story some of the mystery surrounding the real "grave visitor" who dedicated himself to Poe's memory every year. If you are into this series, do a little digging online and see what you find. There's some interesting theorycrafting out there. It's not often that you'll find a tale about a couple striving to be together which doesn't get bogged down in the telling of the romance. The spooky vibe of the story and eerie feeling of the atmosphere makes this an intriguing way of delivering the paranormal genre to an audience who isn't looking for yet another sappy love story. The characters are about as unique (and sometimes scary) as you'll find, and the lore is absolutely riveting. After waiting two years for the chance to finally get to read part 2, I now get to wait impatiently for part 3. Boo for the wait, yay for another book!