Review: Enshadowed by Kelly Creagh

Enshadowed by Kelly Creagh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This picked up where Nevermore left off, with Isobel still trying to save Varen from himself. Only this time she doesn't have Reynolds to help her get back to the dreamworld and she doesn't know how to get there herself. She's consumed by nightmares, and has a hard time distinguishing dreams from reality.

Varen has the ability to visit her in her dreams, and she knows he's trying to tell her something. Each time he visits he's getting darker and scarier to the point where she thinks it is Pinfeather's visiting not Varen. Pinfeather's tries to help her reach Varen, as Varen has been watching her from the dreamworld. Varen is only seeing Isobel push people away from her to keep them off her trail as she tries to find a way back to him, but he can't see that. She still loves him, but she won't tell anyone but Gwen a sort of part of the truth about what is going on.  Her acting skills are pretty believable and pretty hurtful.

Gwen, who is hilarious, has become Isobel's best friend since the whole ordeal started. Gwen actually has kind of figured out what is going on with Isobel and is all in trying to help her. This leads to nothing but mayhem, but she's nothing but comic relief. I loved Gwen for the hilarity she brought.

This book wasn't as good as the first one. It kind of just follow's Isobel around as she flounders about trying to figure out how to get back to Varen to save him. LIke the first book, Isobel is constantly making rash decisions without putting much thought into them or the consequences they may have.  Her impulsive personality is at an all time high in this book and you can tell she is going to do some thing really stupid eventually. When she finally gets to the dreamworld, everything happens so fast and its over so quickly you don't have time to register what happened. Don't get me wrong, I still liked it, but I wanted more of the Poe inspired world and wanted more Varen in this one. He was critically absent.  I even wanted more Pinfeathers, you rooted against him and his band of Nocs in teh first one, but he has this redeeming quality in the 2nd book that makes you almost want like him.  His character in this book is a complete 180 from the 1st, this time he's the last little bit of hope Varen is holding on to that he and Isobel might one day be together.  I'm anxiously awaiting the last book to come in at the library so I can find out how it ends.

This book is fulfilling challenge prompt "A book with an unreliable narrator" as Isobel rarely knew if she was awake or dreaming throughout the book.  Overall I'm at 17 of 52 books read or listened to for this challenge and I have books identified for almost all of the remaining prompts.  I picked up a bunch of books at the local used book sale this week specifically for the challenge and because well...all the books were $1 or less.

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