🍹 Margarita Reads: Nevermore by Kelly Creagh

A sip of shadows, Poe, and unexpected love that creeps in like midnight fog.

🐦‍⬛First Sip

This one came to me as a book rec from my childhood best friend — the kind of recommendation that sticks even though she never actually finished it. I remember starting it and thinking, “Okay, this is slow…” but something kept tugging at me to stay with it. And I’m so glad I did.

Because once it clicked, I completely fell in love with it.

There’s something about opposites that always draws me in. Isobel and Varen couldn’t be more different — a cheerleader and a goth, thrown together by an English project. But what really pulled me in was how real their connection felt. Varen wasn’t just dark and mysterious — he had this old-school charm, almost gentlemanly in the way he spoke and moved, even beneath the sharp eyeliner and shadowed jacket. Quiet, intense, thoughtful. A little tragic. And Isobel? She surprised me. She started off skeptical and dismissive, but slowly unraveled into someone willing to risk everything.

This book also gave me a much deeper appreciation for Edgar Allan Poe. I knew the name, but Nevermore made me want to look him up, read the poems, and fall down the rabbit hole of gothic literature. It made the line between reality and nightmare feel paper-thin — and I was completely hooked.

🍸 Sip or Skip?

This book is a blackberry margarita under a stormy sky — moody, unexpected, a little haunting, and absolutely mesmerizing. It’s a slow-burn with claws, laced with literary horror and aching romance. Not your average YA.

My verdict: 🥂 Sip-worthy — especially if you like your stories with shadows and a side of Poe. I'll go with spicy.

🧩 How did it taste for you?🖤 Sweet | 🌶 Spicy | 🍋 Tart | 🧊 Chill | 💦 Too watered down

🧠 Margarita Moments

The magic of Nevermore isn’t flashy — it’s quiet, slow, and creeping. It takes its time. But once it hooks you, you’re in. I loved that it wasn’t about instant attraction or magical abilities — it was about two people from wildly different worlds slowly starting to see each other.

Isobel begins this book as the classic high school cheerleader, a little superficial and

majorly frustrated. But watching her unravel, grow, and fight for someone everyone else dismisses? That’s what makes her a standout. She goes from being the girl who’s too worried about appearances to the girl who walks willingly into a literal nightmare to save someone who believed no one ever would.

And Varen?

He’s not your typical “bad boy.” He’s withdrawn, intelligent, haunted by both the past and his own mind. His writing becomes a trap, and what makes Nevermore so eerie is that we don’t know if he’s going to be the hero… or the one who disappears into the dark. The dreamworld scenes are surreal, chilling, and feel like stepping inside a cracked mirror version of The Raven. Poe fans, rejoice — this book is a love letter and a nightmare stitched with his ink.

There’s a scene where Isobel has to let go of everything she thought was real in order to follow Varen — and it broke me. That’s when I knew: this book wasn’t playing around. It’s not just about scary dreams or high school drama. It’s about the lengths we go to for someone we care about, even if the whole world tells us we’re wrong.

💬 Reader Question: If you had to team up with someone completely opposite from you, could you let your guard down like Isobel did? Or would you have walked away?

🎶 Pair It With...

🎵 Song: “Control” by Halsey — full of gothic vibes, fractured identity, and power simmering just beneath the surface. Feels so Varen.

🎬 Movie: Beastly (2011) — Modern gothic romance with a cursed boy and a girl who slowly sees past appearances. While lighter than Nevermore, it shares the “opposites attract” and “save-him-before-he’s-lost” themes.

Drop your own pairings below — I need recs that are equally haunting and romantic. 👻

🍒 Best Garnish

“Confess your sins to the shadows... and they will whisper back.”

That line gave me chills. It captured the heart of the book — that the monsters aren’t always in your closet. Sometimes, they’re in your mind. And sometimes... they’re written in ink.

🦉 Final Thought

Nevermore is a beautifully strange blend of horror, romance, and classic literature. It’s quiet, brooding, and brilliant — a book that peels back the layers of identity, perception, and reality. It doesn’t shout. It haunts.

This isn’t a love story with easy answers. It’s a descent into the dark — and the hope that someone might pull you back. A little eerie, a little swoony, and completely unforgettable.

🔮 Pour the Next Round...

Next up: ☀️🏖️ Every summer she returns to the same beach house… but this year, everything changes — especially her heart. Two brothers, one unforgettable summer, and a girl who's not so little anymore. Can you guess the book?