Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Review: Unearthly

UnearthlyUnearthly (Unearthly , #1) by Cynthia Hand 
Publisher: HarperTeen
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 435
Source: Purchased
Amazon | Audible | Goodreads
★★★★★
In the beginning, there's a boy standing in the trees . . . .

Clara Gardner has recently learned that she's part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a purpose, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn't easy.

Her visions of a raging forest fire and an alluring stranger lead her to a new school in a new town. When she meets Christian, who turns out to be the boy of her dreams (literally), everything seems to fall into place—and out of place at the same time. Because there's another guy, Tucker, who appeals to Clara's less angelic side.

As Clara tries to find her way in a world she no longer understands, she encounters unseen dangers and choices she never thought she'd have to make—between honesty and deceit, love and duty, good and evil. When the fire from her vision finally ignites, will Clara be ready to face her destiny?

Unearthly is a moving tale of love and fate, and the struggle between following the rules and following your heart.
Unearthly is the first angel book to completely blow me away! It was well paced, well characterized, and extremely addicting. It was hard to pull myself away from the pages. Surprisingly though, I'm at a loss of words to describe the exact elements that made me love this book as much as I do!

While it is difficult to describe the allure of this book, I think what pulled me in were the characters. Clara was easy to relate to, a normal girl. She didn't let her being an angel-blood get in the way of her having a life outside of her "purpose." I liked that there was that paranormal to normal life balance. And Tucker! AH <3 (fangirl moment)! Watching his relationship grow with Clara added depth to an already amazing story. At the beginning I hated him, but he won me over effortlessly as he did with Clara. Who would have known that he had a soft side!?

In addition to the great characters, I think the conclusion really sets Unearthly apart from the rest. This book could not have had a more perfect ending: no cliffhanger, a good resolution, and me dying for the next book! I recommend this to ANY paranormal fan. I can almost guarantee you will be as captivated as I was by the characters in Unearthly.

4 comments:

  1. Great review! This was also the first Angel book I liked at all. I thought it was great and so well written. Especially the triangle! Glad you enjoyed it too! :)

    Giselle
    Xpresso Reads

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  2. I feel the same as you! I was surprised by how much I enjoyed Unearthly. Clara was so relatable and just a nice person which I appreciated it. I also love that the book didn't have a cliffhanger too, it seems like such a cheap way to make sure people read your next story. Lovely review! x

    novel sounds

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  3. I loved the ending too! I don't feel compelled to pick up the next book at ONCE but I want to read it :)
    I'm team Tucker too *fistbump*


    Krazyyme @ Young Readers

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  4. I think you've hit the issue head-on with this review. Your comment about the ending said exactly what I felt. I mean, cliffhangers are all well and good, but Unearthly is good enough that it doesn't need to rely on a gimmick.

    Fantastic review!

    Renae @ Respiring Thoughts

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