Author: Cynthia Hand
Pages: 435
Genre: Young Adult
Harper Teen
AMAZON: Unearthly
From the Blurb.
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.
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.
REVIEW: 4 out of 5 Stars
Clara Gardner is a 16 year old Quartarious Angel-blood which means she is one quarter angel; Having angel blood not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than regular humans, but it also means she is on earth for a purpose.
Clara was a refreshing protagonist; she might be a quarter angel, but she still had normal teen angst and insecurities which made her more ‘real’ as a character. Her visions are starting to come at regular intervals without warning, they are of a boy in a burning forest fire & Clara needs to work out the specifics of this vision in order to save him in time, to do this she, along with her mother and brother makes the move from California to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, the place where this vision is taking place.
Christian Prescott, the boy in Clara’s vision is seemingly perfect; from their first meeting at school I thought there was something unusual about him but had no idea what it was!
Clara’s love interests, Tucker and Christian couldn't be more different; I actually liked both as characters, they were unique in their own way. I am not a love triangle fan as I have constantly mentioned in previous reviews; Unearthly has a ‘kind of, sort of’ love triangle, she feels she is destined to be with one but her heart is with the other (cryptic much ;) I am glad she trusted her heart.
Now, Tucker and Clara (sigh…) they were wonderful together, the way their relationship began as snarky to the ending which was sweet and real, I adored them together, he was sweet and caring and respected Clara for who she was.
The uniqueness in the Angel lore was fascinating; there is definitely more to being an angel than what Clara is privy to, and I'm interested in finding out what exactly it is. Her mother is certainly tight lipped and unwilling to share what she knows, (which is a lot considering her age) it at times annoyed me; she guided Clara in the basics but she found out more from her friend.
I thoroughly enjoyed the interactions between all of the characters; they were thought out and written well. The relationship Clara shared with each of her friends, Tucker, Christian, Wendy and Angela were great as was the close bond she shares with her mother and brother,
I enjoyed the twist at the end! It definitely wasn’t expected; the mystery surrounding a few of the characters has certainly left me anticipating the next book in this series and I hope to find out more about the Black Wings.
Cynthia Hand creates a beautiful setting and structured characters, I could really imagine what the picturesque natural setting of Jackson Hole, Wyoming was really like, she provided vivid details which captivated me.
A thoroughly enjoyable read, written beautifully! I look forward to reading Hallowed in the Unearthly series which has an expected 2012 release date.
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ReplyDeleteYou're right about the 'kind of sort of' love triangle. I think I ended up giving this one 3 stars, because I found I didn't retain a lot of what happened in it. It seems I'm in the minority, though!
ReplyDeleteI like your review!