Unearthly (Unearthly, 1)

I was a bit reluctant to read Unearthly after I heard that it was yet another book about angels. I've read quite a few recently and only one or two have stood out. I should have never worried about Unearthly, though, because it's brilliant. Seriously, it's like discovering a breath of fresh paranormal air after being trapped in a heavy fog for a couple of years. The writing is fantastic and I really couldn't tell that Cynthia Hand is a debut author; her prose is utterly compelling and her ideas manage to be original even with the abundance of angel novels I mentioned earlier. It's quite a long novel clocking in at just over four hundred pages, but the pages almost turn themselves. Can you tell yet how much I enjoyed it?!Clara was a fascinating character and I loved how we found out about her purpose when she did. She's known she's part-angel for a couple of years, but she doesn't know everything about their heritage and the do's and dont's of the angel world. When she first found out about her purpose - when she gets a strange vision of a boy in a burning forest - her whole family upped and moved to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, or the "boonies" as it's referred to. That's how important an angel#s purpose is. Clara made a few friends in Jackson Hole pretty quickly: Wendy and her twin brother Tucker, mysterious girl Angela and Christian, the boy from her vision. Jackson Hole was the kind of place where boys (Tucker) dressed like cowboys and drove trucks like farmers. I like cowboy boys, and I am not above admitting that I swooned a few times. Tucker was like my ideal boy, so I was on his team from the start. The checkered shirts get me every time!I thought the secondary characters were well-rounded and likeable, but I never really warmed to Angela. I get why she was important, and she was, but I thought Wendy was a much better friend who seemed to get left by the wayside. I couldn't help wondering if she was merely there as a way for Tucker to be in Clara's life, but I'm going to wait and see what pans out with her in the second book. You might have guessed that Unearthly is home to a love triangle, but don't let that put you off: it was a great one. I rooted for one boy right from the start, and I was happy with where his story took him. That's all I'm going to say about that, as there was always a clear winner for me. Whether or not I was right is something you'll have to find out for yourselves!Hand's angel mythology got me hooked from the start, and I thought the whole thing was fascinating. These angels were different to any angels I've read about before, which really made the novel stand out. I'm still thinking about it now, about the wings and actual flying that took place throughout the course of Clara's story. I'm hoping we'll find out even more angel mythology in the next book in the series, as it was definitely the strong point of this one. It set it apart from the crowd and kept me interested and guessing all the way through the book.Unearthly had a great setting, enthralling characters and one heck of an open ending. I have no idea what Cynthia Hand has planned for future books, but I think we'll see a lot more love triangle drama and some nasty angels on the scene. I'm so glad I read this book, and I think yu would be too. It's a must-read for fans of the paranormal - whether it be angels, vampires or werewolves - and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for something a little different. Roll on book two!4.5/5

You'd think by this point we'd seen it all wouldn't you? Us young adult fiction readers have read everything there is on angels, faeries and all the jazz and to be honest - we must be pretty confident we're past being surprised. But we were wrong.Unearthly is your typical hidden-identity angel book in tha Clara (our leading Angel girl) must hide her true being. But, that's about all that's typical about this book. Having never heard of Cynthia Hand I thought it was only fair to give a new author a chance and I'm so glad I did because her character and world building was beautiful and her ideas were so exciting.Clara is only PART angel. And not a very big part either - just a quarter. As is her brother Jeffery. Clara keeps having dreams, unusual dreams but always the same one. Only sometimes with additional details here and there. Except Clara isn't dreaming whilst she's asleep, she's dreaming whilst she's awake which can be pretty embarrassing (but funny for us). What this means is, Clare has received her purpose. In Hand's world, angels have destinies. They are put on Earth to fulfill a purpose shown to them in their minds after they reach a certain age.This means that now that Clara has SOME idea of her purpose she knows where she needs to be, and it's not where she is now. So Clare and her family move from California to start a whole new life with some really brilliant characters thrown in. As Clare starts her new school she meets Christian. The boy from her vision. The boy she must save. Now as you might expect there's an element of a love interest there. BUT, there's a love TRIANGLE people! Got to love a good love triangle! Tucker, our brooding and pretty grumpy cowboy is so likeable. He is by far my most favourite character. The best part is, it's so hard to decide which of the two is better suited to Clara - the broody but gorgeous gentleman of a cowboy or the drop-dead gorgeous boy Clara must save from the burning forest.It's also really nice to see Clara's relationships with everyone. Not only with Tucker and Christian but more so with her brother (whose waiting for his purpose) and her mother (a fellow, slightly stronger, angel with a hell of a lot more experience to pass down). Interestingly, Clara's mother always seems so reluctant to teach Clara about the ways of being an Angel, about a purpose or about "Black Wings" - something I'll leave you to find out about yourself.Along the way we get to learn so much about angels. How they come about, how the whole purpose thing works but there are still a few questions left unanswered which leaves me desperate to read the next in the series. And to me, that's the sign of a good book so I can't recommend this enough. There's a massive twist at the end too which I didn't see coming at all!! Overall, this book is fantastic. It's a really new take on a typical story with uniquely likeable characters which is definitely something hard to come by. Definitely give this a read.

I am not really a huge fan of Angel themed books. But I do own a few and I have read all of them. This by far is the best Angel series that I own.It has my all time favourite theme of a love triangle, which never fails to keep me hooked on a series. I always have to find out what happens in the end.The romance in this book was balanced perfectly. By that I mean that it was not dragged out or too 'perfect'. I am not keen on books where all the characters are described as perfect. Although, Christian is described as being perfect etc this did not bother me as it was not described too thick.Clara herself is a brilliant character. I like how Hand has started the book with Clara knowing what she is. This made me feel more interested as we were saved from going on a journey of self discovery. We were put into the middle of the story this way and were saved from having to read about what happened when Clara discovered what she was.Clara's mother is also a great character. She is a strong motherly type who I would also describe as quirky and fun. I think this is due to her being an angel as well so she knows what Clara will be going through etc. Normal teenage drama is nothing she has too worry about. Or so Clara's mother thinks so. I also like that she has her own secret past which at times in the story can be seen as pedantic but at other times the mysteriousness (think I just made a word up!) of it all kept me reading on. I wanted to know more about Clara's mum as well as Clara. Having more than one character as the focus is a great change.Christian and Tucker are both interesting and compelling characters. I could not decide between them. A one point I was rooting for Christian and the next Tucker would suprise me and win me over. Then Christian would win me over again. The fact that Tucker is seen as a more 'forbidden love' draws me too him more for some reason but I can't help but have a soft spot for Christian.Overall, I found Unearthly to be a compelling read, a fantastic, well written book that is at the top of my list when it comes to the Angel genre. Th characters are great and the story does not fail to entertain me and keep me hooked. The ending is awesome too!

I will give no spoilers away in this review.Im a fan of paranormal romance such as hush hush, twilight and fallen and i picked this up unsure whether i would like it.Clara is a normal teenage girl and one quarter angel (Quartarius) with her mother being half an angel. Clara starts having regular visions while she is awake, this is because she is visualizing her purpose. Each angel is given a purpose- something they have to complete. The plot of this book explores Clara working out her purpose and completing it.I like how this book is written in first person, the writing really helps you to understand how Clara's feeling and relate to her. The mythology in this book also makes for an interesting read!Its a great story, its not fast paced but that doesn't mean that i could put it down because i couldn't! Sometimes i feel with books they are so fast paced i miss things... this book is perfect! It has a great story,setting and you really get into the lead character. The romance in the book is innocent but really nice! It hasn't got masses of action, but it doesnt need it to keep your attention, the story flows so well you cant put the book down!I have ordered the second book Hallowed and cant wait to continue reading!If your a fan of paranormal romance then i would give this a go!Please rate my review as helpful :)

It is very difficult to find a paranormal YA book that is both unique and fun to read. Unearthly managed both - exceedingly well.Cynthia Hand, it felt, looked at all the angel lore and threw it out the window, choosing to create her own brand herself. And Unearthly was fabulous for it.Clara is a quarter angel with a purpose. Every angel of human descent on earth has a purpose, and it cannot be ignored - at all. When Clara has the first of many visions showing a boy she has never met, she and her mother track down where he lives and they all move there - clear across the country. But things aren't going to be as simple as Clara thought. She may have found the boy she is destined to save, but he doesn't seem to notice her. She doesn't know when her vision will come to be, or even where. All she knows is when the time comes, she must be ready to save him.The cast of characters in Unearthly are interesting ones - very far from the clichés they could easily become. Clara has the usual teen issues, along with a whopping angel one. As she struggles to find the balance between her purpose and her yearning for normalcy, it becomes painfully clear that difficult choices must be made.Unearthly was a fun, flirty and gripping YA read. The first of what is sure to be a major new series, I look forward to Hallowed, the next book in the series.

I expected a formulaic special, pretty (but doesn't know it) girl meets good looking (knows it but isn't arrogant) boy yarn, and I was pleasantly suprised. This book has a bit more heart to it than your average YA book and everytime I caught my cynical mind groaning at what I was sure the next step was going to be it would head in another direction. Refreshing.Not a whole lot to say really, it's a good read, not mind blowing by any means, but satisfying.I had to laugh out load when I turned the last page, I thought "mmm that was a bit abstract, the author must be going for one of those thought provoking endings that you have to mull over for a while to truly appreciate" I googled it a found out that indeed there is going to be a sequel *face palm*

Unearthly was quite original. Normally angels are likeable, lovely souls with no blemishes, where our heroine, Clara, is a character that is as human as it gets. She can be as mean and moody as the average human girl and makes mistakes as the rest of us do. She can be even downright bitchy and rude. Saying this, you kind of warm up to her towards the end. Christian, the boy she wants, is a character that did not interest me much- of course, this is explained with the funny turn things take two thirds in the book. There are unexpected twists in the plot and the love story is not going at all as we 've been trained to expect. Definitely recommend it to anyone who liked books like Angel, Hush Hush, Awake or Paranormancy.

What I feel right now can be found from the title which I have called this review. Unearthly is gripping and addictive. Already on Chapter 6 and I'm loving every moment of this I was not sure to get this book but as I saw one of my favourite author (Richelle Mead) had comment I wasted no time to the basket and checkout button. But Just to double check I had a look inside ... and boy this book is addictive! Cannot wait to read the rest of this novel to see what else in is store! Fingers crossed there will a sequel to this debut for this kind of addiction !!You should only get this book if..- Love paranormal stuff- Addictive romances- Angels( wings included)!

I found myself totally enthralled by this story! I'm super excited to get into book number 2 and find out where the story goes. I love the romance but also enjoy hobbit doesn't overpower the main story

If you love paranormal romances you are sure to love this. This is the first book in the series, I finished the second last night and im having withdrawal symptoms! i so cannot wait for the next book. Unearthly is essentially about Clara, a teenager who is part angel and has life altering angelic visions giving her a purpose that she must answer to. Her life is encased in secrets and she will unlock them along the way.If you liked any of these novels 'Fallen' 'Twilight' 'Die for me' 'Finding sky' 'Shiver' you will love this.

Have really enjoyed this book, storyline is good and like the characters, but do feel Claras mother is not fair ad she seems to hold to much vital information from her, hoping it will all be uncovered in the next book.

This is the first book about angels, I've read, and didn't expect much, but I was just blown away!At first the plot seems ridiculous, but the further you get into it, the more exciting it gets! The dillemma Clara is in is tough, and you really don't know what's she's gonna do!I don't know what else to say, except; READ IT! LOVE IT!

Unearthly was a fantastic book. Clara is such a believable teenager and the book has great detail to every aspect. At the start I thought the book was going to be a predictable love story beteeen Christian and Clara but really ended up to be a bit of a love triangle and a lot of confusion. I love the character Tucker, he really makes the novel, especially the detail between Clara and his relationship. But in some ways you know it will end because its 'too perfect' by overly a very good and very surprising book full with all sorts of twists and turns. Definatly worth a read!

Again this was recommended by my lovely aquaintance Alison Wynn Rider (formerly of Rescue Mediums TV series...) in her book about her life....I bought it but did actually think it wouldn't be my sirtof thing....I was wrong it was amazing and has renewed my faith in Angels.

I purely brought this book on the good review. To me the book description sounded a bit child like but i was so wrong. This book is a must buy and is not child like at all. It is very easy to read and well written that you feel as thow you are clara and the story is in some way beliveable. Don't miss out and buy this book.