Synopsis: 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.
My Review: What a ride! This one pulled me in from pretty much the first sentence and just did not let go. Although this is a book about angels on earth, it’s very different from the other angel books I’ve read recently in the YA field.
First, our angelic being is the female character, Clara. And can I just say that I love the strong, heroic one being the female for once. It gets a little tiring seeing our lead female characters being the weak ones who need rescuing all the time.
Second, Clara is no fallen angel trying to redeem herself. She’s a teenage girl, who happens to be an angel, trying to make her way through a new school and figure out her purpose at the same time. Not an easy life, but I like not really worrying about her the whole time.
Throughout the book, we get glimpses of Clara’s purpose as she sees her visions, which come at rather inconvenient times, all the while wondering how on earth it fits in. In the background is an ancient good angels versus bad angels fight – you know, the usual. Add in your high school boys, some trusty girlfriends, and you’ve got a whole lot of fun!
I loved learning about Clara’s life, trying to figure out what she’s meant for, how all the pieces fit together. I found myself being pretty torn between Tucker and Christian myself, who are both pretty attractive in different ways. It all raises the age old question: what do you do when you’re torn between your duty and your heart?
And although this is the first book in a series, I don’t feel like it ended in a cliffhangery way, which I liked. At the same time, I do want to know what’s going to happen to Clara, her brother, mom, their friends, and everyone else in the book. To me, that’s really the best kind of book – the sort that leaves you wanting more, but not killing you with the suspense.
Read this book if: You like YA fiction or angel stories. It was really fun!
My Rating: 4/5 – Borderline Amazing!
Full Disclosure: I received this book for free on my Kindle from Net Galley, who received it from the publisher Harper Collins. I was not compensated for this review in any way, and receiving this book for free has not affected the content of my review.
