Ed. note: The giveaway for an ARC of Cynthia Hand’s fantastic debut Unearthly is now closed. Thanks to all who entered!
Unearthly
Cynthia Hand
Published: Jan. 4, 2011 (Harper Teen)
Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon
Rating (out of 5): 5 stars
Just go ahead and put Cynthia Hand on your auto-buy list now. Hit up Amazon and order Unearthly now, because — and we’ll put our rep on this one — the book is top-notch.
Clara is part angel. She’s still new to the whole thing, but when she begins having visions of a boy amid burning trees she knows something is up. Her mom (also part angel) is so excited, because her daughter is receiving her purpose. While Clara’s mom won’t reveal what her purpose is or was, she’ll work with her daughter to figure out what Clara is meant to do. First step: figure out where the vision is taking place.
It’s the second step that makes thing complicated for Clara and her family: move. Any teenager is going to hate picking up and moving away from their friends, but Clara has been assigned a task by God. You can’t really shirk that resposibility.
Clara quickly runs into the boy from her dreams, and he’s stunning. In addition to being gorgeous, Christian is also kind …and off limits. He has a girlfriend, and, you know, she’s an angel sent to probably save his life. Imagine meeting the boy of your dreams — to feel an amazing connection to him — only to continually be told there’s no hope and you should focus on your job. Frustrating doesn’t being to describe it.
Even as she begins to get closer to Christian, she finds another “not her type” guy grabbing her attention. What if her purpose is to be with Christian? Can can even want to be with someone else?
Add in a couple polar-opposite friends (one who knows way more about angels than Clara does), a resentful little brother, sometimes secretive mom and a popular girl who wants to rain hell down upon the girl catching Christian’s eye and you can see why being a part-angel teenager is complicated.
The beauty in Unearthly comes from choosing your destiny, learning to make the hard choices and knowing when your heart should rule those decisions.
I love an emotional ride. Good novels evoke genuine emotion in their readers. Great novels more often surprise readers by cultivating the unexpected response. Unearthly appears straightforward, but Hand’s writing so enamors the reader that one is confused, anxious and exhilarated as the plot coils tighter. At the end you’ll wonder how this delightful journey brought you here, and start begging for more.
The Contest for an ADVANCED COPY OF UNEARTHLY is now closed. The winner will be announced on Dec. 30.
CONTEST DETAILS AND RULES
1. Fill out the entry form.
2. This contest is only open to residents of the U.S. and Canada.
3. Contest is closes at 11:59 p.m. CST on Tuesday, Dec. 28.
4. Winners will be selected using Random.org and announced on Dec. 30. Then they will be contacted via email and given 48 hours to claim their prizes. If we do not hear from the winner(s) within that time, new winner(s) will be selected.
6. Entrants must be at least 13 years old, or have their parent’s permission to enter this contest. Please review our privacy policy, if you have any questions as to how Vampire Book Club uses your information. (Short version: we’ll only use it to contact you for this contest.)
7. Though unlikely, Vampire Book Club has the right to change or cancel any giveaway at any time without prior notice.
8. A big thank you to Harper Teen for providing this ARC.
Great review! It seems like the more reviews I read of this the more I like what I hear.
ooooh a book where the girl is the angel. It sounds awesome!
Great review! I completely adored Unearthly as well! I could not put it down and I think it’s my favourite read of the year. I’m so desperate for book 2 already!!
I know. That’s the downside to reading ARCs. I’m dying to know what will happen and we have a long wait.
Great review! I can’t wait to read this book.
Thanks for the giveaway!
Great review. I am loving angel mythology books lately.
Thanks for the opp!
Thanks!
thanks
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Donna Simmonds, Paige, Jennifer Danford, Katie, Redd and others. Redd said: RT @larissa_sarah: RT @SmashAttackAsh: @VampBookClub is hosting a giveaway for Unearthly by Cynthia Hand! http://bit.ly/esmZju [...]
This sounds absolutely intriguing. Sign me up! It’s very generous of you to host this give-away.
I’ve seen this book in kmart where I live! (Australia) You must’ve gotten the date wrong for when it’s published. =/
All the publish dates are for the U.S. edition. (Also, some stores will put books out before the official release.) The date above was provided by Harper Teen.
…but if you’re seeing it in a store, I suggest you buy it. Fantastic book!
this one sounds totally like my kind of read:)
I’d seen the cover before but it didnt catch my attention cuz it seemed ordinary but this review has me intrigued! thanks
Already on the to buy list. Is this going to be a series? It sounds like it will be *G*.
I’ve always wanted to read Unearthly!
[...] read poll, but Andrea Cremer’s Nightshade claimed the title with 29 percent of the votes. (Cynthia Hand’s Unearthly was a near second at 27 percent.) We are incredibly excited you guys are ready to read Nightshade, [...]
i stayed up the entire night reading this book, that’s how much I loved it. can’t wait for hallowed1
[...] the pretty blue cover for Hallowed, the sequel to the totally fantastic Unearthly by Cynthia Hand (VBC review). I’m super excited for this book, which comes out January [...]
[...] I know many of you are anxiously awaiting Cynthia Hand’s Hallowed, the sequel to the sweet YA Unearthly. She posted the book trailer, and I’d be remiss not to share. [...]