Reviews

Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

octagonal's review against another edition

5.0

Loved it. There was this one section, like maybe a quarter of the way through, where I thought, "Oh great, here we go again." because it seemed like it was going to go the direction of everything I've ever read. But actually, once it got going, I really loved it. It kept me guessing, too, which is awesome. Clara was badass. The romance was adorable, precious, and actually made sense. YAY.

rebeccazh's review against another edition

4.0

tried to reread but it was actually really boring; nothing like what I remembered. also, Clara is quite self-centered and selfish, which wasn't pleasant to read about.

paradoxically's review against another edition

4.0

Talk about tripping off my embarrassment meter. Unearthly doesn't seem that bad all around. The main character, Clara, is actually level headed and a fairly normal character (for all that she's a quarter angel). Except when she's around Christian and turns into this sort of stalking, embarrassing wreck. She does have a good reason and all, but seriously embarrassing.

The plot really starts to get going after the middle of the book. It drags on a bit beforehand and I found myself going "Get on with it already!" at Clara, but once things start getting revved up, it gets pretty interesting. I liked the ending, but had more questions than answers. I know that there's another book coming (and probably some more after that), but I wanted a little more resolution than what was given to us.

Clara was a great main character. Angels, even only part angels, supposedly are these creatures who are pretty much better at everything, but she doesn't come off as a mary sue at all. She worries and frets and gets self absorbed in her world--and then tries to shake out of it and apologizes. Tucker and Christian now... hm. Tucker is awesome. He's a genuinely nice guy and I actually really liked the thought of him and Clara together. Christian always seemed three steps away from you, but he has potential. They're both varied characters who are great people in their own right. We didn't learn much about Christian in this book, so I look forward to seeing more of him in the next.

Overall, about 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4. What can I say? I'm kind of a sucker of angel books.

traceyms90's review against another edition

4.0

Just wonderful!
Really well written. I am transported everytime I pick it up and get lost in this wonderland were reality and paranormal meet.

bookishcarli's review against another edition

3.0

It was really good! Well written and fast paced. A little to Romance-y for my liking, but I did like it. I'm definetly Team Tucker.

tinyjet's review against another edition

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

booknerd777's review against another edition

5.0

This book was amazing, I loved it so much! It's one of my favorite books of the year. I wanna read the next book :) I'm definitely Team Tucker.

kaceeem5's review against another edition

4.0

Spoiler

EDIT: (so I have now come to the conclusion, by reading other reviews, that I am one of a very small group of people that like Christian more than Tucker...)

I really liked this book, there were just some things about it that made me so mad that I didn't even want to finish it. First, the fact that the author introduces us to a love triangle. I hate love triangles, and have always hated love triangles, so when I was first introduced to both characters I wanted to throw the book across the room. So you think you really want her to end up with Christian because he is the man of her dreams (literally) but then Tucker gets introduced and you're sitting there internally screaming because now you want her to forget about Christian (which she kind of does during her summer break) and date Tucker. Then the fire comes, the visions align to the best of their ability and Clara finds herself right where she's supposed to be but Christian isn't there. She can sense that the fire is coming and her time to achieve her purpose is coming, but then she receives a worried call from Wendy and decides TO ABANDON HER PURPOSE AND GO SAVE TUCKER. THIS IS THE MOMENT I REALIZED THAT I NEVER WANTED CLARA AND TUCKER TO BE A THING. I SERIOUSLY CONTEMPLATED POUNDING MY HEAD INTO THE WALL WHEN SHE GOES AND SAVES TUCKER. I mean, yes, I know that they're "in love" BUT IF HEAVEN WANTS YOU TO SAVE CHRISTIAN THEN YOU BY GOD SAVE CHRISTIAN.

I seriously just finished the book so I'm still grieving over the fact that she pushed Christian away at the end because she's in love with Tucker and she knows if she kisses Christian it will all be over for her and Tucker. But I seriously did really enjoy the book.

AND IM CURRENTLY HEADING TO THE BOOKSTORE NOW TO PICK UP THE SECOND BOOK SO I CAN SEE IF CLARA GETS HER HEAD OUT OF TUCKERS BUTT AND REALIZES CHRISTIAN IS THE ONE.

kstring's review against another edition

3.0

This book is a solid okay book.

Plus:
Good writing style, easy to read and follow and connect with. I like the main character.
The boys *sigh*
The love triangle is gripping. Reading the second book to follow through on it.
The entire thing was actually pretty believable. Not your typical cheesy teen romance. This book actually has some meat on its bones, and no instaromance. Relationships seem real and I only once yelled (in my mind) at the main character for doing something stupid. She was actually a very believable character who could think for herself.

Minus:
Nothing important has been explained about angels and we know nothing about the main character's family.
The book really could be shorter because there's a few unnecessary scenes that are included but don't help with plot development and don't really help character development either.
The passage of time was not done very well, but I could still follow, and the ending was a but sudden.

thewickermage's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0