KitsuneBae
Written on Feb 28, 2016
And Clara being a very special snowflake Angel blood is really tiring me out. Le sigh.
The heart-wrenching, unputdownable sequel to Unearthly.
Part-angel Clara is still reeling from the choice she was forced to make amidst the vicious forest fire of her nightmares. Now, torn between her love for Tucker and a destiny that will separate them, Clara is faced with another shocking revelation: someone she loves will die in a matter of months. With her future uncertain, the only thing Clara knows is that the fire was just the beginning.
Cynthia Hand’s debut series has already become a hit with fans of paranormal romance.
The most compelling books for teens since Fallen, Unearthly and Hallowed have received rave reviews from critics and teen readers alike.
Praise for Unearthly:
‘Utterly captivating … One of the most addictive books I’ve read in a while. Unearthly had me lying awake at night, wondering what would happen next’ – Richelle Mead, No.1 bestselling author of the Vampire Academy series
‘Page-turning and gripping. I loved it!’ – Alexandra Adornetto, author of bestselling Halo
- ISBN13 9781780310909
- Publish Date 2 January 2012 (first published 1 January 2012)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher HarperCollins Publishers
- Imprint Farshore
- Format eBook (EPUB)
- Pages 336
- Language English
- URL http://harpercollins.co.uk
Reviews
And Clara being a very special snowflake Angel blood is really tiring me out. Le sigh.
Jordon
Written on Nov 23, 2013
How do I get Radiant Shadows?!? I can't buy it anywhere, I think because I live in New Zealand :(
tellemonstar
Written on Jul 29, 2013
Kim Deister
Written on May 24, 2013
The characters grew over the course of the last book and I felt like they were even more explored in this one. We learn so much more about Clara's mom and she becomes a bit of a tragic figure. In Unearthly, she often irritated me, keeping secrets that I thought she needed to share with Clara. It was the same at the beginning of Hallowed, but with this book comes a great deal of understanding. However, with the answers come more questions!
The love triangle is still going strong and is just as engrossing. I had fears that it, after having been drawn out through two books, would be tired and predictable, but it wasn't at all. I still can't decide if I am Team Tucker or Team Christian yet, as I flip back and forth constantly! I love that we get to know both of the guys as their own people, separate from Clara.
But the best thing about this book? Clara's story throughout the book and especially at the end. Clara had a rough time throughout this book, one thing right after another. There was no easy tying up of loose ends, "everything is better now" ending for her. No one swooped in and solved her problems. I liked that because it is real. There was a lot of heart break in this installment, sadness that had me shedding ugly tears at times!
The only thing I really didn't get was the appearance of Clara's dad. He just reappeared in her life and there was no real conflict or angst about it. I know they are angels, but it seemed a little out of touch to not have even a moment of anger or confusion or belligerence.
Things to love about Hallowed...
--Clara's mom and dad. Their story was sweet and romantic and more than a little tragic.
--Hand's writing. The story is beautifully written, sweeping you along without weighing you down with lengthy descriptive sentences.
--Clara's friends. I love Angela, the token emo girl, and Wendy, the bubbly other BFF. They are great friends and interesting characters in their own rights.
My recommendation: Better than the first so READ!
Briana @ Pages Unbound
Written on Feb 8, 2013
Unearthly captivated me with its strong plot, real romance, and beautiful depiction of angels. At the time I wrote my review, I called it “the best paranormal romance I have read.” Unfortunately, Hallowed floundered and failed to live up to the expectations Hand had built for me. In the acknowledgements she writes that “This book was like riding a bucking bronco to write,” and I am unconvinced that she managed to get it completely under control.
At the beginning, the writing itself is somewhat rocky—and this was the first aspect of the novel I thought of when I read Hand’s statement. She appears to have had some difficulty getting back into the swing of writing. Clara’s voice does not sound real to me here, and she seems painfully awkward even interacting with close friends, making a number of flat jokes that I do not remember being part of her personality from Unearthly. Things eventually get smoothed out, but I had to power through several hundred pages to see it happen.
There is also something of a dearth of plot. At the end of Unearthly, Clara believes she has been unsuccessful in fulfilling her purpose. In Hallowed, she mopes about it. This is a very contemplative and explanatory novel, rather than an action-filled one. Clara essentially walks around pondering whether she did fail in her purpose, what that means, what she should do about it, etc. These are all important questions, but the exploration could be a little more interesting. The book seems to be in as much of a rut as Clara. If she did miss her purpose, well what? Is that just it? Life goes on? Ok.
The romance is almost worse. The love triangle is taken to such an extreme that Clara has few romantic moments with either Tucker or Christian. Mostly, she agonizes. She wonders whether she should be with one or the other, who she is supposed to love. This feels very author-contrived to me, a ploy to make the “suspense” last throughout the trilogy. Personally, I would have loved to see more of why Clara likes either boy. Christian does get a few more chances to prove his worth here, but there is still the idea of his being Clara’s purpose that makes the romance ring a little false, at least to me. If Clara does end up with Christian, she needs to fall in love with him a little more in Boundless, and not just with the idea of him.
Essentially, I found Hallowed very slow. In many places, it was just filling in necessary information about the world of angels or being actual filler to tide readers over until the third book. I was dying to read Hallowed after I finished Unearthly. Right now, I feel I can wait for the paperback of Boundless. A fine book, but not a gripping one.
Kelly
Written on Sep 9, 2012
Kelsenator
Written on Jul 17, 2012
After Clara fails at her purpose at the end of the last book and saved Tucker instead of meeting Christian, she feels like it’s all over, like she failed. She loves Tucker so much, and doesn’t regret what she did, but now she waits to see what the consequences will be.
When she starts to have more visions, in her sleep now as opposed to in daylight, she wonders if they’re like from before. Are they just dreams or something that must be done next. Her mom says one’s purpose can last longer, but now she’s even more confused as to what is expected of her. When the vision this time hints that she’s at someone’s funeral, she has to figure out who it is, and how or when they died.
In her final year, not only does she have her angel problems, like a certain Black Wing stalking her, but the idea of going away for College and leaving Tucker scares her. She doesn’t know what she wants to or should do. It’s a complicated time for her right now, and the impending loss really hits her. Of course the confusion of her feelings for Christian, the ones she should have had from the last book, keep coming back. She even mocks herself about love triangles!
There’s even more secrets and crazy twists in this book compared to the first! I loved every second of it, and think it’s the best angel series I’ve read so far.
Recommended for young adult fans of paranormal, angels and romance.
Amber
Written on Apr 17, 2012
Full review here: http://www.booksofamber.com/2012/04/hallowed-by-cynthia-hand.html
I absolutely adored Unearthly when I read it towards the end of last year. It was such an unexpected read for me, because I was honestly expecting it to be preachy. Nevertheless, I adored it and I was excited to read Hallowed because Cynthia Hand has a beautiful writing style and I was sure I was going to be dragged in.
While Hallowed didn't completely live up to my expectations, I still enjoyed it. It just didn't have the same feel as Unearthly did, and I was a bit disappointed by the love interests.
I felt that this book focussed a bit too much on the love triangle for me to thoroughly enjoy it. There were some instances where it just wasn't realistic for Clara to be worrying about her love for either boy, and I also wasn't impressed with Christian and his near Edward-esque ways. Tucker wasn't in this book much at all, and he was my favourite in the first book, so as you can imagine I felt really let down.
I did, however, love the focus that was put on the family relationships between Clara and her mum, and her brother. Her dad also made an appearance, which was unexpected and totally awesome.
Like I said, Cynthia Hand has a beautiful writing style, and I was totally sobbing throughout the final four chapters. It really hit a nerve with me, as I had been through a similar situation and I just cried and cried.
There were some twists that I didn't see coming at all. I was expecting something completely different to happen, but the plot went in the opposite direction and I was kind of stunned.
Overall, this is a good book and I adore Cynthia's writing, but I think if there had been more focus on the angel lore and the family, and less on the 'epic-love-we-belong-together-it's-destiny', I would have enjoyed it a lot more.
ladygrey
Written on Feb 21, 2012
I don't like prosaic, blunt language. Reading it is boring and far too simple and straightforward for my taste. But its also hard to avoid in anything written in young-adult first person. So I accept it and not-so-secretly wish for a little bit of something poetic.
But what Hallowed lacks in linguistic form it more then makes up for in significance and emotion. There are some deep emotions coursing through this book and they're complicated and mournful and conflicted and exciting in a really sad way. And I love a book that isn't filled with shallow emotions. What I liked even more was that there was a distinctive maturity to some of the emotional turmoil, the kind of sadness and loss that is inevitable in life and that you learn to accept and bear as you grow up. It was really interesting.
I also liked the weight of the narrative, the substance of what was happening and the way things unfolded. It really resonates kind of spectacularly.
I also liked that the characters were more human this time around. Tucker and Christian both, in particular, were flawed and interesting and had more depth because there were more facets in their character. I still don't love Clara, maybe I don't relate to her particularly but she's a decent enough medium for this story.
And I really like this story. I'd like the next one now, please.
Angie
Written on Feb 10, 2012
Aside from the tragic event mentioned above, she also has normal teen problems to deal, which I liked reading about in addition to her angelic issues. She's struggling making a decision about her future, mainly what college to attend in the fall. Thankfully, she has her best friend, Angela, to help with that. She also has to deal with the aftermath of getting caught in her boyfriend's bed at 6:30 in the morning! And prom, and homework, and dealing with a moody younger sibling. Typical teen stuff.
Her angel problems are no picnic either, but we get to learn a ton of new information about them. Clara's mom is finally breaking the silence regarding her secrets, and some of them are pretty major! Clara's whole sense of identity is being reconstructed on top of everything else she's being faced with.
This sequel does not disappoint in any way. We get answers to many of the pressing questions left over from Unearthly, plus we're bombarded with so much new information that bring up their own questions. There's also plenty of scenes with Tucker and Christian, and now I'm torn about who I think Clara should be with! Hallowed reveals new sides to both of them, and it truly made the love triangle that much more intense. We also get more of Jeffrey and now his moodiness makes so much more sense. I really do not want to wait for the next book!
Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.