Review : Hallowed

Posted by on January 31, 2012 2:27 pm in 4.5 stars reads | 4 comments

Hallowed by Cynthia Hand
Pages : 403
Genre : YA, Paranormal
Series : Unearthly, Book 2
My Rating :

What it’s about :

Just as she is trying to put behind the fires and everything that went down that night, Clara starts having a new vision. This time, it comes in the shape of a terrifying dream where she is losing someone she loves. But who? Is it possible for her to stop it?

As if the constant worrying for her close ones wasn’t enough, Clara also has to deal with her brother’s strange attitude, the growing tensions in the triangle formed by Christian, Tucker and herself, and learning every day a little more about who she is. But before this chapter of her life is over, everything in her life will be forever changed.

My Thoughts :

Oh. My. God.

I thought Unearthly was good, yes, far above the average young adult paranormal romance. Still I was unprepared for Hallowed, and how much I liked it. What am I saying? I loved it. I’m talking about a 4.5 starts coming really close to a 5 here!

It was not only a captivating story, but also a very, very emotional one – something I hadn’t expected at all from a novel of the genre. After all, YA paranormal is what I turn to to be entertained. Here though, Cynthia Hand gets close and personal with death, grief and the sense of powerlessness that accompanies both. She delivers a story with depth where Clara goes through all kinds of emotions, and us with her.

Also, I can’t say enough of the author’s great writing of a fantastic romance. I have mentioned more than once before being tired of the love triangle, but this might be the exception. I felt that Hand didn’t hesitate to go where many authors won’t, tearing apart what was already established to start anew. Tucker is still a lovely boy, but as we get to know Christian better through time, it is impossible to resist his charm and good nature. Plus, his understanding of Clara was exactly what she needed, when she needed it. Without taking anything away from Tucker, Christian developed in his own character and we finally get to really know him.

There’s still an element of danger with the Black Wings more or less hanging around, making Hallowed a constant roller coaster of emotions and adventures. We learn just so, so much about angels in this book that it kept me constantly on my toes, trying to guess what was next. I was very happy to see many of my predictions come true! Because of Hand’s fantastic writing, I didn’t feel as if it had been predictable; there was always an element of surprise in the details, or with the moment chosen for new revelations and twists.

I’m so glad this turned out to be even better than I expected! Book three will only be coming out in 2013, and this seems a bit too far from now for my taste!

Series Reading Order :

  1. Unearthly
  2. Hallowed (coming January 2012)
  3. – coming in 2013 –

4 Comments

  1. I really need to read Unearthly. I just glanced at your review because I didn’t want to spoil anything, but I am glad you liked it!

  2. Oh wow. You make this sound so good. I can’t wait to try it.

  3. So, so glad that you were thrilled with this one! It sounds like an excellent story, and it’s rare for the second book in a series to be better than the first, so now I am really excited! I need to find these books for myself and see what I think! Great review today!

  4. I am so, so happy that you loved this. It’s such a special book and explores all kinds of things I never expected to find in a PNR, you know? And yes, now we just have to wait for book three!

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