Hallowed
Hallowed (Unearthly, #2)by Cynthia Hand
For months part-angel Clara Gardner trained to face the raging forest fire from her visions and rescue the alluring and mysterious Christian Prescott from the blaze. But nothing could prepare her for the fateful decisions she would be forced to make that day, or the startling revelation that her purpose—the task she was put on earth to accomplish—is not as straightforward as she thought.Now, torn between her increasingly complicated feelings for Christian and her love for her boyfriend, Tucker, Clara struggles to make sense of what she was supposed to do the day of the fire. And, as she is drawn further into the world of part angels and the growing conflict between White Wings and Black Wings, Clara learns of the terrifying new reality that she must face: Someone close to her will die in a matter of months. With her future uncertain, the only thing Clara knows for sure is that the fire was just the beginning. (goodreads.com)
Since I was pleasantly surprised by Unearthly last month, I knew I had to pick up the sequel as soon as it came out - so I ordered it with Christmas money. :)Now, Hallowed wasn't the fast-paced, super funny romp that its predecessor was but I still enjoyed it very much. I laughed out loud at times and I sucked in breaths of "no way!" at others. I didn't like the addition of a love triangle in this book even if it did make fun of itself along the way. I am just so over love triangles. I have never liked them. I don't care if you're mocking a love triangle as you triangle yourself, it's still a triangle and I will roll my eyes and say "whatever".That being said, I do adore Clara and many of the characters in the novel. I especially adore Clara when she's not mooning over the boys in her life and is merely focusing on the rest of the story - like the impending loss of a person she loves. (which I will not reveal lest I spoil things).I'm not entirely certain where the next book will take us. Perhaps to college? If Clara leaves town in the next book, I am curious how her brother's story line will progress. I am sure there will be progression, heck, I NEED progression because it's been set up and I need it knocked down.I was most interested in learning more about Clara's mother's purpose and her past. The addition of other angels (which, was a little over the top, to be honest) was certainly interesting. I also loved learning more about Black Wings and the relationship Clara's mother had with one (I don't mean relationship as in kissy-kissy, but you know, relationship as in "hey, I know you").There are many elements to this series that I enjoy, many I find a tad cliche and eye-roll worthy, but I enjoy the story telling and writing enough that I can over look those moments. I know I like a book when stuff like the love triangle and the Big Reveal being "Oh, of course you're INSERT OBVIOUS REVEAL HERE" don't bother me much and I am eager to pick up the next book because I just like visiting the world and characters.I don't even normally like angel-related stories, but this one (and Courtney Alison Moulton's Angelfire series) really entertains me. I'd give it a try if I were you. ;)Unearthly series