By Cynthia Hand
Publisher: HarperTeen
To Sum It Up:
After choosing to listen to her heart rather than pursue her destiny, Clara wonders what consequences her decision will bring. She also wonders how Christian is supposed to fit into her life, since fate seems to be telling both of them that he’s an inevitable part of it. As Clara worries about her future with Tucker, a new fear arises to give her even greater concern. Clara begins having troubling dreams filled with overwhelming sadness, and eventually the cause of her sorrow becomes startlingly clear: she’s going to lose someone she loves.
Review:
I continue to love the Unearthly series with all of my heart, though Hallowed just about shattered it. This book left me feeling a ton of different emotions all at once; no, this is not your run-of-the-mill middle book in which the story merely serves as a lead-in to the conclusion of the trilogy. Hallowed was every bit as engrossing as Unearthly was, and then some.In Hallowed, Clara finds herself in quite the conundrum. Love triangles in YA books usually send me running in the opposite direction, but this one has such a different twist to it, and it’s so expertly written, that I don’t want to look away. What do you do when you love someone, but it seems that God has somebody else in mind for you? I mean, these aren’t your parents or your best friend telling you that you’re not with the right guy—it’s GOD. Clara even sarcastically notes that she never pictured herself as the girl caught between two guys, but that she is. And I love her for making that observation. I didn’t agree with all of the decisions that she made throughout the book, but I had to give her a lot of credit for acknowledging her mistakes. I respect heroines who take time out for a little self-reflection.
Although I am Team Tucker all the way, I can’t hate Christian. I can’t even dislike him. I felt like I got to know Christian much better in Hallowed, and he’s a decent guy. He’s in the same boat as Clara, with the whole God-Wants-Us-to-Be-Together thing, so he understands what she’s going through better than anyone. And therein lies the crux of this love triangle: how do you ignore a connection like that?
So poor, human Tucker really has the odds stacked against him this time around. There’s this sincerity to him that just makes me melt; I love how he always wants to know the truth, even if it’s going to hurt. I also love how he’ll do whatever he thinks is best for Clara, no matter what the expense is to his own heart.
I actually cried while reading Hallowed. Now, I may get a bit misty-eyed on occasion, but this time, tears were streaming down my face. And I rarely, rarely full-out cry while reading. One event in the book struck particularly close to home. I knew that it was going to happen for a while, but I didn’t think that I’d react so strongly. Cynthia Hand wrote these scenes with such moving beauty; there’s no doubt that rereading them would set off the waterworks again.
If you loved Unearthly as much as I did, and believe me, I loved Unearthly, you won’t be disappointed with Hallowed. Oh, you might be a jumble of emotions after reading it, like I was, but this is a must-read sequel. This series—simply amazing.
All in All:
I’ll reiterate what I said in my review of Unearthly: Best. Angel. Series. Ever.
