Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

Title: Unearthly
Author: Cynthia Hand

Publisher: Harper Teen

Release Date: January 4th 2011

Age Group: Young Adult
Rating: ♥♥♥♥ [4]

Source: Bought

Clara Gardner has recently learned that she’s part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a purpose, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn't easy.

Her visions of a raging forest fire and an alluring stranger lead her to a new school in a new town. When she meets Christian, who turns out to be the boy of her dreams (literally), everything seems to fall into place—and out of place at the same time. Because there’s another guy, Tucker, who appeals to Clara’s less angelic side.

As Clara tries to find her way in a world she no longer understands, she encounters unseen dangers and choices she never thought she’d have to make—between honesty and deceit, love and duty, good and evil. When the fire from her vision finally ignites, will Clara be ready to face her destiny?

Unearthly is a moving tale of love and fate, and the struggle between following the rules and following your heart.

I picked up Unearthly because I was looking for a good Angel book and because of the gorgeous cover. I'm really in love with the whole idea of guardian angels and I after reading Unearthly I can't wait to get my hands on more!

This book was wonderful! Cynthia Hand's writing style was spot on. I never got tired of reading this book and I found myself constantly picking up my Kindle again and again because I had to know more. This book in short is addictive.

My favorite character was...Tucker! He is such a gentleman and a real down to earth kinda guy. I LOVED the romance between Clara and Tucker. It was so refreshing and real. I found myself smiling like a dork a lot during the Clara and Tucker moments. I wish we had gotten to know Christian more because it seems as though he was just a side character instead of a main character and there are still lots of mystery surrounding him waiting to be solved (hopefully in the next book). The setting was amazing too! I really have to visit Wyoming one day..

There was a steady pacing throughout but it fell apart towards the end. The ending was so abrupt that it made it obvious that Unearthly was a series. I think that in series each book needs to at least be partially wrapped up. The ending didn't elaborate on anything that happened during the book and nothing was really solved. I guess this makes me want to pick up the second book even more!

Overall, a great start to the series! And I'll definitely pick up the second book Hallowed. 

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"I'm looking at you. Why are you always trying to hide how pretty you are?" (307) - Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

I really need to get my hands on more Angel books!

-Stella♥

Looking For Alaska by John Green

Title: Looking For Alaska

Author: John Green | Website

Publisher: Puffin

Release Date: March 3rd 2005

Age Group: Young Adult

Rating: ♥♥♥ [3]
Source: Library

Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet Francois Rabelais called the "Great Perhaps." Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young. Clever, funny, screwed-up, and dead sexy, Alaska will pull Miles into her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps.

I was eager to read this book as I had never read a John Green book before and I wanted to hop onto the John Green bandwagon. Maybe because I was expecting this to be the best book in the world, I was disappointed. If I had just randomly picked this book from the library shelf, I’m sure I might’ve been way more impressed but with all the hype surrounding this book, I couldn’t help but feel unsatisfied.

The way the book was set up was really interesting. There are two parts to the book, the before and the after. This made me very curious and want to keep reading to find out what after was. I thought that the structure of the story was very unique. I found that, to me, the plot was unpredictable. I often found myself surprised at events that happened which kept me wanting to read more.

I didn't particularly like Miles' character because I sometimes found him annoying. However, he had a very strong voice in the story and I loved the idea of him being obsessed with last words, it was a very unique character trait. On the other hand, I absolutely adored Alaska. She seemed fun, adventurous, and one of those people who always knows what to do and say. I also liked the Colonel, Takumi, and Lara and the friendships between all five of them. John Green did a great job with character detail as we were able to get to know each character well throughout the course of the story. I think that Looking for Alaska is one of those books that are made by the characters, and not the actual story.  

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"I found myself thinking about President William McKinley, the third American president to be assassinated. He lived for several days after he was shot, and toward the end, his wife started crying and screaming, "I want to go, too! I want to go, too!" And with his last measure of strength, McKinley turned to her and spoke his last words: "We are all going."" (120) -Looking For Alaska by John Green

For those who haven't, check this book out if you are craving some contemporary. Don't worry John Green fans, I'm still looking forward to checking out more John Green books. Comment below your favorite John Green book! :)

-Stella♥

Numbers by Rachel Ward

Title: Numbers (Numbers #1)
Author: Rachel Ward | Website
Publisher: Chicken House
Release Date: February 1st 2010 
Age Group: Young Adult
Source: Library
Rating: ♥♥♥♥ [4]
Challenge: --

Ever since she was child, Jem has kept a secret: Whenever she meets someone new, no matter who, as soon as she looks into their eyes, a number pops into her head. That number is a date: the date they will die. Burdened with such awful awareness, Jem avoids relationships. Until she meets Spider, another outsider, and takes a chance. The two plan a trip to the city. But while waiting to ride the Eye Ferris wheel, Jem is terrified to see that all the other tourists in line flash the same number. Today's number. Today's date. Terrorists are going to attack London. Jem's world is about to explode!

This book took me by surprise as it was not what I expected it to be at all. The summary on the cover flap can be misleading as that is not what this book is about. I was expecting a thriller/conspiracy/science-fiction story but this story actually focused a lot on the romance between our two main protagonists Jem and Spider.

I found the concept of this story interesting: girl who can see the death dates of other people; but I thought that Rachel Ward could do a little more with it.  I picked this book up because the concept reminded me of the popular anime Death Note. I liked where Rachel Ward was going with the story at the beginning as I was expecting a thriller but it all turned into romance (that can be good too). The story is heavily based around the concepts of death, fate, and destiny and questions whether we control our own fates or if our fates are already predetermined. I found that these concepts made me think throughout the course of reading this book. The overall feel of the book was very dark. I think that the book set a good pace in the beginning but the story felt rushed towards the end and it felt like all the loose ends were trying to be tied up really quickly. Sadly, I don't think the ending was as strong as the start.

The romance was great! However I wish there was more development to it. I really loved Jem and Spider's relationship and how Jem developed as a character throughout the story. There relationship with one another was heartwarming and at the same time heartbreaking. I found the ending to be shocking and abrupt. The cliff hanger at the end of the story made me want the run and grab the second book in the series, Chaos.

I also really enjoyed Rachel Ward's writing style. It was descriptive yet not over the top and easy to follow. As Rachel Ward is an English author I had to grab the dictionary several times in order to understand some words. I'll be on the lookout for more of her books!

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“Nothing makes any sense. Nothing means anything. You're born, you live, you die. That's it.” -Numbers by Rachel Ward

Overall, Numbers was an enjoyable book. It was an interesting concept although the story didn’t play out as I thought it would. I will be picking up and reviewing the second book Chaos to see what happens next!

-Stella♥