Date Read: January 29 – 30 2013
Release Date: February 1st 2013
Publisher: HarperCollins Australia
Source: Bought
Genre: Paranormal
My rating: 
(Not enough stars)
(Not enough stars)
Synopsis:
“The past few years held more surprises than part-angel Clara Gardner ever could have anticipated. Yet through the dizzying high of first love to the agonizing low of losing someone close to her, the one thing she could no longer deny was that she was never meant to have a normal life.
“The past few years held more surprises than part-angel Clara Gardner ever could have anticipated. Yet through the dizzying high of first love to the agonizing low of losing someone close to her, the one thing she could no longer deny was that she was never meant to have a normal life.
Since discovering the special role she
plays among the other angel-bloods, Clara has been determined to protect Tucker
Avery from the evil that follows her . . . even if it means breaking both their
hearts. Leaving town seemed like the best option, so she’s headed back to
California—and so is Christian Prescott, the irresistible boy from the vision
that started her on this journey in the first place.
As Clara makes her way in a world that
is frighteningly new, she discovers that the fallen angel who attacked her is
watching her every move. And he’s not the only one. . . . With the battle
against the Black Wings looming, Clara knows she must finally fulfil her
destiny. But it won’t come without sacrifices and betrayal.
In the riveting finale of the Unearthly
series, Clara must choose her fate once and for all.”
---
“… How much I think
about him, how I dream about him, how even after all this time apart my heart
still aches to see him, touch him, hear his voice.”
One of the most epic finales I’ve ever read, this is one
ending I’ll never forget. The feels? Ohgod ALL OF THEM. I legit UGLY cried at
one point in the novel – the kind where I was sobbing so loudly, soaking my
pillows and my face was all splotchy and scrunched up and my chest was heaving
from the pain of it all… I felt so much love, heartbreak, happiness, sadness,
hope and despair my emotions were just all over the place. But what makes a
really good series final is that feeling of completeness and satisfaction you
get that it’s over – the bittersweet aftertaste once you reach the last page
and also the whole world of possibilities that the author has left open for the
characters too. I felt all of that with Boundless!
I can’t get over how amazing Cynthia’s writing is. If
possible it’s improved even more since Unearthly and Hallowed. Her writing just
has this way of sucking you in… into her abyss of beautiful words and
descriptions. Everything was just phrased so eloquently I felt like I was
reading poetry. When an author can SHOW rather than tell, it makes the whole
reading experience so much more enjoyable. I get so frustrated with writing
that gives me information dumps.
“It smells so good
here, like wet cement and fresh-cut grass, the aroma of bacon and pancakes
wafting between the homes, garden roses and magnolia trees, the smells of my
life before.”
The plot was an interesting one and I was intrigued with how
Cynthia would tie in the Black Wings, Clara’s purpose and this ‘battle’ with
said dark angels. A battle definitely ensued and I really liked the way it
played out over the course of the book. It wasn’t a huge climax but rather
everything built up and unravelled slowly but with so much power. I think
Cynthia handled the extent of Clara’s abilities and fit those with what she was
faced with in a very reasonable manner. Despite being what she is, Clara is only
18 and can only do so much and I liked how she didn’t suddenly have the powers
of the archangels; her powers took time to hone and they were believable!
I enjoyed reading about most of the supporting characters
here like Angela who I saw a different side to, and I really liked getting to
knowing Michael more. I was a bit disappointed with Phen though. He was
shrouded in mystery and when I finally met him it felt so anticlimactic. He was
introduced as another angel with not much background and I thought it was a bit
rushed and too vague. But my favourite supporting character had to be Samjeeza!
His profile had been built up over the past books and there was obviously
history between him and Maggie, but their story is finally revealed in
Boundless and I revelled in it! Such a bittersweet tale, I could really feel
Samjeeza’s sorrow.
“Samjeeza flinches. It
is more than he expected. I feel him start to tremble under my hand.”
Although Maggie was essentially a supporting character in
Unearthly and Hallowed, she makes another appearance in Boundless. I think it’s
amazing how her presence managed to emanate throughout Boundless despite her
physical absence. Wendy @
The Midnight Garden in her review of Boundless comments “I've also rarely seen parental love
depicted in such a warm and loving way” and I couldn’t have phrased that
better which is why I quoted her. Clara and Maggie’s relationship is one full
of so much love and support, but in Boundless it’s not just Maggie giving Clara
advice as the mother – there’s daughter to mother wisdom too! That kind of bond
is so beautiful and timeless I wanted to grab a piece for myself.
“We think of happiness
as something we can take. But usually it comes from being content with what we
have, and accepting ourselves.”
Clara has grown so much since Unearthly. When I first met
her, I thought she was slightly whiny but this understandable, faced with a
purpose and no idea how to achieve it. Not only is she stronger physically in
Boundless, but she’s stronger mentally and emotionally. There’s a newfound
confidence to her in the way she goes about things. She’s sure of herself and
her decisions – they may not always be the best but she knows what she wants. I
loved that take-charge fire to her attitude! We also see a lot more of
Christian in Boundless and he really grew on me – I’d already decided that I
didn’t care who Clara ended up with but I ended up having a soft spot for
Christian regardless. He was so supportive and just this constant in Clara’s
life – the stability she needed amongst all the angel madness (the irony I know
as he’s part of it too but he understood her in a way that no one else could
when she was alone).
“He’s waiting. He’s
still waiting. He’s given up everything for me. His entire life. His future.
Everything, because he wants to keep me safe.”
So this begs the question: Tucker Avery or Christian Prescott?
GAH I don’t even know how I’m going to write out this paragraph. The romance
was SUBLIME. Heart-wrenching, heart-breaking, heart-SHATTERING. Beautiful,
bittersweet, hopeless, hopeful and in the end just so full of love no matter
what happened I was left breathless. One loves her from a distance but she can’t
have him – or can she? One is right in front of her but she doesn’t have
feelings for him – or does she? I was knocked around by these two amazing boys
so many times I nearly forgot my bias by the end. The romance was essentially
what made me ugly cry haha. And god was it written in the most stunning way. No
amount of adjectives will explain my feels. I HOPE YOU GUYS ARE AS HAPPY WITH WHO
SHE ENDS UP WITH AS I WAS!
“I give him my whole
heart through my lips. I love him. I open up my mind and show him how much I
love him.”
I really felt the integrity of the trilogy when I got to the
end. Cynthia maintained a cyclic structure that came full circle by the last
page and this style gave it such a completed feel I really knew I’d reached the
end of Clara’s story. And yet I still
knew that even though one part of Clara’s life had been completed, there was a
lot more waiting for her in the future – that her purpose was not yet over.
“My home is you.”
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