Angelfall by Susan Ee

Angelfall by Susan Ee
Series: Penryn & the End of Days #1
Published by: Skyscape on August 28, 2012
Genre: Angels, Dystopian, Fantasy
Pages: 284
Source: Purchased
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Rating: ★★★★★

It's been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back.

Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel.

Raffe is a warrior who lies broken and wingless on the street. After eons of fighting his own battles, he finds himself being rescued from a desperate situation by a half-starved teenage girl.

Traveling through a dark and twisted Northern California, they have only each other to rely on for survival. Together, they journey toward the angels' stronghold in San Francisco where she'll risk everything to rescue her sister and he'll put himself at the mercy of his greatest enemies for the chance to be made whole again.

This is one of those books I was a little nervous going into because of all the hype and the rave reviews. Lately I have read a lot of books that people loved, but I didn’t end up enjoying them that much. Luckily, Angelfall completely blew me away! It was everything I hoped it would be and more.

One of the coolest things about Angelfall was that it takes place near where I live! The story starts out in Silicon Valley, which is where my house is! Penryn kept mentioning streets like El Camino and Page Mill Road, and I kept thinking, “OMG I know where that is! I drive on those roads!” It was so cool to read a story about an angel apocalypse that takes place near where I live! It definitely put a very cool, frightening spin on the book.

Penryn is one of the best characters I’ve encountered in young adult books. She’s mentally strong and she can physically kick some serious ass! Her mom pushed her into taking all kinds of self defense classes, so now, at age 17, she knows how to handle herself in a fight! She may not be an angel, but she still stands up to them and can really hold her own! But in addition, Penryn has a very strong loyalty streak that was incredibly admirable. She refuses to give up when her sister gets taken by the angels, despite several people telling her that it’s pointless because her sister is most likely dead. Also, Penryn is a hilarious narrator! I love her sarcasm and snarky comments.. or her lack of snarky comments when she’s rendered speechless or can’t think of a good comeback!

“Oh, please. Your giant head is getting too big for this forest. Pretty soon, you’re going to get stuck trying to walk between two tress. And then, I’ll have to rescue you.” I give him a weary look. “Again.”
Angelfall by Susan Ee

I really adored the fantasy in Angelfall. I loved how swords have loyalty and can decide who should use them and when. If a sword doesn’t show loyalty to a person/angel, then that person/angel won’t be able to lift it! There were also some religious undertones in Angelfall, but I think it was the perfect amount. They were really subtle and didn’t dominate the book at all. And there’s a big question—even amongst some of the angels—of whether or not God really exists.

There actually wasn’t as much romance in Angelfall as I was expecting. I think I assumed it would be a typical “human girl falls in love with angel” story. Instead, the book definitely focuses on the politics surrounding the angel attack, a human resistance, Penryn getting her sister back, and Raffe getting his wings back. The romance does start to develop near the end though, and Susan really sets the stage for what will certainly be an EPIC series, with more romance to come! Oh, and Raffe is hot. HOTTTT!!

“My friends call me Wrath,” says Raffe. “My enemies call me Please Have Mercy. What’s your name, soldier boy?”
Angelfall by Susan Eee

This is definitely one of those books that I wish I could read again for the first time. It’s a fairly short book (at only 284 pages), and I was devastated when it ended! I just wanted MORE!!! I want to see the angels go to war with the humans. I want to know what happens to Raffe. I want to see more of that romance that started to develop. All I can say is that I’m so glad this book is a series, because I was not ready to say goodbye to the characters or the amazing story.

The Verdict