Title: Angelfall (Penryn & the End of Days #1)
Author: Susan EE
Narrator: Caitlin Davies
Publisher: Feral Dream & Brilliance Audio
Acquired Via: Personal Collection
Release Date: May 21, 2011
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.
My Review
Angelfall by Susan Ee has been on my radar for a few years now, but I avoided it because I haven't had a lot of luck with self-published novels. Honestly, I probably would have taken my time in getting around to reading it, despite the fact that I owned it on Kindle and Audible, if not for many reviewers that I trust raving about it in anticipation of its sequel, World After.
I'm so glad that I got off of my ass and read it.
Angelfall is one of those rare books that captures you so completely and makes it impossible to devote any sort of time or attention to work, children, bathing, sleeping, etc. Sadly, I'm not really exaggerating. From the moment that Penryn happened upon Raffe being dismembered by other angels, there was no getting away from it.
Angels really aren't my thing usually, but Angelfall makes them into badass warriors instead of the friendly Renaissance beings that we're more familiar with. I mean, even the Bible says that carry flaming swords and bring destruction in their wake. They are vicious, thus making Angelfall a very dark book. And awesome.
Equally badass is the main character, Penryn Young. No, she doesn't wield that famous flaming sword, but she can kick ass and take names. Her paranoid schizophrenic mother has made her take multiple forms of martial arts for five years because she was afraid that something would harm Penryn. (Apparently paranoid schizophrenics have a leg up on the competition in the apocalypse.) Back to Penryn - she's a girl that I really dig. She puts her family above everything, even her moral hesitations about beating up on an injured person for information. Wait, I'm getting ahead of myself. Anywho, she will kick your ass and take your name.
You guys, I also need to tell you about Caitlin Davies. She is the narrator for Angelfall, and she made the story explode from an overload of fabulousness. Susan Ee's writing is awesome on its own, but Davies really brought the characters to life. The voices of the various characters were diverse without sounding silly, and there's not much I love more than listening to a narrator and being able to tell which character is speaking without the "_____ said" nonsense.
It has taken me weeks to find the words to do justice to Angelfall, and they still aren't enough. This is a book that I will forever be a champion for, and it still won't be enough. I've already bought several copies for my friends and family as gifts, and I highly recommend you get your hands on a copy, too. You won't regret it.
Buy Links
Amazon | Audible | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Fishpond
Oh this sounds good! I will have to add this to my TBR!
ReplyDeleteMissie @ A Flurry of Ponderings