Series Review: Penryn and the End of Days by Susan Ee
Angelfall (Penryn and the End of Days #1)
by: Susan Ee
Publication Date: Aug. 28, 2012
Publisher: Skyscape
Genre: Paranormal
Age Group: Young Adult
Source: e-galley received via NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Page Count: 288 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 4/5 stars
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.
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.
World After (Penryn and the End of Days #2)
by: Susan EePublication Date: Nov. 19, 2013
Publisher: Skyscape
Genre: Paranormal
Age Group: Young Adult
Source: e-galley received via NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Page Count: 320 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 3.5/5 stars
In this sequel to the bestselling fantasy thriller, Angelfall, the survivors of the angel apocalypse begin to scrape back together what's left of the modern world.
When a group of people capture Penryn's sister Paige, thinking she's a monster, the situation ends in a massacre. Paige disappears. Humans are terrified. Mom is heartbroken.
Penryn drives through the streets of San Francisco looking for Paige. Why are the streets so empty? Where is everybody? Her search leads her into the heart of the angels' secret plans where she catches a glimpse of their motivations, and learns the horrifying extent to which the angels are willing to go.
Meanwhile, Raffe hunts for his wings. Without them, he can't rejoin the angels, can't take his rightful place as one of their leaders. When faced with recapturing his wings or helping Penryn survive, which will he choose?
When a group of people capture Penryn's sister Paige, thinking she's a monster, the situation ends in a massacre. Paige disappears. Humans are terrified. Mom is heartbroken.
Penryn drives through the streets of San Francisco looking for Paige. Why are the streets so empty? Where is everybody? Her search leads her into the heart of the angels' secret plans where she catches a glimpse of their motivations, and learns the horrifying extent to which the angels are willing to go.
Meanwhile, Raffe hunts for his wings. Without them, he can't rejoin the angels, can't take his rightful place as one of their leaders. When faced with recapturing his wings or helping Penryn survive, which will he choose?
End of Days (Penryn and the End of Days #3)
by: Susan EePublication Date: May 12, 2015
Publisher: Skyscape
Genre: Paranormal
Age Group: Young Adult
Source: Borrowed from Library
Page Count: 344 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 4.5/5 stars
End of Days is the explosive conclusion to Susan Ee’s bestselling Penryn & the End of Days trilogy.
After a daring escape from the angels, Penryn and Raffe are on the run. They’re both desperate to find a doctor who can reverse the twisted changes inflicted by the angels on Raffe and Penryn’s sister. As they set off in search of answers, a startling revelation about Raffe’s past unleashes dark forces that threaten them all.
When the angels release an apocalyptic nightmare onto humans, both sides are set on a path toward war. As unlikely alliances form and strategies shift, who will emerge victorious? Forced to pick sides in the fight for control of the earthly realm, Raffe and Penryn must choose: Their own kind, or each other?
After a daring escape from the angels, Penryn and Raffe are on the run. They’re both desperate to find a doctor who can reverse the twisted changes inflicted by the angels on Raffe and Penryn’s sister. As they set off in search of answers, a startling revelation about Raffe’s past unleashes dark forces that threaten them all.
When the angels release an apocalyptic nightmare onto humans, both sides are set on a path toward war. As unlikely alliances form and strategies shift, who will emerge victorious? Forced to pick sides in the fight for control of the earthly realm, Raffe and Penryn must choose: Their own kind, or each other?
I chose to do this series for Danielle and Lili's Summer of Series reading challenge and I am so glad I did! My dear blogging friends all really enjoyed this series, so I am definitely glad I picked it up! There was once a time when I was a little over the angel books because I felt they were pretty lackluster, but this series really blew me away with how dark and unexpected it was.
Angelfall begins with Penryn trying to get her little sister Paige, who is paraplegic, to safety along with her crazy mother. It's no easy task, what with the world being what it was- a world where humanity has been reduced to tatters and where angels reign victorious. Yes, you heard me correctly. ANGELS. Yeah. I was pretty floored by this too. And it's not even the Fallen angels. It's your holier than thou Archangels that are causing problems. I LOVED that spin on angel lore. Upon making their escape, Penryn finds herself caught in the middle of a fight between angels, which results in her sister being taken from her by one of them. She is forced to align herself with the one who lost the fight and his wings, as he's her best shot at getting her sister back. I loved how determined Penryn is. Her loyalty to her family is touching and I love how fiercely she fights to save her sister. Along the way, Penryn and the angel, Raffe, encounter a Resistance movement that while at the time is a hindrance to finding her sister, ends up becoming an important ally. I was shocked at how grotesque and how dark this book was. I applaud Ee for doing such a great job at creating a dystopian paranormal book because lets face it: on the brink of the apocalypse there are going to be some scary things happening and I liked that she wasn't afraid to explore those. Penryn isn't too keen on Raffe, being an angel and what his kind has done to their world, but the two form an unlikely partnership in which they find themselves trusting one another and saving each others' lives. Raffe isn't perfect though and he does say some things that really embarrass and hurt Penryn, which made me a little upset. (We do find out he has his reasons though.) Still, I did like him and how he may act detached and disinterested, but he really isn't. The book doesn't end on a cliffhanger, but I was really glad I had the second book on hand.
World After was a decent sequel, but it was a bit slower for me. Raffe and Penryn are separated for most of the book, so I think that did play a bit of a role as to why I didn't love it quite as much. However, we do get to see more of the Resistance, as well as dive a bit deeper into what the angels are planning. It is truly frightening to see what they have concocted. Penryn is still as loyal to her family as ever and it wasn't easy for her to accept the changes that her sister has undergone, but through it all Paige is still her sister and Penryn won't forsake that. I did like that we got to see a bit of history through Raffe's angel sword, as it has deemed Penryn worthy to wield her. We get a better picture of what his role was and how that impacts his current decisions. We also get to see how crazy Uriel is and how he thinks he is the one chosen by God to bring forth the apocalypse. I realize everything that takes place in this second book is important to tying everything together and bringing us into the final one, but I just felt a bit disappointed I wasn't as awed as the first.
Now, End of Days did blow me away. I thought everything was brought together beautifully and I loved the message behind it. Humans are not weak, useless puppets. And Penryn is not just fighting for herself and her family anymore. There is a greater force at work and she has to look at the bigger picture. She may not want to be a hero, but she is without a doubt. Her conscience won't let her abandon those in need and I loved seeing her become that pillar of strength for everyone. The romance in this one was much more defined, but Raffe is pretty insistent that they can't be together because it breaks all the rules. Still, I loved them together and there were plenty of swoonworthy moments between the two (and one rather sexy, steamy one!) I really liked that we got to meet the Watchers (the angels who consorted with human women and created nephilim, thus making them fall) and seeing what they had to endure in Hell was absolutely horrifying. I loved that there was humor in this book and that we got to see the cleverness of humanity. This book definitely had one of the most epic final battles ever. I am very happy with the way everything played out and how the book came full circle.
14 comments
I'm so happy you loved your series this month, girl! I like all three books pretty much equal, but I agree that the separation of Raffe/Penryn in book 2 was torture! Their chemistry is just so amazing. I was terrified that the series would end NOT the way I wanted it to haha!
ReplyDeleteYes! I'm so glad you guys talked this one up for me! I was definitely happy with them! And Raffe and Penryn were amazing. I was a little nervous too! LOL.
DeleteI'm so happy you gave this series a shot and ended up loving it, Jess. I have to agree with you on End of Days. I know it's not a lot of people's favorite book but I absolutely loved how the story wrapped up and of course, I loved that the romance was such a big part of it. Book 2 was my least favorite for exactly the same reasons as you mentioned. I didn't like that the two of them were separated for so long! Still this is an excellent series and I'm very happy you liked it. :)
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to read more by this author!
Lovely review, Jess!
Really? People didn't like End of Days? Man, I totally did. LOL. I am definitely keeping Ee on my author watch list!
DeleteYaasss. I loved this series! Binge-read it earlier this year, very good decision, right? No agonizing wait and whatnot. I LOVED book one - it's probably my favorite? Book two was a bit of a sequel slump for me as well kind of - I gave it three stars. Book three was excellent, right?! I loved it, it might be tied for favorite with Angelfall :D I usually don't like angel-related books, but I'm glad a bloggy friend basically shoved this series in my face! I wouldn't have read it otherwise (oops). Excellent series review - so glad you loved the series, Jess! :)
ReplyDeleteAlyssa @ The Eater of Books!
YES! Sometimes binge reading can be a good thing for that very reason! Yeah, book 2 didn't really do much for me, but the last book totally made up for it!
DeleteDefinitely looking forward to reading this series one day! I love a well done angel book so I think I'll really enjoy these. Great review!
ReplyDeleteI think you will like these, especially since you liked the Angelfire books!
DeleteI'm so glad that this series ends on a high note. I read the first book, but haven't read the other two yet - I need to fix that!
ReplyDeleteNicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction
Oh definitely read them Nicole! They are so great!
DeleteI'm glad you really enjoyed this series! I actually don't think I've read many angel books! I think I'd really enjoy it and I actually own angelfall. one of these months! I'm glad that the last book was satisfying too. that always scares me!
ReplyDeleteI was so happy I enjoyed these books so much! I have read a few angel series and they can be kind of hit or miss. You'll like these I'm sure!
DeleteI like how the books focus on the relationship between Penryn and her family. A lot of YA books leave out siblings and parents all together, so it's nice to see something different for a change. And Archangels as the villains? Count me in.
ReplyDeleteMajanka @ I Heart Reading
I agree Majanka! It was nice to see that relationship as well! Especially in a dystopian novel! I LOVED that twist on angel lore. I couldn't believe they were the bad ones!
DeleteLeave me some comment love! And I will get around to commenting back!
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