I usually don’t pick up many angel-books to read, as I find then not-quite-original, mostly repetitive and usually plain boring with the good vs. bad battle where, how could it be any different, the good shinny angels usually get to easily win. (Mark my words.. This is not the case!)
Of course, I’ve also read a few good angel-books, but – except for probably “Daughter of Smoke and Bone” – none of them made me feel as attached to the storyline as this beauty here.
… Because this, my dears, is a hidden gem, one of the best you can find if you go looking for them!
Anyways, back to the point – I’ll start my review with this statement/quote:
“Angels are violent creatures.”
“So I noticed. I used to think they were all sweet and kind.”
“Why would you think that? Even in your Bible, we’re harbingers of doom, willing and able to destroy entire cities. Just because we sometimes warned one or two of you beforehand doesn’t make us altruistic.”
So maybe it is just that we (as in “me and the author”) think on some aspects somehow alike, maybe it is because I always thought that religion is the most manipulative weapon of them all and I finally stumbled upon a book that showed it right. Maybe it is because I was sick of all the fluffy reads with the good shinny angels and I needed something different, or realistic, or creepy in a complete awesome way; or maybe it is just the fact that the story was so full of surprises that made me like it even more.
The fact is that I really loved every bit of it, and I have to give a big thanks to all my GoodReads book friends, because without them I probably wouldn’t have found about it. So thanks you all, you are the best!
There were so many things I liked about this story and the characters, that made it hard for me to point to it and say: “hey, this is the reason I liked it this much!”
The dynamic between the main characters was so damn good (in my opinion). There is no love at first sight, there are lots of action moments, so many verbal fights, and so much mystery to add up to beauty of it all.
“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.”
I liked how Penryn was constantly helping Raffe saving his skin, or wings, or his life for a matter of fact, and I liked how he was at first grateful, and by the ending he started to care for her (keep in mind that i didn’t use the word ‘love’). In a world as cruel as that one, it felt right not to have a big romance in the middle of it all. Their relationship was more than that – it was about gaining each-other’s trust, and helping out each other, and fighting together but for very different reasons. It was more about survival and less about emotions, but what can I say, in this way their story got strait to my heart.
“It is not the gentle kiss of a couple on a first date, nor is it the kiss of a man driven by simple lust. He kisses me with the desperation of a dying man who believes the magic of eternal life is in this kiss.”
Reading this book felt more like tasting a drink. It made my head spin, and left me wanting for more.
It didn’t give all away; and there are so many questions about Penryn’s mother (who didn’t seem so crazy in my opinion, and I am sure she will have a lot to do with what comes next), about Penryn’s ability to use an angle sword, about her sister and Raffe that seem to share a bit of the same destiny, about the war between the angels and the humans – it’s only the beginning, and I have so many scenarios in my head, I can’t wait to see which one is THE ONE.
All in one, a great book and an amazing way to start the reading year.
I only have one thing to tell you: pick it up and read it. I bet you will like it a lot!
And, BTW, I hate how every book in the world is compared to The Hunger Games.. get a grip people, there are nothing alike – and as a proof, there’s no guy waiting for Penryn at home, LOL :p
Happy midnight reading!
End Note:
Dear publishers around the world,Why do you publish so many bad books (I won’t even bother to mention them, you know there are plenty), while wonderful stories like this one have to be self-published for us to be able to enjoy them?
All I have to say is that this book puts some of you at shame.
I wonder if this book would have been better if edited, or if it would have been turned into a boring commercial story as many others out there. *sigh*
Fan Art:
SO excited that you loved this! 😀 Yay. Now the wait for summer begins…
I prefer to read book series when most of the books are out already.
That doesn’t mean that I actually do that, even though the waiting is killing me :)))
I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Ari!
I am too. It is a great book and I can definitely recommend it to everyone ;))
I’ve had a lot of people tell me that this book is really amazing and sort of has a dystopian nature to it along with the angels, so of course I went and bought it the other day! Glad to see you liked it!
When I started reading it I was a bit afraid, because I’ve seen so many great positive reviews and I didn’t want to be dissapointed. Well I clearly wasn’t.
There’s this recipe that usually works: a great heroine; an amazing or at least original world building; a sexy, sarcastic male character and the perfect amount of action. We have it all in this book, so there are about 90% chances that you will enjoy it as well 🙂 happy reading!
Wow, where did you find those pics?…and awesome review. I really loved this book, and I also don’t see how people could at all compare this to THG. The only point would be that Obi has sort of a Mockingjay-ish role he wants Penryn to play, I guess, but it still doesn’t make sense.
Thanks Amber.
The pictures usually link to the original artwork, even though WordPress sometimes makes them disappear for some reason I don’t understand. I am glad that you like them, I always try my best to search for pictures that can represent scenes from the books.
As for THG, these days every dystopian book is compared to that series, but usually they are nothing alike 🙂
What a wonderful review! I’m a big fan of Susan and I’m so glad so many others are out there singing her praises 🙂
Thanks. I really loved this book from the first page to the last one. It’s a wonderful story 🙂
This book is on my want-to-read list, and it’s now even higher on the list!
If you like angel books, plenty of action, strange creatures and funny+smart characters in difficult situations you should pick it up really soon. It’s so good 🙂
you speak my mind its like there coudnt be a book with a main charecter sving her sibling that doesnt have to do anything with HG, i liked Penryn but the world building wasnt that great in my opinion.
I know. It’s probably good for a book to be compared to a great and loved series, but sometimes these comparisons are just too much.
And maybe in the next book you will find more about this world and you will like it better.. And if not, maybe your attention will be kept by some other elements (the action, the characters, the love story, the turnarounds – because I bet there will be more) 😉
Okay, convinced. Come on payday, I need to order this. Fast. Void eating me from the inside.
The clincher was no love at first sight, this was my main fear here. I must shamefully admit, being male, I avoided every glimmer of romance in a book for so long. But, truthfully, what’s life without it? So, likewise, what’s a good book without a healthy helping of it?
I put so many paranormal/romance books down nowadays because you can see the ending before you reach the half of the book. The only thing you don’t know is by what magic the author sucks out of his/her thumb. So many recent books are so cringeworthy that you start believing that that is ALL the author is capable of doing. Just filling pages to get to their magical ending, which is the pinnacle of their creative thoughts.
True, even in the good ones you often know the ending… or no, that’s right it, you guess and hope, but still believe it can all go wrong.
Thanks for the review, giving it a shot once I can pick it up, don’t think I’ll find it here in Belgium though, gotta order it. Maybe a translation, but please, who would? Never going there again … *shudder*
Final note, ah yes, the comparisons. Just stop comparing books people, period. Alike in framework or structure, perhaps, but comparing the feel one gets from a book? One can not compare such intangible things, and you will only besmirch the experience other people could get from it, set their expectations. If you like a book, say so, if you don’t just the same. In a civil manner, please.
I am not sure why love plays such a big part in books these days. I mean it’s the angst that’s killing me. You can have a great story, with a strong plot, and even fit in a bit of love moments here and there, but making it take over the plot is more like overdoing it, and I am starting to become so tired of love dramas and love triangles and all that.
But this book had a great pacing and strong characters and there was not much love in it. there was in fact chemistry, which is ok, but survival is always a priority here and both characters have a lot on their plate for now.
I don’t like translations either. You can check fishpond.com and bookdepository.co.uk as they deliver almost everywhere and without additional costs for delivery 😉
PS: the book is not ‘self-published’ any longer, as it picked someone’s interest in the meantime – not sure if anything changed in terms of content.
Thank you very much for the links. And yes, you pretty much hit the mark there. A good story can have all or any of the ingredients a good life will have (barring the paranormal etc. i suppose). But the teeny angst and overblown drama’s … *ugh* YA = Young Adults people, please write keeping that in mind. Most of us have passed those stages, or never been too angsty, or at the least want to dream ’bout different things.
Anyways, keep up the good work here, your reviews have been intriguing so far. Because of uh, financial issues which are finally reaching their end, I have worked, toiled, slaved, and slept and barely read for a very long time. A few lucky hits here and there in the past year or two, but keeping up to date whith what’s being released has been, us you might understand, completely impossible. So it’s a relief to find this site where many of my fav’s are declared yours aswell, now that I start having the time, energy and money again to enjoy my favorite passtime. Now I know where to start looking 😀 Thanks!
PS: You definitely have me convinved to check it out. I have been further convinced by the free chapters available on the site. To all interested: http://susanee.com/angels/angelfall-free-chapter.html