• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • About
  • Challenges
  • Reviews
  • Contact
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Bloglovin
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

Books of Amber

Latest Posts

Debut Author Interview: Amy McCaw, Mina and the Undead

Book Review: The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth

Book Review: Dial A for Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto

Angelfall by Susan Ee

18/07/2013      11 Comments

Angelfall by Susan EeAngelfall by Susan Ee
Genre: Paranormal
Release Date: May 23, 2013
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Source: Publisher
Add it: Goodreads
Rating: four-stars

It's been six weeks since the angels of the apocalypse destroyed the world as we know it. Only pockets of humanity remain.

Savage street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night.

When angels fly away with a helpless girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back...

Ironically, since the attacks, the sunsets have been glorious.
—
Angelfall first entered my radar back when it was released in the US, and I knew it was receiving a lot of amazingly positive reviews, but… angels. I have to admit, I’m not a huge fan of angel books. There are a couple that I have loved, but once the they started to become more heavily involved with religion I was out of there. Still, I got sent this as a surprise from the publisher, and friends had highly recommended it, so I decided to give it a go. And I’m very glad I did!

First of all, I want to make it clear to everyone that this book isn’t religion-heavy for the most part. There’s a lot of angel stuff, but Angelfall is mostly about the human side of things. How the humans are suffering during the apocalypse, how the (human) main character searches for her sister, how everyone is surviving. That kind of thing. So if you’re worried about a lot of references to God, like I was, don’t be. The theme starts to become a bit heavier towards the end of the novel, but that’s necessary to build upon the world and the reasons behind the apocalypse, as well as Raffe’s character development.
Penryn, the main character, was an absolute badass when it came to fighting. First of all, she’s out to find her sister. It’s that good ol’ sibling relationship coming into play again, and it killed me. Secondly, her mother had her train in several forms of self defence, so she’s got some moves. She can take out full grown adults and bulky men, so she gets a gold star from me for that. Her determination to find Paige filled my heart with joy, and at no point in the novel does she suddenly forget what she’s out to do and decide she wants to go off with the hot guy. Fair enough, the hot angel probably wouldn’t have ran away with her anyway, but that’s not the point I’m trying to get across here.
My only issue with Penryn’s character was that she wasn’t witty enough. Raffe came out with all these hilarious one-liners, which provided an opportunity for excellent banter between the two of them, but instead Penryn’s comebacks were either shit or non-existent. This may seem like a bit of a silly thing to complain about, but I didn’t like it because it made her look stupid next to him. Does that make sense? I hope it does.
Then there’s Raffe, the angel with no wings. Yes, he’s hot, and yes, I ship him and Penryn. But was he my favourite character? No. I’ve had my fill of broody guys, I think, and have turned to the funny guys like Stiles Stilinski as of late. Or Gannicus, the alcoholic hero. Penryn’s character far outshines Raffe, so I don’t mind not being as into him as everyone else seems to be. Penryn provides enough awesome for the both of them. But yes, some of his one-liners were brilliant.
I’m very excited to read the sequel in the autumn, because the ending of this one packed quite a punch. As well as some promising stuff going on with Raffe (seriously, there is potential for him to get BADASS), there’s also scary stuff to explore regarding Paige and Penryn. I’ll be holding my breath for the next couple of months, because I’m hoping that Susan Ee will focus on Paige and Penryn’s relationship, and I’m dying to know how that will turn out!
Debby @ Snuggly Oranges: 5 out of 5 Oranges
Wendy Darling @ The Midnight Garden: 5 out of 5 Stars
Unearthly by Cynthia Hand
Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton
In the After by Demitria Lunetta

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Kristen Williams says

    18/07/2013 at 3:42 pm

    I LOVE Angelfall! It is one of my favorite books of all time. I couldn’t believe when I got this for $.99 for the nook and it was the best thing I’d read in ages. Just beautifully done and perfect to me in every way. I can not wait until World After. I’m so happy you loved it too!

    My Friends Are Fiction

    Reply
  2. laurafergs says

    19/07/2013 at 6:26 am

    YAY! ๐Ÿ˜€ Great review & I’m glad you liked it. I can’t wait for the sequel either!!!

    Reply
  3. Sana says

    19/07/2013 at 7:59 am

    I’ve to say that I’m not a fan of angel books myself (I find them repeatable and unexciting). However, if you’ve been turned into angel books fan, then I sure don’t want to miss out on reading the book. It does sound exciting and I love me some badassery.

    Great review! =D

    Reply
    • Liyana Sahir says

      19/07/2013 at 8:18 pm

      This comment has been removed by the author.

      Reply
    • Liyana Sahir says

      19/07/2013 at 8:19 pm

      This comment has been removed by the author.

      Reply
  4. Jess Hearts Books! says

    19/07/2013 at 11:05 am

    I’m reading this right now Amber and I’m absolutely gripped! I love Penryn so much and Raffe is hilarious! Awesome review, I’m looking forward to seeing how it all ends!

    Reply
  5. Liyana Sahir says

    19/07/2013 at 8:21 pm

    “I’ve had my fill of broody guys, I think, and have turned to the funny guys like Stiles Stilinski as of late.”

    Amber, I totally love Raffe, but I know what you mean! I too was on the lookout for books with guys like Stiles, so do you have any recommendations?

    Reply
  6. Debby says

    20/07/2013 at 6:34 pm

    Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee. I’M A QUEEN OF BOOK PUSHING. ANOTHER TITLE.

    I should start adding those to my twitter profile tbh.

    Penryn is one of my favorite characters of all time. But I dunno, I didn’t pick up on her being less witty… it’s been a while though. I just love this book sfm. I feel you on the fear that angel books can get too preachy and religious, but I loved how that was incorporated here – just them being the villains was already enough to convince me I loved this world.

    Glad you loved it ๐Ÿ™‚ And glad we don’t have to fight over Raffe hahahahaha HE’S MINEEEEEE

    Reply
  7. Danielle says

    22/07/2013 at 3:37 pm

    I seriously have to read this one soon, I haven’t seen one negative review and it does sound freaking awesome! So glad you liked it!

    Reply
  8. Judith says

    23/07/2013 at 11:35 pm

    QUEEN OF BOOK PUSHING OMG I LOVE THIS TITLE. I AM NOW ADDING IT TO MY TWITTER BIO.

    *deep breath*

    I have bought this and will be reading it soon. I HOPE I’ll like it!

    Reply
  9. Christina says

    31/07/2013 at 2:03 pm

    Bahahaha, Queens of Book Pushing. They haven’t made me read anything…yet. I so feel rather left out. *pouts in corner*

    Yay for few references to god! Wooo! That’s how I like my angel books, paranormal rather than religious.

    The characters were where it fell a little flat for me too. I mean, I like them, but they lacked the spark to make me emotionally bond with them, you know? Like they entertained me, but, if they’d died, I’d be like OH WELL.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Subscribe via Email

Join 4,577 other subscribers

Current Giveaways

None

Currently Reading

Currently Reading

Upcoming Reviews

    Blogroll

    • All About Books
    • Artsy Musings of a Bibliophile
    • I Should Read That
    • Lisa is Busy Nerding
    • My Friends Are Fiction
    • Recaptains
    • The Daily Prophecy
    Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
    To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy

    Hello!

    Hello!

    My name is Amber, I'm 27 years old, and I've been a book blogger, reviewer, and Tuber for ten years. When I'm not reading, I love gaming, exercising, cinema trips, hiking, and exploring.

    Welcome to my blog!

    Subscribe!

    Blog Archive

    Categories

    Follow us on Instagram

    Does anyone remember this series? I started reread Does anyone remember this series? I started rereading it so I can recap it and it hasn't aged well, but you can't deny that Tammara Webber helped kick-start the NA genre ๐Ÿ˜‰ 

#books #bookstagram #book #booklover #newadult #romancebooks #bookstagrammer #igbooks #booksofig #booksbooksbooks #bookish #betweenthelines #bookrecap #bookcommunity
    (This book was sent to me by the author as a gift) (This book was sent to me by the author as a gift)

Happy release day to The Effort! I'm so excited to read this apocalyptic story about people coming together to prevent a global crisis. Like I said the other day, I'm really into disaster stories lately ๐Ÿ˜Š

#books #booktube #smallyoutuber #smallyoutubercommunity #bookstagram #bookblogger #bookworm #bookish #debutauthors #21ders #debutbooks #debutshowcase #dac21 #the21ders #reading #igbooks #booksofig #igreads #book
    * ad - book provided by publisher for free in exch * ad - book provided by publisher for free in exchange for an honest review *

I'm smashing through my physical ARCs this week, which means it's almost time for me to read This is Not the Jess Show! I'm excited for this one, if a little cautious about how similar to The Truman Show it's going to be.

#books #booktube #smallyoutuber #smallyoutubercommunity #bookstagram #bookblogger #bookworm #yabooks #bookish #youngadultbooks #booksofig #igreads #currentlyreading #igbooks #bookstagramuk #bookstagrammer
    The first week back at work put me in an unfortuna The first week back at work put me in an unfortunate reading slump, but I'm hoping Hold Back the Stars will get me out of it! I'm going to be reading this one today and hopefully forgetting about real life.

#books #bookstagram #bookblogger #bookworm #bookish #sff #sffbooks #holdbackthestars #bookstoread #currentlyreading #reading #igbooks #booksofig #igreads #bookstagramuk #booksbooksbooks #bookgram
    * ad - book provided by publisher for free in exch * ad - book provided by publisher for free in exchange for an honest review*

I absolutely blasted through The Girls I've Been by Tess Sharpe this week! I was worried I was getting slumpy from too much sff so I switched to a YA thriller and WHEW, it was excellent. 

The Girls I've Been is about a girl called Nora who is the daughter of a con artist (and also bi!). She's living her own life now away from her mother, and then someone tries to rob a bank while she's inside it.

This was so fast paced and I love that it was told in a non linear format. Trigger warnings for lots of things, though. You can find the full list on the author's website but the main one for me was domestic violence.

#books #bookstagram #bookblogger #bookworm #yabooks #thegirlsivebeen #yathrillers #yathriller #thrillerbooks #booktube #smallyoutuber #smallyoutubercommunity #reading
    Because I like to read about other apocalypses dur Because I like to read about other apocalypses during pandemics, apparently.

 I've just started The Lightest Object in the Universe and I'm intrigued! Have you read it?

#books #bookstagram #bookblogger #bookworm #bookstagramuk #currentlyreading #dystopia #dystopianbooks #apocalypse #sff #sffbooks #bookish #booktube #smallbookstagrammer #booksbooksbooks
    *AD - book gifted by publisher in exchange for an *AD - book gifted by publisher in exchange for an honest review* 

Siri, Who Am I? was my final read of 2020 and it was a fun one. While I didn't love how the main character treated others, particularly her attitude towards sex workers, I did like how fast paced this one was and the slight mystery element mixed with Rich People Drama kept me reading. Will I reread it? No. But I enjoyed my time with it well enough.

#books #booktube #smallyoutuber #smallyoutubercommunity #bookstagram #bookblogger #bookworm #bookreview #smallbookstagrammer #booksbooksbooks #siriwhoami #romcom #reading
    I'm supposed to be starting The Bear and the Night I'm supposed to be starting The Bear and the Nightingale on Tuesday for my weekly buddy read, but I want to read it now! I should probably finish some of the books I've already started though.

#books #booktube #smallyoutuber #smallyoutubercommunity #bookstagram #bookblogger #bookworm #booksbooksbooks #bookstoread #tbr #tbrpile #toread #readingpile #reading #bookaddict #igbooks #booksofig #igreads #thebearandthenightingale #winternighttrilogy
    Yes, I'm still reading this ๐Ÿ˜‚ I'm trying to fin Yes, I'm still reading this ๐Ÿ˜‚ I'm trying to finish it by the end of the year but who knows if that'll happen? I'm enjoying buddy reading it with @ishouldreadthat though, and I'm sure she's appreciating my rants and fangirling.

#books #booktube #smallyoutuber #smallyoutubercommunity #bookstagram #bookblogger #bookworm #wordsofradiance #thewayofkings #Stormlight #stormlightarchive #brandonSanderson #fantasybooks #sff
    I am so unbelievably excited to try this YA thrill I am so unbelievably excited to try this YA thriller this month. I am tempted to drop everything and pick it up right now but, ya know, commitments.

#books #booktube #smallyoutuber #smallyoutubercommunity #bookstagram #bookblogger #bookworm #yabooks #youngadultbooks #thrillerbooks #smallbookstagrammer #booksbooksbooks #tbr #toberead #tbrpile #agoodgirlsguidetomurder

    Copyright © 2021 ยท