Book Review: Angelfall: Penryn & the End of Days-Book 1

I was intrigued by the premise of this book, which is why I chose it. I'd never heard of it before browsing online. 

Angelfall begins after much of the world has been destroyed by angels. No one knows why the angels have come or what exactly they want. But, the world is, understandably, in chaos. 

Penryn, the main character and our narrator, explains the ways of the new world, including street gangs who try to collect angel parts to sell on the black market. 

Along with Penryn, we are introduced to her schizophrenic mother and her disabled little sister, Paige. Shortly after the story begins, Penryn witnesses angels fighting each other. The audience, and Penryn, are then introduced to Raffe, one of the angels involved in the fight. After the other angels kidnap her wheelchair-bound sister, Penryn abducts the injured Raffe with the hope of getting information about finding Paige.

It's hard to describe why this story works so well. The author develops her characters and their relationships subtly. At one point near the end of the book, I realized the dramatic change that had occurred in the relationship between two of the main characters. I hadn't been beaten over the head with it. It was an organically developed relationship, which was refreshing.

The story had several surprising twists that I had not expected. I won't go into them here in order to avoid spoiling it for anyone. But, the story is well crafted and anyone who is a fan of the fantasy genre will enjoy this story.

Penryn is a seventeen year old girl, so the story is likely intended to be a YA novel. It did hold my interest, and I am thirty-three. While I can see it being a YA novel, there are some aspects that are rather disturbing. They do align with the world created in Angelfall, and I wouldn't describe them as being overly graphic. They do serve a purpose in forwarding the plot. However, it's something you should be aware of if you are of the squeamish variety. They were not things I expected in the book. But, if you were a fan of books like The Hunger Games or the Divergent series, then you will probably not be put off by those few incidents. 

Overall, I'd say the book is excellent. I began the second one right away! 

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