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?
- Used Book in Good Condition
Customer Reviews
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69 of 70 people found the following review helpful.
A horrifyingly good sequel
By ThisisNotaCliffhanger
When this book showed up on my doorstep I promised myself (while happy dancing, it should be noted) that I would read slowly and stretch this out to savor it. Who the hell was I kidding?! I was doomed as soon as I opened the cover. This book kept me up ALL night! I didn’t just “enjoy” this book I loved every single minute of the ride. It’s been a few days now and I’m still having trouble writing a review that doesn’t solely consist of omg squee omg aghhh *random animal noises* (don’t even ask).Susan Ee somehow manages to take everything I love most in books and blend it all together perfectly. Intense action, creeptastic horror, witty banter, sexual tension off the charts, complex characters- the gang’s all here!Penryn has got to be one of my favorite YA heroines of all time. She’s bold, courageous, stubborn, selfless, smart and so strong yet despite all the hardship she has been through she’s still very empathetic to others. Even when she does stupid things she’s smart enough to realize this is a bad idea but her conscience won’t allow her to just walk away. The brief moments she gets to expose her vulnerability and insecurity are so touching. It is a nice reminder that beneath her strength and bravado this is still a young, inexperienced girl. Her stammering during the few romantic scenes made me laugh out loud and cringe for her at the same time.Her family makes me think my family isn’t weird after all. As creepy as her mom was in the last book she kicks it up a notch this time around. I think I’m more terrified of her holding a lipstick now than the cattle prod she is so fond of. There’s a scene between her and Pen that made my heart hurt. I’ve known that having to deal with her mentally ill mother is what has made Penryn so strong and independent but it’s so hard to see it happening. Paige is also featured a lot in the beginning of this book and it is just as unsettling. We finally get to see what happened to her after she was taken by the angels in Angelfall and it isn’t pretty. She’s only seven, you guys, seven and they have transformed her into something so monstrous even Penryn struggles to see the little sister she adores through it.Of course we have to talk about our favorite angel with demon wings, Raffe. While we do get to see flashes of him here and there he’s not really around until the end of the book. Surprisingly, this did not detract from my enjoyment and he more than makes up for his absence once he does show up. Believing Penryn is dead, he has been pursuing his beautiful white angel wings with a single-minded intensity. It was both refreshing and true to his character that he didn’t just give up after her “death” and sit around moping. The banter between him and Penryn absolutely slayed me just like the first book but we also get some really touching tender moments between them too. We also get to learn a lot about his past and why he is so against angel and human relationships. The nearly combustible tension between them is driving me crazy but I love it.The sword- yep, she’s getting her own section because this time around she’s basically a character in her own right. This thing is not only sentient it is able to share visions of the past and is the sole reason we finally get to learn so much about Raffe’s past. It uses them to teach her things, to motivate her, and even to comfort her. Also, Penryn saddles it with what is quite possibly the worst name ever for an Archangel sword. That and the disguise she made for it had me cracking up while feeling bad for it. I felt bad for a sword- if that isn’t a testament to Ee’s writing, I don’t know what is.If you loved Angelfall, you’re going to love World After. It has everything you love about the first one kicked up a notch. Now stop wasting time reading reviews and go buy this book! You can thank me later.
34 of 35 people found the following review helpful.A Superb Sequel!
By Jon (Scott Reads It!)
To be honest, I wasn't sure how World After would turn out because most sequels don't live up to their predecessor. The good news is that World After is even better than Angelfall, a feat that I didn't even think was possible. World After retains the humor, kick-ass action scenes, fast-paced plot and absolutely amazing characters that readers came to love in Angelfall. World After easily is one of my favorite books of 2013. Penryn and Raffe are definitely one of my favorite literary couples, they are honestly perfect for each other. They both complement each other in fierceness and wit making their romance something to look forward to. The romance between Raffe and Penryn is minimal as there is more of a focus on Penryn's journey to find Paige and Raffe's journey to reclaim his wings. The few romantic interactions between Penryn and Raffe are absolutely perfect. World After is filled with non-stop fast-paced action scenes where Penryn really kicks butt. Sorry Katniss and Tris, but Penryn is easily my favorite heroine ever with her epic fighting skills. Susan Ee really knows how to write immersive action scenes that are extremely easy to visualize. I physically couldn't stop reading because I was so engrossed in the action scenes. Characterwise, we see a lot more of Penryn's sister and mother which was a huge plus on Ee's part. Paige is a character that I love, but at the same time, I'm absolutely terrified whenever she made an appearance. All of Ee's characters continued to surprise me again and again, especially Penryn's mother. I really haven't read many books in which a character is completely mentally unstable and it was extremely interesting to see Ee develop such a character. World After is the absolutely thrilling sequel to Angelfall and it truly exceeded all expectations that I had. World After raises the bar for other dystopian books with an unforgettable plot, extremely unique characters, and action scenes that will keep readers lusting for more. World After is dystopian fiction at it's best.
23 of 24 people found the following review helpful.Penryn and Raffe together again. Funny, Horrifying, Smart and Action Packed.
By Robin Snyder
- "The world going crazy doesn't mean your mother isn't still crazy too."I thought Angelfall was a wild ride but World After kicked crazy up a notch. Susan Ee has really impressed me with her second book in the Penryn and The End of Days series. After the first book I really wanted some insight into the Angels and Raffe's Past, I also wanted to know more about the creepy Frankenstein monsters that were at the Aerie, Penryn's crazy mom and Paige poor little Paige. Well Susan Ee found a great way to give us insight into most of these things and just when I thought she couldn't horrify me any more Ms. Ee pushed the bar just one step farther.Penryn's mom is still crazy, I mean sometimes she seems like maybe she is the only one that is on top of what is truly happening but she is still nuts and I love every second of it.- "Of course your fine." She keeps walking. "You're the devils bride and these are his creatures." - Penryn's MomIn Penryn's mom's defense the tableau at the end of Angelfall did make Raffe look like the Devil. But, you still have to be crazy to come up with an idea like that. It is safe to say that the Young family wasn't exactly popular in the new resistance camp with a mom speaking in tongues, resurrected girl and a stitched up child with super strength and razor teeth.DeeDum were hilarious and up to their shenanigans again at the new resistance camp. They have some great one liners and seems to always be in the know, but that is to be expected of the great spymasters. Where ever they go trouble will abound but they seem to always be able to help Penryn out in some way.Even though Raffe and Penryn are apart at the beginning of the book Susan Ee found a very interesting way to show us part of Raffe's past as an Archangel and his time with the watchers. It also gave us some insight to his POV from the first book on a few scenes and showed what else was going on at the same time adding even more dimension to the story and his character.World After is really a dark story. I was very worried about the characters at certain parts of the book when it became the darkest and pushed the envelope of even the first book. But Susan Ee really hits you with some levity throughout too. For it being about the apocalypse I really laughed quite a few times. Penryn and Raffe's banter is fantastic once again.- "Don't talk. You'll just spoil my fantasy of rescuing an innocent damsel in distress as soon as you open your mouth."I was so happy when they found each other again and I might have fist pumped in the air. There is the forbidden romance and it is still smoldering and a slow burn. The tension is exquisite, I ship these two so hard I really want it to work out for them in the end but an Angel and a Daughter of Man have a lot stacked against them it will be interesting to see how that progresses.The romance never overshadows the rest of the story and there is one dilemma after another. Questions are answered and others are posed but I feel like a good deal of the questions I had after the first book were at least addressed and I know so much more about this world and the motivations of all the characters than I did before.My new favorite character is......Pooky Bear.- "Bow down to me Pooky Bear, who has only two other equals in all the worlds."Until you read the book you won't understand I just have to throw it in that it some of the funniest moments in the book and I laugh so hard just thinking about it. But don't let the name fool you Pooky Bear kicks ass.I am wowed by this book it has action, adventure, sci-fi, monsters, A Crazy Mom, heroes, demons, Aerial Combat, crazy club scenes Gatsby Style, incredibly disturbing moments, incredibly hopeful moments and decidedly unexpected moments....there were a lot of moments. It is so hard to pick out my favorite parts of this book because the awesomeness was spewing out everywhere. The ending left me aching for more. This is one of those books that I marked so many pages, I loved it was hard to pick just a few things for the review.I really can't wait to see what else pops out of the mind of Susan Ee. How someone can think up such a dark world and then fill it with her special brand of humor, I am well just in awe of it. Well played Ms. Ee Well Played.
