Hi readers,
Once again, I'm pre-writing this post because I finished this book so fast and now I need to move on to the third, so I've got to get this one out of my head before I do. If you've not read my last post about the first book then please do, because this one follows straight on and I want to avoid repeating myself.
So, the second novel opens with Penryn seemingly died but back with her family and the Resistance. Of course, she turns out to be okay, but her sister Paige isn't. She's become some kind of monster doll and she ends up running away from the Resistance camp after an incident. Penryn, her mother and the woman she escaped from the angels at the end of the first book, set out to find Paige.
They track her to Alcatraz, where they find that people are being kept for experiments by the angels. Penryn escapes and manages to get herself to the new angel hang out. There she sees Raffe. Which is great because they both think each other is dead. Then a fight breaks out and they are forced to flee over the ocean. They take shelter in a house and have a catch up, before heading out to find Paige. They find her at the angel hang out, save her and all leave together, though the ending is very open.
Also, Penryn's connects to Raffe's sword and she begins to have dreams/visions which turn out to be the sword's memories. We learn a lot about Raffe from these scenes and it's a useful way to give the reader information without having to rehash things or have he characters talking it over. The sword also teaches her how to fight, which is interesting and does work. There's also some funny moments with the sword's name that had me bursting into laughter too.
We get a little more insight into the angels and what they are up to, though it's still no clear why they came to Earth and destroyed it. They are determined to take it over though and this can be seen in the angel hang out scenes. There's still the focus on the dystopia world and the breaking down of humanity, though this does take a bit more of back seat then from before due to there being a lot of action in this book.
I found once again that the characters all developed well. Penryn and Raffe are falling for each other though and the scene with them eating peanut butter really brought this home to me. I know why there has to be romance, but my problem is I know they can't be together. Raffe really knows it too and I think it'd be interesting to see how they overcome this in the third book. Raffe is my favorite character though, a love his wit and his determination. He's the good guy who wants to set everything right even though everyone is standing against him. I really wish we could learn more about him and it'd be good to hear his side of things.
Penryn's mother is still out of her mind and somehow managing to survive through everything and track her daughters -though how she does this is revealed and we get to learn more about the before her and her husband. As for Paige, I feel sorry for her and what has happened. She's never going back to normal now and I don't think she's going to have a better life either. It feels like she's gone from one disability to another in away, but it sort of reflects how people can see others with disabilities and how we need to stop judging them.
To be honest I'm also enjoying the sword as a character. I know that's a bit weird, but I have this thing about sentient weapons. I guess it comes from my interest in fantasy and magic. Plus, it's slightly different too and just adds another layer to the novel.
The pacing of this book was very much like the first one, though I didn't think it rushed from event to event as much. I found parts were it slowed down and there was moments of reflection, but these worked well and were needed by the characters. Like I said at the start, I did really rip through this book because it's just so easy to read. Of course that leaves me wondering that if it was rewrote with an adult audience in mind and the characters being older, how would it turn out? There'd need to be more description of the settings and characters, more time would be needed looking at the relationships too and Penryn and Raffe would possibly have to get together.
I did really enjoy reading this and I just hope that the third one is as good or better. I want to find out more about Raffe and the main angels. What's going to happen to Penryn and her family? Will she get with Raffe nor not? And will the world start to be put right? Looks like there's lots more to find out. I also saw on someone else's review that there is actually going to be five books. It said that Susan EE had posted it on her blog, but I didn't actually find the post and no one else seems to be stating that. So, I'm not sure. It is possible for later this year though, so have to keep my eyes out.
I'd recommend this book to teenagers and twenty-somethings because that's audience whom the books are aimed at and they'll get the most out of them. I think adults might find it not engaging enough, but if you are looking for a quick easy read then I'd say go for it. And now I'm off to start reading the third book and I'll be back next Monday with the review!
Please check out my other blog; https://thestoryfiles.wordpress.com/ for a new short story every day and feel free to follow me. Thanks for reading.
So, the second novel opens with Penryn seemingly died but back with her family and the Resistance. Of course, she turns out to be okay, but her sister Paige isn't. She's become some kind of monster doll and she ends up running away from the Resistance camp after an incident. Penryn, her mother and the woman she escaped from the angels at the end of the first book, set out to find Paige.
They track her to Alcatraz, where they find that people are being kept for experiments by the angels. Penryn escapes and manages to get herself to the new angel hang out. There she sees Raffe. Which is great because they both think each other is dead. Then a fight breaks out and they are forced to flee over the ocean. They take shelter in a house and have a catch up, before heading out to find Paige. They find her at the angel hang out, save her and all leave together, though the ending is very open.
Also, Penryn's connects to Raffe's sword and she begins to have dreams/visions which turn out to be the sword's memories. We learn a lot about Raffe from these scenes and it's a useful way to give the reader information without having to rehash things or have he characters talking it over. The sword also teaches her how to fight, which is interesting and does work. There's also some funny moments with the sword's name that had me bursting into laughter too.
We get a little more insight into the angels and what they are up to, though it's still no clear why they came to Earth and destroyed it. They are determined to take it over though and this can be seen in the angel hang out scenes. There's still the focus on the dystopia world and the breaking down of humanity, though this does take a bit more of back seat then from before due to there being a lot of action in this book.
I found once again that the characters all developed well. Penryn and Raffe are falling for each other though and the scene with them eating peanut butter really brought this home to me. I know why there has to be romance, but my problem is I know they can't be together. Raffe really knows it too and I think it'd be interesting to see how they overcome this in the third book. Raffe is my favorite character though, a love his wit and his determination. He's the good guy who wants to set everything right even though everyone is standing against him. I really wish we could learn more about him and it'd be good to hear his side of things.
Penryn's mother is still out of her mind and somehow managing to survive through everything and track her daughters -though how she does this is revealed and we get to learn more about the before her and her husband. As for Paige, I feel sorry for her and what has happened. She's never going back to normal now and I don't think she's going to have a better life either. It feels like she's gone from one disability to another in away, but it sort of reflects how people can see others with disabilities and how we need to stop judging them.
To be honest I'm also enjoying the sword as a character. I know that's a bit weird, but I have this thing about sentient weapons. I guess it comes from my interest in fantasy and magic. Plus, it's slightly different too and just adds another layer to the novel.
The pacing of this book was very much like the first one, though I didn't think it rushed from event to event as much. I found parts were it slowed down and there was moments of reflection, but these worked well and were needed by the characters. Like I said at the start, I did really rip through this book because it's just so easy to read. Of course that leaves me wondering that if it was rewrote with an adult audience in mind and the characters being older, how would it turn out? There'd need to be more description of the settings and characters, more time would be needed looking at the relationships too and Penryn and Raffe would possibly have to get together.
I did really enjoy reading this and I just hope that the third one is as good or better. I want to find out more about Raffe and the main angels. What's going to happen to Penryn and her family? Will she get with Raffe nor not? And will the world start to be put right? Looks like there's lots more to find out. I also saw on someone else's review that there is actually going to be five books. It said that Susan EE had posted it on her blog, but I didn't actually find the post and no one else seems to be stating that. So, I'm not sure. It is possible for later this year though, so have to keep my eyes out.
I'd recommend this book to teenagers and twenty-somethings because that's audience whom the books are aimed at and they'll get the most out of them. I think adults might find it not engaging enough, but if you are looking for a quick easy read then I'd say go for it. And now I'm off to start reading the third book and I'll be back next Monday with the review!
Please check out my other blog; https://thestoryfiles.wordpress.com/ for a new short story every day and feel free to follow me. Thanks for reading.
Image from: Goodreads
