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    World After
    World After
    World After
    Audiobook9 hours

    World After

    Written by Susan Ee

    Narrated by Caitlin Davies

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    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?

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    Release dateNov 19, 2013
    ISBN9781480552821
    World After
    Author

    Susan Ee

    Susan Ee has eaten mezze in the old city of Jerusalem, surfed the warm waters of Costa Rica, and played her short film at a major festival. She has a life-long love of science fiction, fantasy, and horror, especially if there’s a touch of romance. She used to be a lawyer but loves being a writer because it allows her imagination to bust out and go feral.

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    Reviews for World After

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    468 ratings36 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Love, love, love this book. Its better that the first one! This maybe the first time for me to say that the lack of romance actually worked! Can't wait to read the last book!
    • 4/5
      This book makes me experience such complicated emotions as mild as they are. For some reasons, my emotional state while reading this book was not turbulent or intense as I expected it to be. The world-building continues to be descriptive, creative and not too excessive as writers of old then tend to be. I'm invested in the plot and I didn't really get carried away with the subtle hint of romance but I'm fine with that. I'm so glad Paige plays a bigger part in the whole structure of the story now because in the previous book, she was only a symbol and mentioned intermittently without her actual presence. Even in the World Before, there were issues that derived from the mom's sickness but World After presents more problems when Paige is returned into the fold of the family. The mom is not the only one mentally scarred and she is actually better off than Paige who is rather quiet after her experiences. Many characters were dynamic as well continuous development of precedent people but it was apparent that Paige had a lot of catching up to do and her presence count should number more in order to compensate for her lack in Angelfall. Penryn had not changed or developed as a character in this book; she stayed the same although the author kept hinting that she was mentally scarred and unstable. She is sometimes portrayed as a helpless weak character but it is only physically when she is pitched against angels. At one point, Penryn is almost invincible when opposed by everyone but she still stays mentally calm in all situations. She comes across strong and resilient in all situations but I wish to see her vulnerable side where all her walls and protections breaks down. Frankly, I want to see her have a meltdown in order for me to feel that she is realistic and not just some Mary-Sue with mad skills. I'll wait until the third book for this because Susan Ee somehow manages to get many things right and provide an exhilarating ride. She amps up the stakes yet again and again and I hope she will continue and dare to so.
    • 5/5
      "BEWARE, READ AT YOUR OWN RISK. BOOK HANGOVER INEVITABLE."

      I feel like I've been waiting for this book for forever. Any amount of time for me waiting for the release of a book is too much time. The reasonable part of me knows that for an amazing book our dearest authors need time to do their magic but the irrational part of me is always impatient. But let me say that it was worth the wait. World After was as amazing if not more so as the first. It was as thrilling, and intense but much more dark and more post-apocalyptic(ky).

      For this type of genre it's a rare thing for me to say I loved the ending. The story is clearly not over but the ending was......hopeful. Yes, that's the word. I felt hopeful, the hope of whats to come in the next installment. (Wait, is this a Trilogy?). And even with the non-brutal cliffhanger, I am still having a book hangover. I've finished reading this book more than 48 hours ago and I'm still thinking about it and my mind is unconsciously creating the next scenes of what I hope will happen for Penryn and Raffe.

      So what happened in the book? Well, lots, not giving too much away but it was hard to have Penryn and Raffe separated for more than half the book. They came so close to seeing each at least once but he thought she was dead so he wouldn't be looking for her. And when they finally saw each other again it was so sweet. Raffe couldn't believe what he was seeing. He was clearly torn up over losing her. He became very protective but he also remembered she can take care of herself. He was proud of her usual badassery even though he teased her about it.

      Speaking of badassery, Penryn did get to show her kick-ass skills but sometimes I wish she could of showed it more. I realized that with the way of life in her world now it was best to lay low sometimes, but I wished she could have showed off some of the sword fighting lessons she had. Oh, her sword fighting teacher was very cool and I like 'it' or should I say, 'Pooky Bear'. What an unfortunate name for a ?????. Under different circumstances it would have been cute but not for something where it's name is a first impression of it's badness.

      So in World After, Penryn was still dealing with being responsible for her sister Paige and her cuckoo mother. She's also dealing with the added stress of blaming herself for not being their for Paige when she was being turned into an 'abomination'. It doesn't help that her mother blames her too. Penryn has been locking everything she's dealing with in a vault in her head and it makes me nervous for what this could mean for her later. I think she is going to flip out eventually and I hope it's on some angels with a god complex(irony, oxymoron, maybe irony) and she comes out of it has unscathed as possible.

      To sum up, no honestly, World After is a lot more than I can say without giving it all away. It had some dark elements in the story that made me angry at the angels, especially Uriel, who was pulling the strings of all the horrible things being done to the humans. But there were some lighthearted moments too, especially when it came to the twins Dee and Dum. They were probably the most laid back, humorous characters in such a dark, and edgy story.

      It's weird, but at one point I was thinking I should go watch that epic post-apocalyptic movie again but then I realized I was thinking about a book. It reads like a movie, it had that epic disaster movie feel. I could just picture every scene as I read the book. It was exciting, scary and thrilling.

      Here's hoping I don't have long to wait for the next book. Okay....I will try to be patient so that Ms. Ee can do her magic.
    • 5/5
      Enjoyed it even more the second time around. Can't wait to get to the next one again
    • 4/5
      Interesting turn of events. Penryn & Raff's story continues. Good character development, interesting storyline, and plot. I'm amazed that the author has portrayed Angels as heartless & battle driven creatures given the world views on them...glad she stuck to the True version.
    • 4/5
      This is a great sequel to an awesome book and series. I'm loving the story of Penryn and Raffe. They're average length but I find myself going through this series at an incredible rate. This one disappeared into my "read book list" within a couple of hours last night. Penryn is a teenage girl but she has had to learn to be strong and dependable. She's a hero even if she doesn't think she should be. And she's just so human, human in a world that is ending. She's the kind of girl that I'd like to be like. I am really looking forward to the next book which is coming out in a few months. Highly recommended if you like Dystopia.
    • 5/5
      I was waiting for this book for over a year now.
      The anticipation was immense.

      But I have to say its not as great as book #1, but I think thats typical in a series.
      Its also very dark and horror which I guess fits with the title, this is the world after the apocalypse. Its very different than anything else I have read.
      But I did sit and read it all in 1 day (about 13 hrs while taking care of my kids)

      warning SPOILERS BELOW!!

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      I know a lot of fans wants a Raffe POV, and we didn't get a real POV but his sword would share memories with Penryn which gave us a couple of moments from book 1 seen through his POV so that was a nice addition and I am sure made many fans, including me, happy!
      The worst part of this book was that I had to read 75% of it before Raffe shows up!
      So in the last 25% I was very giddy and enjoying my Penryn/Raffe togetherness and then the book was over!! :( Their time together in this one was too short and now I probably have to wait a year or more for the next book.

      Of course this is just my impulse review because I read it through quickly. I will go back and read it slower sometime and then maybe update this.
    • 3/5
      I think this book fell into that "middle book in the trilogy" category pretty hard.

      I really just want to see where things end up, but the first 70% was a sloooooog. After that, things picked up, and there's more to the plot, but it wasn't much better.

      Lots of the Resistance that I don't really care about, lots of naming things based on appearance (Burnt, Mr. Tattoo, etc.), and...Penryn and Raffe's banter is still painfully awful. The Pooky Bear shit is, well, unbearable. I get that Penryn is just 17, but the immaturity of her narration and the dialogue is what really drains some of the likability of this series.

      There were some interesting scenes, but I realized Penryn just isn't super compelling on her own, and the first 70% of the book being just her hung up on her mom Paige, Raffe, and repetitive descriptions was exhausting. I think she mentioned the "vault in her head" where she locks up "dark thoughts" a good eight times. I don't dislike her, but please. Stoppppp.

      I feel like the only reason I like Raffe is because I'm supposed to. I'm not saying he's not likeable, because he IS when you look at him as his own character, but it's not like he's really doing anything swoon-worthy when it comes to the love interest aspect. There have still barely been any touching scenes between him and Penryn (apart from the end of book one), and their conversations are more annoying in their childishness than anything. He's not cruel and doesn't do anything to make him unlikeable, but the majority of the descriptions of him are about his looks and his power when he's fighting and such. I know I'm not a teenager (meaning, and with the least offense meant possible, I know I shouldn't be expected to be so easily convinced as a teen reader might) but I don't usually feel this sense of "why should he want to end up with her?" I want the characters to have a happy ending together, but is it just because I'm supposed to want that?

      I still plan to read the third book. I'm hoping it picks up and at least has a satisfying ending. I'm honestly disappointed by how many aspects of these books bother me. But I have definitely read worse and I don't hate this series. I just feel like the general response to this series is not what I'm feeling and I really want to like it more than I do. The concepts are there, but the delivery isn't.
    • 4/5
      I'm enjoying this series a lot. They're easy reads. I find myself getting frustrated at times because Penryn is always getting into scraps but she does usually get herself out of them. Her world is quite harsh and I have a hard time loving a world that has very little glimmers of hope in it. But I do love the way the people in the world keep fighting for survival. It shows that never give up human spirit.
    • 4/5
      I am enjoying this story dystopian tale, which I believe is the forefront story which forced YA into the multi-million dollar genre.
    • 2/5
      “She wasn’t made to be alone.”
      “I guess none of us are.”
      I've had the sudden realization that this series is the girl-version of The Maze Runner by James Dashner. It's "fast-paced" aka rushed to the extreme and lacks appropriate characterization and tension. It's probably very fun for a younger reader but for someone who needs a bit more quality to really enjoy myself unironically, it tends to feel like I'm reading the abridged version of a much longer, better paced book.

      This sequel had all the issues from the first book and even had the initiative to add some issues that didn't exist before. The unnecessary and obnoxiously sexist military guys (not to mention the borderline sociopathic and strangely opportunistic Dee-Dum, who seem to actually enjoy the apocalypse) serve the same plot convenience purposes as last time and the plot revolves once more around Paige's sudden disappearance. This time it held no tension whatsoever, often skipping entire plot lines without giving them any resolution of any kind. On the flip side, we had entire sections that were just reruns from the first book with little "behind the scenes" stuff that also went unresolved. Honestly it felt like the exact same plot but without the charming interactions between Penryn and Raffe that saved the first book. This book seriously suffered from middle book syndrome.
    • 5/5
      Once again I was completely captivated with this story line. You finally learn more about the angel politics that are at work in the system and realize that the angels have their own agenda which may not have come from God. Penryn's sister Paige gets more prominent in the story and the twist and turns in her tale are quiet intriguing. Again...this book left with a huge cliffhanger so I cannot wait to read the final installment.
    • 4/5
      Penryn is still dealing with the fact that her mother is unstable, that her sister Paige is messed up by the angels and that Raffe has left her to hunt for his wings and that everything is complicated. The world is messed up, the angels and demons have plans that are going to make things way to messed up for everyone and many of the humans have not realised that this isn't something that they can ignore and hope goes away. Penryn is strong but doesn't really realise it and there is hope for her and her family, she makes mistakes but owns up to them and the sword is subtly changing her. I'm very curious as to what happens next
    • 2/5
      Ugh! Came close to hating this but it slightly redeemed itself in the end. Too much nastiness revolved around the locusts and scorpions for me to get past and enjoy the story. I also wanted more about what was happening with the Resistance and yet that arc felt marginalized. Without adding spoilers, there were many threads left unfinished, which didn't leave me wanting more but frustrated.
    • 5/5
      "BEWARE, READ AT YOUR OWN RISK. BOOK HANGOVER INEVITABLE."

      I feel like I've been waiting for this book for forever. Any amount of time for me waiting for the release of a book is too much time. The reasonable part of me knows that for an amazing book our dearest authors need time to do their magic but the irrational part of me is always impatient. But let me say that it was worth the wait. World After was as amazing if not more so as the first. It was as thrilling, and intense but much more dark and more post-apocalyptic(ky).

      For this type of genre it's a rare thing for me to say I loved the ending. The story is clearly not over but the ending was......hopeful. Yes, that's the word. I felt hopeful, the hope of whats to come in the next installment. (Wait, is this a Trilogy?). And even with the non-brutal cliffhanger, I am still having a book hangover. I've finished reading this book more than 48 hours ago and I'm still thinking about it and my mind is unconsciously creating the next scenes of what I hope will happen for Penryn and Raffe.

      So what happened in the book? Well, lots, not giving too much away but it was hard to have Penryn and Raffe separated for more than half the book. They came so close to seeing each at least once but he thought she was dead so he wouldn't be looking for her. And when they finally saw each other again it was so sweet. Raffe couldn't believe what he was seeing. He was clearly torn up over losing her. He became very protective but he also remembered she can take care of herself. He was proud of her usual badassery even though he teased her about it.

      Speaking of badassery, Penryn did get to show her kick-ass skills but sometimes I wish she could of showed it more. I realized that with the way of life in her world now it was best to lay low sometimes, but I wished she could have showed off some of the sword fighting lessons she had. Oh, her sword fighting teacher was very cool and I like 'it' or should I say, 'Pooky Bear'. What an unfortunate name for a ?????. Under different circumstances it would have been cute but not for something where it's name is a first impression of it's badness.

      So in World After, Penryn was still dealing with being responsible for her sister Paige and her cuckoo mother. She's also dealing with the added stress of blaming herself for not being their for Paige when she was being turned into an 'abomination'. It doesn't help that her mother blames her too. Penryn has been locking everything she's dealing with in a vault in her head and it makes me nervous for what this could mean for her later. I think she is going to flip out eventually and I hope it's on some angels with a god complex(irony, oxymoron, maybe irony) and she comes out of it has unscathed as possible.

      To sum up, no honestly, World After is a lot more than I can say without giving it all away. It had some dark elements in the story that made me angry at the angels, especially Uriel, who was pulling the strings of all the horrible things being done to the humans. But there were some lighthearted moments too, especially when it came to the twins Dee and Dum. They were probably the most laid back, humorous characters in such a dark, and edgy story.

      It's weird, but at one point I was thinking I should go watch that epic post-apocalyptic movie again but then I realized I was thinking about a book. It reads like a movie, it had that epic disaster movie feel. I could just picture every scene as I read the book. It was exciting, scary and thrilling.

      Here's hoping I don't have long to wait for the next book. Okay....I will try to be patient so that Ms. Ee can do her magic.
    • 4/5
      Interesting turn of events. Penryn & Raff's story continues. Good character development, interesting storyline, and plot. I'm amazed that the author has portrayed Angels as heartless & battle driven creatures given the world views on them...glad she stuck to the True version.
    • 4/5
      3,5 stars.

      I didn't like World After as much as Angelfall, but it was still a very good book and I didn't want to put it down. I found it a bit disappointing that the summary revealed so much of the plot, because Penryn and Raffe are not together until the last third of the book.

      Longer review soon.
    • 3/5
      Gets better, and flows smoothly. I just had to adjust to accept things the way they come without minding the missing details or any far-fetched explanation, like how in a post-apocalyptic scenario you never lack for running water in abandoned houses or how you have a working screen device with you on the move, or how a supposedly-dry-husk of a woman manages to emerge from a collapsed underground room and somesuch. The dream-training part was original though.

      I focused on the plot alone and that was the key. The insane mother keeps being a remarkable asset, and both the protagonist and her sister are intriguing characters.

      Still grim, still bloody, still quick-paced and less romancey, that's another thing I liked. Or maybe I've just got more comfortable with archangels who say things like "It's dangerous to be with me" and stick their fingers in jars of peanut butter.

      Pooky Bear has all my admiration.
    • 4/5
      Spoilers Ahead for the previous book!World After begins immediately after the end of Angelfall. [Note to readers: if you are interested in this trilogy, obtain all three books so you can read them together.] Penryn recovers from being paralyzed by the scorpion creatures created at the angel’s aerie, and together with her mom and the surgically-altered Paige, they return to the resistance camp. When they (once again) are in the midst of a disturbance, they are locked up, but escape from the camp, only to be captured by the angels and taken to the aerie on Alcatraz Island.Eventually Penryn and Raffe come together again, and Penryn questions Raffe about the bad things the other angels have said about him:“‘You’re not Fallen, are you?’ The question pops out of my mouth before my head can censor it.‘From everything I’ve heard, that would just make me more sexy to you Daughters of Men. . . . What is it that you all see in bad boys?’”This repartee is typical of the humor (and meta-humor) in the books, as well as showing the easy relationship between Penryn and Raffe. In a further great moment in dialogue, Penryn and Raffe pretend to talk about how Raffe feels about his sword, when they are really talking about how they feel about each other.Toward the end of the book, a big fight for power breaks out, and while Raffe is battling the Fallen angel Beliel along with hellions, and scorpions, Penryn takes on the angel who was one of the gang that attacked Raffe and who kidnapped Paige. Using Raffe’s sword, Penryn kills him. The surprising ending that follows starts “a new day in the World After.”Evaluation: These books are page-turning fun. Not all of the plot threads hold up under the scrutiny of reason, but I didn’t care at all. The characterization is excellent, with Penryn and especially her sister and mother being totally unique unexpected heroines. I found the author’s imagination and sense of humor delightful.
    • 4/5
      The World Before is gone. In the World After humanity must do what it can to survive. Barely escaping from the angel's aerie in San Francisco, Penryn and her family retreat to the relative safety of a nearby Resistance outpost. Unable to understand and accept what has been done to her, a group of men that see Paige as a monster attempt to capture and take her away. Ending in a bloodbath, Paige escapes and disappears back into the city. Mom is heartbroken while Penryn is furious. Yet again Penryn must travel into angel territory in an attempt to keep her family together.World After is the second in the Penryn & the End of Days series by Susan Ee. The book picks up the exact moment where the first leaves off. The plot definitely echos the first book. I have hope that book three will be different though! The first half of the story focuses solely on Penryn. Just as I found myself wondering if we were going to have to wait for the next book to see him again, Raffe rejoins the story. While a story about Penryn only could work the interactions between the two of them are one of my favorite parts of the book. Some of their dialog is laugh out loud funny.Where the first book merely dips its toe in horror, this time the story has both feet firmly in the pool with the water up over our knees and the knowledge that you're still working your way to the deep end. This aspect really shines as the story progresses. It lends a darkness to the story that is felt throughout. It is also used to further show us the other side of angel society. In some ways they aren't that different from humans in the lengths they'll go to acheive a goal. Ambition is ambition no matter the species.The characters continue to grow as the book progresses. Penryn is unwilling to accept that she may be some kind of hero, yet she continues to make hard decisions and take action when others don't, even when those actions put herself in harms way to protect those around her. I enjoy Raffe's sense of humor and the bit of levity it adds to the story. Even Paige is starting to grow. No longer the helpless little sister, her new abilities are just starting to be shown and are still a mystery yet to be solved.Just as action packed as the before, the momentum continues to build all the way to the end. I definitely did not see the twist coming when it happened and was pleasantly surprised. Note to self: if ever given the opportunity to name an archangel sword, take it seriously.
    • 4/5
      Great world building and awesome character development! I'm a HUGE fan of Penryn's, who is a kick ass heroine, and of course I am absolutely in love with the sarcastic, devilishly handsome archangel Raphael. The taboo sexual tension between the two is perfectly in balance with the fighting for survival so as not to cheese up the entire story line. This will be an equally good read for the fellas. Of course the ending leaves off in a place that commands you to buy the next book. Overall a good read!
    • 3/5
      I couldn't wait for the paperback; I had to see what was going to happen next. iBooks wasn't selling it and I gave in to weakness and bought it from Amazon. Ultimately, I should have just waited and bought it in paperback. If you haven't read Angelfall and you think you might want to, beware there might be spoilers here for you World After, for much of the first half of the book, was just too Science Fiction for my taste. All those scorpion/locust chimera's and Angels performing science experiments. Not for me. The whole thing just felt too contrived. While Angelfall didn't feel like a book written with the YA demographic specifically in mind, World After did. It was still a good read; I just felt like some of the suspension of disbelief needed in this book would be easier for someone closer to that age group. Why would Angels need science if they have magic? Why would they need human doctors? Human-derived technology? None of this is explained in either of the two books so far. I really liked the way the author used Raffe's sword to share with Penryn and the reader Raffe's POV and some of his long backstory. Also, the sword's way of using those memories as training exercises for Penryn - not that she ever used the lessons as far as I could tell. Once past the halfway-ish mark, the story started pulling me in again. It's no coincidence that it's also about the same time Raffe makes his re-appearance in Penryn's life. The two of them together are a more intriguing story to me than they are apart. There's a soupçon of humour in this book that was all but missing in the first one. I'm still shaking my head over "Pooky Bear" but can totally appreciate the naturalness of how the name came about. Put me in the same scene in place of Penryn, and I'd have responded in much the same way to Dee/Dum. Though I'd have probably said "Twinkle Toes" or something equally obnoxious. I read somewhere that 5 books are planned for this series. If that's the case, I predict, even though this book ends with the tides seemingly turning against the Angels, that they will rally in the third book. It's hard to imagine stringing this out for more than 3, 4 books at the most, but I'm sure the author has much more in store for everyone. Just please don't let it be more science fiction.
    • 4/5
      A beautiful sequel.
      I've waited a good while to read about Penryn again. And I think it was beautiful. Reunited with her sister and mother but with conflicting emotions, Raffe and the demon wings, a peek at chimera factories, multiple battles, a dangerous cocktail party, and of course Raffe and Penryn's reunion.

      I almost don't want to dissect the book and think about its flaws or writing mechanics because I am quite fond of this series.

      I guess a couple of points I wish could have been different. The book skips around very frequently. It's fast-paced and action-packed and sometimes important scenes feel a little too rushed. I wanted more information about the escape from the chimera prison. It left me hanging. Actually many scenes felt like that. The angel masquerade felt too short and I wanted to learn more about the women and the background situation. Laylah plays a major part, but she barely gets a couple of sentences. There's a lot left unsaid. But I'm not sure if it'll all be explained in later books or if it's left intentionally mysterious or if the editor just made Ee cut words.
      I didn't really like the sword-flashbacks at first because it was just too easy for Penryn to get to see through Raffe's eyes and sword training at the same time. But I was convinced later when the sword got sulky or showed other scenes. Then it seemed less like an easy way to get Penryn up to snuff and more like a genuine progression of the story.
      Oh, also Penryn and Raffe's banter could probably be toned down a bit.

      I loved much of this book. Penryn's personality and sass, her bravery while still being afraid. The humor - the bear and bridal gown sheath for the archangel sword was hilarious. I love that sword. The description of the angel masquerade was beautiful and the visual of the chimera scorpions are dark and twisted and gorgeous. Beautiful imagery.

      I'm being overly generous with five stars, probably. But I really, really enjoy this series and I have a feeling it's going to be a future comfort book. It's probably more like four and a half stars stars, maybe even a four, honestly. But whatever, this is going on my favorites.
      Recommended for sure.

      -edit-
      reread it and the flaws were much more apparent without the shiny glow of newness and excitement. I really do have to drop it down to four stars, which is still generous.
    • 5/5
      Susan Ee is a brilliant writer. For once, in my many adventures in reading Young Adult literature I don't feel as if the books in this series are cut and paste teen novels. I find them refreshing and exciting. Every turn of the page leads to something new and I find myself in a zone where it's hard to break free.World After begins as Penryn awakens from her paralyzed state. She finds herself left to deal with the people in camp as well as her mother and sister. Her mother is the same insane person she was in Angelfall, now trying to protect her new found youngest daughter. Paige is now considered a monster- by her sister and the strangers around her. While their mother doesn't seem to notice Paige's new affliction, we discover another side to Penryn. Penryn is devastated that her little sister who was once a small helpless young girl in a wheelchair is now a terrifying little girl who hides behind her dirty hair and possesses sharp teeth and a strange new attitude.When I finished this book most of my emotions were trying to deal with Penryn's relationship with her sister. Penryn sets out to save Paige and fights with virtually everyone for her survival. We see a side of her that is determined and raw. For most of the book we forget about Raffe a little. There were so many other aspects to the story. Ee once again created a story in which I felt surprised and excited at every turn of the page. In typical "world after" fashion Paige disappears again. She runs away after being fed up with the actions of people around her. Of course, Penryn goes after her. Penryn seems to have all the bad luck. So many things happen! Dee Dum pop up every now and again. Belial and other angels make an appearance. And then there's Raffe.Raffe doesn't show up until a bit later in the story. BUT it is with good reason. We are able to learn more about him from Pookie Bear! (His old sword.) Now that Penryn wields her she is able to connect with Raffe's past. What she finds surprises her and gives her a new appreciation for who he is. When she meets up with him later things go back to what we... or at least I felt... in Angelfall. However, this interaction is very short-lived.Angelfall and World After are unique young adult books. They are fun, realistic, disgusting, and sad. I can't wait to see where Penryn goes from here! She's such a strong female protagonist.
    • 3/5
      Initially, I truly liked World After. Now, after further contemplation, I found that this book did not exactly live up to my expectations. So, I lowered my rating to 3 stars.

      Dear World After,

      I am regretfully informing you that I had not enjoyed you as much as I had hoped. I hate to say this, but at times, I found you a bit… boring.

      Don't get me wrong, your actions scenes were extremely well-written; one of the best I've read in a while. The evil-things were quite horrifying and repulsive. I still love Penryn, and loved witnessing her growth as a character. Raffe wasn’t there for a bulk of you, but when he was present, I found myself treasuring their moments together.

      Also, I loved that you are set in San Francisco!(where I was born) It was extremely depressing, though, to know what occurred to my homecity.

      What I did not appreciate about you, however, was the lack of progress. It pains me to say this, and I know it must be an incredibly insulting label to you as a book, but I can’t help but feel that you are nothing more than a filler book. You suffer from the second-book-syndrome. I’ll be completely honest here, and I say this as a true friend: nothing much happened in you.

      Sure, there were action scenes, and pretty awesome ones at that, but what was the end result of these fights? I’m not entirely sure.

      I felt like I was waiting for something big to happen. Something, I might add, that was pointless to wait for. I was waiting a revelation or plot twist or something of the sort to keep the suspense level high, but in my opinion, throughout the book the suspense levels were surprisingly low, uncharacteristically so. If I stripped you of your numerous, albeit repetitive, fighting scenes, what would I have left? Practically nothing. I’d even go so far to say that you are simply an action-only book, blind to everything else.

      I can't believe I hadn't noticed this while reading Angelfall, but I'm not the biggest fan of the writing style in you. The only time it improved was during the action bits.

      Like I said earlier, World After, no progress occurs in you. I hate to compare friends, but Angelfall was much more successful in its pacing. You dragged way too much, something I had not anticipated nor hoped for. If someone were to ask me to give them a summary of the events in you, I would be completely tongue-tied and at a loss for words.

      I’m sorry, World After, if I have offended you, but I am merely saying the absolute truth. That’s what friends are for, right?

      Your reader,
      Summer <3

      P.S. Pooky Bear? Really? >.<

      On a completely random note, this is my 100th review! *throws confetti*
    • 4/5
      World After continued to amaze me with just how creative Susan Ee can be with her storyline. When I thought I knew in which direction things would go I was wrong, and oh how I love it when I’m wrong! She has a style of writing and power to her characters that really gets you behind them, hooked by your eyelids such that you can’t stop reading until you’ve devoured every last page.

      Some of this books really makes you wonder: Is your love really unconditional? How would you react if someone you love had been grossly…physically altered to the point where you could barely stand to look at them? And are you weak because you don’t want to look at them…is it because they are a monster? Or because you feel guilty for what has happened to them? What are the lies we tell ourselves about the people we love?

      My heart went out to little Paige so much so that you could bottle the pain and anguish she must be going through and sell it to demon’s in Hell at a premium. Seriously…Penryn may be the star of this book, but Paige is a pillar of strength to have survived the things she has. It would be amazing to read a book from her perspective! Now I must admit while I loved World After and liked the direction things went, I was very sad that Raffe was essentially absent for more than half of this book. Some of my favorite parts of Angelfall were the interactions and tension between Penryn and Raffe. I think thats the only quarrel I had with World After, but I can understand why that needed to be done, we needed to see Penryn on her own – so you’ve gotta roll with it.

      Ultimately, I am still surprised by how completely blown away I was by my love for the first book and I’m happy to say book two didn’t let me down! Young adult fans you need to jump on this series STAT!
    • 4/5
      Argh, cliffhanger. I knew this would happen, mind you, but it's still frustrating. Hopefully the wait for the next book won't be as long.

      A couple things to note: a plot hole that bothered me in the first book is explained in the second. I'm not sure whether I should be glad about this or not, because it feels more like a deus ex machina now. Perhaps it's just my not remembering the first book well enough to link the two things.

      The chapters were also very short and I breezed through this book. It's a shame, too, because the closer I came to finishing it, the less I wanted to finish it because then it'd be over.

      Oh, well. I'm waiting, Susan Ee.
    • 5/5
      The best part about reading Angelfall so long after everyone else seemed to have read it was that I didn't have as long to wait for book 2, World After. The problem with reading World After so soon after release is the agonizing wait for book 3...But I'm very glad that there will be a book 3. And a book 4 and a book 5. I am in love with the characters: smart, strong Penryn; the angel Raffe and brave Paige, once wheelchair bound and now some sort of machine. They have been crafted and developed flawlessly, poised to save the world from further destruction by the angel invasion. Infused with humour and a dash of forbidden romance (how is it going to work?!), this is the type of angel fiction I have been waiting for. As well as a cast of very interesting supporting characters - namely Penryn and Paige's crazy mother and the twins, Dee and Dum - it all makes for an appealing series. I never have any idea where the story is about to go. I knew that Raffe would show up again sooner or later, but other than that I am being taken on a ride where I can't see around the corner. And I'm loving it.The wait is on. Come on, book 3!( 
    • 5/5
      After the amazingness that was Angelfall, I had high hopes for the sequel. And once again, I was completely blown away. World After doesn’t pull any punches as Penryn struggles to come to terms with having a sister who seems more monster than human. Paige’s story is utterly heartbreaking. In many ways, this book is all about turning the definition of monster on its head and challenging our ideas about what it means to be human.Although Penryn and Raffe aren’t reunited until near the end, Raffe’s sword gives us glimpses into his past that make the separation between the characters totally worth it. There’s so much about this story I loved - the creepy scorpion monsters, Penryn’s badass fight scenes, Uriel’s scheming, Dee and Dum just being awesome, the banter, and hints of romance. Despite some great humorous moments, World After is even darker, bloodier, and more intense than the first book. Once it sucks you in, you won’t be able to put it down.In case you haven’t already guessed, World After rocked my socks off. It exceeded my expectations in every way, and I can’t wait to get my hands on book three. Highly recommended.
    • 2/5
      Huge let down after loving the first book so much!