World After (Penryn and the End of Days, #2)

by Susan Ee

[Angie]

I had been waiting impatiently for World After, and now that it's here, and I've finished reading it, I'm sad. It wasn't as awesome as Anglefall, but it was still really good. I just need more! There wasn't nearly enough Raffe, and I missed him! Picking up immediately where the first book left off, we follow Penryn as the world continues to go to hell. Literally. She's back with her mom and sister, but things are definitely not the same. She's looked at as some kind of freak, since everyone believed she was dead and resurrected. And her sister Paige is looked at as something dangerous to either be studied or destroyed. Their mom is still...their mom: moments of coherence mixed in with crazed ramblings. So not everything has changed.

I'll start with why I didn't like World After as much as Anglefall. Mostly, it felt like the exact same plot but without Raffe. Once again, Paige has disappeared under Penryn's watch, so Pen must head out and save her. Sure, it's under different circumstances, but it's still the same basic idea. Penryn's quest brings her face to face with dangerous angels....again. Her mom has some brilliant ideas buried under all of her crazy...again. They get captured and make daring escapes...again. Penryn finds her sister and things get super weird...again. However, there's a lot of new and interesting stuff that kept this from feeling like an exact rehashing.

My second favorite part of World After was Raffe's sword, which is now in Penryn's possession. She's the only one who can wield it, but she has absolutely no clue how to effectively use it. Lucky for her, the sword has special properties in order to help her out. That is, after Penryn finally names it. Oh, the name that she chooses! And how she chooses to disguise it! Hilariousness! My favorite part was of course Raffe himself and his reaction to what has been done to his mighty sword. I just love Raffe, and was disappointed that he's really only around for the last quarter or so. But every moment was well worth it!

Of course there's also tons of new information regarding the apocalypse. Needless to say, the worst is yet to come. I really can't say more because of...spoilers! But those weird lab experiments from the end of Anglefall? Totally serve a creepy and nefarious purpose! And little Paige might be a very important piece of the puzzle. World After really was a great sequel, and I cannot wait for more. Especially more Raffe! And hopefully some forbidden romance!

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.