I'm almost sad to have read this, because in discovering this book so early on in the year, I can't help but think the rest of 2012 is now going to be a letdown; there's so little chance another fantasy novel will live up. This story has mystery, a fascinating world structure and political situation, non-overwhelming romance, and it's all sewn up with the key element so many books I've read lately have been missing: action. There's always something happening with these characters. Whether they're running for their lives or squaring off against one another, everything I learned about Penryn, Raffe, and their world was shared through true storytelling, not info dumping.Bless you, Susan Ee.The novel jumps right into it, with Penryn's preparations for her family to leave the only home they've ever known and venture into the devastated outside world. Angels have descended from Heaven and, with no explanation, have begun the enslavement and eventual extermination of humankind. Penryn doesn't have time to worry about the human race as a whole—she wishes she did, but it's just not an option when you're seventeen, living in a post-apocalyptic California, and have a wheelchair-bound sister and schizophrenic mother to care for. She has no intention of getting mixed up with anyone. That is, until her sister's kidnapping forces her to not only ask for help, but to do the unthinkable: Penryn strikes a bargain with an angel.Angelfall is self-published, so I wasn't surprised to stumble across a few instances of over-writing which an editor would have cut ("The sky flames like a bruised mango in vivid orange, reds, and purples." It flames like . . . a mango? Fruit on fire?), but Ee quickly abandons any attempts at too-flowery prose and gets on with it. The story moves quickly, spanning time and distance with a remarkable ease that had me questioning where the chapters (and my hours) went.But what was the real sell for me was Ee's characterizations. Penryn isn't just "beautiful" and "strong," etc. She struggles with each and every decision she makes, weighs the pros and cons of helping others versus her own interest. She isn't inherently self-sacrificing or loyal, but she often decides that's who she wants to be and acts accordingly.That's real. That's something I can understand as a human being.Overall, this book just has me fangirling so hard.I'm going to force my sister, my mother, my best friend, everyone to read this, and I can't understand why anyone wouldn't.Especially considering it's only $0.99 for both Kindle and Nook right now.Why are you even still here?Originally posted at JUSTINEXORABLE.COM
