End of Days (Penryn & the End of Days #3) by Susan Ee

Penryn, Raffe and Paige are on the run after an epic showdown with angels.  Penryn is so tired and confused.  As an archangel Raffe is a member of the invading army, yet Penryn is drawn to him.  For his part, Raffe knows he is forbidden from the daughter of man and with an impending fake apocalypse in the works by Uriel.  Pookie Bear the ancient sword is determined to through it's own issues into the mix by delving into Raffe's past.  Penryn has fallen deeply for Raffe but after seeing that he hasn't always been faithful to his friends, Penryn must decide if she can trust him not with her heart but with the fate of all humanity.  Which side will the archangel choose?

I really went into End of Days hopeful but alas it seems that my hope is sadly misplaced.  I wanted End of Days to be absolutely epic, particularly given that World After (book 2 in the series) felt like a placeholder.  End of Days ended abruptly after a large battle scene and Ee swiftly brought about the HEA as though there was always one way for this book to end - Penryn and Raffe becoming a couple. There are plenty of instances where the typical YA HEA just doesn't make sense and End of Days is certainly an example of this.

It made absolute sense to me that Raff is resistant to a relationship with Penryn for much of the book. To be clear, Penryn is a 17 year old girl and Raff is not only immortal but has been alive since before Lucifer was cast out of heaven.  What could he possibly have to talk with Penryn about? Other than the circumstances which brought them together and keep forcing them together, there is no basis for a romantic relationship.  Affection between Raffe and Penryn make sense considering all they have been together but romantic love?  The very idea is ridiculous.  

Penryn's idea of dealing with Raffe's reaction is to ask him repeatedly if she's his daughter of man.  When that doesn't get her the answer she wants, Penryn takes the opportunity while Raffe is sleeping to place his hand on her breast.  Ummm that's assault.  It doesn't matter that Raffe awoke and caressed and squeezed Penryn's breast of his volition.   This incident really moved Penryn into just an annoying, lovestruck teen into someone who doesn't believe in consent and is absolutely selfish.  Her continual mooning over Raffe, often at the most inopportune moments couldn't erase reading about Penryn assaulting him.  

When the HEA does finally happen, it doesn't feel joyous or wonderful, it feels like Raffe capitulated because he couldn't take Penryn's badgering him anymore.  The cynical side of me pictures Raffe realising that Penryn, while only 17, is still human and destined to die and therefore; whatever commitment they have to each other will be short lived.  The fact that Penryn is mortal and Raffe is immortal and ageless is more than enough reason for them to never ever be a couple.  Ee softens tries to make Raffe's declaration of love makes sense but even Ee cannot hide the capitulation despite the pretty words she has Raffe say.

‘Don’t you know a heartfelt declaration of love when you hear one?’ 

I blink dumbly at him with my heart pounding.

 He caresses a lock of my hair out of my face. ‘Look, I know that we’re from different worlds and different people. But I’ve realized that it doesn’t matter.’

‘You don’t care about the angelic rules anymore?’

‘My Watchers have helped me realize that angelic rules are for angels. Without our wings, we can never be fully accepted back into the fold. There will always be talk of taking a newly Fallen’s wings and transplanting them onto us. Angels are perfect. Even with transplanted wings, we’ll never again be perfect. You accept me just the way I am, regardless of whether or not I even have wings. Even when I had my demon wings, you’ve never looked at me with pity. You’ve never wavered in your loyalty. That’s who you are – my brave, loyal, lovable Daughter of Man. (pg 262)

Even if Raffe goes home, he will never quite fit in again after all that's transpired and he most certainly cannot become a Messenger.  What options does he have left at this point but to decide to be with Penryn while she lives out her mortal life?   It would have made sense of Raffe left with the angels and little overly persistent Penryn learned you can't always get what you want.  Putting Raffe and Penryn together was always going to be coarse and ridiculous because as a romantic couple, they are absurd at best.

World After (Penryn & the End of Days #2) by Susan Ee

When we last Penryn she was headed away with the remnants of the Resistance safe in her mother's arms, while he sister watched and Raffe flew above slowly following their progress.  Back to what should have been safety with the Resistance, Penryn finds that she cannot just settle into the society of humans.  Her mind constantly wonders back to Raffe and the glorious archangel sword is not only determined to teach her how to fight but to show her visions of Raffe in the past to guide her instruction. Penryn cannot to distracted however, because something clearly is not right with her little sister Paige.

When the Resistance group attacks, Paige and Penryn are separated yet again and Paige sees it as her duty to find and protect her little sister.  When Paige first sets off with her mother she knows that this journey will force her to confront what the angels have turned Paige into but she has not idea that it will bring her back into contact with Raffe.  For Raffe finding Penryn alive again is like a dream and though she is the daughter of man, he cannot stop himself from caring. Will his obvious feelings for Penryn cause his to cast aside his hope of retrieving his precious wings in order to save her?

I was very excited to pick up World After, having so greatly enjoyed Angelfall.  Unfortunately, World started off really slow and it was until I was about 1/3 of the way through the story that it started to pick. Part of this was because of the endless moping over Raffe by Penryn and the flashback scenes via that magical sword to give us pass scenes from Raffe's perspective.  This stalled forward progress in the story and actually forced me to put the book down a few times.

Even after everything Penryn has seen, she has not developed much as a character.  This may in part be because there was virtually no time lag between the ending of Angelfall and the start of World After. The snarky commentary is cute but really does feel out of place during a battle.  After reading two books in this series, I find myself wondering why a being as ancient as the archangel Raphael sees Penryn as a love interest though it is in a star crossed lovers sense.  The snark seems to cover up the fact that they shouldn't be able to relate to each other at all.  Not only are they from very different worlds, the age difference alone should have them virtually speaking two different languages.  The relationship between Raffe and Penryn only works because except in very few instances, Raffe does not read like an ancient being. 

Angelfall (Penryn & the End of Days #1) by Susan Ee

The apocalypse has come in the form of Angels from heaven determined to wipe out humanity.  Penryn struggles to survive with her mother and her sister Paige sleeping and scavenging food were they can.  Together the three are no match for the angels who are bent on the destruction of the human race.  The three come across angels in a deathly battle and try to hide but when they are discovered Paige is taken.  Penryn does the only thing she can do - help the wounded angel in the hopes that he will help guide her to her sister.  Together Raffe and Penryn make a perilous journey towards the angel stronghold each with the their own objective.  Can their temporary truce hold long enough for Penryn to get her sister back and for Raffe to reclaim her wings.

I'm not normally a fan of YA but Angelfall hits all of the right notes.  The writing is beautifully descriptive making it easy to picture the desperation of humans and the utter destruction of the landscape.  The humans are clearly caught between forces they can barely comprehend and still yet they preserver.  At it's heart, Angelfall is a story of survival.

 Penryn is also smart enough to try and coax information about angels from Raffe though and she is constantly caught between her budding relationship with him and wanting humans to win in the resistance movement. Penryn questions whether collaborating with the enemy to save her sister makes her an enemy of the human race. As much as she comes to trust Raffe, there are lines even she won't cross.