End of Days (Penryn and the End of Days, #3) – re-read

End of DaysEnd of Days
by Susan Ee
Rating: ★★★½
isbn: 1444778552
Series: Penryn End of Days #3
Publication Date: May 26, 2015
Pages: 336
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Hodder Paperback

Ok, so book 3 re-read and I still don’t care for dystopian/post-apocolyptic settings.

My second read brings this book down to a 3.5, but I have to say, that on the second read, I was better able to appreciate the parallels to the stories of Lucifer’s original battle and descent/fall.  I was also better able to empathise with the tragedy and sacrifice of Baliel.  So, while I got more out of it the second time around, I also found the science fiction elements even more grating, and I was totally dissatisfied with the ending.  Yes, it’s an HEA, but it’s still lacking, with questions left unanswered, and that annoys me more than it did the first time, obviously.

I remain satisfied with the trilogy; it didn’t wow me, but I feel like I got what I paid for, more or less.  Perhaps someday my nieces will enjoy reading it.

End of Days (Penryn and the End of Days, #3)

End of DaysEnd of Days
by Susan Ee
Rating: ★★★★
isbn: 1444778552
Series: Penryn End of Days #3
Publication Date: May 26, 2015
Pages: 336
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Hodder Paperback

I don’t actually care for dystopian/post-apocolyptic settings and this trilogy reminded me of that and ultimately reinforced my belief that my tastes haven’t changed over time.  If my tastes had changed, or if I’d always been a fan, I’d have probably stuck with my original instinct to rate this more of a 3/3.5.  As it is, I’m compensating for taste.

I enjoyed Angelfall, although it started to fall apart for me at the end when the science fiction angle started to show itself.  In spite of the dystopian/P.A. theme, I could totally get on board with Penryn and Raphael and their search for his wings and her family.  But from book 2, things just got too weird for me; the experiments, the creations, the politics.  I was committed to continuing though because I cared about the characters.

So while quite a few others I know are disappointed by End of Days it pretty much met my expectations – I continued to be bored by the science fiction/frankensteinian aspects and was really just in it for the HEA it seemed was inevitable; I mean what else was the author going to realistically do that wouldn’t get her lynched by a teen mob?  I also enjoyed the scenes in the pit (perhaps ‘enjoyed’ isn’t the right word; I liked meeting the Watchers and seeing Baliel before his corruption was complete).

I’m satisfied with the trilogy; it didn’t wow me, but I feel like I got what I paid for, more or less.