The Edge of Over There
The Day the Angels Fell #2
By Shawn Smucker

The battle at the Tree of Life changed everything. Destroying the Tree cost Abra Miller her friendship with Sam Chambers and left her with a sword that no one else could hold. And then there is the dream - the dream of that night and the last message that Mr. Tennin left her.

When threats to those closest to her compel her to seek out another Tree Abra travels to New Orleans where she must open and enter a Gateway that the living should never cross. Her journey will introduce her to a young man who has been seeking this very Gateway for years after having lost his own family to it.

But destroying this second Tree of Life that between Here and Over There will take her to the Edge of Over There. But the Edge of Over There is a dangerous place to be - a place of sorrow and pain. With no one to trust Alba is truly on her own and she must destroy the Tree before any eat of the fruit which it bears. And she must withstand the temptations which she will face in this battle.

The Edge of Over There is an interesting book as we are taken to the point where The Day the Angels Fell left off. Sam has received the sword and notes that Alba has been keeping for years and a stranger approaches him. Now this stranger is about to tell Sam about Alba's story, at least a portion of it.

Now if one hasn't read the first book you could probably make it fine through this one though there are references to incidents from the first that will be a bit unclear. This is most definitely Speculative fiction and I think it is better than the first book. Alba is a character that one can empathize and connect with. And I will say I want to know more about what happened between the end of Alba's portion of the story and Sam's portion. Those who enjoy James Rubart or Billy Coffey will most likely be fans of Shawn Smucker's work as they strike me as similar story types. I would love to have this book as a book club selection and get the various takes on just what everything means to the various readers - so this will be getting my vote.

I was provided a review copy of this book by the publisher Revell with no expectations of a positive review ~ All opinions expressed are my own.

The Edge of Over There reminds me why a good fantasy story is so much fun to read!

Although this story is marketed to the young adult crowd, I considered it very enjoyable. One of the things I most enjoyed was the analogy of the mirror. When we look in a mirror, we see a reflection of ourself. As a reflection, our right hand is now on our left side, and our left arm is now on our right side. If we were to look at good in the mirror, would we also see its reflection - its opposite: evil? After all, good could never exist without evil also existing.

Given that analogy, it's no wonder that many things in this story are not as they initially seem. I particularly enjoyed that with characters. When a character is introduced, it is not immediately apparent whether the character is a good guy or a bad guy. But then again - not everything is at it seems.

**The Setting of The Edge of Over There**

In New Orleans, there exists Saint Louis Cemetery No. 1. Within this cemetery is a grave for Marie Laveau. This grave is one of seven worldwide portals into Over There. Personally, I just love that concept. Having the North American portal not just in a cemetery, but in a New Orleans cemetery, seems to advance the imagery of the book tenfold.

Speaking of imagery, the author did a very good job of providing description. For example, when in the presence of the tree of life, I could actually picture it in my mind. Reading a fantasy story without good description is like looking at the stars through a telescope with a dirty lens! The author keeps this lens pretty clean.

**Technically Speaking**

I typically comment on SPAG - spelling, punctuation and grammar. However, the version I read was not the final version, so any SPAG errors are generally moot. With that being said, any SPAG errors were still minimal. In the final version, these errors will likely be nonexistent.

The pacing was edge-of-your-seat good, and the character arcs were also good. Like I said, this is a very good story and fun to read.

If I were to have any complaint about this story, it would be the concept that the story could stand on its own. This is the second book of a series, and according to the publisher, it can stand on its own. In other words, the reader does not have to read the first book in the series to find this book enjoyable. I guess that's true - I did enjoy the story after all. BUT, I think I would have enjoyed it much, much more if I read the first book first.

In my case, I'll be reading the first book second, and then re-reading the second book third.

I know you have a birthday coming up over the next twelve months. Give yourself an awesome gift and read both of these stories!

(I received a free copy of this book from Lone Star Book Blog Tours in exchange for my honest review.)

The Edge of Over There is filled with Christian allegory, the folly of humankind, greed and the desire for immortality, and strength to resist the fruits of the Tree of Life. I highly recommend reading Book 1 in this series, The Day the Angels Fell, because the story flows from book to book, with references to events and people that will only confuse and confound if you haven't started from the beginning, from when the angels fell.

While Book 1 is about two children tasked with an impossible task, Book 2, The Edge of Over There, takes on a more dystopian vibe, with most of the action taking place in an entirely different world, accessed through a gateway at Marie Laveau's grave in Saint Louis Cemetery No. 1. in New Orleans. I recently visited this cemetery and this particular grave site, so I had a vivid picture in my mind as I read.

The overall plot is quite melancholy, but don't be fooled into thinking the book is slow and sad. Time is of the essence for the characters in this other world, one looking for his sister, and the other looking for the Tree of Life. Without offering any spoilers, I can say that the story will provoke profound thought about what it means to embrace both life and death. What it means to be alive and not merely living. What it means to be afraid of what you know in your heart you must do but still find the strength and the courage to do it.

The main characters, Abra, Leo, Ruby, Mr. Henry, Amos, Beatrice, all of them are unforgettable in that they show all sides of humanity in all its glory and its grotesqueness, because life is about good and evil intertwining and battling for a foothold. But oh how hard it can be sometimes to tell one from the other.

Even though this story is classified as Young Adult, the plot and characters will appeal to all ages because we can see ourselves in these characters in every stage of our lives. Like the characters, we are subject to the pitfalls of avarice and the need to have it all. But we are also subject to the good virtues, such as honesty, determination, trust, and the strength to pursue good and not evil. Fine storytelling, excellent writing, and memorable characters will draw you in and keep you engaged until everything is said and the story comes full circle.

The Edge Of Over There is a fantastic journey. A journey through 0 well 0 that is for you to read for yourself to find out exactly what their whole journey entails - I don't want to ruin it all for you. It is a sequel to "The Day The Angels Fell", but it can be read as a stand alone book. Some of the characters no longer exist but have left things behind for other characters to help them along with their journey. It has Voodoo, cemeteries, a bunch of things along that ling as well as The Tree Of Life - from Genesis in the Bible - How can you miss out on that. GOD is all throughout and you can't beat that can you?

This is a story about good and evil, angels and demons, and Heaven and a place across from Heaven.
Abra has a dream about being in a tall tree, watching a girl being killed by a wolf-like creature, seeing a boy named Samuel kill the beast with a sword, and then being the girl on the ground and having a man give her back her life.
Then the story shifts to Samuel’s old age, he is followed by a tattooed pockmarked man into an antique store where the man asks him to go somewhere they can talk and he introduces himself as Mr. Henry, and he asks Samuel about Arba, she and he gave each other anything. Samuel remembers giving Arba a box, and that she was buried with an atlas and some notes. Arba’s husband gave Samuel a sword and a journal.
Mr. Henry then tells Samuel a story about a sick child, a desperate father, a Doctor and a place where his daughter could be healed if the father planted a tree in a place called “The Edge Over There “ and fed its’ leaves to his daughter, Ruby.
This tree is special in a way that the first “Tree of Life” in the Garden of Eden was special. Arba is told to follow the man and his daughter and destroy this tree.
You will have to read the story for yourself to find out what happens to Arba, Ruby, the Doctor and the place called “The Edge Over There.”
Enjoy the journey!

I admire Smucker’s imagination. This follow-up book to “The Day The Angels Fell,” tells the in-between story, All that Abra agreed to do in order to protect the Tree of Life. Another page-turner! Excellent YA fantasy.

The Edge of Over There is the sequel to The Day The Angels Fell which I received an ARC of back in November, as well. Many thanks to Netgalley, Shawn Smucker, and the publisher for an advance copy of the sequel.

Shawn Smucker's writing style is lovely. It is not fast-paced, there is never any big bang culmination, it's just a slow-burning enjoyable read. Even when there's a climax, it's written in the same style which is so enjoyable to me. He's not forcing any exciting pieces onto you, he eases you into his story.

When I read The Day The Angels Fell, I had no idea it would turn into a series. It was a great standalone. However, when I saw Netgalley had a sequel to it up for grabs, I applied for it because the world he's built is interesting and you can't help but want to know more about Sam and Abra.

This time, it was mostly Abra's turn to be the star. The story begins with Sam, as an old man, receiving a guest who has a story to tell and a favor to ask. The story is told from this man's point of view, and tells of one of Abra's adventures post-the Tree of Life featured in the first book. New characters, just as enjoyable to discover as in the first, and a new story that dives deeper into the world briefly touched on in the first, The Edge of Over There was a fantastic follow-up and I can't wait to see what Shawn brings us next.

I'm not the kind of person who gushes, but I'll make an exception for this book. Hours after I finished reading it, I was still freaking out about the ending and how overall stunning the writing and story were. I really liked the first book in this series and I LOVED this story. I can't wait to read more.

A very well-written book. The writing was definitely the best part of this book for me as I got completely lost in the story like I did the first book. The characters were also enjoyable and I can't wait to read more from this author.

First and foremost I want to thank the author and Netgalley for sending me an e-book to review.

Honestly, I did not know this was a sequel until I was already sucked into the story, so thumbs up for that.

The spoopy creeps that Abra's dream gave me, made sure that I continued reading and needed to find out more about K.N. , the other characters and of course the Tree of Life.

The book is filled with all sorts of fantastical mystery elements that really matched the writing and story telling and the world building style I can only describe as poetical, the only book I would compare this with would be Strange the Dreamer. If you did not like that book though, don't let it scare you off, like I said before, the story will make sure you want to keep reading.

This is a really well-written book. I did feel completely lost throughout because this is the 2nd book in the series and is not a stand-alone novel. I really enjoyed the characters and the writing style of the author. I am going to go buy the first then give it a re-read.