City of Gods and Monsters

Angelthene is the insular setting of City of Gods and Monsters; in addition to being the place where Loren has spent her entire life, it is literally surrounded by a forcefield that keeps carnivorous demons at bay. Angelthene is somewhat dystopic; Edwards repeatedly highlights the inequality of Angelthene’s society and that any attempts to fight back against this inequality have limited efficacy. Even so, however, Darien notes that Angelthene is his home—when his city is threatened, he feels that his life will not be living if the city and its inhabitants are destroyed. Angelthene is presented as a city that is deeply imperfect but worth saving—a characterization that parallels Darien himself, who is violent and sometimes cruel, but is presented as wholly redeemable within the context of the novel.

Angelthene is both a setting and a presence in the novel, one that affects plot and tone. The characters’ inability to leave the city creates a closed arena in which the characters can operate, something that is significant to Loren’s strategy to save the city at the end and to the