Name: Divine Rivals
Rating: 4.26 (520 reviews)
ISBN: 9780008588175

Rebecca Ross

NO GOD NO CREATURE NO WAR CAN COME BETWEEN THEM The latest from the number one SUNDAY TIMES bestseller Rebecca Ross

Letters of Enchantment #1

Divine Rivals

Mage

What a wonderful read ever!! It's the book I've ever read, it's the perfect enemies-to-lovers book I've ever read. I love the blossoming romance relationship between Iris and Roman and can't wait to read Ruthless Vows!!

When two young rival journalists find love through a magical connection, they must face the depths of hell, in a war among gods, to seal their fate forever.

After centuries of sleep, the gods are warring again. But eighteen-year-old Iris Winnow just wants to hold her family together. Her mother is suffering from addiction and her brother is missing from the front lines. Her best bet is to win the columnist promotion at the Oath Gazette.

To combat her worries, Iris writes letters to her brother and slips them beneath her wardrobe door, where they vanish—into the hands of Roman Kitt, her cold and handsome rival at the paper. When he anonymously writes Iris back, the two of them forge a connection that will follow Iris all the way to the front lines of battle: for her brother, the fate of mankind, and love.

Letters of Enchantment #1

Sina Meier

I liked this well enough but the pacing was... a choice. Just very weird to a point where it made the romance feel instalove-y. They are - spoilers - rivals, in any meaningful sense of the word, for about 20 minutes. But the chemistry was good so I guess there was that. Not getting-married-at-18 good but good.

Also the world-building was just not there, period. It almost comes off as if Ross did not want to write a WWI / WWII story because there is actual research involved and would much rather make sure the setting is convenient to the plot (can you imagine what the ending is hinting at if this novel were set during WWII, for example?) The trouble with stories like these is that the point of real-life history to which the in-story setting is equivalent is too close to current times to not take away from the fantasy aspect of it. (I think fantasy novels ask a very valid question as to whether we would have invented cars, for example, if we had magic.)

I think what also makes this stick out so much to me at the moment is that I finished Katherine Arden's "The Warm Hands of Ghosts" recently. Its premise, setting-wise, is not dissimilar; and it still features magical elements, in spite of being very grounded in historic events. And trust me when I say, it was dramatically better executed.

And while I feel like "Divine Rivals" was a little underdeveloped, I am simultaneously happy that Ross had the self-restraint not to make this 700 pages of repetitive scenes to try and convince us Roman and Iris are in love, as it seems to be common for the genre. I feel like I need to acknowledge this, as well as the premise and potential of the series - thus, the rating.

I liked this well enough but the pacing was... a choice. Just very weird to a point where it made the romance feel instalove-y. They are - spoilers - rivals, in any meaningful sense of the word, for about 20 minutes. But the chemistry was good so I guess there was that. Not getting-married-at-18 good but good.

Also the world-building was just not there, period. It almost comes off as if Ross did not want to write a WWI / WWII story because there is actual research involved and would much rather make sure the setting is convenient to the plot (can you imagine what the ending is hinting at if this novel were set during WWII, for example?) The trouble with stories like these is that the point of real-life history to which the in-story setting is equivalent is too close to current times to not take away from the fantasy aspect of it. (I think fantasy novels ask a very valid question as to whether we would have invented cars, for example, if we had magic.)

I think what also makes this stick out so much to me at the moment is that I finished Katherine Arden's "The Warm Hands of Ghosts" recently. Its premise, setting-wise, is not dissimilar; and it still features magical elements, in spite of being very grounded in historic events. And trust me when I say, it was dramatically better executed.

And while I feel like "Divine Rivals" was a little underdeveloped, I am simultaneously happy that Ross had the self-restraint not to make this 700 pages of repetitive scenes to try and convince us Roman and Iris are in love, as it seems to be common for the genre. I feel like I need to acknowledge this, as well as the premise and potential of the series - thus, the rating.

౨ৎ | “but i think there is a magical link between you and me. a bond that not even distance can break.”

i’m a sucker for enemies to lovers and the workplace aspect. i absolutely fell in love with iris and roman and i wish i could forget about this book just to reread it again. once i started i couldn’t put it down till it was finished to which i then thought about it for hours after.

౨ৎ | “but i think there is a magical link between you and me. a bond that not even distance can break.”

— ★ 5/5

i’m a sucker for enemies to lovers and the workplace aspect. i absolutely fell in love with iris and roman and i wish i could forget about this book just to reread it again. once i started i couldn’t put it down till it was finished to which i then thought about it for hours after.

reread count: ll

It’s mysterious. It’s full of yearning. It made me laugh. I thoroughly enjoyed Divine Rivals. It’s a bit of a slow start, but the second half is full of twists and turns. The end was heart wrenching and I cannot wait to read the sequel.

Alissa 

alexys <3

one of those books where the author tells you you should care about the romance instead of showing the characters and letting you start to root for them yourself. the whole book felt a bit forced in all aspects but was mostly enjoyable, although lost me a bit with the whole marriage thing

rachel

I enjoyed the opening and Ross' prose, but the story might have worked better had the only fantasy element been the magical typewriters. The gods and the war upon which the premise of the novel are so flimsy that it is hard to care about the circumstances that shape the characters. "World War I except the politics have been stripped and replaced with bootleg Hades and Persephone with poorly explained opposing sides" is a setting that distracts more than it provides context or intrigue. It doesn't help that the pacing is clunky (especially the leap from rivals to lovers!) or that the side characters are paper-thin plot devices. Most baffling is the use of dual POVs in a novel that doesn't need one: imagine if, like Divine Rivals, Pride and Prejudice had been written with 80% of Elizabeth's POV and intermittently flipped to Darcy's for the rest, thereby sabotaging the impact of learning both his feelings and development as a character.

alice

This was a really good book! I love the characterization so much. The language and the flow of events is poetic, almost like a dance. Absolutely amazing! I want to read it again!

Camron Swartzendruber

Divine Rivals has been one of the best books I’ve read in a long time. I think the author is such a good writer and I love the poetical way she describes things. This book made me love words and writing more than I already do. The plot is in-depth, well thought out, and intriguing. The romance is adorable and this book made me feel deeply- both pain and joy.

Jeweliet Coffee

Ok so this was a really great story but I so desperately wished that it had discussed the politics of the war more and was like 200 pages longer. The two main protagonists needed more time together to really evolve their relationship to the level it was at. Overall it’s a great read— would recommend!

Divine Rivals Letters of Enchantment #1

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