About the Book
-
Author:
- Rebecca Ross
- Voices:
- Cis Boy
- Cis Girl
- Straight
- White (Non-Specified)
Cover Story: Lovely As A Whole
BFF Charm: Let Me Love You, Love
Talky Talk: All Vibes
Bonus Factors: Secret Letter Writing, Magic, Found Family
Anti-Bonus Factors: War, Grief, Cliffhanger
Relationship Status: Write To Me Like One Of Your French Girls
Content Warning: Some depictions of war and minor character deaths.
Cover Story: Lovely As A Whole
I never really looked at the dying flowers on the cover until just now. The bright blue against the black and the typewriter keys come together to make a pleasant, eye-catching collage that I quickly moved on from without lingering in the details, but I can’t deny it stands out in a sea of cartoon covers. Now that I’ve read the book, I can see the flowers are a nod to multiple elements of the book, so kudos for relevancy!
The Deal:
When Iris’s brother, Forest, joined the call of the gods’ war, leaving her and her mother behind in the city of Oath, it changed everything about their lives. It’s been five months of no contact with him, and Iris has had to drop out of school to work at a newspaper in order to support her drunk, grieving mother. The only thing that brings Iris some small comfort is writing letters to Forest and putting them in her closet—because for some reason, when she slips them under the door they disappear, and she can only hope they’re finding their way to him.
Except…they’re not. Instead, they show up in the bedroom of Roman Kitt, Iris’s rival for columnist at the paper. He doesn’t know how to tell her he’s been on the receiving end of her innermost thoughts for months until, one day, he writes back…
BFF Charm: Let Me Love You, Love
Iris is a young woman in a tough situation, alone in a sea of people. At the start, you can feel her slowly drowning from her own inactions, smothering from her grief and probably some undiagnosed depression. So even though she makes some decisions I personally could never ever do, you can’t help root for her to find what she’s looking for, in whatever manner she can, so she can really live. I’m not sure if there’s room for us to be besties, but she could certainly use someone who gives great hugs.
Oh, Roman, you big softy. I’m glad we get his perspective at key points throughout the story, because it helps to see he’s sincere, so we’re less annoyed with him than Iris for holding back the truth of his identity. He’s funny, sweet, smart, and thoughtful – what’s not to love? I could try to fight Iris for him, but he only has eyes for her. I’m curious to see what happens with his family, but I expect we’ll need to wait for book two for that.
Swoonworthy Scale: 9
Even though Iris and Roman have been competing for the same columnist spot since they met—a classic “rivals to lovers”—they aren’t complete jerks to each other for no reason. Imagine! It’s true that Roman knows a lot more about Iris right away through her letters than she knows about him, but he doesn’t use it against her. They reluctantly bond over a mutual love of writing and raw talent, and even though they don’t open up to one another right away (at least, not in person), like is recognizing like in their private griefs. Their letters are emotional and yearning, and the evolution of their relationship could be sappy if you don’t just lean in and let the book sweep you away.
This epic, heady love story kind of only feels possible or “realistic” when it’s set against the backdrop of war, because of course you need to fall in love fast; who knows what tomorrow will bring?! Live life to the fullest! Declare your undying love at 18!
Talky Talk: All Vibes
I feel like I’m probably one of the last people in the book community to read this book, as it has been recommended everywhere on the interwebs for the last year, but if that’s also you, hi! Welcome! I’ve been leery of many a popular rec lately, so I get it! But I’m glad I gave this one a shot; I couldn’t put it down and finished in a day.
Divine Rivals leans heavy on being a character study, and offering up dreamy vibes versus detailed world-building and plot-forward storytelling. I can see how it could turn off some readers who are looking for a more balanced read or maybe aren’t in the right headspace for a soft romance. Ross writes with a deft hand, instantly transporting you into the emotional center of Iris’s character. She cleverly uses some shorthand for the setting, I think relying hard on our familiarity of 1910s/WWI-era London tropes within pop culture so you don’t have to think too hard to “see” everything, even if as you step back, the magical city of Oath gets a bit fuzzy around the edges for that lack of detail. The only other Rebecca Ross book I’ve read was this exact same way with regards to the plot and world-building, but she’s got a knack for that emotional connection to the characters and a solid mood to her writing that many authors lack, so I found myself “going with it” more than I expected to.
I am very curious to see if we get more plot-related answers in the second book, and if so, how those will color my perception of this first book and the story as a whole.
Bonus Factor: Secret Letter Writing
Or what I like to call the You’ve Got Mail effect. All the plot beats you’d expect are there and done in extremely satisfying ways. If you’re the kind of romantic sap who still tears up when Joe and Kathleen finally and truly “see” each other at the end of the movie (hi, it’s me!), then this is your book.
Bonus Factor: Magic
Magic exists in this world I think because the gods and goddesses who were put to sleep underground centuries ago are…magically leaking their magical juju into the very foundations of the city? Again…just go with it. Ross does eventually explain how the letters are making their way between Roman and Iris, and it felt like a believable enough explanation for me that *waves hand* we’re all good here.
Bonus Factor: Found Family
Iris won’t always be alone even if she feels like everyone keeps leaving her, and there are some lovely side characters who may not get a lot to do, but help round out the story and make you smile.
Anti-Bonus Factor: War
What is it good for? Aside from working as the backdrop for these intense love stories that probably only work in fiction, NOT FREAKING MUCH. The god, Dacre, and his arm are slowly making their way towards Oath, but everyone there refuses to believe the war will affect their little bubble. Ross strikes a balance between us showing the horrible realities of war and not being overly descriptive about them so as not to totally ruin said vibes, but I certainly welled-up a time or two during key moments.
Anti-Bonus Factor: Grief
Both Iris and Roman have lost so much, and finding ways to deal with and heal from grief are very present themes in the book. BUT, because they are also finding a way to share and confide in each other, there’s also a strong thread of hopefulness that keeps the book from weighing you down too far.
Anti-Bonus Factor: Cliffhanger
Yeeeeah, I’m very glad I waited until both books were out before trying to read this, because that was RUDE, Ms. Ross!
Relationship Status: Write To Me Like One Of Your French Girls
I’m halfway in love with you already, Book, and we were barely together for twenty-four hours. I want to spend more time with you but I hope I don’t regret it, because I have a sneaking suspicion your sequel is going to try its best to make me cry.
Literary Matchmaking
I was caught by the similarity of Julie Berry’s Lovely War with the 1910s war setting, star-crossed lovers, and the real-life mythological gods roaming around freely.
The swoon and mysticism is strong in Cat Winter’s In The Shadow of Blackbirds, also set in a similar time period, albeit more “real world” than the magical city of Oath.
Another book that is strong on tender-hearted characters and enchanted realism vibes is The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton.
FTC Full Disclosure: I purchased my own copy of this book. I received neither money nor peanut butter cups in exchange for this review. Divine Rivals is available now.
I read and enjoyed this one.
Glad you liked it, Brian!
I loved this one, and I liked book 2 as well. I haven’t read any of her other books though, so maybe I should try some of them out.
My review of the second book went up today — I…did not like it as much as the first one. Curious to see what you think! I am curious about A River Enchanted and will probably check it out at some point when I’m in the mood for the type of stories she writes!