By: Stella Y., Grade 8
Author: Rebecca Ross
Genre: Fantasy YA
Age rating: 13-14+
Rating: 5/5
Divine Rivals is set in a world where the gods are at war and enlist people to help fight. The main character, Iris Winnow, works at a highly respected newspaper company called Oath Gazette and is working against her opponent, Rowan Kitt, to gain the position of columnist. However, due to her brother’s involvement in the war, her mother has become inattentive, forcing all responsibilities onto her. As Iris struggles with the conflict of winning the role of columnist and her growing curiosity to find more about the war and her missing brother, she finds comfort in an anonymous figure through notes from her antique typewriter. Fueled by the determination to write the truth, Iris takes a leap of faith that will lead her on a path of love and hardship.
The flow and writing of the book were incredibly smooth and were written beautifully. The slow parts felt suspended in contrast to the fast and action-packed scenes, like the moments before a fall or reaching the peak of a rollercoaster. Furthermore, the author's contrast between the characters gives you inside information that makes you want to find out. With Iris, you can feel the urgency to gain the position and find her brother, while with Kitt, there’s a weight of expectations and the need to be perfect. Rebecca Ross plays with an enemies-to-lovers plot showing the conflicting feelings and confusion between the two characters, and pulls the reader into rooting for them. Overall, Divine Rivals is an amazing read, and the writing and flow of the story were sophisticated yet mysterious. I would highly recommend it to fantasy readers who enjoyed Cruel Prince by Holly Black and Dark Shores by Danielle L. Jensen, or any readers in general.
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