A review by hanreads__
Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Rivals to Lovers ✔️
Forced Proximity ✔️
War ✔️
Found Family ✔️
Secret Letters ✔️

*~*~*~*~*

“𝗜 𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝘆 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗻𝗼𝘄. 𝗔 𝗽𝗶𝗲𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗿𝗺𝗼𝗿, 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗜 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂. 𝗔 𝗴𝗹𝗶𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗳𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗹, 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗜 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝘀𝗮𝗳𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘆𝗼𝘂."

I did not expect to love this book as much as others, at first I couldn’t understand the hype surrounding it, but now I understand it, and to anyone who rates it less than five stars, I think you’re crazy.

I have no clue as to what Rebecca Ross was drinking or taking while writing, but she needs to continue to do so. I am in awe of her and the masterpiece that she created.

The one thing I want to get out of the way is that this story is NOT an enemies to lovers, there is no way that Roman and Iris are enemies, they are rivals and I wish the story would stopped being described as an enemies to lovers. Neither of them hate one another, but they are competitive and are constantly trying to be better than the other.

Now onto the good stuff!

There is something beautiful about two people writing letters to one another and not knowing anything about one another, but finding safety within these letters. What’s even more beautiful is for one person to know, and yet continue to write because they want to know the other better. Roll this into a ball with the fact that they are connected by magic and family? It becomes even more beautiful, and it warmed my heart massively.

I really love the way Rebecca tackled the “found family” trope within this story because I for one have never considered what it would be like for you to up and leave everything you know to be a war correspondent, but now I feel as though I have an idea. The people you meet and spend your days with become your family, a family who rely on one another to protect each other and themselves while also trying to enjoy and hold onto the little moments that mean a lot. Marisol was such a lovely woman and definitely came across as a mother figure, and it amazes me that someone so strong and independent can continue to find the good in life day in and day out despite the things she sees. I also hope to see more of Athea in the next story, I think she’s capable of so much and it wouldn’t surprise me if she ends up fighting in the war to defend Enva.

Moving onto Roman’s family. I WANT TO PUNCH HIS DAD SO HARD IN THE FACE IT’S NOT EVEN FUNNY. Who the heck does he think he is? How dare you blame Roman for something tragic that happened, and how dare you constantly control him. He’s a piece of shit, and all he cares about is security. I do however think I’ve figured out what he was classing as security from the Little family. It filled my heart with pride when Roman went against his fathers wishes and did something for himself, it also made the story that much better in my opinion as it showed a bit of character development for Roman.

Finally, I just want to talk about the slow burn between Roman and Iris. The tension that built between them was incredibly beautiful and while the way things have currently ended is heartbreaking, I truly think they are meant to be and will over come everything. The way the fell for eachother and the way they became so in sync with one another showed just how perfect they are together, and when it was the night before things went down, their moment was precious, and one of the best intimacy scenes I have read. Sometimes you don’t need smut for something to be hot, sometimes you need just to read about the scene beginning, and it’s how it begins that makes it more remembered.

I could go on for hours about this book but I’m doing best to not spoil anything and if I continue, I will do just that. I cannot wait to purchase Ruthless Vows, and here’s to the next book ruining me more than the first.
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