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A review by yas_sezer
Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross
4.0
4 stars
i can’t pinpoint what is missing from this but i didn’t get a 5 star feeling. in saying that though, i liked everything about it? i had a great time reading this story
the atmosphere being during the war in older times is something i thoroughly enjoyed. it felt reminiscent of when i read the book thief (although this book gave me maybe 10% of the emotions the book thief brought out of me). the typewriters, the journalist offices with the cigarette smoke smell and clouds, the rain, the sounds - i loved the description of it all and it did a great job of painting the picture for me
rowan and iris i like, but don’t love? something is missing with them. i don’t know whether it’s the way they got together and it feeling rushed, but i can also understand why that was the case (being in a war and almost dying will enhance emotions and make you want to hold onto the people around you, who would’ve thought!). even so, i do still like reading about them and their story and the typewriter letters are very sweet. i’ve been tabbing and underlining quotes that have impacted me in some way.
side characters like marisol, attie and forest i like and i feel like they’ve been developed a decent amount for a relatively short book. i connected with the girls quite quickly considering how little time i spent with them
the elements of the “behind the scenes” of war were interesting to read. i’ve always had an interest in historical fiction and history irl, so seeing the infirmary and the trenches were not a fun time but interesting. this is probably what gave me feelings of the book thief too (keep in mind, only 10%).
overall, it’s a book that doesn’t feel high stakes, but is? the magical element is not overwhelming. we have magical gods and enchanted things but that’s about it. by the time i wrote this review, i’ve already started the second book so i can say that we get more history about the gods and more of them involved in the plot, which i was missing from this book
i would recommend this. but not to everyone. i don’t think it’s the best historical fiction out there, but it is an enjoyable read. personally, i don’t mind the slower paced books so it clicked with me but i can see people finding this boring and rushed. it’s more character driven than plot heavy imo
i can’t pinpoint what is missing from this but i didn’t get a 5 star feeling. in saying that though, i liked everything about it? i had a great time reading this story
the atmosphere being during the war in older times is something i thoroughly enjoyed. it felt reminiscent of when i read the book thief (although this book gave me maybe 10% of the emotions the book thief brought out of me). the typewriters, the journalist offices with the cigarette smoke smell and clouds, the rain, the sounds - i loved the description of it all and it did a great job of painting the picture for me
rowan and iris i like, but don’t love? something is missing with them. i don’t know whether it’s the way they got together and it feeling rushed, but i can also understand why that was the case (being in a war and almost dying will enhance emotions and make you want to hold onto the people around you, who would’ve thought!). even so, i do still like reading about them and their story and the typewriter letters are very sweet. i’ve been tabbing and underlining quotes that have impacted me in some way.
side characters like marisol, attie and forest i like and i feel like they’ve been developed a decent amount for a relatively short book. i connected with the girls quite quickly considering how little time i spent with them
the elements of the “behind the scenes” of war were interesting to read. i’ve always had an interest in historical fiction and history irl, so seeing the infirmary and the trenches were not a fun time but interesting. this is probably what gave me feelings of the book thief too (keep in mind, only 10%).
overall, it’s a book that doesn’t feel high stakes, but is? the magical element is not overwhelming. we have magical gods and enchanted things but that’s about it. by the time i wrote this review, i’ve already started the second book so i can say that we get more history about the gods and more of them involved in the plot, which i was missing from this book
i would recommend this. but not to everyone. i don’t think it’s the best historical fiction out there, but it is an enjoyable read. personally, i don’t mind the slower paced books so it clicked with me but i can see people finding this boring and rushed. it’s more character driven than plot heavy imo