Divine Rivals - mini review
My mini review for "Divine Rivals" by Rebecca Ross, book four for my Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 2025!
Hello, hello!
In today’s post to you all, I will be sharing my review for one of the books I have read for my Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 2025 held over at The Intrepid Reader & Baker.
Feel free to ❤️ this post or leave a comment below, as I always love to hear your thoughts!
Happy reading,
Isabella Ann x
Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross
“His amusement dimmed. He didn’t like to be made fun of, and Iris’s grin broadened as she leaned back in her chair. “Or perhaps it’s Roman Cantankerous Kitt?”. He had turned and left without another word, but his jaw had been clenched.”
-Rebecca Ross
About:
In this story we follow young 18 year old Iris Winnow who is trying to keep her little family together as the world around her begins to crumble. But with the country at war, Gods who have risen from their graves, a brother who has left to fight for their city and a mother trying to drown her sorrows and grief, Iris is left wishing for the old life they had before the war. Desperate to keep focused Iris puts all of her energy into winning the columnist promotion at the Oath Gazette, her local newspaper, but her rival and enemy for this position is handsome Roman Kit, who will do anything to win.
As the days grow harder and no news has been received on her brother from the front, Iris beginnings writing to him on her Grandmother’s old typewriter, pouring out all of her feelings and troubles. But when her letters fall into Kitt’s hands through a magical doorway of connection and mystery, they are left to wonder if their hate for each other will stay strong or if their true souls will be revealed by way of ink and paper?? Will it bring them closer together then they ever dared to dream or miles apart??
“She flicked on the desk lamp and carefully turned the pages, which were so old they were speckled with mould and felt like silk beneath her fingertips. Pages that smelled like dust and tombs and places that could be reached only in the dark. Pages full of stories of gods and goddesses from a time long ago. Before the humans had slain them or bound them deep into the earth. Before magic had begun to bloom from the soil, rising from divine bones, charming certain doorways and buildings and settling into the rare object.”
-Rebecca Ross
My thoughts:
Wow, wow, wow… this book was almost 400 pages and I could have kept reading, and reading, and reading! Filled with typewriters, enchantment, letters and mysterious rivals, I was so happy to finally grab a copy at my local library. The pages were seeped with magic and I could almost hear the sound of typewriters clacking and rain falling, the smell of brewing tea and cigarette smoke dancing through the air, and the soft rustle of falling paper as I turned over the leaves .
The story is set in another world, where there is still magic left over from the Gods who used to roam the land, and it felt kind of like a mix of Greek Myths and World War I, as the two remaining Gods are at war with each other. The two Gods — Enva and Dacre — also reminded me of the Greek Myth about Hades and Persephone as their stories was similar… Dacre God of the Underworld and Enva Goddess of the Sky.
As this book is based on World War I there were some war scenes and details about injuries throughout the book, but you can always choose to skip along these if you wish, along with any other scenes in the story.
Why I loved this book so much though, was the way that Rebecca Ross incorporated a little romance, historical fiction, and fantasy all into one book. Definitely a new favourite of mine, and once I had finished the last page I headed straight to my library to get my hands on “Ruthless Vows”, the sequel to Divine Rivals…. review will be coming soon! ❤️
“Iris knelt and reached for her typewriter beneath the bed. She fed a fresh sheet of paper into the roller and then sat there, staring at its possibilities. Slowly, she began to type, her fingers meeting the keys. Her thoughts began to strike across the page. “Perhaps it begins with one person. Someone you trust. You remove a piece of armour for them; you let the light stream in, even if it makes you wince. Perhaps that is how you learn to be soft yet strong, even in fear and uncertainly. One person, one piece of steel.”
-Rebecca Ross
4/5 for my Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 2025, you can check out the full list of books here:
You've convince me!
Thanks for sharing this review with the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge