Divine Rivals is a book that gave me every emotion imaginable. Rebecca Ross has a beautiful, lyrical writing style and her story telling can only be described as magical. The plot was strong and I was rooting for the characters from the moment I first met them.

My rating: 3.5 stars

Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross was a beautifully written, heartfelt romance set in a historical fantasy world in the midst of a war between gods.

With such gorgeously crafted prose, I would have expected the worldbuilding to be just as lush, however, that was unfortunately not the case. Maybe it’s my fault for coming into this book with such high expectations; it did win a Goodreads Choice Award after all. But while I did enjoy the story, and I can admit felt a twinge in my heart for Iris and Roman, Divine Rivals read more formulaic than I had anticipated given its hype.

I can completely see why others loved the characters and their romance so much. Their emotions leaped off the page and their chemistry was instantly apparent. Iris and Roman are meant to be, truly.

For me, however, I was so distracted looking for clues into the fantasy world their story took place in that I found myself a step disconnected from the main love story unfolding. I feel like this novel had so much potential to be amazing… and settled for being just good enough.

Look, this book did exactly what it promised. It gave its readers a rivals-to-lovers romance set in a historical fantasy world. It just didn’t give much else.

Thank you to the publisher, Wednesday Books/St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC of this book. All thoughts are my own.

I quite enjoyed this book! I loved the You've Got Mail vibes with the letter writing between rivals and I really came to love both our main characters. There were a few things at the end of the book that I was a little confused by but knowing it's a duology I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be confused because it will be addressed in book two or if I missed something or if something needed to be written better. I guess we'll know after I read book two! My biggest negative is the open door scene at the end of the book, that was fairly out of the blue with the rest of the book being clean, a closed door scene would have fit it much better.

I liked this but didn't love it. I don't know if it was just a bit overhyped for me with all the glowing reviews or what, but I think I missed some of what people were gushing about.

I loved the setting and the overall atmosphere, I thought Rebecca Ross did a good job creating the world and bringing the reader into it. The concept of magical typewriters was really fun and I always enjoy the hidden identity trope. I loved the way their relationship developed through the letters, but once their identities were revealed I felt like the pacing went WAY off and it totally threw me.

In general I think I liked the first half more than the second. Towards the end it felt simultaneously like not much happened but also everything was rushed.

That said, I'm intrigued by the setup for the next book and looking forward to finding out what happens!

Thank you Wednesday Books for the review copy!

This book was one of my favourites of last year. Rebecca Ross has a writing style that is immersive and enjoyable. There were so many things I liked about this novel, the characters, the backstory for the world and the ending I didn't see coming. I have been eagerly waiting for the second one. Ross has easily become an auto-buy author for me. I have loved every book that I have read by her so far.

In this story, we follow two journalists who work at the same newspaper and are competing for the same job. They become connected through letters written by enchanted typewriters. This is an enemies-to-lovers tale, and some scenes take place at the front lines of battle.

Absolutely incredible, Rebecca Ross has done it again. As an audiobook this is lovely I highly recommend.

Divine Rivals is absolutely gripping. I loved the rivalry between the characters, the enemies to lovers and that he fell first, magical typewriters and all. The end filled me with rage. If she had just listened everything the worked for wouldnt have fallen apart, and now I have to wait for the sequel.

This book was everything I needed it to be and more. Heart-pounding, gut wrenching, and all around beautiful, Ross has mastered the ability of creating a world so unlike our own and drawing the reader into it as if they are living the story alongside the characters. The gorgeous prose will have you sobbing by the end of the book for Roman and Iris.

Stunning, shockingly original, and perfect in every way, I can’t wait to see where Ross goes with Ruthless Vows at the end of the month. I loved every moment of this book and could not put it down.

I have a tendency to measure how much I love a book by whether or not I’d get a tattoo of something from the book and I can say I would definitely get one for this book. 10/5⭐️

Wow, I can't believe I didn't update my review here sooner, it's one of my top reads of the year! Thank you so much to the publisher for allowing me to read it early, I feel blessed to have experienced this masterpiece before it got so popular. And at the same time, I'm so happy it did! Definitely deserved the hype, the love, the special editions and the Goodreads Choice Awards. Everything about it is magical, gorgeous and unforgettable.

I guess this one of those books that I loved so, so much, that I couldn't write a review for it, though I read it months ago. It was just so amazing and magical, that I couldn't find the time or words to say. But it lived in my brain rent free ever since.

Also, it's in my top favorite YA Fantasy of the year.

This story is absolutely beautiful and breathtaking! The story, the writing, the feels, Iris and Roman, their banter, their letters... OMG the letters! Probably my favorite part of the book. Everything was so beautiful, whimsy and magical. Rebecca has such a way with her words, it's like she is speaking to your soul. I'm revisiting it now in preparation for Ruthless Vows and I'm getting transported into their world all over again.

I cannot wait to get my hands on a copy and read asap. I'm sure it will take over the internet next week and I'm all for it!

The genre blending in this one is just top tier. It’s got a very historical feel to it obviously which normally wouldn’t be my cup of tea, but there’s just something magical in the execution of the enemies to lovers romantasy in this setting that really works. Needs a little more worldbuilding fleshed out but I love the characters and was immediately sucked in. Looking forward to binging the sequel soon!

A swoon worthy YA romantasy that had me gripped from the very first page. As a long time Rebecca Ross fan, this is my new favorite

LOVE! If I could review this book with just one word, that would be it.

Going into this book I had no idea what it was truly about. For some reason I thought it was going to be a dark academia, rivals to lovers type of book. And boy am I so happy that I was wrong.

We have magic typewriters from the past, a magic house (?!), war, gods and goddesses, political intrigue, found family, rivals to lovers and so much more.

I ate this book up. I couldn't stop thinking about it when I wasn't reading it and I found myself sneaking reading it throughout the day (kindle perks).

I can 100% understand the hype around this book and I can't believe it took me this long to read it. I cannot wait for the next installment :)

Rebecca Ross writes such lush and entrancing prose. This work is no departure from this! Although the rivals part of this rivals to lovers story was over a bit too quickly for my liking we certainly have a compelling story here! Looking forward to the sequel!


Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an eARC.

The premise was so unique and both characters touched my heart. I don't normally remember books by the time their sequel comes out, but I have remembered this so well that I am so excited for the release of the sequel later this month.

Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for the gifted ecopy.

I loved this book SO MUCH! Why did it take me so long to read it? I cannot WAIT till the next one in December!

Our school has a summer reading program where we give interested students a copy of a book. The idea is not to test them on the material, not to require a response. We just want to keep them reading over the break. However, this requires that we pick really good titles for the program, otherwise, the kids will not read the book. We often have to sort through many titles to find the one book that will capture students' interest. Divine Rivals may be that book for this year! Teen journalists that fall in love, all while their world is being destroyed by the Gods - the kids are going to love it!

I have now read this book 3 times. I also was lucky and got the Fairyloot edition in my subscription box. I have read almost 70 books this year, and this one easily became my number 1 read. It was such a fresh story unlike any I had read before. And beyond that, the writing was beautiful.

Ruthless Vows cannot come out fast enough.

I downloaded this book off the READ NOW shelf because the cover intrigued me. After hearing the buzz about it on social media, I purchased a hardcover book without even knowing what the book was about. I am so glad I finally got to it. This is sure going to be one of my top 5 star reads for 2023. I loved the banter between Iris and Roman. It had a slow feel to it but kept me engaged in wanting more of this story. I will sure be buying the next book in the series.

Divine Rivals is a beautiful new take on the 'enemies to lovers' trope with an added twist of one sided secret penpal's. Thrust into a world in the cusp of a divine war, our two main characters battle it out in the cutthroat world of publishing, However, once magical typewriters enter the mix, bonds are created, and soon love finds a way to bring the two together despite the current state of the world they inhabit.

Rebecca Ross brings a fresh take on the concept of war torn love letters through her magical realism. With beautifully written characters struggling to find each other in a war waged by two immortal beings, Ross sinks her literary teeth in fast. Writing a novel that you can't help but devour. And once you get to the twist ending, you'll be fighting for the next book just to see how everything plays out. (I know I did).

I read it in a day because I couldn't put it down! The rivalry between Iris and Roman immediately hooked me and their budding relationship kept me riveted. The world-building was phenomenal, I could picture Oath and the war-front and every location described perfectly. I cannot wait for the sequel!